Debates of Dec. 2nd, 2024

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship

[Melissa Lantsman, Conservative, Thornhill, ON]

Mr. Speaker, they have been in government for nine years. They have known for years that immigration was out of control. They knew for years that asylum claims were out of control. They knew for years that our border was broken. None of what President-elect Trump has been campaigning on was a secret. The Prime Minister even threw that minister under the bus for his incompetence in immigration. If we are going to save Canadian jobs, we needed a plan yesterday to fix the disorder at the border.

I will ask again. Where is the Canada first plan to keep our border safe?

[Marc Miller, Liberal, Minister of Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, this is from the gleeful authors of the barbaric practices snitch line. That was their approach to immigration when they last had a chance. We have been very serious with President-elect Trump about our intention to secure the border. It is something we clearly intend to do. They have an opportunity to do a number of things and that is to support any asylum reform we put in front of the House. I encourage them to break their silliness in the House and to do so.

[Brad Redekopp, Conservative, Saskatoon West, SK]

Mr. Speaker, after nine years, the NDP-Liberal government has broken our borders. It brought in three million temporary residents who need to leave Canada in the next year, but it has no way to know if they will actually leave. Will they go back home? Will they stay here illegally? Will they cross over the U.S. border? By the way, the President-elect has made it very clear that there are no more free rides for our broken borders. The bottom line is these Liberals do not know.

We need a Canada first plan to fix our broken borders. Where is it?

[Dominic LeBlanc, Liberal, Minister of Public Safety]

Mr. Speaker, one of the first things in our plan was to reverse some of the draconian cuts that the previous Conservative government made to the brave women and men who work in our Canadian border services. We take the issue of border integrity and border security seriously, as do the Americans.

Our discussion on Friday evening with our American friends was very much about the joint work that we could continue to do together. That work has been done for decades between Canadian and American law enforcement. It has kept both countries safe and secure, and we are prepared to continue to do more as well.

[Brad Redekopp, Conservative, Saskatoon West, SK]

Madam Speaker, the Prime Minister went to Mar-a-Lago to kiss the ring and returned with absolutely nothing, all while there are serious gaps in our immigration system. For example, there are over 260,000 unprocessed refugee claims right now in the system. The Liberals are paying out billions of dollars every year for hotels, food and medical costs for these claimants. They are even allowed to work while they wait nearly four years to be processed.

Why would people leave Canada voluntarily when they can hitch themselves to the NDP-Liberal gravy train? Where is the Canada first plan to keep our borders secure?

[The Speaker, Liberal, Greg Fergus]

Before I recognize the hon. minister, I just want to encourage all members on all sides of the House to please, out of respect for those who do depend on simultaneous translation, allow them to hear the questions and the answers given by not taking the floor when they are not recognized by the Speaker.

The hon. Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship.

[Marc Miller, Liberal, Minister of Immigration]

Madam Speaker, while the Leader of the Opposition was in his basement figuring out what rhyme to put up on Twitter to express his displeasure with the government, the Prime Minister of Canada was meeting with Donald Trump, our most important partner. That is responsible.

At the same time, when the Leader of the Opposition is not doing that in his basement, he is skipping around the greater Toronto area promising everyone and anyone visas to this country, and promising not to deport them. That is not responsible. That is not serious. We plan to be serious.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Greg Fergus]

Again, I am going to ask all members to not take the floor unless they are recognized by the Speaker. I will refer specifically to the member for New Brunswick Southwest, if he could please not do so.

The hon. member for Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles.

Public Safety

[Pierre Paul-Hus, Conservative, Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles, QC]

Mr. Speaker, for nine years, we have been asking this Prime Minister to wake up and regain control of our border, but he continues to do the opposite. For example, in 2015, the number of unprocessed asylum claims was under 10,000. Today, there are over 260,000 unprocessed claims.

We called for more policing of our border and greater collaboration with provincial police forces to crack down on human trafficking, illegal entry, drug production and trafficking and so on.

We have proposed a plan. Will the government agree to it and implement it?

