Debates of Nov. 28th, 2023

Carbon Pricing

[The Speaker, Liberal, Greg Fergus]

I would like to once again remind all members not to speak unless it is their turn to do so. That way everyone can hear the question and answer.

The hon. member for Louis-Saint-Laurent.

[Gérard Deltell, Conservative, Louis-Saint-Laurent, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Liberal government is not worth the cost. It is costing all Canadians more and more. The Liberal carbon tax on farmers has a direct impact on food prices. I would like to remind members that people are struggling to put food on the table right now.

We, the Conservatives, have made a common-sense proposal to eliminate the Liberal carbon tax on food production. I am talking about Bill C-234, which is currently before the Senate. It does not happen every day, but the Bloc Québécois, the NDP and even the Green Party agree with us on this. Only the sore losers disagree.

Why is the government now giving unelected senators the power to overturn the will of the House of Commons?

[Steven Guilbeault, Liberal, Minister of Environment and Climate Change]

Mr. Speaker, it is interesting to see the double standard the Conservatives are applying to the Senate, because they are not shy about using the Senate to block bills that they do not like.

I would also like to remind the House that we saw in the news recently how independent senators are being intimidated by Conservative senators at the request of the Conservative Party of Canada in the House. That is not how things work. We do not tell anyone in the Senate how to vote or what to do. We have discussions, but we do not force anyone to do anything, unlike the Conservative Party of Canada.

[Gérard Deltell, Conservative, Louis-Saint-Laurent, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the reality in my riding, and I am sure it is the same in Montreal, is that food banks are overflowing. They are not overflowing with food. They are overflowing with people who used to donate to food banks but now have to use them. Over two million Canadians cannot afford food, so they go to food banks.

What we are trying to do is bring down the cost of food by helping farmers, but the Liberal government and the Minister of Environment want senators to oppose the will of the House of Commons.

Does the minister think that is democratic?

[Steven Guilbeault, Liberal, Minister of Environment and Climate Change]

Mr. Speaker, how odd that the Conservative Party never mentions the $1.5 billion we give farmers across the country to help them shrink their carbon footprint. How odd that they never talk about the effects of climate change, which cost farmers hundreds of millions of dollars. Those costs are going up.

Speaking of the Senate, according to media reports, some Conservative senators, at the behest of the Conservative Party, engaged in violence against other senators. Some senators even had to leave their homes following the campaign of violence orchestrated by the Conservative Party of Canada.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Greg Fergus]

Before I give the member for Beloeil—Chambly the floor, I would like to remind all members that it is very important to use parliamentary language even when they do not have the floor. Members must not accuse people of lying deliberately.

The hon. member for Beloeil—Chambly.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship

[Yves-François Blanchet, Bloc, Beloeil—Chambly, QC]

Mr. Speaker, over the past few days the Minister of Immigration has made disrespectful comments about members of the Bloc Québécois who are asking questions, which is our job, and has even impugned Quebec, which is highly questionable. Can we put all this behind us?

Can the minister show the high-mindedness he is known for, which his office demands, and acknowledge that based on his own government's commitments, he owes Quebec $460 million for refugee intake?

[Marc Miller, Liberal, Minister of Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, I very clearly said that Canada is not an ATM. We are going to hold discussions with my colleagues from Quebec to sort out all the expenses incurred. We have demands of Quebec too, but we are not going to hash them out on the floor of the House of Commons with the Bloc Québécois. I am going to discuss them with a responsible government, like Quebec.

[Yves-François Blanchet, Bloc, Beloeil—Chambly, QC]

Mr. Speaker, it seems I am not getting anywhere.

I do not know who he thinks he is, but he owes Quebec $460 million.

If I do not pay my credit card bill, I would not say that I am not an ATM. That is a bit of a smart-alecky answer. It is unworthy of a parliamentarian. It shows a lack of respect for parliamentarians. It shows a lack of respect for Quebec. Why is he not sitting down with Quebec, reaching an agreement and paying his debts?

