Debates of Feb. 13th, 2024

Public Services and Procurement

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, it does its job unless the Prime Minister blocks it from doing its job, like he did in his criminal offence where he committed the crime of accepting a gift from someone who was seeking a government contract from him. He blocked the RCMP from investigating him.

COVID-19 is something the Prime Minister saw a once-in-a-generation opportunity to fill the pockets of his friends, whether it was the WE scandal, in which his family received a half million dollars, whether it was Frank Baylis or, now, the arrive scam. Will he stay out of the way and let the police investigate him and his corrupt government in the arrive scam?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, even a few years after the pandemic, we see the Conservative leader revert to type. While we were focusing on protecting Canadians in every possible way we could, they were peddling conspiracy theories about vaccinations and what have you.

While he continues to make personal attacks, we are going to continue to make sure that we are delivering for Canadians. Yes, we will make sure that all the rules are followed, and there are consequences for people who broke the laws or broke the rules. However, we will continue to be there for Canadians while he plays partisan games.

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, it is more proof that the Prime Minister is not worth the cost or the corruption.

He is calling the Auditor General a conspiracy theorist, now that she has revealed that his arrive scam app went from $80,000 to at least $60 million and counting, that two insiders working from their home basement got $20 million from the Prime Minister, and that top Liberal government officials accepted high-end whiskies and dinners in exchange for contracts that they let the contractors write for themselves.

Once again, will he stay out of the way and let the police investigate his government, or will he try to block it again?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, I do not think the official Leader of the Opposition needs to work on his French; I think he just needs to work on his listening skills, because in French, two answers ago, I complimented and thanked the Auditor General for her work in ensuring that rules are followed and processes have consequences if they are misdone. This is a fact, and we know that even during a pandemic we need to be stepping up to protect people within the rules. That is why there will be consequences for anyone who broke those rules or those laws, while we continue to do everything we need to do to deliver for Canadians, to support people in their daily lives and to build a better future for all Canadians.

Justice

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

Mr. Speaker, my colleague from Montcalm proposed something in the context of medical assistance in dying that would allow us to postpone the final decision on the issue of mental health in general, while accommodating patients, or future patients, with respect to advance requests and respecting the will of Quebec.

In that context, the motion could be fast-tracked to complete the process by March 17. Will the Prime Minister vote in favour of the amendment proposed by the member for Montcalm?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, we all know that medical assistance in dying is a difficult, deeply personal choice that families and individuals are confronted with at extremely difficult moments in their lives.

We know that, as a government and a Parliament, we have a responsibility to ensure that vulnerable people are protected, but also to respect the choices and rights of people who want to use MAID.

We will keep having these conversations, including with the Government of Quebec, to find the right path to take for everyone.

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

Mr. Speaker, that vote will be held right here in Parliament. Maybe he should talk to us a little.

This is an opportunity to help him avoid problems with the conservative religious right and maybe even some small segments of his own caucus. This is an opportunity to show that members of Parliament can agree on important issues and respect choices that are, as he said, difficult and personal, without an agreement that is unlikely to last long.

Does he not see an opportunity to do the right thing, the compassionate thing, by voting for the humane solution?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the Bloc Québécois for its compassionate and thoughtful contribution to this debate. These are the kinds of conversations we need to keep having in this Parliament. How are we going to properly protect Canadians? How are we going to protect everyone's choices and rights?

We will keep looking at their proposals. We will keep working with the provinces involved. We will keep making sure that the well-being of all Canadians is at the heart of everything we do with respect to this extremely complex and difficult issue.

Housing

[Jagmeet Singh, NDP, Burnaby South, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the Liberal-appointed housing advocate gave the Liberal government a failing grade today. She has said, “Homeless encampments are a physical manifestation of exactly how broken our housing and homelessness system is across the country.” She has also described it as a “life and death crisis”.

While the Prime Minister says he could and should have done more to build housing, this shows how out of touch he is. Will the Prime Minister take this crisis seriously, follow the recommendations and ensure people have a safe place to call home?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, I very much welcome the interest and the efforts of the New Democratic Party to support us in everything we are doing in delivering on housing.

We recently signed housing accelerator agreements with Quebec, Nunavut and cities across the country to unlock over 500,000 new homes. We introduced a suite of new measures to unlock the construction of over 600,000 new apartments. We cracked down on short-term rentals to unlock up to 30,000 more apartments. We introduced a mortgage charter.

We are continuing to step up on measures that counter homelessness, which is something that far too many Canadians are experiencing during these difficult times. We will keep being there for people.

[Jagmeet Singh, NDP, Burnaby South, BC]

Mr. Speaker, that does not sound like a Prime Minister who just heard that the housing advocate gave a failing grade to their government.

The federal housing advocate says that homeless encampments are a manifestation of how broken our housing system is.

She describes it as a “life and death crisis”. Meanwhile, the Prime Minister is simply saying that he could have and should have done more.

Will the Prime Minister stop listening only to the advice of real estate giants and help the people facing this serious crisis?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, on the contrary, we will continue to listen to community organizations and municipal and provincial partners. We will continue to work hand in hand.

We have signed agreements to speed up housing construction with Quebec, Nunavut and cities across the country to make it possible to build over 500,000 houses. We have taken a series of measures to build over 600,000 apartments. We have taken measures to crack down on short-term rentals.

We are investing to fight homelessness and to help people in vulnerable positions. We still have work to do.

Public Services and Procurement

[Melissa Lantsman, Conservative, Thornhill, ON]

Mr. Speaker, after eight years of this NDP-Liberal Prime Minister, we know that corruption is a feature and not a bug. SNC-Lavalin, WE Charity and now the Prime Minister's arrive scam app cost millions that Canadians will not get back. The grift and the mismanagement run so deep that the auditors could not even figure out how much got shipped off to Liberal insiders.

