Debates of April 1st, 2022

Poverty

[Don Davies, NDP, Vancouver Kingsway, BC]

Madam Speaker, Canada's rising food prices are hurting families that were already struggling. Two million children are now at risk of going to school hungry. In a country as wealthy as Canada, no child should have to get through the day on an empty stomach.

For many years, New Democrats have called for a national school nutrition program to give every student access to healthy food. In the last election, both the NDP and the Liberals pledged $1 billion toward this urgent priority. Will this critical investment be delivered in budget 2022?

[Karina Gould, Liberal, Minister of Families]

Madam Speaker, I would like to start by acknowledging my colleague and the several members in the House who have been advocating for a national school food policy. I am looking forward to working with them to deliver this for children across the country.

We share with them the concern that no child in this country should go to school hungry. We know these programs improve learning outcomes, and we know they do what needs to be done to make sure they are healthy, so I look forward to working with him to deliver this for Canadians.

Indigenous Affairs

[Michael McLeod, Liberal, Northwest Territories, NT]

Madam Speaker, in 2017, the Prime Minister met His Holiness Pope Francis and invited him to Canada to deliver a public apology to indigenous people. For decades, first nations, Inuit and Métis families, survivors and communities have been calling for a papal apology, recognizing the harm done and the ongoing impacts of residential schools.

Today, after meetings with indigenous delegations, Pope Francis apologized to indigenous people in Canada from the Vatican. Could the parliamentary secretary inform the House about this?

[Jaime Battiste, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations]

Madam Speaker, I would like to start off by thanking the member for Northwest Territories for his wisdom and guidance in our caucus and for his hard work on this.

The Government of Canada acknowledges the apology from Pope Francis to the delegation in Rome. We know it is an important step toward rebuilding trust and addressing the historical wrongs committed by the Catholic church against indigenous people. We welcome an apology from Pope Francis on Canadian soil. It would be symbolic for indigenous people across the country as we continue on our journey of healing in this country.

International Trade

[Randy Hoback, Conservative, Prince Albert, SK]

Madam Speaker, Canada's export-dependent sectors have said that the WTO's upcoming ministerial conference must secure ambitious outcomes across the board. This includes removing pandemic related restrictions, fixing the appellate body and improving transparency. In addition, the global trading community must ensure Russia is condemned in all international institutions.

What is the government's plan to ensure this WTO ministerial conference is used to further isolate Putin and his aggression?

[Mary Ng, Liberal, Minister of International Trade]

Madam Speaker, Canada was the first country to revoke Russia's and Belarus's most favoured nation status as trading partners under Canadian law. Canada then worked with our allies to lead a WTO statement condemning Russia's invasion of Ukraine that called on WTO members to suspend Russia's most favoured nation status and to suspend Russia's ascension to the WTO.

As we have said from the very beginning of Russia's unjustified invasion of Ukraine, we will do everything we can to ensure that President Putin and his enablers—

[The Assistant Deputy Speaker, NDP, Carol Hughes]

The hon. member for Elgin—Middlesex—London.

Agriculture and Agri-Food

[Karen Vecchio, Conservative, Elgin—Middlesex—London, ON]

Madam Speaker, agricultural producers in Elgin—Middlesex—London and across Canada are experiencing challenges from global fertilizer shortages, the increase in the costs of inputs and production, and the increase of the carbon tax today. These factors are threatening Canada's food supply and the security of the supply chains.

What is the government's plan to support Canadian agriculture and agribusinesses to prevent the supply chain disruption and the food shortages?

[Francis Drouin, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food]

Madam Speaker, with regard to fertilizer availability, this is something that our government takes very seriously. It is working with our partners and industry leaders to ensure that we have fertilizer available in Canada. I know some farmers were able to book early in December and January, but there are some impacts on farmers today, and we will be continuing to work with the industry to ensure that we have a solution.

The other thing the hon. member can do is pass Bill C-8 right away, because that would give a rebate to farmers today, if Conservatives would work with us on Bill C-8.

[Jamie Schmale, Conservative, Haliburton—Kawartha Lakes—Brock, ON]

Madam Speaker, the Liberals' failure to take the crisis facing our food supply seriously hurts Canadian farmers and families. The Ontario Agri Business Association and farmers in my riding support sanctions against Russia. However, they have asked, along with Conservatives, if tariffs will apply to fertilizer purchased before March 2 and if orders will be allowed to be offloaded here in Canada.

With the cost of food rising daily, the last thing we need is additional pressure on our agricultural sector. Will the minister, for once, actually respond to the concerns of Canadian farmers?

[Francis Drouin, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food]

Madam Speaker, fertilizer availability is important in Canada. At the same time, this has been caused by Putin's illegal war, and we have to take serious action against that. We are working with the industry to ensure that fertilizer remains available in Canada and that it remains at a reasonable price.

