Debates of Nov. 8th, 2023

Climate Change

[The Speaker, Liberal, Greg Fergus]

Fortunately, the Speaker was able to hear the question.

The right hon. Prime Minister.

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the MP for Aurora—Oak Ridges—Richmond Hill for her great question on this important file.

It is shameful that the Conservative leader has no plan to address the crisis facing all of humanity. His emphasis on technology to fight climate change means nothing, because he is somebody who has been opposing the development of offshore wind technology in Atlantic Canada.

While our government has a serious plan that addresses affordability and the climate crisis, that leader has no plan and no vision. Perhaps he should put his glasses back on.

Public Services and Procurement

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, with or without glasses, I will not lose $54 million on an app that does not work.

This is a Prime Minister whose government is now under RCMP investigation again for giving out contracts to firms that did absolutely no work. Now senior members of the bureaucracy are blowing the whistle and saying that his top officials lied about it before committee.

Will the Prime Minister personally co-operate with the police in this latest criminal investigation?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, I cannot help but wonder how many millions of dollars Canadians would have lost if they had followed the Leader of the Opposition's advice and bought Bitcoin so they could opt out of inflation.

When it comes to serious matters, both the RCMP and the CBSA's professional integrity division are investigating. The CBSA has also launched an internal audit to look into contracting at the agency and has increased oversight processes when it comes to contracting.

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, the former director of the CBSA, our principal border authority, said that he felt “incredibly threatened”, in his words, by the former president of the organization, and members of the Prime Minister's bureaucracy lied, according to this testimony, in order to cover up this $54-million scandal.

The matter is now under Auditor General and RCMP investigation. Will the Prime Minister co-operate with the police, yes or no?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, obviously the reports coming out are extremely concerning, and I know that the respective authorities will be taking this extremely seriously. We expect our professional public servants to always conduct themselves with the utmost integrity, and I am sure that will continue to happen.

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, well, the entire government only takes direction from a guy who has two convictions for breaking the law. In this case, it is not just $54 million. There was $11 million given to a two-person IT firm to do absolutely nothing. The same firm has gotten $60 million from the Liberal government since 2017 alone.

The entire matter is under criminal investigation, so for a third time, will the Prime Minister personally co-operate with the police, yes or no?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, members can understand that I will not take overly seriously accusations from an individual who was minister of elections when he was found to have broken elections law.

When we see matters of wrongdoing, we ensure that the proper authorities are looking into them. Of course, our government will always ensure full co-operation with investigating authorities.

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister is a man of conviction. He has had two of them. He actually doubled the amount of money spent on outside consultants after promising to bring it down. We pressured him on this. He said, “I know what I'll do. I'll pay $670,000 to another consulting firm to find out how we can spend less money on consulting firms.”

Here is some free common-sense advice. Will he take it? Why not just stop spending on juicy contracts for his friends?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, of course, we need to ensure that we are getting the best value for funds spent in the public service. The minister agrees and is looking into it.

Let us talk about being a person of conviction. I am convinced that we need to fight climate change. I am convinced that the only thing we can do to build a strong economy for the future is protect the environment and fight climate change while putting more money in people's pockets. These are my convictions. I have continued to be consistent on them over the past 15 years that I have been in politics.

We look forward to hearing what the Leader of the Opposition believes in, because right now it sure is not clear.

Climate Change

[Kristina Michaud, Bloc, Avignon—La Mitis—Matane—Matapédia, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Copernicus observatory is reporting that 2023 will be the warmest year on record.

At the same time, the commissioner of the environment has revealed that Canada will once again miss its 2030 greenhouse gas reduction target. This tenth federal climate plan since 1990 is headed for a tenth failure. The Liberals are all talk and no action.

How many forest fires, heat waves and hurricanes will it take for the government to take meaningful action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, over the past eight years, we have done more than any other government in history to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

The reality is, as my hon. colleague said, that we need to do even more. The big challenge is that it is difficult to have a debate in the House on the best way to do more, because we are stuck with an opposition party that insists that climate change requires no action, no plan and no rigour in how to tackle it. Unfortunately, they still want to debate whether or not climate change even exists.

On this side of the House, we know it exists and we continue to take climate action.

[Kristina Michaud, Bloc, Avignon—La Mitis—Matane—Matapédia, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Liberals want to combat climate change, as long as it does not cost them too many votes. They will continue to grant subsidies to oil and gas companies and weaken carbon pricing if that is what it takes to win votes.

The bottom line is that the federal government has never been able to meet its reduction targets, and the current plan will do nothing to change that. Meanwhile, the commissioner of the environment has clearly stated that it will soon be too late to avoid the catastrophic effects of climate change.