After what we learned yesterday, will the Prime Minister join us in calling for the RCMP to get to the bottom of all of it, every single dollar?

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

Mr. Speaker, we want to thank the Auditor General again, as we did yesterday. We welcome all of the recommendations resulting from her audit of the ArriveCAN app.

As our colleague, the Minister of Public Safety, also said yesterday, some of the report's recommendations have already been implemented, including the introduction of new measures to ensure that tasks and deliverables are clearly defined in professional services contracts.

[Melissa Lantsman, Conservative, Thornhill, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the call is coming from inside the House. They want Canadians to believe that they unknowingly got robbed blind by their own Liberal insiders and that they are going to get to the bottom of the Prime Minister's arrive scam app, which, by the way, did not work; we did not need it, and 75% of contractors did no work on it but had time to buy the government whisky.

He is not worth the cost and he is not worth the corruption. Canadians want their $60 million back.

No one trusts them to investigate themselves, so will the Prime Minister stand up, right here, right now, and call in the Mounties?

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

Mr. Speaker, as we said yesterday, we again thank the Auditor General for her recommendations on the review of the ArriveCAN application. Some of the report's recommendations have already been implemented, including the introduction of new measures to ensure that tasks and deliverables are clearly defined in professional services contracts. Our departments take very seriously their duty to optimize resources.

[John Brassard, Conservative, Barrie—Innisfil, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the arrive scam app is just like the Prime Minister, not worth the cost and not worth the corruption. The investigation and damning report issued by the Auditor General on ArriveCAN shocked even her. Really, after eight years of this NDP-Liberal government, no one should be shocked by the level of incompetence and wasteful spending that Canadians have seen from this Prime Minister.

A reasonable-thinking person could conclude from the report that the arrive scam app issue has reached the level of criminality.

Will the Prime Minister join Conservatives and call on the RCMP to expand an investigation into the arrive scam app, based on the revelations in the Auditor General's report?

[Jennifer O'Connell, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Safety]

Mr. Speaker, as we have said in the House time and time again, any misconduct in the procurement process is unacceptable. We accept that the president of the CBSA has initiated internal audits and has issued some initial reports.

She has also referred some of the concerning reports to the RCMP, but members opposite should know that it is not politicians who direct the RCMP; it is the RCMP that does this work. The RCMP will set the mandate for wherever the case may lead, and we will accept that work.

[John Brassard, Conservative, Barrie—Innisfil, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the question was a simple one really, but after eight years of this NDP-Liberal government, who in this place or across Canada expects a proper response from a Prime Minister who is not worth the cost and not worth the corruption?

The AG's report causes a reasonable person to conclude that what happened with the arrive scam app has reached a level of criminality that must be investigated, so I am going to ask again.

Will the Prime Minister join Conservatives and call on the RCMP to expand an investigation into the arrive scam app, based on the revelations that were contained in the Auditor General's report?

[Jennifer O'Connell, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Safety]

Mr. Speaker, obviously we accept the Auditor General's report. We thank her for this work. There are obviously some concerning allegations being initiated. This is precisely why the CBSA initiated the audit. This is precisely why it then referred the materials to the RCMP.

It does not matter how many times the Conservatives say it, but politicians do not direct police investigations. It is the RCMP that will do this work, and we trust that it will follow the evidence. Again, procurement with any misconduct will come with consequences.

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

Mr. Speaker, yesterday, the Auditor General of Canada confirmed what everyone was expecting, and that is the worst. The ArriveCAN app was supposed to cost $80,000 but instead cost $60 million. She cannot even be sure that it did cost $60 million. It may be worse than that. The record-keeping was so abysmal and there is so much information missing that she cannot even confirm the exact cost.

Now Canadians need to know what the problem was. Was it gross incompetence or corruption? Will the government ask the RCMP to investigate further, as the Leader of the Opposition has asked?

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

Mr. Speaker, we do know several things. First, the RCMP works independently. As the Prime Minister said a few moments ago, we have confidence in its ability to do its work.

Second, the Auditor General did describe some shocking behaviour by the public service that was both inappropriate and unwelcome, despite the urgent need to act in the context of a pandemic that was hurting millions of Canadians.

The recommendations have been heard loud and clear. Several have already been implemented, and others will be put in place in the coming weeks.

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

Mr. Speaker, it seems to me that if someone wants to be clear, then a simple yes or no answer would do.

We even learned yesterday that, of the $60 million, GC Strategies received $20 million, and that there was not even any paperwork to confirm whether anything was requested or ordered. What is more, GC Strategies got to insert clauses into its own contract. That is unbelievable.

If the government has nothing to hide, then it should say that, yes, an RCMP investigation is needed and that, yes, it recommends that the RCMP investigate further. Will the government do that, yes or no?

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

Mr. Speaker, once again, in a free democracy, it is not up to the government or governments to dictate to the police how they should do their job. That is not how things work in a democracy like the one in which we are lucky enough to live.

However, in a democracy like Canada, public servants have responsibilities that they must live up to. The Auditor General did note serious flaws in the collection, sharing and storage of important information needed to get the job done.

Justice

[Luc Thériault, Bloc, Montcalm, QC]

Mr. Speaker, medical assistance in dying is about freedom of choice.

The role of the state is not to decide for the person who is suffering; it is to guarantee the conditions under which people can make a free and informed choice. If someone does not want medical assistance in dying, they can simply not ask for it.

The National Assembly is unanimous: Quebec is ready. It has its own legislation.

Will the federal government amend the Criminal Code to allow for advance requests for people who are suffering?