Debates of Nov. 4th, 2024

Housing

[Brad Vis, Conservative, Mission—Matsqui—Fraser Canyon, BC]

Mr. Speaker, after nine years of NDP-Liberals, they are simply not worth the cost of housing. There are encampments all over the city of Abbotsford, including the beloved cenotaph. Young people are feeling hopeless, knowing even with a good salary, they will not be able to afford a new house. Conservatives understand that and that is why we have proposed a federal GST cut on new homes, a tax cut that will spark 30,000 new developments.

Will the NDP-Liberals axe the federal GST on housing so more young Canadians can finally buy a home?

[Peter Fragiskatos, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Housing]

Mr. Speaker, they want to pay for this idea by slashing the housing accelerator fund, so let us understand what that means.

This is support for communities across the country, large and small, support for communities to get people off the street and into homes; support for zoning changes that will allow for more building, giving young people, the ones they talk about and claim to care about here today, more options. If we give people more options, the costs come down. This is infrastructure support, so that water connections, for example, can be connected to housing. They do not believe in that either. As well, this is support for vacant buildings to be converted into housing.

All of this is on the table.

Veterans Affairs

[Rachel Blaney, NDP, North Island—Powell River, BC]

Mr. Speaker, Persian Gulf War veterans are asking the government for recognition. Brave soldiers came home with Gulf War illness, PTSD and burn pit poisoning, and still they have to fight the Liberals to get the recognition and benefits they deserve, just like they had to fight the Conservatives before them. It is shameful.

Will the minister make this right and grant these veterans wartime status, or will she hide behind legislation and disrespect their service?

[Randeep Sarai, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Veterans Affairs and Associate Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, I think the committee on veterans affairs is currently studying this matter. We are waiting for its report. I can assure colleagues that the government will respond to that forthwith. The Persian Gulf War veterans have done a great service for this country, and we all deserve to see the response to this report.

I assure colleagues that the government will respond accordingly.

Telecommunications

[Brian Masse, NDP, Windsor West, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the Liberals have done nothing to protect Canadians from giant telcos' price gouging. For weeks, hundreds of Canadians have been raising their voices because they feel bamboozled. They signed a service contract, were promised a price and then the bills came in with even higher prices. Giant telcos are digging deeper in Canadian pockets. Meanwhile, Liberals sit on their hands and Conservatives are silent so as to not upset their CEO donors.

Canadians deserve better. Will the minister finally use his powers to stop these snake oil salesperson tactics that the telcos use to trick Canadians?

[Ryan Turnbull, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance and to the Minister of Innovation]

Mr. Speaker, we expect all telecommunication companies to clearly communicate contract terms and pricing changes to its customers. The minister has spoken directly with Rogers on this important issue.

In the past two budgets, we have taken critical steps to crack down on unnecessary fees and to eliminate switching charges so customers can cancel and switch to cheaper plans and access lower charges.

Public Safety

[Iqwinder Gaheer, Liberal, Mississauga—Malton, ON]

Mr. Speaker, very recently we have seen acts of unlawfulness and indecency at the Hindu Sabha Mandir in Brampton and the Sri Guru Singh Sabha in Malton. The vast majority of Canadians are peace-loving and believe that every Canadian should have the right to practise their faith freely and safely.

We have also heard from the RCMP that foreign elements are seeking to destabilize the harmony in our communities to provide evidence for their own rhetoric. These actions must be condemned.

Can the minister please comment on these incidents and tell Canadians what the government is doing to keep them safe?

[Kamal Khera, Liberal, Minister of Diversity]

Mr. Speaker, we strongly condemn acts of violence and hate that took place outside Hindu Sabha Mandir and Sri Guru Singh Sabha gurdwara. These acts need to stop. Everyone deserves to feel safe in their places of worship. I have spoken to Chief Nishan of the Peel Regional Police and have full confidence in our local authorities to investigate and to de-escalate.

As Canadians, we must stand united against hate and against all those who try to destabilize peace and unity between our communities.

The Economy

[Ryan Williams, Conservative, Bay of Quinte, ON]

Mr. Speaker, after nine years of the Liberal-NDP government, Canada has become the caboose to America's high-flying economic engine. The GDP per capita has become so stark that the average American worker is now making $22,000 more than the Canadian worker. Why? Well, because Americans do not pay a carbon tax. They do not have high-flying capital gains taxes and they do not have soft trade policies.

