Debates of April 19th, 2023

Ethics

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

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister knew nothing. He does not talk to his own brother. Does he talk to his office?

Back in 2016, his office asked the Trudeau Foundation for answers, but he does not talk to his office. The intelligence service has been telling him month after month about Chinese interference, but he does not listen. He does not listen to anyone or talk to anyone.

Does he only work as Prime Minister between vacations at his friends' properties?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, the leader of the Bloc Québécois surely remembers the widespread media coverage and questions concerning the Trudeau Foundation back in 2016.

The whole reason my office had to ask for answers to the questions we were getting from the media was because we were unaware of what was happening at the Trudeau Foundation and because I have had no direct or indirect involvement with the Trudeau Foundation for a decade.

The leader of the Bloc Québécois said so himself in his question.

[Melissa Lantsman, Conservative, Thornhill, ON]

Mr. Speaker, everyone agrees that the Prime Minister is entitled to a vacation. Everyone agrees that the cost of security for any prime minister when he travels is a reality.

However, everyone also agrees that $9,000 over nine nights at a superelite villa of a Trudeau foundation donor raises some questions. That is $81,000. I will ask the Prime Minister the question again because he has not answered yet. Will he pay that money back?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, I went with my family and my children to a place that I have been to probably dozens and dozens of times over the past decades because they are long-standing—

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Carleton, ON]

Pay for it, freeloader.

[The Speaker, Anthony Rota]

I am going to interrupt. I am starting to hear some names being called back and forth again. I want to remind hon. members not to call each other names, just out of respect of the chamber, if nothing else.

The Right Hon. Prime Minister.

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Papineau, QC]

Mr. Speaker, it is interesting to see the extent to which the Conservative Party does not want to talk about budget 2023 and all the measures we are putting forward to support Canadians, whether it is the grocery rebate, the work we are doing to support small businesses by reducing credit card fees or moving forward on dental care support, which the Conservatives continue to oppose.

We will continue to focus on Canadians while they, for some reason, focus on me.

[Melissa Lantsman, Conservative, Thornhill, ON]

Mr. Speaker, we are focused on the Prime Minister's vacation, and I know that there are a lot of Canadians who believe that he should take a permanent vacation, but this is like a vacation auction: One donates to the foundation and one gets a holiday with a Prime Minister. It is pay to play.

He did not pay the $81,000 back for his luxury villa because, if he did, he would have said so. What did those donors get for the gift that ordinary Canadians, who he works for, did not?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, that family includes a godfather to one of my brothers, and my father was godfather to one of those children. We have been family friends for decades, and we will continue to be family friends for decades more.

As always, we worked with the Ethics Commissioner to make sure that all the rules were followed. That is what Canadians know and understand.

Canadians are probably puzzled as to why the Conservative Party continues to stand against dental care, against for low-income Canadians and against child care, which is saving Canadians hundreds of dollars a month at a time of need.

[Pierre Paul-Hus, Conservative, Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles, QC]

Mr. Speaker, we all know that the Prime Minister is not living the same reality as the majority of Canadians. We know that he is more afraid of his reign ending than of paying bills at the end of the month.

We also know that the friends he invited on vacation are extremely wealthy. As Prime Minister, he has an ethical and moral responsibility to pay for his personal expenses during his trips.

Can the Prime Minister confirm that he will pay for his accommodations in Jamaica?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, it is extremely important that Canadians have confidence in the work that we, as parliamentarians, all do with integrity and accountability.

That is why we have a Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner who oversees our work and advises us on how to continue to do it with integrity in order to maintain the trust of Canadians.

In this particular situation, specifically my vacation while staying with friends, we worked with the Ethics Commissioner to make sure that all the rules were followed, and they were.

[Pierre Paul-Hus, Conservative, Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister's staff briefed him before his trip and told him to be careful of the optics.

We are talking about the optics of the Prime Minister vacationing during the holidays with multimillionaire friends while Canadians were suffering for lack of money. I can understand that his friends invited him, but he went on vacation at Prospect Estate, a rental property where people pay between $1,100 U.S. and $8,000 U.S. per day.

The Prime Minister vacationed at a rental property. Accommodation for other members of his team and entourage were also paid for. The problem is that from an ethical and moral point of view, the Prime minister must pay for his personal expenses. Will he pay back the $80,000 he owes?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, I was one year old the first time we went to visit these friends at their home. Over the decades, I have maintained my friendship with these people and continued visiting them. Sometimes, I went to their home, and sometimes they came to mine. We are true friends. I believe that even the Conservatives should understand the concept of a long-standing true friendship.

