House of Commons Hansard #349 of the 44th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was documents.
Christine Normandin Bloc Saint-Jean, QC
Madam Speaker, the House is calling for a 10% increase in OAS for all seniors aged 65 to 74, but it is by no means alone. Yesterday, CTV released a survey. Do members know that a whopping 79% of Canadians agree with us? That means 79% of people clearly see that depriving seniors aged 65 to 74 of a pension increase that is being paid to seniors over 74 creates two classes of seniors.
Will the Liberals finally say yes to a request being made not only by the House, but by 79% of Canadians as well?
Steven MacKinnon LiberalMinister of Labour and Seniors
Madam Speaker, I was recently in my colleague's beautiful riding, and, after making some checks, I can confirm that 8,700 of her constituents are now receiving dental care because of the federal dental care program that she voted against.
Christine Normandin Bloc Saint-Jean, QC
Madam Speaker, 79% of the population agrees with the Bloc Québécois that we must increase old age security for seniors aged 65 to 74. Everyone understands that it is unfair to create two classes of seniors. The Liberals are also going to have to see the light or they will end up paying a political price.
Do they understand that if they say no to 79% of the population, that 79% of the population might feel like saying no to the Liberals?
Stéphane Lauzon LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Citizens' Services
Madam Speaker, it is also important to inform that 79% that it is our government, who, since 2015, did all the great things for seniors. What did we do? We reset the age of retirement from 67 to 65. We increased by 10% the pension for the most vulnerable seniors, including women, those living with disabilities, those who are in need. We increased the guaranteed income supplement. Who voted against those measures? The Bloc Québécois did.
Lindsay Mathyssen NDP London—Fanshawe, ON
Madam Speaker, Lebanese Canadians have told me they are terrified for their loved ones. They are horrified by the Israeli bombs destroying their family homes. Canadian citizens are trapped; leaving Lebanon is getting harder. Nowhere is safe.
We have been demanding sanctions on Netanyahu, an arms embargo and safe evacuation routes, and for the government to step up and push for a ceasefire. People in the region want peace and security.
Why is the government not doing everything in its power to end the war?
Rob Oliphant LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs
Madam Speaker, I think every member of the House has raised concerns about civilians in Lebanon, as we have about civilians in Israel, in Gaza and in the West Bank. We will continue to advocate for peace. The violence and destruction in Lebanon has to end.
Canada has joined with its allies and has called for an immediate 21-day ceasefire. That is the only way we can get diplomacy to work. Wars kill people. Diplomacy will work; we have to give it a chance.
Brian Masse NDP Windsor West, ON
Madam Speaker, rents are skyrocketing and families cannot find an affordable place to live. Liberals and Conservatives have stood by and done nothing while corporate landlords buy up previously affordable apartments to jack up rent and increase profits for their shareholders. Now we find out that these landlords may be using AI software to coordinate rent increases and price people out of their own home. It is the same software that is under investigation for illegal price-fixing in the United States.
Why will the Liberals not act to stop greedy corporate landlords from ripping off Canadians and using AI as a strategy to evict people from their homes?
Peter Fragiskatos LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Housing
Madam Speaker, the member is an experienced member of the House. Surely he knows that rent is a provincial area of jurisdiction.
However, we have not turned away from our responsibility to help renters at this time. We have added to supply. We have waived GST on the construction costs of apartments for middle- and low-income Canadians. The Conservatives would reimpose that. We need to add supply in the context of high interest rates. The measure is doing that. We put forward a renters' bill of rights as well. This is the first time the federal government has acted in that direction.
We are going to continue to support renters.
Rick Perkins Conservative South Shore—St. Margarets, NS
Madam Speaker, there is breaking news: The RCMP commissioner has confirmed that the Prime Minister's hand-picked directors of the green slush fund are under criminal investigation. What we have now is the Liberals' not only defying an order of the House to produce the documents and turn them over to the RCMP, but also obstructing justice by refusing to co-operate with the RCMP investigation. Nine green slush fund appointees have been implicated in funnelling $400 million to their own companies.
Are the Liberals obstructing justice so their cronies can avoid jail?
Kevin Lamoureux LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons
Madam Speaker, I am disappointed in the Conservative Party's approach, and I am not alone. If we look at what the Auditor General of Canada and the RCMP are saying with respect to the Conservative tactic, and people should really note this, they are extremely uncomfortable. You have caused a great deal of discomfort to those independent offices because of your behaviour here on the floor of the House of Commons—
The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Alexandra Mendès) Liberal Alexandra Mendes
I ask the hon. member to speak through the Chair. I hope I have not caused anything to anyone.
The hon. parliamentary secretary has the floor.
Kevin Lamoureux Liberal Winnipeg North, MB
Madam Speaker, I would suggest that the Conservative Party needs to be more sensitive and listen to what the RCMP—
The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Alexandra Mendès) Liberal Alexandra Mendes
The hon. member for South Shore—St. Margarets has the floor.