When will the Prime Minister finally admit that his high taxes and soft trade policies have derailed Canadian prosperity or is he content in keeping Canadian workers riding in the back in the caboose?

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives may have an inferiority complex vis-à-vis the United States, but I sure do not. Let me tell colleagues what is better in Canada. Inflation is lower. Interest rates are lower. We live four years longer because we have a universal single-payer health care system.

Investors are noticing the Canadian advantage. Here is what David Rosenberg said last week: U.S.-based investors should strongly consider moving from New York to Toronto, because returns here are better, too.

International Trade

[Ryan Williams, Conservative, Bay of Quinte, ON]

That is amazing, Mr. Speaker, because Liberal candidate Mark Carney moved his company to New York.

Let me tell everyone what is happening in the Canadian economy. Some 90,000 jobs have been lost since 2015 in the softwood lumber industry, 40,000 of them in B.C. alone. The last prime minister figured out a softwood lumber deal in 79 days. It has been nine years and three U.S. presidents.

How many jobs have to be chopped before the Prime Minister figures out that high taxes and a weak, soft spine will not bring jobs back and paycheques to Canadians across the softwood lumber industry?

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, we will take no lessons from the weak Conservatives when it comes to standing up for the Canadian national interest. That is because we remember the 232 steel and aluminum interest that the U.S. imposed on us. When it did that, we retaliated. We had the guts to do that. What did the Conservatives say? They urged us to back down. They said retaliation was dumb.

The Conservatives would sell Canadian interests out again in a minute. We will never do that.

[Richard Martel, Conservative, Chicoutimi—Le Fjord, QC]

Mr. Speaker, after nine years and three U.S. presidents, the Prime Minister has failed to negotiate a softwood lumber agreement. He has failed where the previous Conservative prime minister succeeded 80 days after he was elected.

After the closure of the Maniwaki sawmill and the one in Mauricie, now we find out that the Petit Paris sawmill in Saint‑Ludger‑de‑Milot had to close its doors a day earlier.

Why do the Liberals always find a way to abandon forestry workers?

[Mary Ng, Liberal, Minister of Export Promotion]

Mr. Speaker, as the hon. member well knows, softwood lumber and the forestry industry are really important for creating thousands and thousands of jobs across this country. We have been working very hard with the forestry industry, and what I have learned from the sector is that it is looking to expand into new markets. I am very pleased that our government, through the trade commissioner service, is helping it access new markets while at the same time working to try to get a deal with the United States.

[Richard Martel, Conservative, Chicoutimi—Le Fjord, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I will reiterate that there have been three U.S. presidents, one after the other. Nine years later, the Liberal Prime Minister still has not managed to negotiate a softwood lumber agreement. It is pure incompetence and an obvious lack of leadership. Three sawmills have had to close their doors in a matter of months. The latest one is in Saint‑Ludger‑de‑Milot, a village of 600 people. One hundred of them are going to lose their jobs.

When will there be an election so that our leader can succeed where this Prime Minister has sadly failed?

[Mary Ng, Liberal, Minister of Export Promotion]

Mr. Speaker, what I would say to those wonderful workers and the sector they belong to is they contribute tremendously not only to the economy of Quebec but certainly to the economy of Canada. However, I have a question for the leader of the member opposite. Why is the leader not going to get his security clearance so he can protect Canadians?

Oil and Gas Industry

[Monique Pauzé, Bloc, Repentigny, QC]

Mr. Speaker, today's announcement from the Minister of Environment and Climate Change is distressing. It has been two years since he presented his plans for regulations to cap greenhouse gas emissions from oil and gas. We had every right to be impatient, did we not? However, there is nothing in the minister's announcement about reducing oil production. On the contrary, he is actually boasting that production will increase by 16%. No effort required from black gold multimillionaires. Oil companies will be able to help break production records with the blessing of the Liberal government.

When will the government start to really fight global warming?

[Steven Guilbeault, Liberal, Minister of Environment and Climate Change]

Mr. Speaker, I do not know what to say. The Bloc Québécois is encouraging us to encroach on areas of provincial jurisdiction. What is this world coming to?

