Debates of May 10th, 2024

Climate Change

[The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Alexandra Mendès), Liberal, Alexandra Mendes]

The hon. member for Repentigny.

[Monique Pauzé, Bloc, Repentigny, QC]

Madam Speaker, 77% of climate experts think we are running headlong toward disaster. Only 6% think there is a chance of meeting the Paris Agreement targets.

Meanwhile, in Ottawa, we have the Liberals launching a brand new pipeline to transport oil from the tar sands. Then we have the Conservatives, whose only measure that is even vaguely related to the environment is their crusade against Tim Hortons paper lids and straws. Frankly, that is pathetic.

What will it take for Canada to listen to the science and stop sabotaging the fight against climate change?

[Julie Dabrusin, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Environment and Climate Change and to the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources]

Madam Speaker, I absolutely agree with my colleague. I do not understand why the Conservatives have a problem with straws and with Tim Hortons, which is making changes in an effort to tackle plastic waste and recycle more.

Things are very different on this side of the House, because we are doing the work that needs to be done to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. We have submitted our inventory report to the United Nations to illustrate how we are doing and to show that we are on the right track.

I hope the Bloc Québécois will continue working with us so that we can have more clean energy here in Canada.

Carbon Pricing

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

Madam Speaker, in Feed Ontario's 2023 report, over 800,000 Ontarians accessed food banks, up 38% from the previous year. This was the largest single-year increase ever recorded. Even worse, a report by Canada's food professor found that nearly 60% of Canadians are eating expired food to make ends meet. The cost of food, fuelled by the carbon tax and inflation, is causing families to suffer.

When will the Prime Minister admit his carbon tax scheme has failed and axe the tax?

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

Madam Speaker, disingenuous is what one calls it when someone says that they care about something, but they do the exact opposite, which is today's Conservatives. They claim to care about people in food bank lineups, but oppose our plan to feed 400,000 more children per year. They claim to care about housing, but oppose our investments to build 3.9 million more homes by 2031. They claim to care about affordability, but oppose our investments to help Canadians with the cost of seeing a dentist, of getting child care or of accessing life-saving medication. It is clear that the Conservatives would make cuts that would hurt families and abandon—

[The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Alexandra Mendès), Liberal, Alexandra Mendes]

The member for Haliburton—Kawartha Lakes—Brock.

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

Madam Speaker, those Liberal policies are not working. I just talked about the rising cost of food. Three out of five Canadians are eating expired food, just to survive. More Ontarians than ever are using food banks. In my own area, the Kawartha Lakes Food Source reports that total visits to the food banks it serves have increased by 10% to almost 14,000.

After nine years of this carbon tax rhetoric, I get that it is hard for the Prime Minister to admit he is not worth the cost, but the facts speak for themselves. When will he admit his failed carbon tax does not work—

[The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Alexandra Mendès), Liberal, Alexandra Mendes]

The hon. parliamentary secretary.

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

Madam Speaker, the facts are that Conservatives will never stand up when they have the opportunity to support Canadians. They will not support feeding more hungry children. They will not support building more homes. They will not support access to life-saving medication. They are disingenuous at best. The hypocrisy is over the top. We see, every day, in the House that they complain, that they holler from the other side, that they play politics and that they advance slogans, not solutions.

Here we are standing up for Canadians. I do not know what the Conservatives are doing on the other side.

[Blaine Calkins, Conservative, Red Deer—Lacombe, AB]

Madam Speaker, after nine years of reckless spending, Canadians are at a breaking point. With record demand at our food banks, we have now learned that 60% of Canadians have resorted to eating expired food, yet the NDP-Liberal government cannot help itself. It has hiked the carbon tax another 23% on April 1 as part of its plan to quadruple it by 2030.

Why does the Prime Minister hate Canadians who just want to heat their home, feed their kids and drive to work? Why will he not just axe the tax?

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

Madam Speaker, Conservatives talk down our economy every day in the House, while in reality, Canada's economy has shown great resilience, despite the global shocks it has been under. We have the lowest debt-to-GDP ratio, the lowest deficit in the G7 and an AAA credit rating that has been reaffirmed.

