Debates of Sept. 27th, 2023

Foreign Affairs

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, for days now, we have been apologizing to President Zelenskyy and the Ukrainian people through diplomatic channels, and we continue to work hand in hand with the Ukrainian government to defend the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine from this barbaric Russian invasion, from this violation of international law. We continue to stand in solidarity with Ukraine. That is the message I communicate regularly to President Zelenskyy when I talk to him.

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

Mr. Speaker, I also want the Jewish community of Quebec and Canada to know how ashamed and sorry I am. I want to apologize to them as well and offer my full co-operation.

I want to know whether the Prime Minister personally did the same and whether he met with representatives of the Jewish community of Canada.

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, we apologized today on behalf of all parliamentarians. For the past few days, we have been saying how sorry we are about the mistake made by the Speaker of the House of Commons.

We will keep working not only to defend Ukraine but also to support the Jewish community, which has been facing a global rise in anti-Semitism for the past several years. We will always be there to defend the principles of the rule of law and openness toward others, and we will always fight alongside Ukrainians in order to do so.

[James Bezan, Conservative, Selkirk—Interlake—Eastman, MB]

Mr. Speaker, at the end of the day, it is the Prime Minister who is responsible for visiting heads of state. President Zelenskyy came here expecting a warm welcome and a successful visit, but, due to the Prime Minister's haphazard management of this visit, he instead turned it into a diplomatic nightmare.

This has played straight into Russia's disinformation campaign against Ukraine. The Prime Minister must accept full responsibility. Will he publicly apologize to President Zelenskyy today for his failure?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, I just apologized on behalf of parliamentarians and Canadians. We will continue to be there to stand with President Zelenskyy and Ukrainians.

However, if members of the opposition want the help of security agencies in vetting their guests, if they would like, for example, for us to vet who three members of their team would have lunch with, when they are meeting with a far-right German politician, we would be happy to give them advice on who they should meet with and who they should not meet with.

Respecting Parliament and parliamentary privilege continues to be our—

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

The hon. member for Selkirk—Interlake—Eastman.

[James Bezan, Conservative, Selkirk—Interlake—Eastman, MB]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister has a duty of care to protect President Zelenskyy when he is here in Canada. The Parliamentary Protective Service, the RCMP, the Privy Council Office and the protocol office all report to the Prime Minister.

Because of his failure to fulfill his personal responsibilities, the Prime Minister has harmed Canada's reputation on the world stage. He broke trust with Jewish and Ukrainian communities. He has undermined Ukraine in this war, and he has provided fuel for Putin's propaganda machine.

Will the Prime Minister admit that he was negligent, and apologize to President Zelenskyy, the Ukrainian people and, indeed, all Canadians?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, do members know who does not report to the Prime Minister in our parliamentary system? The Speaker of the House of Commons does not report to the Prime Minister.

It is well established that the independence of the Speaker is sacrosanct. If the Leader of the Opposition wants to change that, let him stand up to say that.

We will continue to defend the principles and the rights of parliamentarians, even as we stand with Ukraine against the illegal invasion by Russia.

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, actually, the Speaker's Parliamentary Protective Service reports to the RCMP, which reports to the Prime Minister.

The Prime Minister says that his national police agency did not vet—

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

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

Order.

I cannot hear the question. I want to be able to hear the question, and I want to be able to hear the answer as well.

The hon. leader of the official opposition can back up and start again.

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Carleton, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the RCMP reports to the public safety minister, who reports to the Prime Minister. That Prime Minister is now saying that, when he has foreign heads of state here, terrorists, assassins and convicted murderers would all be allowed to just walk right into the building and be within mere feet of a potential assassination target.

How does he ever expect another head of state to come back to this place?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, for someone who prides himself on having spent as many years in Parliament as the Leader of the Opposition has, including having been the minister of democratic institutions, albeit under Stephen Harper, to demonstrate such little knowledge and respect for how Parliament functions in order to make a partisan attack is truly disgraceful.

The fact of the matter is, we will continue to stand for the principles and values that make our democracy strong, even as, and even because, we stand with Ukraine.

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, he speaks of a partisan attack. This is a Prime Minister who, though he says he forgot to vet the people who were recognized during the president's visit, remembered to tell members of his caucus to pull out their phones and tape record other members of Parliament during the speech to make Liberal Party attack ads. That is the shameful politicization he was focused on.

