Debates of April 27th, 2023

Government Priorities

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, after eight years of this Prime Minister, one in five Canadians are skipping meals and 1.5 million have to go to food banks just to eat. We have a government that is costing 50% more because of red tape and a strike at the same time. What is the Prime Minister doing? He is going to New York on vacation with fancy people who have a lot of money, but not much common sense.

When will the Prime Minister and his government get back to work?

[Mona Fortier, Liberal, President of the Treasury Board]

Mr. Speaker, I believe the question was about what is happening at the bargaining table. What is happening is that we are working very hard to ensure that there is an agreement that is reasonable for employees and reasonable for Canadians. We are working hard to make sure that this agreement can bring the strike to an end. Obviously, we respect the strike, but we are working very hard at the bargaining table right now.

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, after eight years of the Prime Minister, Canadians are broke and the government is broken. Here we have one in five Canadians skipping meals because they cannot afford the price of food. Nine in 10 young people say they cannot afford housing, and no wonder, as the Prime Minister has doubled rent, doubled mortgage payments and doubled down payments. Crime is raging out of control on our streets, and there is the biggest federal strike in Canadian history.

What is the Prime Minister's priority? Why, it is another vacation, this time to New York to hang out with people who have lots of money but not a lot of common sense. When will the Prime Minister and his government get back to work?

[Mona Fortier, Liberal, President of the Treasury Board]

Mr. Speaker, in the Leader of the Opposition's comment, I believe I heard him asking what is happening at the table at this time. What is happening is that we are negotiating. We are trying to find a reasonable deal for public servants that will be fair, and we are working day in and day out to get to that deal. We respect workers as they are striking, but we know that the best deal we will find is at the table.

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, they consider the best deal to be paying 50% more tax dollars on bureaucracy and ending up with a strike regardless.

The average Canadian household has to spend $1,300 more in federal tax just for bureaucracy, and people are not getting the services they are paying for. This is on top of 40-year highs in inflation, a doubling in housing costs and jobs that are leaving our country because the Prime Minister's gatekeepers are standing in the way.

Why does the Prime Minister not turn his plane around, get back to Ottawa, do his job and get his government back to work?

[Randy Boissonnault, Liberal, Minister of Tourism and Associate Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, let us look at the facts, because we have a lot of bluff and bluster from the other side.

This government has been working for Canadians since the day we formed government. Let us just take a look at the facts over the last year: the strongest economic recovery in the G7, 830,000 jobs created since the worst time of the pandemic, an economic recovery that is faster than the United States' and over 700,000 people lifted out of poverty. We are going to continue to lead growth in the G7.

We are here working for Canadians every day. That is our job. We are going to keep doing just that.

Natural Resources

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Wow, Mr. Speaker, are they ever out of touch, telling Canadians they have never had it so good. Well, the 1.5 million people eating at food banks, some of them asking for help with medical assistance in dying because they are too hungry and miserable to go on, might beg to disagree with that rosy picture over there.

Meanwhile, the Prime Minister is expatriating our jobs to other countries. Most recently, we have Glencore, an ethically challenged company, threatening to take over one of the oldest resource companies in Canadian history, Teck Resources. Will the government protect the thousands of jobs at stake and our minerals by blocking this takeover?

[Jonathan Wilkinson, Liberal, Minister of Natural Resources]

Mr. Speaker, critical minerals are an enormously high priority for this government. They represent a generational economic opportunity for Canada.

At this point, there is no formal offer on the table, but as a British Columbian who lives in Vancouver where Teck is headquartered, I am very proud of the fact that its corporate office is in Vancouver and its research and development is done in British Columbia. It is an important member of the Canadian business community, and we certainly are in touch with it on an ongoing basis.

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, what we need to do is bring home more control over our resources so it is in the hands of Canadians, rather than ship our jobs overseas, as the Prime Minister has been doing for eight years. We can do that by getting rid of the gatekeepers to quickly build natural gas liquefaction facilities; by getting rid of the gatekeepers so we can have tidal power developed, which is clean and green, in Atlantic Canada; by getting rid of the gatekeepers to build more hydroelectric dams in Quebec; and finally by blocking this foreign takeover by an unethical overseas company.

Will the Prime Minister finally bring it home for Canada and block this takeover?

[Jonathan Wilkinson, Liberal, Minister of Natural Resources]

Mr. Speaker, I am not sure where the hon. member has been sitting for the past few weeks, perhaps behind a gate, because if we look at the work that has been done, we see the approval of a recent LNG project, two critical mineral mines and a major port expansion. Just yesterday, TD put out a report that said Canada is the second-best place in the world to invest in the green economy, largely as a result of the investments we have made in the budget.

I would encourage my hon. friend to do his homework.

Democratic Institutions

[Alain Therrien, Bloc, La Prairie, QC]

Who is telling the truth, Mr. Speaker?

On Tuesday, the 2019 Liberal campaign director, Jeremy Broadhurst, said that CSIS informed him about foreign interference in the riding of Don Valley North and that he told the Prime Minister about it on September 29, 2019.

In November 2022, the Prime Minister said in the House, and I quote, “there was never any information given to me on candidates receiving money from China”.

Who is telling the truth, Mr. Broadhurst or the Prime Minister?

[Dominic LeBlanc, Liberal, Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister has been very clear in the House. Since we took office, we have taken the matter of foreign interference in our democratic institutions very seriously.

