Debates of May 29th, 2023

Carbon Pricing

[Lianne Rood, Conservative, Lambton—Kent—Middlesex, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I do not hear the Liberals talk about agriculture.

Carbon tax 1 is already driving up the cost of food production. Now carbon tax 2 will increase the cost of diesel, pricing our farmers out of the market.

Inflating the price of groceries makes it more expensive for families to put food on the table. Rising input costs put our Canadian farmers at a competitive disadvantage to the point where we are going to be bringing in food from South America cheaper than we can grow it in our own backyard here at home.

Why is the Prime Minister set on crushing Canadian farmers with taxes and starving Canadian families?

[Marie-Claude Bibeau, Liberal, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food]

Mr. Speaker, as we all know, farmers are the first to be affected by climate change and extreme weather events. Encouraging the biofuels industry means encouraging canola farmers, so I am rather shocked that our Conservative colleagues do not see how this is a good thing for canola farmers.

[Richard Lehoux, Conservative, Beauce, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the government is not doing anything to make food more affordable. With its plan for a second carbon tax, farmers will be even more overburdened and the price of food will continue to rise. A record number of people are visiting food banks, like Moisson Beauce in my riding, which does not have enough resources to keep the shelves stocked.

We need policies that reduce the price of food and inputs for farmers. When will the Prime Minister make feeding Canadians a priority?

[Marie-Claude Bibeau, Liberal, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food]

Mr. Speaker, this gives me an opportunity to remind my colleague of some of the measures that we put in place to help those who need it most, including the Canada child benefit and the various benefits for low-income workers and caregivers.

I also want to take this opportunity to remind the House that the local food infrastructure fund is now open. Money from this fund can be used to pay for equipment for food banks, community gardens and many other organizations in our community.

Foreign Affairs

[Rechie Valdez, Liberal, Mississauga—Streetsville, ON]

Mr. Speaker, as the first Filipina member of this House, I join my colleagues in working to strengthen ties between Canada and the Philippines.

Canada is home to nearly one million people of Filipino origin, and that number is growing every single day. As we conclude Asian Heritage Month, and on the eve of Filipino Heritage Month, can the Minister of Foreign Affairs outline the vital role that this relationship plays as part of our government's ambitious, new Indo-Pacific strategy?

[Mélanie Joly, Liberal, Minister of Foreign Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague and friend from Mississauga—Streetsville for her important advocacy and her fantastic work.

It was my first trip to the Philippines, and we know the country is extremely important in the context of our Indo-Pacific strategy. I had the chance to meet with government members, as well as civil society and business leaders.

Of course, as we head into Filipino Heritage Month, I look forward to engaging even more with the Filipino community. I was in Winnipeg just last week doing that, and I look forward to working with my colleague from Mississauga—Streetsville on this very issue.

Public Safety

[Kelly McCauley, Conservative, Edmonton West, AB]

Mr. Speaker, $300,000: that is how much the Liberal government has gifted to charities identified as hosting Beijing's illegal police stations in Canada. The government famously disqualified faith-based charities from the same student summer jobs funding for not agreeing to Liberal ideology.

Apparently, though, charities identified as hosting Beijing's illegal police stations do qualify as matching the Liberals' values attestation.

Why is the government funding Beijing's illegal police stations instead of shutting them down?

[Marco Mendicino, Liberal, Minister of Public Safety]

Mr. Speaker, every single one of us in this chamber has a responsibility to take the issue of foreign interference seriously. What we have seen from the Conservatives is the exact opposite.

They have voted against legislation to give our national security establishment more powers to fight this scourge.

We heard their own national campaign director in the last election say that members of their caucus did not take this issue seriously and now we have the leader of the Conservative Party of Canada who refuses to take the briefing. To him, I say, “Take the briefing and take this issue seriously, so that we can fight foreign interference together.”

Justice

[Frank Caputo, Conservative, Kamloops—Thompson—Cariboo, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I spent most of my adult life working in the criminal justice system and I can say, unequivocally, that I have never seen bail in such a precarious state. After eight years of the Liberal government, violent crime is up 32%.

The wheels really started to fall off with the passing of Bill C-75 and now the Liberals have tabled amendments to bail that, in my reading, would not have applied to Constable Pierzchala's alleged killer.

When will the Liberal government undo the harmful effects of Bill C-75, to end catch-and-release and keep Canadians safe?

[David Lametti, Liberal, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada]

Mr. Speaker, Bill C-75 codified a number of Supreme Court of Canada decisions and did not fundamentally change the law of bail in Canada.

However, listening to provincial premiers, provincial ministers of justice and public safety, and police officers, we have proposed amendments to the bail regime to answer their concerns.

Here is the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police: “We commend the government for acting on the urgency for legislative change and for recognizing that our...amendments were not calling for a complete overhaul of Canada's bail system”.

We are listening and we are getting results.

[Dan Muys, Conservative, Flamborough—Glanbrook, ON]

Mr. Speaker, after eight years of these Liberals, violent crime is up 32%. Recently, in Toronto, a 75-year-old woman was approached from behind and stabbed in the neck.