However, I will get back to the question. Is he really saying that, for future visits of foreign heads of state, he would have no problem letting in terrorists, assassins or convicted criminals to be within mere feet of that foreign head of state, yes or no?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, I am going to let the supposed arguments of the Leader of the Opposition stand for Canadians to judge whether or not he is making any sense at all. I am not going to dignify that with a response.

Grocery Industry

[Jagmeet Singh, NDP, Burnaby South, BC]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday, a report was released that indicated that seven million Canadians are struggling with the cost of groceries. This is after two years during which the Liberal government has allowed greedy CEOs to exploit Canadians and jack up the price of their groceries.

Now, only after the Liberals are falling behind in the polls are they making a show, but it is not good enough. Will the Liberals get serious about taking on greedy CEOs and support our bill, which would bring the cost of food?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians' grocery bills are way too high. That is why we are taking immediate action. We have called in the top CEOs to Ottawa to discuss how they can make groceries more affordable. Should they fail to show results, their inaction will have consequences.

We are moving forward on competition reforms because we know that increased competition is good for consumers. We will always stand up for Canadians.

Climate Change

[Jagmeet Singh, NDP, Burnaby South, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the climate crisis is hitting families hard. People are also having a hard time paying their energy bills, and the government is noticeably absent. A report released by Clean Energy Canada confirms that we can reduce energy bills and cut emissions at the same time.

Will the Prime Minister show some leadership and do just that?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, that is exactly what we are doing.

By putting a price on pollution that returns more money to most Canadians than it costs them, we can fight climate change and help families with the cost of living. That is how we managed to start reducing greenhouse gas emissions faster than the other G7 countries.

We will always demonstrate that building a strong economy, protecting the environment and helping families with the cost of living all go hand in hand. That is what we do every day.

Indigenous Affairs

[Ben Carr, Liberal, Winnipeg South Centre, MB]

Mr. Speaker, on Saturday, Canadians will recognize the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. It serves as a national moment of reflection on the horrors of our past and a collective call to action in our effort to chart a better future.

I will be spending the morning with elders and indigenous leaders at the site of the former Assiniboia Residential School. Established in 1958, it was one of the only urban residential high schools in Canada. Sadly, it is in my riding and serves as a dark reminder of our collective inaction and colonial laws.

Can the Prime Minister please tell the House the significance of this day to the country?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for Winnipeg South Centre for his commitment to reconciliation with indigenous peoples.

On September 30, we mark the third National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. It is an opportunity to come together to reflect on the legacy of residential schools and the ongoing impacts on survivors, their families and their communities, as well as to commit to continuing the hard but necessary work of building a better future for all.

Let us all take a moment to participate, learn and reflect because we all have a role to play in the journey towards reconciliation.

Foreign Affairs

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister was too frightened to get up and answer my last question, so I will ask it again.

The Prime Minister is now saying that anybody can walk in and be within feet of a foreign head of state when they address a joint session of the Canadian Parliament. That is crazy, because staff members of MPs actually need to have their fingerprints taken and have background checks just to walk in these buildings.

Is the Prime Minister really telling foreign heads of state that when they come here there is no vetting whatsoever of the hundreds of people who would come within mere feet of them while they are here?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, our security services, including the Parliamentary Protective Service, are responsible for the safety of everyone in this House, and they always ensure there are appropriate security protocols for anyone who enters into this House.

At the same time, I am fairly certain the Leader of the Opposition is not seriously suggesting the government of the day should be vetting the individuals who that hon. member chooses to invite into the House, in a long-standing principle of parliamentary privilege.

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, of course nobody is suggesting that. What we are suggesting is that the leader of a war-torn country, who is the obvious target of propaganda and possibly even assassination, should be protected from danger not only to his person but also to his reputation, and that it is the job of the Government of Canada to carry out.

The Prime Minister has, at his fingertips, the RCMP, Global Affairs and CSIS to do background checks, and a Google check would have shown this individual who was recognized was a Nazi.

Why can the Prime Minister not find someone in his entire government who can use Google?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, as the Speaker highlighted, no parliamentarian knew the name or the identity of the person he welcomed to his House and recognized, and that is why he apologized and has stepped down from his position.

It is extremely important that all of us continue to stand with Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the people of Ukraine and continue to stand against Russia, including against its propaganda and disinformation. Canada will be there with Ukraine for as long as it takes, with as much as it takes. I hope all members of this House continue to stand together on that.