There have been increasing attempts by several countries to interfere in our democracy. That is why our government has taken meaningful and effective action to counter that interference.

We are prepared to do more. We look forward to hearing Mr. Johnston's recommendations, and we will continue to ensure that our democratic institutions are protected.

[Alain Therrien, Bloc, La Prairie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, on September 29, 2019, there were just a few hours left to get a new candidate.

The Prime Minister did not want to run the risk of giving his political opponents an advantage. He closed his eyes, looked away and now says that no one told him anything at all.

This Prime Minister prefers to create an alternate reality. Today he would have us trust his special rapporteur, appointed by him and for him, on the matter of Chinese interference.

When will there be a public and independent inquiry?

[Dominic LeBlanc, Liberal, Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, we believe, and rightly so, that Canadians trust the work of Mr. Johnston, his service to Canada in several capacities and his integrity. He will be transparent in his work as an independent special rapporteur. He is the one who will advise the government on the next steps to take to reassure Canadians that our democratic institutions are definitely protected.

We look forward to working with Mr. Johnston and sharing his recommendations with all Canadians.

Labour

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

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister is nowhere to be seen when it comes time to tackle the excessive profits of grocery stores, the housing crisis and the climate crisis. The Prime Minister was nowhere to be seen for two years when it was time to give employees—

[The Deputy Speaker, Conservative, Chris d'Entremont]

I would like to remind the member that he is coming close to saying something that he is not allowed to say in the House. Members are not permitted to draw attention to the presence or the absence of a member. I would ask the hon. member to rephrase his question.

The hon. member for Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie.

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

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister is doing nothing when it comes to tackling the excessive profits of grocery stores, the housing crisis and the climate crisis. The Prime Minister has been doing nothing for the past two years, when all that public servants are asking for is a salary that is in line with inflation.

When will the Prime Minister do his job, show some respect for public servants and give his minister the mandate to resolve the issue?

[Mona Fortier, Liberal, President of the Treasury Board]

Mr. Speaker, as the minister responsible for the bargaining process, here is another update for the Canadians and the public servants who are watching at home. We are at the table today to try to find creative solutions that will enable us to move forward and reach an agreement. However, the government will not give in to demands that are unaffordable and that will affect our ability to provide services to Canadians.

We are working tirelessly to come to an agreement, and we will do so as soon as we can.

Women and Gender Equality

[Leah Gazan, NDP, Winnipeg Centre, MB]

Mr. Speaker, most of the public service workers on strike are women. Some of them try to raise their families on $40,000 a year. Where is the Prime Minister? He is in New York announcing funding for international women's organizations while cutting $150 million from women's—

[The Deputy Speaker, Conservative, Chris d'Entremont]

We are getting into a place where we know something is happening, but we cannot really say here on the floor of the chamber whether somebody is here or not. We need to be careful and judicious in the words we are using in our questions.

I will go back to the hon. member for Winnipeg Centre and ask her to back up and restart her question, and try to stay away from who is here and who is not here.

[Leah Gazan, NDP, Winnipeg Centre, MB]

Mr. Speaker, most of the public service workers on strike are women. Some of them try to raise their family on $40,000 a year. What is the Prime Minister doing? He is announcing funding for international organizations while cutting $150 million from women's shelters here in Canada and refusing to reach a fair agreement with PSAC workers. He has to support women internationally and here at home. He must do both. Does he really think he is fooling Canadians with his fake feminism?

[Marci Ien, Liberal, Minister for Women and Gender Equality and Youth]

Mr. Speaker, this government has always been there for women and will continue to be there for women.

When the pandemic struck, we saw what was happening. We knew that grassroots organizations had to keep their doors open. We responded with $300 million in emergency funding. That work continues with the action plan to end gender-based violence, with half a billion dollars on the table. I am negotiating with provinces and territories right now to get this done.

We have been there for women. We will always be there for women.

Labour

[Melissa Lantsman, Conservative, Thornhill, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister spent $21 billion more on public services that brought Canadians the biggest federal strike in Canadian history. There are more than 150,000 people blocking streets, blocking buildings and now blocking critical infrastructure. Canadians trying to get a passport, call Immigration or talk to anyone at CRA cannot do it because of this government's incompetence.

He paid $21 billion to cause this strike, and he took off on a private jet to lecture the world about climate change with the fancy people in New York. Will somebody kindly tell us how much it will cost Canadians for him to end this strike?

[Karina Gould, Liberal, Minister of Families]

Mr. Speaker, in difference to the Conservative members of Parliament, on this side we actually respect workers and we respect their rights. We are at the negotiating table right now to ensure that we get a fair deal for Canadian taxpayers, as well as for the hard-working public servants who have been there for Canadians, particularly in their moment of need, particularly during the worst economic and health crisis that we have seen in a generation.

We are going to get a good agreement that is going to support our workers as well as Canadian taxpayers.

[Melissa Lantsman, Conservative, Thornhill, ON]

Mr. Speaker, nobody is disputing the hard work of the public service; they are simply flabbergasted by the incompetence of the Prime Minister and the government. He grew the public service by 53% and hired his friends to do the work, and he still cannot assure Canadians that they can get through to CRA or even get a passport in this country. He is on vacation again, far away from this strike.

When will he and his government get back to work?