House of Commons Hansard #295 of the 44th Parliament, 1st session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was chair.

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This summary is computer-generated. Usually it’s accurate, but every now and then it’ll contain inaccuracies or total fabrications.

Witness Responses at Standing Committee on Government Operations and Estimates Members debate summoning Kristian Firth of GC Strategies to the bar of the House for refusing to answer questions and allegedly misleading the Government Operations committee regarding the ArriveCAN app. Discussions cover the historical procedure, need for process, government procurement practices, and transparency issues raised by the Auditor General's report. Members ultimately agree via unanimous consent motion to summon Mr. Firth to the bar on April 17 to receive an admonishment and answer questions. 44200 words, 5 hours in 2 segments: 1 2.

Statements by Members

Question Period

The Conservatives focus on the cost of living, blaming Liberal deficits and spending for inflation and high interest rates impacting mortgages. They demand to axe the carbon tax, which they argue drives up food and housing costs, and call for the government to build homes, not bureaucracy or red tape, and address their drug policy.
The Liberals focus on building more homes faster to address affordability. They highlight investments like $10-a-day child care, a national school food program, and the Canada Child Benefit to help families. They defend the price on pollution as effective for emissions and affordability, while criticizing Conservative opposition and cuts.
The Bloc criticizes federal interference in Quebec's jurisdiction, especially on housing, calling the Liberal approach blackmail. They demand unconditional transfers and blame management failures, including excessive immigration levels, for exacerbating the housing crisis.
The NDP criticize maintaining Conservative corporate handouts instead of building affordable homes. They highlight high grocery prices in the North, urging fixes to Nutrition North, and ask about banning the AR-15.

Petitions

Government Responses to Order Paper Questions Mr. Albas raises a question of privilege regarding a government answer to his Order Paper question, alleging it was dishonest about requesting social media companies censor content, citing contradictory testimony at an inquiry. 1200 words, 10 minutes.

Softwood Lumber Members debate the ongoing softwood lumber dispute with the United States, focusing on the impact of U.S. tariffs on Canadian jobs and businesses. Liberals emphasize their efforts through legal challenges and seeking a negotiated settlement, while Conservatives criticize the government's failure to resolve the issue over eight years, citing significant job losses. NDP and Bloc Québécois members highlight the need for new approaches, discussing raw log exports, mass timber, the disproportionate impacts on Quebec, and support for Indigenous communities. 34900 words, 4 hours.

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Question No.2301—Questions Passed as Orders for ReturnsRoutine Proceedings

3:30 p.m.

Conservative

Ted Falk Conservative Provencher, MB

With regard to the government's requirement during the COVID-19 pandemic that federal public servants provide proof of vaccination: (a) what are the total expenditures on compensation, severance packages and settlements to employees who were impacted by the requirement, including, but not limited to, payments made to mediators, agents, lawyers, or for legal proceedings; (b) how many employees received payments mentioned in (a); and (c) what is the breakdown of (a) and (b) by reason for the payment and how the amount was arrived at (negotiated settlement, legal proceedings, etc.)?

(Return tabled)

Question No.2302—Questions Passed as Orders for ReturnsRoutine Proceedings

3:30 p.m.

Conservative

John Nater Conservative Perth—Wellington, ON

With regard to the government's rebranding of the carbon tax: (a) which consulting, polling or research firms is the government using services or data from, in relation to the rebranding; (b) what are the details of all contracts related to the rebranding, including, for each, the (i) date, (ii) value, (iii) vendor, (iv) description of goods or services, (v) manner in which the contract was awarded (sole-sourced or competitive bid); and (c) on what date did the government begin conducting research on the rebranding of its carbon tax?

(Return tabled)

Question No.2303—Questions Passed as Orders for ReturnsRoutine Proceedings

3:30 p.m.

Conservative

John Nater Conservative Perth—Wellington, ON

With regard to the government's claim that 97% of fuel used on farms is exempt from the carbon tax: (a) how did the government come up with that figure; and (b) what specific data was used, and what assumptions were made by the government in arriving at that figure?

(Return tabled)

Question No.2305—Questions Passed as Orders for ReturnsRoutine Proceedings

3:30 p.m.

NDP

Laurel Collins NDP Victoria, BC

With regard to the 2 Billion Trees Commitment, broken down by province or territory since its inception: (a) what is the total amount of funding allocated to the (i) cost-sharing agreements with provinces and territories, (ii) Private Lands stream, (iii) Urban Lands stream, (iv) Federal Lands stream, (v) distinctions based Indigenous stream; (b) for the funding identified in (a), what amount of funding has been delivered to provinces, territories, or organizations; and (c) what is the total amount of funding that is on hold or remains undelivered as part of this program?

(Return tabled)

Question No.2309—Questions Passed as Orders for ReturnsRoutine Proceedings

3:30 p.m.

Conservative

Tom Kmiec Conservative Calgary Shepard, AB

With regard to the federal government's commitment to resettle 15,000 refugees in Canada following the renegotiation of the Safe Third Country Agreement: (a) what is the breakdown by country of origin; (b) what is the breakdown by country of citizenship; (c) what is the breakdown by demographics of the claimants by (i) age, (ii) sex or gender; and (d) how many claims were (i) accepted, (ii) refused, (iii) still awaiting a decision?

