Debates of Dec. 11th, 2023

Leader of the Conservative Party of Canada

[Kevin Lamoureux, Liberal, Winnipeg North, MB]

Mr. Speaker, when the leader of the Conservative Party was the minister responsible for housing, he was a disaster, and nothing at all has changed now he is the leader of the official opposition. It is hard to believe that last Thursday Conservative after Conservative stood in their place and voted against housing. It is absolutely terrible. Can members imagine? There was a vote for tens of thousands of purpose-built apartments, and the Conservative Party said no, unanimously, among those who chose to take the time to come to vote.

I say shame on the leader of the Conservative Party because that is not what a leader is all about. A leader should be inspirational in ensuring that we provide the type of supports that are necessary. That means that the leader of the official opposition is not only reckless, but also does not have a policy that is worth a cent, quite frankly.

Housing

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, this Prime Minister is not worth the cost of housing, which has doubled since he promised to make it affordable more than eight years ago. We are now learning that rents have risen by 14% in Quebec City and Montreal, all as a result of inflationary spending that has bloated government bureaucracy.

When will the Prime Minister follow my common-sense plan to eliminate taxes and cut red tape in order to build affordable houses and apartments?

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

Mr. Speaker, speaking of Montreal, it is nice to see the Leader of the Opposition show up for work today. I guess there was not a fundraiser that he could attend.

However, if we want to talk about last week, what Canadians saw on display was the Leader of the Opposition bringing right-wing Republican tactics to try and shut down the government.

Canadians do not want the kind of chaos they see in Washington. They want responsible leadership in Canada, and that is not what we witnessed from the Leader of the Opposition last week.

On this side of the House, we will continue to stand up for Canadians and stand up to bullies.

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister and the Bloc Québécois, along with their carbon tax, are not worth the cost for Quebeckers. Reports now indicate that the average family will have to spend an extra $700 on food next year. That is the result of the most staggering increase in food prices in 40 years. That is what we get with these taxes that the Bloc Québécois wants to drastically increase.

Will the Prime Minister follow my common-sense plan to eliminate inflationary taxes and deficits so Quebeckers and Canadians can eat?

[Diane Lebouthillier, Liberal, Minister of Fisheries]

Mr. Speaker, on Thursday and Friday, the Conservative leader ordered his members to vote against security measures for Ukraine, to vote against funding for emergency shelters for women and girls, and to vote against funding for thalidomide survivor support programs.

Does going after vulnerable people make him feel stronger? Is that courage? Will he admit that his irresponsible choices went much too far?

Carbon Pricing

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, last week, we were proud to vote against more inflationary bureaucratic spending that does nothing for working-class Canadians. If more government spending were to solve the problems, then we would not have two million people lined up at food banks and nine out of 10 young people unable to afford a home.

Now the Liberals want to quadruple the carbon tax just as we learn that Canadians will be forced to spend another $700 to feed themselves. Will they follow our common-sense plan to axe the tax?

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, last week, the Conservatives voted against Operation Unifier, which is about direct military support for Ukraine. They also voted against our free trade agreement with Ukraine. When we look at the extreme right south of the border parroting Putin's lines, we used to think that could never happen in Canada, but it is happening here.

On this side of the House, we are proud to say, “Slava Ukraini”. Canada stands with Ukraine.

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, they spread fear and falsehoods about matters in other countries to distract people from the absolute misery they have caused here at home. We understand why they do not want to talk about how Canadians are living because folks cannot afford to feed themselves. They are lining up at food banks while there is the worst food price inflation in 40 years, yet the Prime Minister wants to quadruple the carbon tax with the help of his NDP junior coalition partners.

Will the Prime Minister reverse his plan to quadruple the tax so Canadians can afford to eat, heat and house themselves?

[Sean Fraser, Liberal, Minister of Housing]

Mr. Speaker, it is interesting to see the opposition leader run from the uncomfortable questions that are being put to him on the floor of the House of Commons.

