Debates of Sept. 25th, 2023

Housing

[Sean Fraser, Liberal, Minister of Housing]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague for her advocacy for non-market housing. We need to continue to do more. We know that although the recent measure to remove the GST from apartment construction is going to have an enormous impact, it is not enough on its own.

We are going to continue to make investments in low-cost financing to build more homes that ordinary people can actually afford. We have advanced programs in the past, and will continue to do so in the future, to directly subsidize the kinds of homes low-income people need built. We do not have a monopoly on good ideas. We are willing to take feedback from members of all parties in this House. I look forward to continuing my collaboration with the member opposite in that regard.

[Jenny Kwan, NDP, Vancouver East, BC]

Mr. Speaker, then the minister should commit to creating an acquisition fund.

Let me say this: The Liberal plan is not working. The minister should know that relying on market forces will not solve the problem. That is what the Liberals and Conservatives have done for the last 30 years, and we can see where it got us. The average rent in Canada is now over $2,100 a month. In Vancouver, it is over $3,000. It is time for bold action.

Will the minister commit to building two million units of social housing to meet the needs of the community?

[Sean Fraser, Liberal, Minister of Housing]

Mr. Speaker, I agree with the member opposite that building market housing is not enough, but we must also increase the supply of market housing in the market. We need to encourage the construction of homes for low-income Canadians and for middle-class Canadians.

As we move forward with a measure that is going to allow people to build more market-based homes, we are also advancing measures that are going to disproportionately have a positive impact on builders who are seeking to build homes for low-income families outside of the traditional market.

There is no silver bullet to the housing crisis. We will pull every lever at our disposal to make things right.

Guests in the House of Commons

[Marty Morantz, Conservative, Charleswood—St. James—Assiniboia—Headingley, MB]

Mr. Speaker, on Friday, a Nazi received a standing ovation in the House.

Today is Yom Kippur. The Jewish community, my community, is horrified. Only one office in the country is responsible for vetting visitors to this place: the Prime Minister's Office. When the Ukrainian president, a head of state, addresses the House during a time of war, the Prime Minister's Office is responsible for security, full stop.

This scandal is entirely on the Prime Minister's Office. Either it vetted this Nazi and did not care or it did not vet him and is completely incompetent. Which is it?

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

Mr. Speaker, as a Canadian of Jewish origin, I have shared very clearly with the House on several occasions how disturbing this event is for me personally. I also know how disturbing it is for Canadians who are Jewish right across this country. Today, on Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish calendar, the day of atonement as we prepare for the new year, this is particularly disturbing.

However, I have to correct my hon. colleague in the sense that the government was not aware this individual was invited. It was completely the prerogative of the Speaker; it was his decision, and we need to make sure the facts remain on the table.

[Marty Morantz, Conservative, Charleswood—St. James—Assiniboia—Headingley, MB]

Mr. Speaker, shame on the member and the government for not taking responsibility.

The Prime Minister has the massive security apparatus of the state at his disposal, yet a Nazi was honoured in this place. I cannot believe I am even uttering these words. Canada has been embarrassed around the world. Shame on the government for bringing shame on this chamber. My late grandparents are turning in their graves. A simple Google search would have revealed this person's background.

Again, either it vetted this Nazi and did not care or it did not vet him and is completely incompetent. Which is it?

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

Mr. Speaker, I would again ask my hon. colleague to stick to the facts. We know and he knows, because you stated publicly and in this chamber, that it was your decision to invite this individual, your decision alone to recognize him in the chamber. We were all caught off guard on Friday. Everyone in this chamber stood, because we trusted the Speaker to know who this was. At the same time, we must all take this seriously, and we must not politicize this. Communities are hurting, and we need to be there to be united at this time.

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

Mr. Speaker, I was Speaker when the government changed the law to ensure that the House of Commons security reported to the government. That was done for very specific reasons, one of which was the fact that the House of Commons itself does not have the resources to do comprehensive vetting and background checks. That is why the change was made. Nobody believes that it is up to your office to do comprehensive background checks. There is only one entity that has access to CSIS information and RCMP intelligence.

How did the government let someone who fought for the Waffen-SS into this chamber?

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

Mr. Speaker, I have tremendous respect for my colleague opposite. He was the Speaker, and he is the House leader now. He knows how this chamber operates. He knows that the Speaker has prerogative for whom they invite to the Speaker's gallery. The Parliamentary Protective Service followed all screening protocols to ensure the security of the event on Friday. Nevertheless, neither the government nor the Ukrainian delegation was aware of that individual's presence until he was recognized by the Speaker. Those are the facts.

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

Mr. Speaker, it is the government that is politicizing this issue by refusing to accept its responsibility. There is only one group of individuals with control over who has access to a foreign head of state. This is a head of state who is fighting for his country's life against an illegal invasion by Russia. The Prime Minister has a duty of care for that entire visit.

Now the government House leader is trying to change her tune and say that a list was gathered, but vetting was not done. What is the point of gathering a list of invitees if the government is not doing any background checks?

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

Mr. Speaker, let me continue to lay out the facts for this chamber.

It is a fact that the individual was not granted access to either the President of Ukraine or the Prime Minister of this country. He was specifically invited by the Speaker of the House, who did not make either the Government of Canada or the Ukrainian delegation aware. We all found out at the same time, when he was recognized in the chamber.

We are all deeply embarrassed by this. It has embarrassed Canada. We must reiterate our strong allyship for Ukraine, Ukrainian Canadians, and Jewish—

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

The hon. member for Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles.