That would be the bare minimum we should expect from him, especially when the Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs has recognized that Quebec is providing more than its share of the effort.

Minister, do your job.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Greg Fergus]

I remind members that all questions and answers must be addressed through the Chair.

The hon. Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship.

[Marc Miller, Liberal, Minister of Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, I would simply say that the Bloc Québécois is not Quebec.

I am treating this feigned outrage for what it is. If the Bloc Québécois ever has concrete demands, we can discuss them. I have a duty to speak with my responsible counterparts in the Government of Quebec. That is what I want to do. We will engage in two-way communication. This relationship is not a one-way street.

[Yves-François Blanchet, Bloc, Beloeil—Chambly, QC]

Mr. Speaker, Quebeckers should take note of the fact that, according to the Minister of Immigration and his friends who applauded him, an elected Liberal member is worth more than an elected Bloc Québécois member. I invite him to take note of the fact that the federal government has an agreement with Quebec. Quebec spends $460 million and honours its part of the agreement, which is essentially to do the work of the minister. The minister says that he does not want to pay too much.

We speak through the Chair, but we also use our brain.

[Marc Miller, Liberal, Minister of Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, it is clear that I am not the one hurling insults. The irony in all this is that the Bloc Québécois claims that this is solely a federal jurisdiction, which is totally false. I think that the Bloc has spent too much time in Ottawa to say that this is an exclusive jurisdiction. Just look at section 95 of the Constitution, which very clearly indicates that this is a shared responsibility. Our two governments are responsible for this issue. I am sitting down with the representatives of the provincial government in a week and we will talk about it like adults.

Democratic Institutions

[Michael Chong, Conservative, Wellington—Halton Hills, ON]

Mr. Speaker, it does not matter what the government thinks about Bill C-234. It does not matter what the Senate thinks about the bill, because taxation and spending are the exclusive right of this House, not the Senate. In our system, there is no taxation without representation. Section 53 of the Constitution says that all financial legislation must originate in this House. Standing Order 80 says that this House “alone grants aids and supplies”.

When will the Prime Minister direct his representative in the Senate to respect this democratic institution, the only democratic institution in this country, and pass the tax bill?

[Karina Gould, Liberal, Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Mr. Speaker, the irony coming from the other side of the House is almost too thick to handle today, when we hear members opposite talking about respecting democracy or democratic institutions. There is a pattern of behaviour that I thought was maybe just with the Leader of the Opposition. I did not expect it from the member for Wellington—Halton Hills. However, as he would know, there are no Liberal senators on this side. There are only Conservative senators.

The Senate is independent. Unfortunately, they are bullying senators to force them to step back. That is totally unacceptable.

[Michael Chong, Conservative, Wellington—Halton Hills, ON]

Mr. Speaker, we used to live in a country where the governor regularly ignored bills passed by the elected legislative assembly. We used to live in a country where the appointed upper chamber used to regularly ignore bills passed by the elected lower chamber. That was a country long, long ago whose institutions where abolished after the rebellions of 1837. Now the unelected Senate thinks it is some sort of a château clique or Tory compact, ignoring a tax bill passed by this elected House.

Again, when will the Prime Minister direct his representatives in the Senate to respect the right and will of this House and pass the tax bill?

[Dominic LeBlanc, Liberal, Minister of Public Safety]

Mr. Speaker, speaking of respecting the will of this House, perhaps the leader of the Conservative Party would like to talk to the Conservative senators who sit in his caucus and ask them to pass the bail reform bill that was passed by the House of Commons. The Leader of the Opposition thought it was so important that he was going to recall Parliament last summer to pass it. Conservative premiers regularly talk to me about the importance of passing that legislation, so perhaps he would talk to the Conservative senators about that important bill for keeping Canadians safe.