Let us look at some of the voting record that the Conservatives demonstrated last week when it comes to saving people money on reducing the cost of housing. The member has made clear that his personal position is that the government has no business investing in housing, but individual members of Parliament had the opportunity to stand up and be counted when there was a vote on the floor of the House of Commons. They said no to investments in affordable housing. They said no to thousands of apartments. They said no to housing for indigenous communities and to emergency shelters for women and girls. They also said no to funding for homeless veterans. They should be ashamed.

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, we said no to doubling housing costs. The Liberals doubled housing costs. That is the reality. All the slogans the member wants to spit out are not worth a hill of beans when all they have done is double housing costs.

It is just like when they said the carbon tax would help the environment. Now we know Canada has fallen four places, to 62nd out of 67 countries in the world, after they tried to impose this carbon tax.

Instead of quadrupling a tax that has failed, why will they not axe the tax and invest in technology?

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

Mr. Speaker, on this side of the House, we are proud to stand up for Canadians.

Last week, what the Conservatives did is that they voted consistently against measures that not only make life more affordable for Canadians, but help them in their time of need.

On the 988 line, which was just launched with regard to suicide prevention, what did the Conservatives do? They voted against it. When it came to supporting victims of gender-based violence, what did the Conservatives do? They voted against it. The list goes on.

That is irresponsible. That is reckless. Quite frankly, these are right-wing extreme politics from the United States that we do not want here in Canada.

Dental Care

[Alain Therrien, Bloc, La Prairie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the government is unbelievable. Every time we tell ourselves that its incompetence could not get worse, we get treated to a “just watch me” moment that proves us wrong.

Up until last Friday, the Government of Quebec thought it was negotiating a dental care agreement with Ottawa. It is over; there is no agreement. Ottawa is trespassing in an area under Quebec's jurisdiction and stirring up another quarrel instead of reaching an agreement that would benefit everyone. At some point, maybe it would like to start working for the people?

[Mark Holland, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, it is not about jurisdiction; it is about health.

Today, dental care will be available across the country for everyone. It is not simply a question of justice, but prevention and health as well. Today, we have significantly improved our health care system, and I am so very proud of that. We can work with all the provinces and all the territories to make sure the system will work.

[Alain Therrien, Bloc, La Prairie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, we already have a dental care system in Quebec. The government could simply have sent over the money and we would have improved our system, but apparently that is too complicated.

Quebec has a public system, the Régie de l'assurance maladie du Québec, or RAMQ, which can be enhanced through an agreement with Ottawa. That is what everyone wants, but no, Ottawa wants to force Sun Life, a private company, into our public system. We thought that Ottawa wanted an agreement to respect provincial jurisdictions, but no, it does not give a damn. What Ottawa wants is good news just in time for the holidays. Why impose a system that is incompatible with Quebec's?

[Mark Holland, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, we do not want to replace provincial and territorial systems. Our goal is to make sure that everyone in Canada who does not have dental insurance can have access to dental care. That is our goal. It has nothing to do with jurisdictions; it is about justice, health and dignity for everyone across the country.

[Don Davies, NDP, Vancouver Kingsway, BC]

Mr. Speaker, thanks to New Democrats, nine million Canadians will have access to the dental care they deserve. Seniors, children, people with disabilities will soon be able to go to the dentist without worrying about the cost. Because of the NDP, families will save thousands of dollars during an affordability crisis. This is the biggest expansion of public health care in half a century.

Shamefully, last week, the Conservatives again voted no to dental care and to putting money back into people's pockets.

Can the minister explain the impact of the NDP dental plan on Canadians?

[Mark Holland, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, in a time of great global difficulty, in a time when people all over the world are finding things hard, there are those who stand up, provide solutions and talk about how we make things better. I want to recognize the NDP for stepping forward and talking about solutions and talking about answers, when we saw Conservatives voting against dental care, voting against support for seniors, voting against support for persons with disability, voting against our children who need dental support. Shame on them.