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

Mr. Speaker, on Friday, we had the privilege of welcoming the Ukrainian president here in the House of Commons. Unfortunately, one of the special guests was a Nazi. When a major event is being put together, the Prime Minister's Office has to be made aware and order a screening of the event. This scandal is entirely the responsibility of the Prime Minister's Office and the Prime Minister. There are two possibilities: Either a background check was done and no one saw a problem with the individual's past, or the Prime Minister's Office did not vet the people present and is totally incompetent. Which is it?

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

Mr. Speaker, I will repeat for my hon. colleague what I have already said because it is a matter of fact and the truth. Neither the government nor the Ukrainian delegation knew in advance that this individual was invited or that the Speaker of the House would draw attention to his presence during his speech. We have all been hurt by this incident and we are deeply disappointed by what happened. This has repercussions on parliamentarians, Canada, and of course Canada's reputation in the world. Nonetheless, it is something that everyone must take seriously and—

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

The hon. member for Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles.

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

Mr. Speaker, all members of the House expect the government and the Prime Minister's Office to do some research when it comes to guests here in Parliament. Now that it has welcomed an individual who was a member of a Nazi unit responsible for murdering thousands of Jews, our trust is forever shaken. What a disgrace to not only welcome such an individual, but to praise him. Ignorance is a war crime. All Canadians have being humiliated.

Will the Prime Minister apologize to his fellow parliamentarians, Canadians, the international community and, in particular, Jewish Canadians?

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

Mr. Speaker, as a Canadian of Jewish origin, I am extremely hurt by what happened last Friday. My grandfather is a survivor of Auschwitz. This is so very painful for me, and I know that it is also very painful for all members of the House. However, the facts are the facts. It was the Speaker of the House of Commons who invited this individual and decided to recognize his presence in the House. No one in government or in the Ukrainian delegation knew ahead of time that he was going to do that.

Small Business

[Nathalie Sinclair-Desgagné, Bloc, Terrebonne, QC]

Mr. Speaker, a cloud of bankruptcy is looming over our companies, and this is only just the beginning. According to the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, 250,000 small and medium-sized businesses, or SMEs, are at risk of closing this year because they are unable to repay their CEBA loans on time. It is wrong to suggest, as Ottawa is doing, that extending the deadline by three months will miraculously resolve this problem. The federal government needs to provide those SMEs that need it with deferrals and special agreements or else they are going to go bankrupt.

When will this government give SMEs in difficulty the flexibility they need rather than watch them die?

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

Mr. Speaker, we understand very well that the current global inflationary environment is having an major impact on our entrepreneurs and everyone. The cost of living is very difficult to deal with.

We are offering flexibility on CEBA loans. Companies will be able to benefit from this flexibility in a difficult fiscal situation. I think it is a balanced, sensible measure. Entrepreneurs still need the government, and we will be there to help them.

[Nathalie Sinclair-Desgagné, Bloc, Terrebonne, QC]

Mr. Speaker, 18 days or three months will not fix everything. One thousand, nine hundred companies already went bankrupt last year, and that is just the start. The Canada emergency business account is a government program, not a banking service. It was created by the government, and struggling businesses want to negotiate and sign agreements with the government. Today, the responsibility of ensuring that our SMEs avoid bankruptcy falls to the government, not financial institutions. That is not their role.

When will this government assume its responsibilities towards our SMEs?

[Bryan May, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Small Business and to the Minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario]

Mr. Speaker, the CEBA program provided unprecedented support to nearly 900,000 small businesses, totalling over $49 billion of financial support. Last year, the government extended the forgiveness qualification deadline by one year to the end of this year. We travelled this country, listening to businesses that asked for more flexible repayment options and time. That is why we recently announced a full one-year extension on the term loan repayment deadline to the end of 2026.

Agriculture and Agri-food

[Yves Perron, Bloc, Berthier—Maskinongé, QC]

Mr. Speaker, this is especially serious for our farmers. They are the ones most affected by rising interest rates, they have climate change wreaking havoc on their crops, and they are already saddled with excessive debt, partly because the federal government is not doing a good job supporting our farmers. What is more, Ottawa is asking them to take on even more debt with their bank within three months. Otherwise, they will have to pay back their entire emergency account.

Will this government finally show some flexibility instead of forcing agricultural SMEs to go bankrupt?

[Lawrence MacAulay, Liberal, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food]

Mr. Speaker, I am sure that Quebec farmers and farmers right across the country understand and see exactly what climate change is doing, with the heavy rains, floods and strong winds. That is, of course, why, with the provinces and territories, we have the business risk management programs in order to make sure we are able to assist farmers in these difficult situations. We have done so and we will continue to make sure we support the agricultural clean technology program and the climate solutions program. These all help with the environment.

Guests in the House of Commons

[Dane Lloyd, Conservative, Sturgeon River—Parkland, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the inclusion of an SS member in Parliament during President Zelenskyy's speech is unacceptable and embarrassing, but what is further embarrassing is an admission from the government that it did not do proper background checks on everyone who was in Parliament. President Zelenskyy is a target of death from the Russian regime. His security in Canada should be our highest priority. The minister in charge of parliamentary security must be held to account.

If a Nazi was allowed in Parliament, how can we know that the government took all precautions necessary to ensure the protection of President Zelenskyy?

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

Mr. Speaker, as I have already stated, the Parliamentary Protective Service followed all screening protocols to ensure the security of last Friday's event. I agree with the member opposite in that it was profoundly embarrassing for Parliament and for Canada that this individual was both invited and recognized. However, as the member knows, and as all members know, it was the Speaker of the chamber who decided to invite this individual and recognize him. We were all caught off guard, and we are all hurting because of it.