Rick Perkins Conservative South Shore—St. Margarets, NS
Madam Speaker, the House was listening to the RCMP when the RCMP commissioner said yesterday that he is investigating the corruption with respect to the green slush fund.
The Liberals use the charter as an excuse. The charter does not exist to protect the Liberals and prevent and create obstruction-of-justice opportunities. As Liberals cling for dear life to the secret documents, they obstruct justice. Hundreds of millions of dollars have already been funnelled to Liberal cronies. What is the true number? Is it billions of dollars? Is it $2 billion?
Will the Liberal who is obstructing justice and knows the true amount of the—
The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Alexandra Mendès) Liberal Alexandra Mendes
The hon. parliamentary secretary has the floor.
Kevin Lamoureux LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons
Madam Speaker, instead of the Conservative Party's playing games at great expense to Canadians, being solely focused on its party's fortune and anything else or trying to filibuster on the floor of the House of Commons, why does it not listen to what the RCMP and the Auditor General are saying, which is that the Conservative tactic causes great concern. The concern is justified, as the Conservatives are trying to blur the whole issue of judicial independence. Shame on them.
Shuv Majumdar Conservative Calgary Heritage, AB
Madam Speaker, we honour the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, not the charter of crime and corruption as the deputy House leader seems to contend.
After nine years of the NDP-Liberals, taxes are up, costs are up, crime is up and time is up. Guess what; conflict of interest is up too.
With respect to the Liberal green slush fund, the Auditor General reported that 82% of transactions, nearly $400 million, poured into the pockets of Liberal insiders. The House demanded that the government hand the documents to the RCMP. The Prime Minister refuses. How many more millions of dollars, taxpayer dollars—
The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Alexandra Mendès) Liberal Alexandra Mendes
The hon. parliamentary secretary has the floor
Kevin Lamoureux LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons
Madam Speaker, I would note that the member made reference to the Charter of Rights. Yesterday I heard a Conservative member say that parliamentarians should have the right to put people in jail. Conservatives have no credibility when it comes to the issue of the Charter of Rights and protecting judicial independence. They were literally laughable yesterday in terms of their performance on this issue. They should be ashamed of the way they throw to the side the independent office of our RCMP and walk on—
The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Alexandra Mendès) Liberal Alexandra Mendes
The hon. member for Calgary Heritage has the floor.
Shuv Majumdar Conservative Calgary Heritage, AB
Madam Speaker, the charter protects people from government; it does not protect politicians from prison. I think that the deputy House leader would be well advised to think about how every parliamentarian is not above the law.
While Canadians struggle with higher taxes, grocery prices and housing costs, Parliament halts, yet the Liberals still hide the truth, refusing to release documents. Two million people turn to food banks. Liberal insiders get rich. The RCMP investigates.
When will the Liberals comply with the RCMP, stop obstructing justice and give Canadians their money back?
Kevin Lamoureux LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons
Madam Speaker, I realize that the member across the way is relatively new. Let me give him a bit of a refresher and talk about Conservative corruption. There was the anti-terrorism scandal, the Phoenix scandal and the G8 spending scandal. Do members remember the gazebo scandal, the ETS scandal of $400 million and the F-35 scandal? What about the Senate scandal, not to mention the election scandals? That one is plural because one of the Conservative members actually went to jail.
We do not need to be taking lessons from the Conservative Party of Canada on scandals; it led the way.
Luc Berthold Conservative Mégantic—L'Érable, QC
Madam Speaker, after nine years, this Liberal government, supported by the Bloc Québécois, is not worth the cost or the corruption. The Liberals have lost control. Corruption is now the norm.
The latest news is that the RCMP has opened a new investigation into the Liberal green fund. Nearly $400 million from the Liberals' green slush fund was given to Liberal cronies. The Auditor General alone identified 186 conflicts of interest.
Why is the Prime Minister refusing to tell the whole truth? Why is he hiding documents that the RCMP needs for its investigation? Who is he trying to protect?
Kevin Lamoureux LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons
Madam Speaker, I am not too sure whether the member across the way heard what I said in terms of the Conservative corruption that is out there. This is serious stuff. Where were the Conservatives when this type of corruption was taking place? I talked about the anti-terrorism scandal, and the list goes on.
I want to focus on the election scandals because the only parliamentarian I am aware of who was literally taken away in leg irons was the parliamentary secretary to former prime minister Stephen Harper, Dean Del Mastro. Where was the Conservative Party when the Conservative Party demonstrated so much corruption?
Luc Berthold Conservative Mégantic—L'Érable, QC
Madam Speaker, after nine years, the culture of secrecy and corruption instilled by the Liberal Prime Minister is so deeply ingrained in the Liberals and their cronies that we have reached the point where the House can no longer even do its work.
This government is hiding documents from Parliament and Canadians. It is once again disobeying an order of the House. It is disrespecting a majority of parliamentarians, who voted for an investigation of the green fund. Canadians are suffering. Two million of them are turning to food banks every month to put food on the table.
When will the Prime Minister pay Canadians back for his incompetence and corruption?