Debates of March 28th, 2022

Taxation

[Randy Boissonnault, Liberal, Minister of Tourism and Associate Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, the tourism sector is critical to this country. The Canadian economy will not fully recover until the tourism sector does. I understand the importance of the wine economy to the tourism economy.

Let me say I had the pleasure and the opportunity to attend dozens of pre-budget consultations, and the good news is that we will have an announcement of the budget in the coming days. If Conservatives want to support Canadians, they should support and vote for Bill C-8 today or at the latest tomorrow.

Public Service of Canada

[Sophie Chatel, Liberal, Pontiac, QC]

Mr. Speaker, as part of its commitment to a high standard of ethics and accountability, the government absolutely needs to protect whistle-blowers. These are the ones who expose cases of serious wrongdoing. Could the President of the Treasury Board update the House on what she is doing to safeguard whistle-blowers?

[Mona Fortier, Liberal, President of the Treasury Board]

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my hard-working, hon. colleague for Pontiac for the question. Those who disclose serious wrongdoing must be protected. Canadian law provides a secure and confidential process for disclosing serious wrongdoing in the federal government and offers protection from acts of reprisal. Our government has strengthened these processes by improving training, transparency and monitoring. We are going to continue improving the whistle-blower protections and supports, including exploring possible amendments to the Public Servants Disclosure Protection Act.

Canadian Coast Guard

[Alistair MacGregor, NDP, Cowichan—Malahat—Langford, BC]

Mr. Speaker, nearly two years ago, the government signed an agreement with the Pacheedaht First Nation in my riding. They committed to build and co-manage a $22-million Coast Guard facility on their territory near Port Renfrew. Chief Jeff Jones is rightly concerned because the federal government has provided no funding and discussions have stopped. Following last year's devastating container spill, coastal protection is needed now more than ever.

Why has the government delivered zero funding and stopped talking with the Pacheedaht?

[Joyce Murray, Liberal, Minister of Fisheries]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to remind the member that after 10 years of very little investment in the Canadian Coast Guard, it is our government that has renewed the fleet. We are building 31 new, large vessels. The Coast Guard is working with many coastal communities, hand in hand, to develop guardianship programs so those communities can be eyes and ears on the ground and help with the important spill response and accident response that the Coast Guard is responsible for. We appreciate the community's help with that.

The Coast Guard's 60th anniversary is this year. Let us celebrate that, too.

The Environment

[Elizabeth May, Green, Saanich—Gulf Islands, BC]

Mr. Speaker, tomorrow we are expecting the government to release its plan for emissions reductions. Without seeing it, unfortunately we know that it will fail to meet the urgency of the climate emergency. It is clear on the science that net-zero by 2050 is the wrong target. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change made it clear that the only way to hold to the 1.5°C we agreed to in the Paris agreement, and which is what we hope will be a livable level of climate disruption, is to make rapid, deep cuts by 2030, which Canada currently does not have.

Will the government tell us when it will update the target to meet the demands that we agreed to at COP26 in Glasgow?

[Terry Duguid, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Environment and Climate Change]

Mr. Speaker, I would say to the House that, through the efforts of millions of Canadians from coast to coast to coast, Canada has successfully flattened its emissions curve. However, as we are seeing from the immediate devastating impacts of a changing climate, I would agree with the hon. member that we need to do more on a faster timeline. That is why our government committed to table the 2030 emissions reduction plan at the end of March 2022, informed by consultations on key emissions reduction numbers. The hon. member will know that the end of March is coming soon.

[The Deputy Speaker, Conservative, Chris d'Entremont]

That does it for question period today.

I do want to remind members, when talking about other ministers or members of the House of Commons, that we do not use their first or last names.

[Luc Berthold, Conservative, Mégantic—L'Érable, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order.

Considering the answers given by the Minister of Health in the House today, I am sure that if you were to seek it, you would find unanimous consent of the House to allow the Minister of Health to immediately table all of the scientific documentation recommending the federal vaccine mandate, as he promised to do last week.

[The Deputy Speaker, Conservative, Chris d'Entremont]

All those opposed to the hon. member moving the motion will please say nay.

[Some hon. members]

Nay.

Status of Opposition Party

[John Brassard, Conservative, Barrie—Innisfil, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I am rising to add to my point of order of last week concerning the coalition agreement between the Liberal and New Democratic parties.

On Thursday, I asked whether the Chair would indicate whether it would be helpful, in approaching a ruling, to know whether there were any signed versions of the agreement or additional side deals. In this morning's edition of The Hill Times, it was reported that this backroom coalition deal is, despite public appearances otherwise, a signed agreement.

