Debates of June 6th, 2022

Health

[Omar Alghabra, Liberal, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, my hon. colleague is right about one thing: We are seeing delays at airports across the entire world. We are seeing an increased demand and appetite for people who want to travel, and the supply is trying to catch up. However, we are not resting until we fix these delays. We have increased resources at CATSA, CBSA and airports. We are working with airports, airlines and all stakeholders and will do everything we can to ensure that travellers have a smooth experience.

[Melissa Lantsman, Conservative, Thornhill, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the minister is playing catch-up by hiring a fraction of those who were fired because of these mandates. The information disclosed by the government revealed that it failed to spend nearly a quarter of CATSA's budget last year, despite record lineups, delays and staffing shortages at our airports.

We know that the Liberal vaccine mandate is keeping millions from flying. Are domestic travel restrictions being kept in place because the government does not want to deal with additional travellers, or is it just a way of punishing Canadians who do not agree with it?

[Omar Alghabra, Liberal, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives are going through an identity crisis. They do not know what policies they support and what policies they oppose. The only thing they know is they want to inflame anger and frustration. They have no idea how to address the current challenges we have.

Our government is a responsible government. We are working with stakeholders, airports, airlines, CATSA and the CBSA, and are offering real, concrete solutions to address these issues. Our government is on the job while all the Conservatives can do is yell and scream with no ideas.

Passports

[Louise Chabot, Bloc, Thérèse-De Blainville, QC]

Mr. Speaker, people are outraged about having to wait so long to get their passports.

Even for emergency services, they are waiting in line for hours, only to be sent home. People are even camping out in front of the passport offices to make sure they get a place in line.

Passports are not concert tickets. This is a public service paid for by tax dollars. Will the government at least open its points of service on weekends to deal with urgent cases at no extra cost?

[Karina Gould, Liberal, Minister of Families]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague for the question.

As we know, this is an unprecedented time, when many Canadians want to travel at the same time. Many passports expired over the past two years, and we are in the process of ensuring that Canadians can travel because we know that is what they want to do.

As I have already mentioned in the House, many offices across the country are open in the evening and on Saturdays. We are doing what we can to provide this service to Canadians.

[Louise Chabot, Bloc, Thérèse-De Blainville, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the number of passport applications is definitely high. There was a travel ban for two years. Anyone could have seen this increase coming, except for this government. Once again the government is not proactive; it is reactive.

This crisis could have been avoided, but it is too late. Will the government fix this mess by temporarily opening offices on the weekends, free of charge, for people leaving the country within 48 hours?

[Karina Gould, Liberal, Minister of Families]

Mr. Speaker, it is really reassuring to hear the Bloc talk about Canadian passports. We are in the process of hiring more employees. Since January, 600 employees have been hired. We are now hiring another 600, and 600 Service Canada employees are being redeployed to ensure that we can better respond to Canadians' needs.

We will continue to change the process because we know that it is important for all Canadians across the country to have access to their passports.

Official Languages

[Dominique Vien, Conservative, Bellechasse—Les Etchemins—Lévis, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Parliamentary Budget Officer tabled a study on the estimated cost of implementing Bill C‑13 on official languages.

Treasury Board, Canadian Heritage and IRCC refused to provide the PBO with their planned expenditures for implementing this bill.

This is public money. It is money given to us by our citizens. This is a question of transparency and integrity.

What are they trying to hide?

[Ginette Petitpas Taylor, Liberal, Minister of Official Languages and Minister responsible for the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for her question. I also want to thank the Parliamentary Budget Officer for his work.

Our modernization of the Official Languages Act is still being debated in Parliament, and it is customary to wait until a bill is officially passed before drafting any accompanying regulations. That is particularly important in a minority Parliament.

We look forward to passing the bill as soon as possible. Once again, we hope that all opposition parties will work with us to ensure that it receives royal assent soon.

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

Mr. Speaker, I assure my colleague that the Conservatives will work in support of the French language.

Not a week goes by without us hearing a story about this government's contempt for official languages. Last Thursday, the Parliamentary Budget Officer revealed that, in response to his inquiries, three departments refused to disclose their planned expenditures pertaining to the modernization of official languages. This was this first time that this officer of the House of Commons has not gotten a response.

What excuse does the Prime Minister have this time?

[Ginette Petitpas Taylor, Liberal, Minister of Official Languages and Minister responsible for the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency]

Mr. Speaker, once again, I would like to thank my colleague for his question.

As I said, Bill C-13 is now before the House of Commons and committee. Committees have important work to do.

Before the bill receives royal assent, we need to do all the work to ensure that it receives royal assent. Afterwards, we can implement the bill, absolutely.

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

Mr. Speaker, the question is simple. They are not answering a question about a dollar amount included in the budget. In the budget, the Liberals set out $16 million to modernize the Official Languages Act. The Parliamentary Budget Officer is asking them questions. He is an impartial officer here, in the House of Commons, and the government is incapable of answering him.

What is the government hiding?

[Ginette Petitpas Taylor, Liberal, Minister of Official Languages and Minister responsible for the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency]

Mr. Speaker, the answer is simple. We have absolutely nothing to hide on this side of the House. We want to do everything we can to protect and promote the beautiful French language. That is why we are moving forward with an ambitious bill that has more bite.

I hope that my hon. colleague and all the parties in the House will work with us to get this bill passed as quickly as possible.

