Debates of Dec. 14th, 2023

Carbon Pricing

[Arif Virani, Liberal, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada]

Mr. Speaker, the part that is quite incredible about the position taken by Conservatives under their leader's guidance is that, when they abandoned Ukraine, they were not just abandoning over one million Ukrainian Canadians here in Canada, but countless other east Europeans, thousands if not millions, who are also concerned with pushing back against Russian authoritarianism. Who am I talking about?

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[The Deputy Speaker, Chris d'Entremont]

Order. I want to make sure people keep it down so the interpreters can hear what they are translating.

The hon. Minister of Justice.

[Arif Virani, Liberal, Parkdale—High Park, ON]

Mr. Speaker, they are abandoning east European Canadians, Polish Canadians, Baltic Canadians, all of whom have a vested interest in pushing up against Russian authoritarianism under Putin. I wish Conservatives would show some support for that—

[The Deputy Speaker, Chris d'Entremont]

The hon. member for Lévis—Lotbinière.

Finance

[Jacques Gourde, Conservative, Lévis—Lotbinière, QC]

Mr. Speaker, we have been tricked. After eight years of Liberal incompetence, Canadians are drowning in debt. They have been hit hard by eight interest rate hikes over a period of 18 months. Canadians spend more than 9% of their disposable income on interest payments alone. Some gift.

With debt payments rising faster than disposable income, will the costly Liberal-Bloc-NDP coalition take some pressure off interest rates by eliminating the carbon tax so as to stop ruining Canadians' lives?

[François-Philippe Champagne, Liberal, Minister of Innovation]

Mr. Speaker, we will take no lessons from the Conservatives.

With Christmas just around the corner, what a gift they have given Canadians. They voted against support for the aerospace sector. They voted against support for tourism businesses. Worse still, they voted against the Plains of Abraham. How on earth are Conservative MPs from Quebec going to explain to Quebeckers why they voted against the Plains of Abraham? It is crazy.

Here on this side of the House, we are going to fight for Canadians. We are going to fight for jobs. We are going to fight for growth.

[Jacques Gourde, Conservative, Lévis—Lotbinière, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the best gift that Canadians could get in 2024 is a Conservative government.

Canadians are falling further and further behind every day under the costly Liberal-Bloc-NDP coalition. Quebeckers are also spending more than 9% of their disposable income on interest. That is where voting for the Bloc Québécois in Quebec got them.

When will this government let Canadians choose their future? The options are clear. They can choose a coalition that wants to drastically increase taxes, or a good Conservative government that will put more money in the pockets of all Canadians.

[Soraya Martinez Ferrada, Liberal, Minister of Tourism and Minister responsible for the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec]

Mr. Speaker, the gift came from the Conservatives last week when they put their ideology of budget cuts and austerity on full display. Cuts like those hamper Quebec's economic growth, especially in the tourism industry.

Why are Quebec Conservatives unwilling to make cuts to the tourism growth program on the Prairies, but happy to do so in Quebec, the north or Ontario? The Saguenay Fjord is less important than the Prairies. The Plains of Abraham are less important than the Prairies. The St-Tite western festival is less important than the Calgary Stampede. On this side of the House, we are there for all Quebeckers. The Conservatives should be ashamed of themselves.

Diversity and Inclusion

[Ruby Sahota, Liberal, Brampton North, ON]

Mr. Speaker, racism has no place in Canada and never will.

This week, our government launched the renewed multiculturalism and anti-racism program and called for proposals to help organizations build capacity. This funding aims to help organizations have capacity to support their communities and foster inclusion.

Can the minister explain what actions the government has taken to address systemic racism and discrimination and celebrate our diversity?

[Kamal Khera, Liberal, Minister of Diversity]

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member is absolutely right, this week we launched the call for proposals for the renewed multiculturalism and anti-racism program to help organizations build capacity.

This is yet another example of our government's unwavering commitment to addressing racism and promoting a more inclusive Canada. I wish I could say the same thing about the Conservative Party of Canada, which voted against Canada's anti-racism strategy and, just last week, voted against funding for the new Montreal Holocaust Museum and the redevelopment of the Jewish Community Centre of Greater Vancouver. It is shameful.

Innovation, Science and Industry

[Michael Barrett, Conservative, Leeds—Grenville—Thousand Islands and Rideau Lakes, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the NDP-Liberal government's billion-dollar green, or greed, slush fund is in a crisis of corruption.

The CEO resigned in disgrace. The Liberal-appointed board chair resigned in disgrace. The Auditor General is investigating. The Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner is investigating two Liberal appointees. This week we heard from whistle-blowers that $150 million was embezzled by Liberal insiders.

Canadians want to know: Where did the missing millions go, and who got rich?

[François-Philippe Champagne, Liberal, Minister of Innovation]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians watching at home are seeing the Conservative ideology on full display.

These folks are so against climate change that they will go after anyone and any organization that wants to fight climate change, even an organization that was created 20 years ago by Parliament. Now they want to attack the integrity of one of the most respected audit firms in this country.

On this side of the House, we will get to the bottom of this, but we will keep investing in clean technology. We will keep investing to fight climate change. We will keep investing in Canadians.

[Michael Barrett, Conservative, Leeds—Grenville—Thousand Islands and Rideau Lakes, ON]

Mr. Speaker, only Liberals would think shovelling hundreds of millions of dollars into the pockets of their friends is doing anything to fight climate change.

They are under multiple investigations. It is Liberal appointees who are being investigated. It is absolutely despicable. Canadians are lined up at food banks in record numbers, and Liberal grifters and embezzlers are jamming their pockets full of Canadian tax dollars. Canadians want to know who got rich. Where did the missing millions go?