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

Mr. Speaker, the Liberal senators are the ones preventing this bill from passing. After eight years, it is clear that this Prime Minister is in panic mode. He is downright desperate. Bill C‑234, which aims to exempt farmers from the carbon tax, is stalled in the Senate. The Prime Minister wants senators to overstep their role as unelected parliamentarians by literally asking them to kill this bill, which was properly passed by elected members of the House of Commons.

Why does he want to push unelected senators to disrespect both the Constitution and hungry Canadian families?

[Dominic LeBlanc, Liberal, Minister of Public Safety]

Mr. Speaker, let us keep talking about respect for democracy in the House of Commons. Unelected Conservative senators are blocking the passage of an important gun control bill that passed the House. If our friends across the aisle want to do something for democracy, they should ask the Conservative senators in their caucus to pass Bill C‑21, which was passed by the House of Commons, to protect Canadians from illegal firearms in Canada.

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

Mr. Speaker, I would like to remind the House that the Constitution is clear. Section 53 of the Constitution Act, 1867 provides that any bill “for appropriating any Part of the Public Revenue, or for imposing any Tax or Impost, shall originate in the House of Commons”. House of Commons Standing Order 80 is clear: A financial measure is not alterable by the Senate. The Liberals' attempt to block Bill C‑234 and bully senators is unconstitutional. It violates the Standing Orders of the House and is anti-democratic.

Will the Liberals stop their unconstitutional obstruction of Bill C‑234 and end the inflationary carbon taxes imposed on farmers so that people can eat this Christmas?

[Dominic LeBlanc, Liberal, Minister of Public Safety]

Mr. Speaker, once again, as they often do in the House, the Conservatives pretend to be interested in bills that protect Canadians from gun violence, for example, or ensure that bail is truly effective in keeping communities safe, like the Conservative premiers have asked. Premier Ford has asked me this a number of times.

If they want to send messages to their Conservative senator friends sitting in their caucus tomorrow morning, they can go right ahead.

Housing

[Jenny Kwan, NDP, Vancouver East, BC]

Mr. Speaker, people with full-time jobs are sleeping in their cars, yet the Liberals are delaying funding for public housing until 2025. Experts are saying that investing in community housing is not only socially responsible but economically sound. Deloitte just released a report that says increasing the community housing stock could boost GDP by up to $136 billion. While the corporate-controlled Conservative leader is off demonizing community housing, the Bank of Canada says it is anti-inflationary.

Will the Liberals stop delaying housing investments in the fall economic statement to get affordable housing built now?

[Sean Fraser, Liberal, Minister of Housing]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. member for joining me this morning to discuss the need to build more affordable housing with community housing providers, who are in Ottawa today.

With respect, the crisis we are dealing with nationally is a result of 30 years of failure to invest in affordable housing. We changed that with the adoption of the national housing strategy in 2017 and continue to advance measures today. The fall economic statement included a recapitalization of our affordable housing programs to the tune of $1 billion and an additional $300 million that will flow early in the new year, just weeks from now.

Public Safety

[Lisa Marie Barron, NDP, Nanaimo—Ladysmith, BC]

Mr. Speaker, a 12-year-old boy in British Columbia has died by suicide, linked to cyber-bullying and sextortion. This is a tragedy, with the most common targets of this criminal behaviour being children. Despite this, Conservatives do not even want to see big tech regulated responsibly.

The Liberals promised an online harms bill within 100 days of the last election. Over two years later, we are still waiting. Will the government finally make the Internet safer for our kids, or is this another Liberal broken promise?

[James Maloney, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada]

Mr. Speaker, when I say my heart goes out to this family, I say that on behalf of every member in this chamber. No family should have to experience what this family is currently going through.

We recently passed Bill S-12 in this House, which addresses some of these concerns about online safety. The protection of children in our society is of utmost importance. I have a commitment from this side of the House, and from all sides of the House, that we will do everything we can to make sure they are protected.