Indigenous Affairs

[Viviane LaPointe, Liberal, Sudbury, ON]

Mr. Speaker, no relationship is more important to our government than the relationship with indigenous peoples. Over the past few years, our government has settled many land claims with indigenous communities in order to renew nation-to-nation relationships founded on community priorities and to right past wrongs. These settlements are a crucial part of our reconciliation process.

Would the minister please tell the House about our government's recent settlement with the Siksika First Nation?

[Marc Miller, Liberal, Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations]

Mr. Speaker, since 1910, the Siksika Nation has been deprived of half of its lands and its fair share of the resources on those lands. Its claim is one of the largest in the country, and the community has waited over 112 years for Canada to address this historic injustice.

That is why, today, we are celebrating the signing of a $1.3-billion land claim settlement with the Siksika Nation. This settlement cannot erase the past, but we will continue to work with the Siksika Nation to build a better future for generations to come.

Ethics

[James Bezan, Conservative, Selkirk—Interlake—Eastman, MB]

Mr. Speaker, the Minister of International Trade needs to explain how a close personal friend wound up $17,000 dollars richer after giving the minister a couple of days of media training. Documents tabled in the House show that in April 2020, the minister hired a PR firm run by Liberal insider and CBC pundit Amanda Alvaro just a month after the COVID-19 pandemic began, at a time when many Canadian small businesses were struggling just to survive.

The minister needs to come clean. Why did she award a lucrative contract to someone who describes her as a “dear friend”?

[Mary Ng, Liberal, Minister of International Trade]

Mr. Speaker, here are the facts. This contract was proactively disclosed to the public over two years ago. I was not involved in the decision to award it, and this contract was thoroughly reviewed by departmental civil servants to comply with all procurement rules.

[Richard Bragdon, Conservative, Tobique—Mactaquac, NB]

Mr. Speaker, where I come from, wrong is still wrong. A good business pays well but being a “dear friend” to a Liberal minister seems to pay even better. The latest example of this is the Minister of International Trade, who awarded her close personal friend a $17,000 media contract. It is unacceptable that well-connected Liberal insiders continue to get sweetheart deals as everyday Canadians continue to struggle with the ever-rising cost of living, with no end in sight and no help from the NDP-Liberal government.

When did the minister start taking after the Prime Minister in thinking she is above the law? Wrong is wrong, is it not?

[Mary Ng, Liberal, Minister of International Trade]

Mr. Speaker, all information related to this communications contract was proactively disclosed to the public over two years ago in a transparent manner. At the height of the pandemic, it was critical for small businesses, for workers and for families to know what support was available to them. The results speak for themselves. Over five million jobs were saved as a result of the wage subsidy. Over 900,000 small businesses received a loan through a CEBA loan.

[James Bezan, Conservative, Selkirk—Interlake—Eastman, MB]

Mr. Speaker, the trade minister really needs to brush up on her ethics rules. I would like to remind her that ministers are forbidden from advancing the interests of their close personal friends. This contract is not in dispute. The problem is that the minister awarded $17,000 to Amanda Alvaro, who describes the minister as a “dear friend” and who also ran the minister's election campaign in 2017.

Will the minister admit she broke ethics rules, and will she co-operate fully with the Ethics Commissioner’s investigation?

[Mary Ng, Liberal, Minister of International Trade]

Mr. Speaker, I want to reiterate again that I was not involved in the decision to award the contract, and this contract was thoroughly reviewed by departmental civil servants to comply with all procurement rules. Of course, I will always collaborate and co-operate as required.

Diversity and Inclusion

[Sameer Zuberi, Liberal, Pierrefonds—Dollard, QC]

Mr. Speaker, last year, in the community of London, Ontario, a heinous Islamophobic attack took the lives of four members of the Afzaal family and left a young son orphaned. Canadian Muslims are no strangers to acts of violence and hate: the Centre culturel islamique de Québec, the IMO mosque in Etobicoke as well as London. Hate and bigotry have no place in Canada.

We must all contribute to building an inclusive society.

Can the Minister of Housing and Diversity and Inclusion tell this House how our government is fighting Islamophobia following last year's national summit?

[Ahmed Hussen, Liberal, Minister of Housing and Diversity and Inclusion]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. member for his really important advocacy for this really important work.

As we commemorate the one-year anniversary of the London attack and the five-year anniversary of the Quebec mosque shooting, we know that Islamophobia is a troubling and real fact for far too many Canadian Muslims in Canada. That is why our government is creating the new position of special representative on combatting Islamophobia. Just this morning, I announced on behalf of our government that the call for applications for this really important role is now open. Through this step, we are combatting hate and building a more inclusive society.

Indigenous Affairs

[Leah Gazan, NDP, Winnipeg Centre, MB]

Mr. Speaker, the national inquiry's final report on missing and murdered indigenous women and girls came out three years ago, and indigenous leaders and survivors are calling the government's failure to act a national shame. Every call for justice that the government ignores is costing lives. For three years, my community has proposed a low-barrier, 24-7 safe space. In the last month alone, lives could have been saved if the government had listened.

Will the government immediately fund a 24-7, low-barrier safe space in Winnipeg?

[Marc Miller, Liberal, Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations]

Mr. Speaker, clearly, as a country, we continue to fail indigenous women, children and LGBTQ people. The one-year anniversary is not something to look back on, despite our investments of billions of dollars into addressing this national strategy, and pat ourselves on the back; this is something we have to address as an entirety in society. Whether it is us, the provinces or cities, we all have our part to do to invest and make sure people are safe in this country. We will continue to do it.

On the federal side, we will continue to work across the country to do exactly what the report asked, which is to have a systemic approach to this ongoing national tragedy.