It is time to be brave for the future of our planet. What is the government waiting for?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, the Liberal Party has chosen to form a government that will fight climate change and bring together Canadians who are concerned about climate change. As a government, we are taking substantive action to put a price on carbon, to invest in green technologies and to find innovative ways to combat climate change by helping Canadians pay their bills.

Unfortunately, the members of the Bloc Québécois have always chosen to remain in opposition. Instead of taking action, they are here to criticize. It is time for real action. Quebeckers and Canadians are joining forces to take action, to combat climate change.

That is not the Bloc's doing.

Public Services and Procurement

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, a leaked secret recording of a top Liberal government official reveals that the billion-dollar green fund the Prime Minister is running is not worth the cost or the corruption. Here are some extracts from that recording: “It was free money” and “a sponsorship-level kind of giveaway”.

Since the Prime Minister learned of these allegations in March, he has not fired a single, solitary person. This is a billion-dollar slush fund. Is he worried about firing the insiders because he does not want them to blow the whistle on this broader Liberal scandal?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, earlier this year, ISED was made aware of allegations of mismanagement at SDTC. The Auditor General has now decided to conduct an audit of SDTC. Our government has been working closely with them on this and welcomes the decision.

In addition, SDTC has agreed to enable a thorough third party review of the allegations regarding HR management. We are committed to ensuring that organizations that received federal funding adhere to the highest standards of governance.

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, it is a billion-dollar taxpayer-funded slush fund that top officials now say amounts to a sponsorship scandal kind of corruption. It says they were giving away free money. This is at a time when a record-smashing two million people are forced to food banks every month and nine out of 10 people cannot afford homes.

How could the Prime Minister have thought it appropriate to blow $1 billion when Canadians cannot afford to eat, heat or house themselves?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, allow me to be perfectly clear. Any allegation of wrongdoing in any government department must be fully investigated. There are established processes for situations such as these, and this is precisely why the Auditor General has made the decision to conduct an audit.

This is a serious situation and we are taking it with the seriousness it requires. Unfortunately, the Conservatives, as usual, are looking for a way to score cheap partisan points. We are going to continue to govern responsibly.

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, there is nothing cheap about losing $1 billion. That is exactly why he is not worth the cost. He sees no problem throwing away $54 million on an ArriveCAN app that did not work, that we did not need and that is now under criminal investigation. Now, six months after he learned of corruption, cronyism and mismanagement in this billion-dollar fund, he has kept his handed-picked cronies in their positions.

If he really thinks it is serious that this billion-dollar fund had so much corruption, why will he not fire the people running it?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, Canada is a country of rules and laws, and that is why we need to make sure we are doing proper investigations and ensuring appropriate consequences for any people involved in wrongdoing. This is how a country of laws and rules functions.

Unfortunately, Conservatives are still choosing to make cheap partisan points on very serious issues. We are going to continue to take these issues seriously.

Veterans Affairs

[Sean Casey, Liberal, Charlottetown, PE]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians are proud of those who have worn the Canadian Forces uniform and defended our rights and freedoms. However, the important contributions of our indigenous veterans have not always been properly recognized.

On this Indigenous Veterans Day, I would like to ask the Prime Minister what the government is doing to ensure that the sacrifices of these brave men and women are given the recognition they deserve.

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for Charlottetown for his question and his commitment to veterans.

Even when previous governments were not there for indigenous communities, the indigenous people were there to defend Canada and our freedoms.

That is why it is so important to recognize their immense sacrifice. That is why we are taking measures like the creation of a team dedicated to supporting indigenous veterans.

We are also committed to redoubling our efforts to commemorate their sacrifice, as we did with a delegation to the Netherlands earlier this year.

Lest we forget.

Public Safety

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, the United Kingdom's foreign office has given travel advice to its citizens that says the risk of terrorist attacks happening in Canada is “very likely”. Does the Prime Minister agree with the U.K. foreign office's assessment, and what is he doing to protect Canadians from such an attack?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, Canada has a robust and sophisticated process around determining levels of threats to Canadians. We elevated the level of threat back in 2014 to medium, and it is staying there right now. We are continuing to make sure that we are doing everything we possibly can to keep Canadians safe. We understand that these are trying times around the world right now, but the best thing we can do as Canadians is stay true to our values, be respectful of one another, feel each other's pain and be there to support others through these very difficult times of a rise in hatred, including Islamophobia and anti-Semitism.

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, terrorists are not interested in feeling other people's pain; they are interested in causing other people pain. The U.K. Foreign Office has said that “the risk of terrorist attacks happening in Canada is very likely”, yet the Canadian government rates that risk at medium. Why is there this difference?