Allow me to offer a selection of three quotations from the newspaper. One:

The Liberals and the NDP stunned Canadians across the country last Tuesday by announcing they signed a confidence and supply agreement which will allow the Liberals to govern until...2025...

Number two:

[The Prime Minister's] decision to sign this agreement with the NDP came as a total surprise for caucus members.

Number three:

The [Liberal caucus] meeting lasted about 90 minutes, during which [the Prime Minister] informed MPs about his decision to sign the agreement.

Earlier today, CTV reported that the leader of the NDP, the now moderate wing of the Liberal Party, said that he is confident that the Prime Minister will follow through on the deal because he “got it in writing”.

The only thing worse than a backroom deal is a secret backroom deal.

Last week, I called upon the government to come clean with the House and with all Canadians by tabling the signed agreement and any other side deals. I renew that call here and now. Canadians need to know the full truth.

The Liberals' silence to date on my point of order in fact speaks volumes. I hope they are not just relying on friends in the wings to do their bidding. The government must come clean to the House and defend and explain this unprecedented arrangement.

In closing, I ask for unanimous consent to table the Hill Times article published today entitled, “'No difference left between the Liberals and the NDP' after confidence and supply agreement, say some Liberal MPs.”

[The Deputy Speaker, Conservative, Chris d'Entremont]

All those opposed to the hon. member moving the motion will please say nay.

[Some hon. members]

Nay.

[The Deputy Speaker, Conservative, Chris d'Entremont]

The member for New Westminster—Burnaby is rising on a point of order.

[Peter Julian, NDP, New Westminster—Burnaby, BC]

Mr. Speaker, this is the danger for the Conservatives when they prolong what has been a frivolous point of order.

The official opposition House leader was last week telling the House that this was some kind of coalition government that the NDP and Liberals had put into place. Today, he has contradicted himself by stating that it is indeed a confidence and supply agreement, thus contradicting everything he said last week saying it was a coalition government.

We have basically come to the end of what has been a series of frivolous and vexatious points of order. It is very true that this is a confidence and supply agreement. It is very true that this is a practice we have seen in numerous Canadian provinces and in other countries such as the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand.

At no point, with confidence and supply agreements, has there ever been the kind of attempt to put a frivolous point of order in place as the official opposition House leader has attempted to do. I was thinking that what he was actually doing was rising to thank the NDP for getting dental care for 30,000 people in Barrie—Innisfil, for getting a Canada pharmacare act for people in Barrie—

[The Deputy Speaker, Conservative, Chris d'Entremont]

We are getting far into debate on this one. I want to render a decision as soon as I can on this.

The hon. opposition House leader is rising.

[John Brassard, Conservative, Barrie—Innisfil, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I will believe it when I see it.

For the Speaker's reference, in the first paragraph I did refer to the coalition agreement between the Liberal and New Democratic parties. I have not changed a thing.

[The Deputy Speaker, Conservative, Chris d'Entremont]

I want to make the House aware that we will try to render a decision tomorrow if we possibly can.

[Kyle Seeback, Conservative, Dufferin—Caledon, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order. During question period today, the member for Winnipeg South said that the Parliamentary Budget Officer confirmed that 8 out of 10 Canadians are, in fact, better off as a result of the Liberal carbon tax. I have here with me right now Appendix A to that report, pages 18 to 21, to show that this is not necessarily the conclusion of the PBO.

I would like unanimous consent to table these documents.

[The Deputy Speaker, Conservative, Chris d'Entremont]

All those opposed to the hon. member's moving the motion will please say nay.

[Some hon. members]

No.

Canadian Human Rights Commission

[The Deputy Speaker, Conservative, Chris d'Entremont]

It is my duty to lay upon the table, pursuant to subsection 61(4) of the Canadian Human Rights Act, the report from the Canadian Human Rights Commission for the year 2021.

Pursuant to Standing Order 108(3)(e), this report is deemed to have been permanently referred to the Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights.

Government Response to Petitions

[Kevin Lamoureux, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Pursuant to Standing Order 36(8)(a), I have the honour to table, in both official languages, the government's responses to six petitions. These returns will be tabled in an electronic format.

Health

[Sean Casey, Liberal, Charlottetown, PE]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the following two reports of the Standing Committee on Health.

The first report is entitled “Supplementary Estimates (C), 2021-22: Vote 1c under Canadian Food Inspection Agency, Votes 1c and 5c under Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Votes 1c and 10c under Department of Health and Votes 1c and 10c under Public Health Agency of Canada”.

The second report is entitled “Main Estimates 2022-23: Votes 1 and 5 under Canadian Food Inspection Agency, Votes 1 and 5 under Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Votes 1, 5 and 10 under Department of Health, Vote 1 under Patented Medicine Prices Review Board and Votes 1, 5 and 10 under Public Health Agency of Canada”.