The Economy

[Jamie Schmale, Conservative, Haliburton—Kawartha Lakes—Brock, ON]

Madam Speaker, Canadians are still deeply concerned that the government has no plan to address skyrocketing food and gas prices. An inflation crisis, coupled with supply chain shortages, is forcing many businesses to raise prices anywhere from 25% to 40% just to stay afloat. Higher energy, fertilizer, wheat and corn prices are all impacting the cost of food here in Canada.

When will the Prime Minister finally table a plan so that Canadians can feed their families?

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

Madam Speaker, the Conservatives continue to ignore basic economic facts. Canada's GDP rose again in January, making eight consecutive months of growth. We have recovered over 3.4 million jobs lost during the pandemic, 2021 saw Canada's largest annual trade surplus since 2008, totalling $6.6 billion. We also retained S&P and Moody's AAA credit ratings.

That is delivering for Canadians. That is delivering for small business. That is real leadership.

Veterans

[Luc Desilets, Bloc, Rivière-des-Mille-Îles, QC]

Madam Speaker, services for francophone veterans are getting worse instead of better.

An anglophone's application for disability benefits is processed in 20 weeks, but francophones are currently waiting 76 weeks. The wait time is six months longer now than it was in 2018.

The minister claims that all is well, however. The Standing Committee on Veterans Affairs wrote to ask him to explain why independent analysts paint a less rosy picture of the situation. We are still awaiting a response.

When will the minister be accountable to francophone veterans?

[Darrell Samson, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Veterans Affairs and Associate Minister of National Defence]

Madam Speaker, we recognize that we need to do more to ensure that francophone veterans get a response in a timely manner—

[The Assistant Deputy Speaker, NDP, Carol Hughes]

I must interrupt the parliamentary secretary. He will have to start over because the interpretation is not working.

[An hon. member]

He is not wearing his headset.

[The Assistant Deputy Speaker, NDP, Carol Hughes]

The hon. parliamentary secretary is not wearing his headset. While we wait for him to put it on, I remind all members, ministers and parliamentary secretaries that they must wear their headsets or they may lose their chance to ask a question or give an answer.

The hon. parliamentary secretary.

[Darrell Samson, Liberal, Sackville—Preston—Chezzetcook, NS]

Madam Speaker, as I was saying, we recognize that we need to do much more for francophone veterans when it comes to the wait times for a response to their application.

We have created a dedicated francophone unit to improve the situation for francophones on the ground. We have also hired many francophone and bilingual employees to process these applications. Our $340‑million investment is helping us make significant progress on this issue.

[Luc Desilets, Bloc, Rivière-des-Mille-Îles, QC]

Mr. Speaker, services for francophone veterans are deteriorating. An expert confirmed this at committee. She has helped more than 1,200 veterans with their valiant struggle to access services.

She confirmed that officials are recommending that francophone veterans apply in English. They are told that things will move more quickly if they apply in English. In other words, if they have issues getting service in French in Canada, they have to speak English.

Is that how we should be thanking francophones who have served Canada?

[Darrell Samson, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Veterans Affairs and Associate Minister of National Defence]

Madam Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague for his question. That is absolutely not what we should be doing. We can serve people in French. That is why we have a francophone unit dedicated to doing just that, as I mentioned earlier.

We are hiring more bilingual people. Plus, let us not forget that our government has invested more than $11 million to help serve and support veterans across Canada.

We have been there for veterans, and we will be continue to be there for them, francophones included.

Official Languages

[Joël Godin, Conservative, Portneuf—Jacques-Cartier, QC]

Madam Speaker, Canadian are proud of both official languages, English and French. They must be protected and integrated into federal-provincial agreements. If the federal government does not enforce the Official Languages Act, who will?

Furthermore, the decline of French in Canada must stop now. Will the Minister of Official Languages commit to amending Bill C-13 to include language clauses, among other things?

[Marc Serré, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Official Languages]

Madam Speaker, I thank the member for his question and for his work on official languages.

Our government understands the importance of the substantive equality of both official languages. This means strengthening the positive measures in the bill as well as co-operation with our partners and the provinces.

We will consider all the implications related to official languages. We will study the amendments and work with the opposition and with communities across the country on the bill.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship

[Bernard Généreux, Conservative, Montmagny—L'Islet—Kamouraska—Rivière-du-Loup, QC]

Madam Speaker, I am issuing a heartfelt plea to the government to help Laurence Couture Gagnon, a young Canadian mother who had to flee the war in Ukraine with her newborn, Léo. They are in Poland.

She desperately wants to return to Canada, but the embassy in Warsaw is taking a long time to issue a citizenship certificate for her baby, who is also Canadian. Once they have the certificate, they can get a passport and come back to Canada. How is the government going to help me help her?

[Marie-France Lalonde, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Immigration]

Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for his question.

Since day one, Canada has been there to help Ukrainians fleeing Putin's war. We will continue to work with them. More than 12,000 Ukrainians arrived this week alone.

My colleague is well aware that we cannot talk about specific cases. I strongly encourage him to come to see me, and we will work together.