With an Auditor General investigation and two Ethics Commissioner investigations, is the RCMP next?

[François-Philippe Champagne, Liberal, Minister of Innovation]

Mr. Speaker, I know it is Christmas. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion but not their own facts.

It is very clear and Canadians understand that what we are seeing on full display in the House is the Conservative ideology against anyone and any organization, even those created by Parliament. What we are seeing is on full display.

We launched an investigation. We suspended funding. The leadership has resigned. We will get to the bottom of this. We will restore confidence. We will keep investing to fight climate change in this country.

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

Mr. Speaker, after eight years, friends of the Liberal Party keep getting richer at the expense of Canadians. Shocking whistle-blower testimony has revealed that $150 million of taxpayers' money was diverted from the Liberal green fund. The Ethics Commissioner has launched two investigations. The Auditor General is also investigating. It does not take an ethicist to see the ethical breach here. Surprisingly, however, the Bloc Québécois voted against an investigation by the Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics to shed light on the green fund corruption.

Canadians want to know which Liberal friends got rich off their money.

[François-Philippe Champagne, Liberal, Minister of Innovation]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his question because it gives me an opportunity, just before Christmas, to remind Canadians who may be watching of the Conservative ideology that has just been revealed. The Conservative ideology is to attack any person or organization that wants to fight climate change.

Today, the Conservatives are attacking an institution that was created by Parliament 20 years ago, and they are attacking the integrity of one of the country's leading accounting firms.

On this side of the House, we will continue to invest in climate action. We will continue to invest in green technologies. We will continue to invest in Canadians.

Sport

[Francis Scarpaleggia, Liberal, Lac-Saint-Louis, QC]

Mr. Speaker, our children and all Canadians deserve a safe and responsible sport system that reflects our Canadian values of equality, fairness and inclusion. In other words, we need a system grounded in human rights, accountability, integrity and safety.

On Monday, the Minister of Sport and Physical Activity announced important measures that prioritize keeping our kids safe and keeping safe sport at the centre of sport governance and operations. Among other things, she announced the future of sport in Canada commission.

Can the minister share with the House details on the mandate of this commission?

[Carla Qualtrough, Liberal, Minister of Sport and Physical Activity]

Mr. Speaker, in the past two years, athlete survivors have bravely come forward to share their stories so that we can learn, so that we can make our processes more safe for our kids, and so that we could get to the point we have. Thanks to them, on Monday, we announced the future of sport commission, a trauma-informed, victims rights and human rights based process. We are going to dig into safe sport and make the entire system better.

Taxation

[Niki Ashton, NDP, Churchill—Keewatinook Aski, MB]

Mr. Speaker, big tech companies, like Amazon, Twitter and Uber, make billions of dollars a year and do not pay what they owe to Canadians. The Liberals said they would put a plan in place for a digital services tax by the end of this year, but they are delaying it. Canadians do not trust the Liberals and Conservatives to make big tech corporations pay their fair share, and this at a time when so many Canadians are struggling.

Will the government stand up for Canadians and implement a digital services tax, or will it bow down to American lobbyists?

[Rachel Bendayan, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, Canada is supportive of international efforts to end the corporate tax race to the bottom and ensure that the world's largest corporations do pay their fair share. Our priority, of course, has always been a multilateral approach, but we must defend our national interests. We will not accept a delay to the implementation of our own digital services tax without a clear timeline for an implementation with our global partners.

International Development

[Kevin Vuong, Independent, Spadina—Fort York, ON]

Mr. Speaker, despite evidence on the misuse of international aid by Hamas, Canada recently pledged $16.2 million to non-profit organizations in the region, including $10 million to the UN Relief and Works Agency, UNRWA, for its Palestinian programs.

How can Canada fund UNRWA when one of its own employees held an Israeli citizen hostage in Gaza? Hamas uses UNRWA buildings to launch rocket attacks. Over 100 Hamas terrorists attended UNRWA schools that teach anti-Semitism and Israel's elimination.

Will Canada review its UNRWA funding and suspend it if the agency is found to be in non-compliance with UN operational standards?

[Ahmed Hussen, Liberal, Minister of International Development]

Mr. Speaker, I have had numerous meetings with the head of UNRWA, Mr. Lazzarini. The decision to cut funds during an unfolding humanitarian catastrophe is actually counterproductive and jeopardizes the delivery of essential food, medicine and other life-saving materials to those who need it the most. In these crucial times, trusted agencies, like UNRWA, must receive more support, not less.

It is great to see the hon. member use political points against vulnerable people in their time of need. I wish we had more compassion from members of the House like the hon. member.

Service Preservation at Radio-Canada

[Martin Champoux, Bloc, Drummond, QC]

Mr. Speaker, there have been discussions among the parties and if you seek it, I believe you will find unanimous consent to adopt the following motion:

That the House:

(a) affirm that Radio-Canada plays a crucial role in Francophone information and cultural vitality in Quebec and in Canada's Francophone and Acadian communities;

(b) recognize that the announced cuts could be detrimental to the promotion of French-language culture, at a time when the federal government recognizes that the French language is under threat in Canada;

(c) express its strong reservations of planned cuts at Radio-Canada and that it reiterates that the preservation of the public broadcaster's services in the various regions of Quebec and in Canada's Francophone and Acadian communities must be a priority.

[The Deputy Speaker, Chris d'Entremont]

All those opposed to the hon. member's moving the motion will please say nay.

It is agreed.

The House has heard the terms of the motion. All those opposed to the motion will please say nay.

(Motion agreed to)