[Dominic LeBlanc, Liberal, Minister of Public Safety]

Mr. Speaker, once again, we had a very cordial and constructive conversation with our American partners on Friday evening. We talked about security at the Canada-U.S. border over the decades and the integration of Canadian police forces with their American partners. We talked, for example, about the important work that the RCMP is doing in the fight against fentanyl, which has led to drug seizures and significant arrests, often in partnership with our American allies.

We will continue to do this work for the safety of Canadians.

[Pierre Paul-Hus, Conservative, Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles, QC]

Mr. Speaker, President-elect Trump just asked the Prime Minister to do something. We have been asking for the same thing over here for nine years. We are calling for additional measures to stop gun smuggling, drug trafficking and auto theft. He never listened. Gun smuggling and auto theft are a scourge in Quebec. We have suggested enhanced surveillance at the Port of Montreal and at the border, but nothing has changed.

We have a plan. Will the Prime Minister agree to implement it?

[Dominic LeBlanc, Liberal, Minister of Public Safety]

Mr. Speaker, my colleague across the way has a list of things that our government has actually done. We have worked with our law enforcement. We have invested more to reverse the cuts made by the former Conservative government.

If my colleague is serious about our country's national security, I suggest that he encourage his boss to obtain the security clearance needed to access information that will help protect his political party and caucus. For example, when it comes to India's foreign interference, it might be a good idea for the Leader of the Opposition to do that.

Public Services and Procurement

[Nathalie Sinclair-Desgagné, Bloc, Terrebonne, QC]

Mr. Speaker, after ArriveCAN, the auditor has uncovered a new contracting scandal: Accenture.

Ottawa gave $313 million to this multinational to manage the CEBA loans for it during the pandemic. That is five times the cost of ArriveCAN, and, as with ArriveCAN, the money was paid untendered, without a spending limit and without any auditing. The Auditor General talked about how all the departments involved allowed for an “accountability void”.

Are the Liberals allergic to accountability?

[Jean-Yves Duclos, Liberal, Minister of Public Services and Procurement]

Mr. Speaker, on the contrary, we love accountability and that is why we thank the Auditor General for all of her work. She did a solid job, and it is important to acknowledge that this morning. It is also important to acknowledge that when the pandemic hit, the only thing the Conservatives wanted to do, according to the Leader of the Opposition, was cut corporate taxes in the hope that corporations would suddenly start hiring the hundreds of thousands of Canadians who had lost their jobs.

We brought in measures that saved hundreds of thousands of SMEs in Quebec and elsewhere in Canada from going bankrupt.

[Nathalie Sinclair-Desgagné, Bloc, Terrebonne, QC]

Mr. Speaker, not only does nobody know how Accenture spent our $313 million, but the Liberals are still refusing to find out.

The Department of Finance did not accept the Auditor General's recommendation to look into the accountability gaps. It has washed its hands of the situation. After giving out $300 million without a call for tenders and without any follow-up, the very least the government could do in order to be accountable is to accept the Auditor General's recommendations.

Is the Department of Finance refusing to look into this situation because it is afraid that Quebeckers will find out that they have been burned again?

[Rachel Bendayan, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance]

The Canada emergency business account, or CEBA, helped countless SMEs in Quebec and across Canada avoid bankruptcy.

It is thanks to CEBA that workers were able to get their paycheques. I am not surprised that the Bloc Québécois is rising in the House four years later. Perhaps they want to change the channel because, last week, they voted against a tax holiday. I am not making this up. The Bloc Québécois decided to vote against measures that would make life easier for Canadians, especially during the holiday season.

[Nathalie Sinclair-Desgagné, Bloc, Terrebonne, QC]

Mr. Speaker, let us focus a bit. The president of Export Development Canada told the Standing Committee on Public Accounts that she had awarded $149 million in contracts to Accenture. Today, the Auditor General revealed that it was actually $313 million. That is more than double. How did we go from $149 million to $313 million?

