Debates of Nov. 27th, 2024

Finance

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, from coast to coast to coast, Canadians are struggling. That is why we are helping them directly by giving them a tax break for the next few months to help them get through these tough times. We are also offering direct help to workers, those who have been working for a long time. This measure is not for seniors, in whom we have invested a lot over the past few years, or for young people, in whom we have invested a lot. It is for the workers, who also need a hand. This measure will give workers the help they need.

Again, the Bloc Québécois just wants to pick a fight.

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

Mr. Speaker, no doubt retirees and young people are asking themselves some serious questions right now.

Clearly, nobody wants these Christmas goodies. Everyone in the House, including the Liberal Party of Canada, voted in favour of the bill that would make retirees equal. I think people, on the whole, are willing to pay a certain amount of taxes, as long as the government does not just fritter that money away.

Is the Prime Minister prepared to risk a confidence vote in the House over this initiative?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, the Bloc Québécois has the means and the opposition days to bring forward whatever issues it wants.

In the meantime, we will continue to work to deliver results for seniors, as we have been doing for a long time. We will continue to invest in and care for our seniors.

We also want to invest in workers and acknowledge the fact that they are struggling and going through an extremely tough time because of global inflation and the pandemic. We are here and we can see it.

If the Bloc Québécois members want to vote against workers, they can, but they will have to explain their decision to Quebeckers. The rest of us are here to help workers.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, we need a plan to protect our economy from President-elect Trump's threats.

The Americans and the provincial premiers have warned of chaos at the border and in the immigration system. There are 4.9 million permits and visas that are set to expire within the next 13 months, or about a year from now. If those people do not leave or if they enter the United States illegally, that threatens our economy.

What is the plan to ensure that the people who should leave do leave?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, every year in our country, thousands of resident permits, visitor visas and work permits expire, and the people go home. Our immigration system has mechanisms for managing our border to ensure that these people leave the country and that there are consequences if they do not leave. We will continue to strengthen these measures.

We have taken steps to ensure that immigration keeps pace with our economy. We have taken steps to strengthen our border, and we will continue to so.

There is no need to panic like the opposition leader. We are here for Canadians.

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, his minister said that it was impossible to know whether or not these people were leaving the country. His own immigration department just released a document saying that it does not know exactly how many people who should not be in this country are still here, but “[e]stimates from academic sources range between 20,000 and 500,000 persons, although there may be more”. There could be 500,000.

What is the plan?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, we just unveiled an immigration plan that will reduce immigration levels for the next few years. This will help get homes built. It will also give the economy a chance to catch up with the postpandemic influx of immigrants who came to help alleviate the labour shortage.

We are adjusting our immigration system to meet needs, while also strengthening the protection and integrity of our borders. I know that this is what Canadians expect, and we will always deliver on this commitment.

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, we have to protect our borders if we are going to protect our economy from President-elect Trump's tariff threats. The Americans and the premiers are all concerned the Prime Minister is too weak to do that. The data from his own immigration department confirms that fact. According to documents produced by his ministry, there are between 20,000 and 500,000 people in Canada who are not supposed to be here and another three million people who have to leave within the next year.

What is the plan to ensure that people who should leave do leave?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, every year, there are visitor visas, work permits and student visas that expire, and every year, the vast majority of those people return home to their countries. We have procedures and processes in place to make sure that happens. We have consequences if they do not. We will continue to strengthen those.

Continuing to talk down our country and talk down our systems is something that the Leader of the Opposition is doing because he is more focused on trying to get elected than on actually solving the problems Canadians are facing. That is why Liberals continue to step up and deliver on the needs of Canadians.

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, that is another weak answer from a weak leader. The reality is the Prime Minister says that people just voluntarily leave when their permits and visas are up. However, his minister admitted this week that is impossible to prove because they do not keep track. The closest thing they could get to an answer was their department saying, “Estimates from academic sources range between 20,000 and 500,000 persons”, although there may be more. We are talking about people who should not be in our country.

Once again, what is the plan?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, once again, Liberals laid out an immigration plan just a few weeks ago that talks about how we are going to make sure our immigration numbers allow for our economy to catch up and for our homebuilding to catch up. We have a strong and robust immigration system that has delivered for Canadians over decades now.

The fact that the Leader of the Opposition continually throws up his hands to say that Canada is broken is him talking down not just our institutions but Canadians themselves. Canadians are optimistic and ambitious about the future. That is why we continue to invest in them. His answer is cuts to services, cuts to benefits and cuts to Canadians.

Electoral Reform

[Lisa Marie Barron, NDP, Nanaimo—Ladysmith, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister promised Canadians would see real change to our electoral system. It has been nine years, and in true Liberal fashion, he broke this promise and let Canadians down. Clearly, this was an election-year tactic and the result is increased division, partisan games and a lack of representation in Canada's Parliament. The Conservatives sure do not want to make it better because they only care about the profits of their rich corporate friends.