As the Bloc Québécois knows full well, the use of natural resources falls under provincial jurisdiction. What we can do is take action on pollution, and that is exactly what we are doing. The sector will have to limit its greenhouse gas emissions to 35% below 2019 levels. This is an important part of our plan to fight climate change.

On this side of the House, we believe that climate change is real. We have a plan for the economy and we have a plan for the future of working men and women.

[Mario Simard, Bloc, Jonquière, QC]

Mr. Speaker, what the minister is not saying is that a significant chunk of the money that the government puts into oil comes from Quebec.

For the nine years that the Liberals have been in power, the Bloc has been calling for an emissions cap for oil and gas companies. The Liberals finally promised to implement such a cap three years ago. Two years ago, they tabled draft regulations but did not implement them. They did all that only to end up with regulations that do not require oil companies to produce any results until 2030. It is this inaction that is setting us up for disaster in 2030, not the next election or the opposition parties.

Why is the minister incapable of demanding even a little effort from oil companies before 2030?

[Steven Guilbeault, Liberal, Minister of Environment and Climate Change]

Mr. Speaker, I have a great deal of respect for my hon. colleague, but I would sincerely encourage him to read the documentation on the project to cap emissions in the oil and gas industry, which indicates that this regulatory framework will take effect on January 1, 2026, not in 2030 as he said.

We tabled that document last year. It was not two years ago, just one. The Bloc Québécois seems bent on triggering an election by working with the Conservatives, but if that happens there will be no cap on greenhouse gas emissions. Thanks to the Bloc Québécois, the oil and gas industry will be able to pollute as much as it wants.

Carbon Pricing

[Blake Richards, Conservative, Banff—Airdrie, AB]

Mr. Speaker, after nine years of the NDP-Liberals, taxes are up, costs are up, crime is up and time is up.

The cost of the carbon tax is sending record numbers of Canadians to food banks, but food banks are struggling with the carbon tax too. For one Alberta food bank, paying the carbon tax means there is $280,000 less food for those who are going hungry.

The Prime Minister's policies are hurting the most vulnerable and those who work to help them, so will the Prime Minister finally call a carbon tax election so Conservatives can fix what he broke?

[Kevin Lamoureux, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Mr. Speaker, we all know the leader of the Conservative Party had a flip-flop when it came to the price on pollution, but where we are really disappointed is that the leader of the Conservative Party refuses to put Canadians' interests ahead of his personal interests and the interests of the Conservative Party.

It is time for the Conservative leader to step up to the plate and get the security clearance needed to deal with foreign interference. What is he hiding? He needs to be transparent. He has to tell us about his past. There is something there that he needs to tell Canadians.

[Blake Richards, Conservative, Banff—Airdrie, AB]

Mr. Speaker, what an insult that is to Canadians who are going hungry. Not only that, but it is Veterans' Week, and far too many heroes who bravely served Canada now cannot count on sitting down for their next meal. In fact, food insecurity among veterans has gotten so bad due to the NDP-Liberal carbon tax that some legions are having to divert funds from their poppy campaigns to instead help keep the local food banks afloat.

When will the Prime Minister call a carbon tax election so common-sense Conservatives can ensure that veterans finally get the respect they deserve?

[Kevin Lamoureux, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Mr. Speaker, let me tell members what an insult is. It is the leader of the Conservative Party continuing to focus his attention on his personal interests and the interests of the Conservative Party.

Let us be clear: The leader of the Conservative Party is hiding something. There is something about his past he does not want Canadians to know. There is an obligation for the leader of the Conservative Party to come clean and tell Canadians what he is hiding. Why will he not get a security clearance?

The Economy

[Fraser Tolmie, Conservative, Moose Jaw—Lake Centre—Lanigan, SK]

Mr. Speaker, costs are up, crime is up and time is up.

Moose Jaw's food bank faced a temporary closure due to rising costs of food and a lack of donations this summer. It used to be that people facing temporary hardship were the ones who used the food bank. Now it is people with good jobs being forced to use the food bank because the cost of everything has gone up.

When will the Prime Minister call a carbon tax election so people can put something under the tree and on their table this Christmas?