Congratulations to any party that stands up for ideas and getting things done in this country.

[Alexandre Boulerice, NDP, Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, more and more people are struggling to pay their bills and cannot afford a dentist. The Liberals and the Conservatives teamed up twice to vote against a dental care program.

Thanks to the NDP, seniors, children and people with disabilities will have access to this essential care. The Conservative leader, who has had dental coverage paid for by taxpayers for 20 years, wants to cut this program. It seems that what is good for the goose is not good for the gander. However, the NDP is getting people the help they need.

Why did it take the Liberal government so long to fulfill its commitments on dental care?

[Mark Holland, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, this is a huge leap forward in providing dental care to everyone across the country.

I really appreciate the NDP's work. I also like the notion that all parties in the House need to work together to find solutions in these difficult times across the country, not just point out problems and criticize everything.

This is a historic day for our health care system.

Carbon Pricing

[Andrew Scheer, Conservative, Regina—Qu'Appelle, SK]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister is causing division and anger in unprecedented ways, with a backlash we may never have seen in this country before: 133 first nations suing the Prime Minister over the carbon tax, several provinces taking the Prime Minister to court to try to stop the tax, one province refusing to collect the tax altogether, and now the Premier of the Northwest Territories asking for a full exemption, saying, “the prices are just getting higher and higher here.”

After eight years, it is clear the Prime Minister is not worth the cost. Will he put his ego aside and axe the tax?

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Minister of Indigenous Services and Minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Northern Ontario]

Mr. Speaker, last week, when the Conservatives had the chance to stand up for first nations people, they voted against the measures indigenous communities need every single day to deliver things like clean water, to deliver things like education and to make sure infrastructure is kept running and maintained. When they had a chance to stand up with first nations, what did they do? They voted against them.

[Andrew Scheer, Conservative, Regina—Qu'Appelle, SK]

Mr. Speaker, when Liberals have a chance to provide relief to all Canadians and first nations, they say, “We'll see you in court.” They have succeeded, though, in uniting Canadians around one thing: their hatred for the carbon tax.

As hard-working Canadians across the country visit food banks for the first time or turn their thermostats down, northerners are really facing the sting of the carbon tax. The Premier of the Northwest Territories went on to say, “I mean, ideally, a complete exemption for the territory is what we would hope for because, like I said before, the costs are already high”.

Why will the Prime Minister not have some mercy on Canadians and axe the tax?

[Jonathan Wilkinson, Liberal, Minister of Energy and Natural Resources]

Mr. Speaker, it is important that the hon. member stop misleading Canadians. Research coming out of the University of Calgary last week shows that the Conservatives' plan to make pollution free again will only benefit those earning over $250,000 a year and hurt almost everybody else.

The Conservative leader says that he cares about affordability, but last week, in the middle of the night, they voted to cut affordable housing construction, cut the school food program, cut dental care for the most vulnerable and cut affordable child care. Shame, shame, shame.

[Bob Zimmer, Conservative, Prince George—Peace River—Northern Rockies, BC]

Mr. Speaker, in one of his first comments as Premier of the Northwest Territories, R.J. Simpson simply said yesterday that a carbon tax “doesn't work” for Northwest Territories. He said, “a complete exemption for the territory is what we would hope for because, like I said before, the costs are already high—higher costs are not the solution up here.”

Will the Prime Minister do the right thing this Christmas, fire the environment minister and axe the carbon tax?

[Harjit S. Sajjan, Liberal, President of the King’s Privy Council for Canada]

Mr. Speaker, wildfires have ravaged our country. In the Northwest Territories, towns were almost burned down. We had to evacuate the capital city of the Northwest Territories. What did the Conservatives do? They voted against the measures that fight against climate change, and they voted against the measures to support Canadians in their time of need as well.