Will the Prime Minister tell Canadians why he dropped the ball on electoral reform?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, I very much care about electoral reform. I have been very clear that I would bring in a ranked ballot tomorrow if we had that option.

The NDP is turning its back on workers right now, asking a question about electoral reform when Canadians are worried about whether or not the opposition parties are going to support the tax break that Canadians need or the investments in workers that they deserve.

Right now we need a party and a Parliament that is focused on helping and supporting Canadians as they get us all through this difficult time with their hard work and ambition, and right now talking about politics is the last thing Canadians want to hear from the House.

The Economy

[Blake Desjarlais, NDP, Edmonton Griesbach, AB]

Mr. Speaker, what the Prime Minister is not saying is the fact that seniors and persons with disabilities are workers. No one should have to work more than one full-time job in order to put a roof over their head or afford food. A recent report from Edmonton suggests that the minimum wage is not enough to survive. People are having to make tough choices. They cannot afford their groceries, they cannot afford their medication and they cannot afford their rent. The Liberals are holding up relief by excluding seniors and persons with disabilities from the $250 rebate. Worse yet, the Conservatives would cut.

Will the Liberals stop letting Canadians down during this difficult time?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, as of next year, because of this government, Canadians with disabilities will be receiving $200 every single month. That is making a real difference in the lives of Canadians living with disabilities. We know there is more to do and we will be doing more.

In regard to workers, it is astonishing to see the New Democratic Party of Canada turn its back on workers and say that workers do not deserve a little support, workers do not deserve to be recognized for the efforts they made to get us through the pandemic, to get us through the global inflation crisis. These are things we are standing up for to see and recognize workers and the NDP is blocking them.

[Mark Gerretsen, Liberal, Kingston and the Islands, ON]

Mr. Speaker, last week our government announced measures that will provide financial support for Canadians over the holidays. These measures should be supported by all MPs. However, we know the Leader of the Opposition has muzzled his members. According to one Conservative MP, we recently learned that “Everybody is being watched. What we say, what we do, who we talk to.” The leader of the Conservative Party has gone so far as to stop his MPs from asking the government for supports.

Can the Prime Minister explain why the Leader of the Opposition should unmuzzle his MPs and allow them to support Canadians instead of forcing them to repeat his embarrassingly bad slogans?

[The Speaker, Greg Fergus]

The question does not regard the administration of government. I see that the Prime Minister is standing, but the question does not regard the administration of government.

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[The Speaker, Greg Fergus]

Stop, please. Order.

The hon. Leader of the Opposition.

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, it looks like the member for Kingston and the Islands is not getting into cabinet after all. Some people bring happiness wherever they go; others bring happiness whenever they go.

This is a two-month tax trick that will print cash, add to inflation and make Canadians worse off. If the Prime Minister disagrees, why will he not stop being so weak? Why will he not have the courage to call a carbon tax election and allow Canadians to vote to axe the tax?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians elect members of Parliament to be their voice in Ottawa, not Ottawa's voice or their leader's voice in their communities, but the Conservative leader shamefully puts his own interests ahead of Canadians'.

We announced a tax break for all Canadians and a $250 rebate to put more money in the pockets of working Canadians. Conservative MPs know their constituents want this, need this and support this, but the Conservative leader is muzzling them and forcing them to vote against direct support for Canadians. Shame on him.

Mental Health and Addictions

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister's radical liberalization of hard drugs has been lethal for Canadians, 47,000 of whom have died of overdoses since the Prime Minister took office, more than those who died in the Second World War fighting for Canada. Overdose deaths are up 200%. Now our American friends say they may hit us with tariffs because of the Prime Minister's Liberal policies on fentanyl.

How many lives and jobs is the Prime Minister willing to sacrifice for his radical Liberal agenda?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, we are using all the tools at our disposal to save lives and keep communities safe for everyone. Meanwhile, Conservatives are choosing to use struggling people as political props to spread fear and misinformation.

From the very beginning, we have been there to work on an evidence-based, compassionate, public policy and public health approach. We have been there and we will always be there to work with the provinces and territories to meet this time of crisis. While the Conservative leader plays politics, we are going to be there to support Canadians, grounded in science and evidence.

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, the science and evidence are now proven. After nine years of the radical liberalization of drugs, overdose deaths are up 200%. The worst overdose numbers come from British Columbia, where the policies have been most radically and enthusiastically implemented. The NDP-Liberals have claimed that they are backtracking on decriminalization because it has become so unpopular. Just this week, NDP-Liberals voted for a committee report that called for the full legalization of hard drugs.

Will the Prime Minister admit that that is his real agenda?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, having an evidence-based and a science-based approach to the opioid epidemic, a compassionate public policy approach grounded in health care, is what we need, not only to save lives but also to create safer communities.

While the Leader of the Opposition plays politics and uses suffering people as props to propagate a brokenist view of this country, we will to continue to roll up our sleeves and work hard with provinces and territories to respond to this tragedy to make sure we are putting Canadians first in everything we do.