Obviously, as in every case, we worked with the Office of the Ethics Commissioner to ensure that all the rules were followed, and they were.

Labour

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

Mr. Speaker, I remember when I was elected in 2011. The Conservatives had just imposed special legislation against postal workers. It is crazy. Twelve years later, a Liberal government is threatening to do the same thing as the Conservatives.

The NDP is clear. We will always side with workers. Will the Prime Minister turn into a Conservative and impose special legislation or will he try to negotiate a good agreement for those who answered the call during the pandemic?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, despite the difficulty I had hearing the hon. member I think he was saying that we may have threatened to impose some sort of legislation. We are working in good faith at the negotiating table. For years, we have demonstrated our deep respect for the work of unions, this essential work they do to defend the middle class and good jobs, including within the public service.

We will continue to work in good faith at the negotiating table to ensure the continuity of service delivery for Canadians.

[Lindsay Mathyssen, NDP, London—Fanshawe, ON]

Mr. Speaker, PSAC workers who serve the people of London are on strike today demanding a fair deal from the government. These workers deserve respect.

People in London are looking carefully at what the government will do next. Will it do what it usually does and show its Conservative colours, or will it listen to workers' legitimate demands and commit to not introducing back-to-work legislation?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, I question the member opposite's mention of our Conservative colours. She knows full well that the very first thing we did when we were elected was to eliminate the Conservative anti-union legislation Bill C-525 and Bill C-377. The attacks the Conservatives laid on labour were legendary, and that is why we worked in partnership with organized labour across this country to deliver real services to Canadians.

That is why we continue to sit at the bargaining table in good faith to work with them to continue to deliver the quality of services that Canadians have always received from the public service and deserve to continue to receive.

News Media Industry

[Kody Blois, Liberal, Kings—Hants, NS]

Mr. Speaker, my constituents in Kings—Hants rely on getting quality news to inform them on what is happening at home and across Canada. The recent attacks by the Conservative opposition leader on Canada's media and journalists is resembling the same type of playbook of the extreme right-wing politics in the United States. By attacking Canada's public broadcaster, they are undermining an important way Canadians stay informed, particularly in francophone communities and in rural Canada.

Could the—

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[The Speaker, Anthony Rota]

I am going to have to interrupt. I am having a hard time hearing the question.

Maybe the member can take the question not from the top, but from about halfway, please.

[Kody Blois, Liberal, Kings—Hants, NS]

Mr. Speaker, the fact that I am getting drowned out is a real illustration of where the Conservative Party of Canada is at right now.

Let me ask this: Could the Prime Minister comment on the government's approach to protecting local media and vibrant news outlets in this country, in opposition to what the opposition party is standing for right now?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the member for Kings—Hants for his extraordinary hard work. I know that he and MPs from coast to coast to coast have heard from constituents who understand the vital role that local news plays in their communities. That is why it is so disappointing to see the Conservative leader copy and paste right-wing talking points from the States in his effort to shut down these local news outlets.

On this side of the House, we will always stand up for the important services that rural individuals, francophones and, indeed, families across the country rely on.

Ethics

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

Mr. Speaker, the Trudeau Foundation bears the name of the current Prime Minister's father, and according to its annual report, two seats on the board are reserved for family members: the Prime Minister and his brother, Alexandre Trudeau.

The foundation is a family affair, since we have learned that the Prime Minister has chosen to spend at least $160,000 of taxpayers' money visiting its donors.

He has said several times today that he has stayed there many times. How many times has he vacationed in that place since he became a member of Parliament?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives are once again attempting to peddle conspiracy theories.

That fact is that we will always continue to respect the recommendations of the Ethics Commissioner when it comes to my trips and personal travel.

I can also reiterate that it has been 10 years since I have had any direct or indirect involvement with the Trudeau Foundation.

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

Mr. Speaker, getting answers from the Prime Minister, even to the simplest questions, is so difficult. We asked him how much he personally paid for his most recent vacation to Jamaica. The Prime Minister refused to answer.

I asked a very simple question following a statement that he made today. He said that he had stayed on this private estate in Jamaica dozens of times.

I am asking him to tell us, in honest straightforward terms, how many times he has vacationed in Jamaica since becoming an MP.