Oh, oh!
House of Commons Hansard #357 of the 44th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was leader.
House of Commons Hansard #357 of the 44th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was leader.
The Speaker Liberal Greg Fergus
That goes both ways.
The hon. Leader of the Opposition has the floor.
Pierre Poilievre ConservativeLeader of the Opposition
Mr. Speaker, after nine years, the NDP-Liberal Prime Minister is not worth the cost, crime or corruption. We now know that his deficit this year will be $7 billion, 20% bigger than his finance minister claimed in the budget only six months ago. Where is the money going?
We know that $400 million was directed by Liberal appointees to their own companies in what involved 186 conflicts of interest. Now the Prime Minister has paralyzed Parliament for two weeks to cover it up and deny police the evidence.
Will he hand it over to the cops so we can put the bad guys in jail and get our money back?
The Speaker Liberal Greg Fergus
Before I invite the right hon. Prime Minister to respond, I am going to ask the hon member for Timmins—James Bay to please not take the floor unless recognized by the Speaker.
The right hon. Prime Minister has the floor.
Justin Trudeau LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, we just heard very impassioned and understandable outbursts from the member for Wellington—Halton Hills, who is concerned about foreign interference and its impact. Something that worries me is that he cannot have confidence that his leader, the leader of the Conservative Party, is actually going to do the work to take foreign interference seriously and get the security clearance necessary to be able to protect the members of his caucus from foreign interference.
Why is the leader of the Conservative Party not getting his security clearance?
Pierre Poilievre ConservativeLeader of the Opposition
It is because the Prime Minister will not gag me the way he is gagging his 24 Liberal MPs.
He has turned our country into a playground for foreign interference. He has unleashed crime and chaos on our streets and corruption inside our government.
My question, which he is erratically trying to avoid, is this: Why does he keep covering up the criminal evidence in a $400-million green slush fund scandal?
Justin Trudeau LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, the Leader of the Opposition is about to get up one more time in the House to say some words. I recommend, at this point, that he choose to apply those words to explaining to Canadians why he will not get the necessary security clearance from our national intelligence agencies to be able to protect not just his party, its institutions and its members but all Canadians.
Any leader who wants to take national security seriously should be able to listen to the information that CSIS wants to share with them, instead of covering their ears and going, “la la la la la”.
Michael Chong Conservative Wellington—Halton Hills, ON
Mr. Speaker, I will tell members the briefing the Leader of the Opposition would take.
He would take the same kind of briefing the Washington Post got on classified information given by the national security and intelligence adviser and the deputy minister of foreign affairs. He would take the same briefing that I got under section 12.1 of the CSIS Act, “Measures to reduce threats to the security of Canada”. He would take the same classified briefing that the Prime Minister has been all too willing to give to the House when it suits him, such as when he revealed classified information about Mr. Nijjar's killing a year ago and other classified information about India in the last several weeks.
That is the kind of briefing the Leader of the Opposition would take.
Justin Trudeau Liberal Papineau, QC
Mr. Speaker, we just saw an excellent example of the partisan lengths to which Conservatives will go to try to cover up for the fact that their leader refuses to take national security questions seriously.
He has repeatedly refused offers by our national security agencies to give him the necessary clearances to be able to see the scope and breadth of threats to Canadians through foreign interference. He pretends to take issues of national security seriously, but that is only for partisan purposes, not for protecting Canadians. Shame on him.
Anju Dhillon Liberal Dorval—Lachine—LaSalle, QC
Mr. Speaker, the public inquiry into foreign interference has made clear that every member of the House has a responsibility to fight against foreign interference in Canada. This is especially true of party leaders. It is imperative that all leaders be equipped with the necessary security clearances and information so that they can make responsible decisions to protect our precious democracy. The Conservative leader refuses to do so.
Would the Prime Minister shed light on why it is important to get such clearance?
Justin Trudeau LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, Canadians should be alarmed by the Conservative leader's choosing to ignore risks to his own party and to our country, and his excuses have all been dismissed by non-partisan national security experts. If he has nothing to hide, what is he afraid of? Why will he not get his security clearances?
Let me put this in terms that I think the Leader of the Opposition might actually understand. He needs to get the clearance, take the briefing and protect the country.
Don Davies NDP Vancouver Kingsway, BC
Mr. Speaker, the U.S. government has fined TD Bank over $3 billion after it plead guilty to money laundering charges. This case raises serious questions about federal oversight of Canadian banks and undermines our global reputation. Working Canadians have to play by the rules, but when banking executives put profits above the law, the government looks the other way.
What have the Liberals done to address the repeated criminal actions of TD Bank?
Justin Trudeau LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, we are, of course, very concerned by the actions of TD Bank in the United States. We make sure, every single day, that banks in Canada behave by following all the rules. We have continued to strengthen financial oversight, and we are making sure that there is full accountability for those responsible for this wrongdoing in the United States.
Alain Rayes Independent Richmond—Arthabaska, QC
Mr. Speaker, here is a simple problem that will only take a little political will to fix. When someone goes to Tim Hortons and buys six doughnuts, they do not pay any tax. However, if they decide to buy six sugar-free health bars, they must pay tax.
Because of an unfair tax rule, people pay more for healthy products, and that hurts our local businesses that are unfairly pitted against multinationals. Despite over two years of meetings and questions in the House, nothing has changed.
Can the Prime Minister tell us whether he intends to ask his Minister of Finance to fix this inconsistency, for goodness' sake?
Justin Trudeau LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for Richmond—Arthabaska for raising this issue. I know we have discussed it within the government. We will continue to look at whether his proposal, which seems to make a lot of sense, has any merit. I am sure we will all move forward together.
The House resumed from October 10 consideration of the motion.
The Speaker Liberal Greg Fergus
It being 3:26 p.m., the House will now proceed to the taking of the deferred recorded division on the motion to concur in the 16th report of the Standing Committee on Finance.
Call in the members.
Michael Barrett Conservative Leeds—Grenville—Thousand Islands and Rideau Lakes, ON
Mr. Speaker, during question period, while the leader of His Majesty's loyal opposition was posing a question to the Prime Minister, the member for Edmonton Griesbach used decidedly unparliamentary language. It was a phrase that you have, in the past, ruled as unacceptable and called on members to apologize for and withdraw, or they would not be recognized.
I appreciate it is difficult for you to be able to hear that from your vantage point in the chamber, Mr. Speaker, but I did observe the proceedings verification officer turn and then repeat the phrase, word for word, that was used by the member for Edmonton Griesbach.
I just ask for you to consult with Hansard and, should you find that they did capture this phrase that is unparliamentary and it is attributed to the member, that the appropriate remedy be taken.
Blake Desjarlais NDP Edmonton Griesbach, AB
Mr. Speaker, I do want to acknowledge my hon. colleague's comments. If I said something that was offensive to this chamber, I withdraw it and apologize.
The Speaker Liberal Greg Fergus
I thank the hon. member for withdrawing that comment and apologizing.
I wish to inform the House that because of the deferred recorded divisions, Government Orders will be extended by 12 minutes.