We will never know, because the finance department refuses to investigate. We have seen this before. Quebeckers pay their taxes, trusting that their money will be invested wisely. How could they possibly not come to the conclusion that the Liberals are abusing that trust?

[Rechie Valdez, Liberal, Minister of Small Business]

Mr. Speaker, I find the Bloc Québécois's position hypocritical. Their request to extend the Canada emergency business account would have generated higher costs. Small businesses asked for help to keep their doors open and their employees working, and that is what we did. Small businesses know we will always be there for them.

Carbon Pricing

[Lianne Rood, Conservative, Lambton—Kent—Middlesex, ON]

Mr. Speaker, for eight consecutive years, food bank usage has risen in Ontario, which is a timeline that matches the corruption and incompetence of the NDP-Liberal government. It has caused the cost of living crisis, a crisis where even 25% of Ontarians who have jobs need to use the food bank.

Canadians deserve relief from this cost of living crisis, so will the Prime Minister cancel his plans to quadruple the carbon tax and call a carbon tax election now?

[Jenna Sudds, Liberal, Minister of Families]

Mr. Speaker, I have great news. Last week I was in P.E.I., where we announced that it was another province that has signed on to the national school food program.

That is 184,000 kids this school year who will receive food at school and almost 1.5 million more meals at school, for a program that the Leader of the Opposition contends does not exist. I challenge him to ask those 184,000 children who are getting food at school. They will school him.

[Lianne Rood, Conservative, Lambton—Kent—Middlesex, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the NDP-Liberals have caused this cost of living crisis. More than one million Ontarians had to use a food bank last year. The NDP-Liberals still cannot do basic math. They still do not understand that, if they tax the farmer who grows the food and tax the trucker who ships the food, they are taxing the families who then buy the food.

The Prime Minister has completely lost touch with reality. Will he take a walk in the snow and call a carbon tax election now?

[Karina Gould, Liberal, Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Mr. Speaker, the Conservative members of Parliament are so ridiculous. They had an opportunity today to put forward a vote of confidence in the government, and they decided not to. Yet again, we are seeing Conservative MPs talking out of one side of their mouth, but when it comes time to act, they just cannot deliver.

We are here to work for Canadians. We are doing real things that are delivering for real Canadians, such as school food programs, the Canada child benefit and dental care, which are helping Canadians make ends meet while all Conservatives do is puff hot air.

The Economy

[Jamie Schmale, Conservative, Haliburton—Kawartha Lakes—Brock, ON]

Mr. Speaker, while the Liberals try to distract Canadians with tax tricks on Christmas treats and alcohol, more than one million Ontarians turn to the food bank to feed themselves. Food bank use has risen in eight of the nine years the NDP-Liberal government has been in power. In the last two years alone, food bank usage in Ontario has risen by 73%. What is worse is that almost 25% of those food bank users had jobs, providing more evidence that the Prime Minister's cost of living crisis is deepening.

Canadians have had enough. Will the Prime Minister do the right thing and call a carbon tax election?

[Rachel Bendayan, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, giving a tax break to Canadians is real. When parents pay for their kids' Christmas presents at the cash register, they are not going to pay GST. People at the cash register at the grocery store are not going to pay GST on everyday items. When they go to restaurants, they will not pay it either. This is real money back in the pockets of Canadians.

The Conservatives talk about vulnerable Canadians having a rough time but vote against support for Canadians on every single occasion. They stand up in the House to oppose a tax break. They are opposing a tax cut. The Conservative Party of Canada has lost all sense.

Health

[Lindsay Mathyssen, NDP, London—Fanshawe, ON]

Mr. Speaker, it is unacceptable that one in five emergency rooms in Ontario had unplanned shutdowns this year. The Prime Minister's praise of Doug Ford's innovation in health care resulted in 2024 being the worst year for emergency room closures in Ontario. The Liberals have given Ford billions of dollars in no-strings-attached health care funds, only for more closures and more uncertainty. Ontarians deserve better.

Will the Prime Minister take responsibility for funding Doug Ford's privatization scheme, or will he continue to leave Ontarians waiting?