This Liberal bail legislation fails on bail reform. Under the proposed bill, the accused killer of OPP Constable Greg Pierzchala and countless other repeat violent offenders would still have been released on bail.

Will the government stop the catch-and-release agenda, stop making our streets more dangerous and undo its irresponsible changes in Bill C-75?

[David Lametti, Liberal, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada]

Mr. Speaker, again, from the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police: “We are convinced that the legislative changes put forth in Bill C-48 will go a long way to help eliminate the preventable harm and senseless tragedies attributable to violent and repeat offenders across Canada.”

We heard from provincial justice ministers and public safety ministers that we needed to attack repeat violent offenders with weapons. That is precisely what we are doing. We have done it in consultation with stakeholders. We have worked and listened to police associations across Canada and we have a bill that will strengthen our legislative framework.

Canadian Coast Guard

[Patrick Weiler, Liberal, West Vancouver—Sunshine Coast—Sea to Sky Country, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the Canadian Coast Guard protects our coasts and oceans from the Pacific all the way to the Atlantic and everything in between. Its work keeps Canadians safe on the water and creates the conditions for a thriving blue economy.

Can the Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard please inform the House how we are making sure that the Coast Guard has the ships it needs to serve Canadians?

[Joyce Murray, Liberal, Minister of Fisheries]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the hon. member for West Vancouver—Sunshine Coast—Sea to Sky Country for his great work on coastal matters.

The Canadian Coast Guard does provide critical services in our waters, everything from aiding navigation to spill cleanup and saving lives, which is why I was so pleased to announce $2.5 billion in federal investment to build up to 61 new vessels for the Coast Guard. That will give it the modern capabilities that it needs while creating good-paying jobs right across Canada.

Fisheries and Oceans

[Alistair MacGregor, NDP, Cowichan—Malahat—Langford, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the development of a co-managed marine safety centre with the Pacheedaht First Nation in my riding seems to have been abandoned by the government. This project is supposed to be a meaningful effort for reconciliation and protecting our oceans.

When I previously raised this issue with the minister of fisheries and oceans, she did not answer my question. Moreover, there was no mention of the agreement with the Pacheedaht, who have now been waiting for over three years.

Therefore, I will ask this again: Why does it appear that the government is ignoring the Pacheedaht First Nation and stalling the development of this important project? When will we see the commitment?

[Joyce Murray, Liberal, Minister of Fisheries]

Mr. Speaker, our and my commitment to indigenous reconciliation is absolute. It is a really strong focus of our government, including our funding. It is a very strong focus of the fisheries ministry, the department and me personally. I will investigate the situation that the member has just raised. I commit to our government doing everything it can to ensure that any commitments are met. Reconciliation is one of our government's very top priorities.

Emergency Preparedness

[Elizabeth May, Green, Saanich—Gulf Islands, BC]

Mr. Speaker, on June 19, 2019, as some members of this place will recall, we voted that we were in a climate emergency. The next day, we bought a pipeline. Now, Canada is hotter and drier; we are experiencing wildfires across this country. We have to thank our firefighters and be so grateful to them.

I know the hon. Minister of Emergency Preparedness is working very hard. Could he tell us how many provinces have wildfires right now? How much earlier in the season are we experiencing that Canada is in flames?

[Bill Blair, Liberal, President of the King’s Privy Council for Canada and Minister of Emergency Preparedness]

Mr. Speaker, there are currently 179 wildfires burning in Canada, 68 of which are out of control. Those fires are in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia.

Over 20,000 people have been evacuated from their communities, and nearly a million hectares of forest have been lost to these fires. Frankly, this season has begun weeks ahead of what we would normally anticipate. These fires are occurring at unprecedented levels.

Michel Côté

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

Following discussions among representatives of all parties in the House, I understand there is an agreement to observe a moment of silence in honour of Michel Côté.

I would invite hon. members to rise.

[A moment of silence observed]

Oral Questions

[John Williamson, Conservative, New Brunswick Southwest, NB]

Mr. Speaker, during question period, the MP for Burlington did something indirectly that she is not allowed to do directly, which is to imply that two of the members of this House were not here.

Both myself and the MP for South Shore—St. Margarets raised the fires that are burning out of control in our provinces. It is disgraceful that the member said otherwise. She also misled the House.

I think she should reconsider her words and apologize. We raised this issue. We are here, and we are doing our jobs.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

I am not quite clear on what the hon. minister said.

Does she want to respond to that?

[Karina Gould, Liberal, Minister of Families]

Mr. Speaker, I am honestly not sure what the member opposite is talking about. I did not refer to someone being present or not in the House. I was referring to questions in question period.

The House resumed from May 18 consideration of the motion, and of the amendment.

Opposition Motion—Opioid Crisis

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

It being 3:19 p.m., pursuant to order made Thursday, June 23, 2022, the House will now proceed to the taking of the deferred recorded division on the amendment to the motion of the member for Carleton relating to the business of supply.

Call in the members.

And the bells having rung:

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

The question is on the amendment.

May I dispense?