(Return tabled)

Question No.2312—Questions Passed as Orders for ReturnsRoutine Proceedings

3:30 p.m.

Conservative

Dane Lloyd Conservative Sturgeon River—Parkland, AB

With regard to the $285 million committed over five years to the Wildfire Resilient Futures Initiative: how much of this commitment has been spent to date, in total, and broken down by specific investments?

(Return tabled)

Question No.2314—Questions Passed as Orders for ReturnsRoutine Proceedings

3:30 p.m.

Conservative

Scott Aitchison Conservative Parry Sound—Muskoka, ON

With regard to the Apartment Construction Loan Program and its precursor the Rental Construction Financing Initiative, broken down by year, by province or territory, and by type of end user (market housing developer, non-profit housing developer, municipality), between fiscal years 2017-18 and 2027-28: (a) how much funding has been allocated to the program; (b) how much funding has been committed; (c) how much funding has been transferred to the recipients; (d) how many units have been constructed or are expected to be constructed; and (e) how much has the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation spent, or is it projected to spend, administering the program?

(Return tabled)

Question No.2315—Questions Passed as Orders for ReturnsRoutine Proceedings

April 8th, 2024 / 3:30 p.m.

Conservative

Scott Aitchison Conservative Parry Sound—Muskoka, ON

With regard to the Affordable Housing Fund, and its precursor, the National Housing Co-Investment Fund, broken down by year, by province or territory, and by type of end user (market housing developer, non-profit housing developer, municipality), between fiscal years 2017-18 and 2027-28: (a) how much funding has been allocated to the program; (b) how much funding has been committed; (c) how much funding has been transferred to the recipients; (d) how many units have been constructed or are expected to be constructed; and (e) how much has Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation spent, or is it projected to spend, administering the program?

(Return tabled)

Question No.2316—Questions Passed as Orders for ReturnsRoutine Proceedings

3:30 p.m.

Conservative

Scott Aitchison Conservative Parry Sound—Muskoka, ON

With regard to the Rapid Housing Initiative, including Rounds 1, 2, and 3, broken down by year, by province or territory, and by type of end user (market housing developer, non-profit housing developer, municipality), between fiscal years 2017-18 and 2027-28: (a) how much funding has been allocated to the program; (b) how much funding has been committed; (c) how much funding has been transferred to the recipients; (d) how many units have been constructed or are expected to be constructed; and (e) how much has the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation spent, or is it projected to spend, administering the program?

(Return tabled)

Question No.2319—Questions Passed as Orders for ReturnsRoutine Proceedings

3:30 p.m.

Conservative

Dan Albas Conservative Central Okanagan—Similkameen—Nicola, BC

With regard to the Housing Accelerator Fund, broken down by year, by province or territory, and by type of end user (market housing developer, non-profit housing developer, municipality), between fiscal years 2017-18 and 2027-28: (a) how much funding has been allocated to the program; (b) how much funding has been committed; (c) how much funding has been transferred to the recipients; (d) how many units have been constructed or are expected to be constructed; and (e) how much has the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation spent, or is it projected to spend, administering the program?

(Return tabled)

Question No.2320—Questions Passed as Orders for ReturnsRoutine Proceedings

3:30 p.m.

Conservative

Dan Albas Conservative Central Okanagan—Similkameen—Nicola, BC

With regard to the Federal Land Initiative, broken down by year, by province or territory, and by type of end user (market housing developer, non-profit housing developer, municipality), between fiscal years 2017-18 and 2027-28: (a) how much funding has been allocated to the program; (b) how much funding has been committed; (c) how much funding has been transferred to the recipients; (d) how many units have been constructed or are expected to be constructed; and (e) how much has the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation spent, or is it projected to spend, administering the program?

(Return tabled)

Question No.2321—Questions Passed as Orders for ReturnsRoutine Proceedings

3:30 p.m.

Conservative

Randy Hoback Conservative Prince Albert, SK

With regard to government funding for initiatives to alleviate homelessness, broken down by year for each of the last five years: (a) how much has been spent by the government, in total and broken down by province or territory and by major metropolitan area for each department or agency that provides such funding; (b) what are the details of all funding provided, including the (i) date, (ii) recipient, (iii) location of the recipient, (iv) amount of funding, (v) type of funding, (vi) program under which the funding was provided, (vii) purpose of the funding or project description; (c) how much has the government spent to administer programs aimed at reducing homelessness; (d) how many homeless people, including all forms of homelessness, were there in Canada, broken down by province or territory and major metropolitan area; and (e) for each number in (d), (i) what is the yearly change in terms of both numbers and percentages, (ii) what is the total change over the past five years in terms of both numbers and percentages?

(Return tabled)

Question No.2324—Questions Passed as Orders for ReturnsRoutine Proceedings

3:30 p.m.

Conservative

Kelly McCauley Conservative Edmonton West, AB

With regard to the ArriveCAN application: (a) what was the cost of the update or release that resulted in the glitch in ArriveCAN that sent erroneous notifications instructing people arriving in Canada to quarantine, as reported by the CBC on July 22, 2022; and (b) what were the costs of any government-paid quarantines resulting from this glitch in ArriveCAN, in total and broken down by month, location, hotel, and type of cost?