Warren Buffett, while talking about investing in Canada, said, “We do not feel uncomfortable in any way, shape or form, putting our money into Canada”.

The IMF, in the most recent Fiscal Monitor, rated Canada as number one for budget balance, and this year's budget puts our healthy national balance sheet to work—

[The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Alexandra Mendès), Liberal, Alexandra Mendes]

The hon. member for Moose Jaw—Lake Centre—Lanigan.

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

Madam Speaker, after nine years of the NDP-Liberal government, the Prime Minister is just not worth the cost. Food banks are on the brink. Demand is up and donations are down. The Moose Jaw food bank helped nearly 8,000 households in 2023, up 58%. Moose Jaw has a population of 33,000 people. The sad reality is that this is what the government has created.

When will the Prime Minister axe the tax to make food affordable again for Canadians?

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

Madam Speaker, it is so rich to hear the Conservatives, again, cite food bank lineups and continually rage farm off the suffering of Canadians when they will not step up when given the opportunity to support feeding 400,000 more kids per year.

This is something I advocated for, many years before getting into politics. I know many members of the House are encouraged by the fact that our government has made a $1 billion commitment to feed more hungry children in this country. I do not understand how the—

[The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Alexandra Mendès), Liberal, Alexandra Mendes]

The hon. member for London—Fanshawe.

Pharmacare

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

Madam Speaker, the Liberals are out of touch with everyday Canadians and the Conservatives are worse. After voting “no” to free medication, the member for Lambton—Kent—Middlesex wants people to know that the real problem is not that they have to pay out-of-pocket for care; the real problem is Tim Hortons and its new paper coffee cups.

While New Democrats are getting free dental care and pharmacare for Canadians, Liberals delay and Conservatives obstruct support for people and also blast coffee lids. Why is the government, like the Conservatives, so completely out to lunch with the reality of everyday Canadians?

[Mark Holland, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Madam Speaker, I thank the member opposite for her advocacy. Talking about liberty, there is nothing more fundamental than having the liberty and the autonomy over one's own body. It was so disappointing to see Conservative MPs out making speeches, trying to tell our daughters and our sisters what they can do with their bodies.

I am here to say that our party, the Liberal Party, our Prime Minister and every member of our caucus, stands firmly behind a woman's right not only to choose when it comes to making a choice over her body, but also to make sure that she has the reproductive medicine so that she has full autonomy and control over her own body.

Persons with Disabilities

[Bonita Zarrillo, NDP, Port Moody—Coquitlam, BC]

Madam Speaker, it is National Caregiver Month, and 50% of women are taking care of their elderly parents or loved ones with a disability. One in five of those caregivers reports spending more than $1,000 a month to take care of their loved one. These costs are only going up.

The Liberals keep letting women down. For years, the Liberals promised families a simple, refundable caregiver tax credit. They have not delivered. When will the Liberals give women the respect they deserve and finally make the caregiver tax credit refundable?

[Sameer Zuberi, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Diversity]

Madam Speaker, our government has stepped up and has implemented the law. We have introduced the disability benefit. This benefit is the single-largest line item in the budget with $6.1 billion over six years.

This is an important first step, a step that will help Canadians alleviate poverty. We need to build upon this.

Sport

[Francis Scarpaleggia, Liberal, Lac-Saint-Louis, QC]

Madam Speaker, the Minister of Sport and Physical Activity has said all along that Canadians deserve a safe, inclusive and welcoming sport system. Our sport system needs to be grounded in human rights. Accountability, integrity and safety need to be at the centre of sport governance and operations.

Can the minister update the House on her progress to create a safer sports system in Canada, one that reflects and celebrates our Canadian values?

[Carla Qualtrough, Liberal, Minister of Sport and Physical Activity]

Madam Speaker, we have heard very clearly about the need for systemic reform and culture change in sport. Survivors have bravely come forward so that we can learn, better protect our kids, and improve our systems and processes. What has been going on in sport, the maltreatment, the abuse and the discrimination, is unacceptable and has to stop. That is why we announced the creation of the future of sport commission, the membership of which we announced yesterday.

Along with the member for Lac-Saint-Louis, all of us here in the House, indeed all Canadians, need to build for our children a sport system that is safe and that they deserve.

Mental Health and Addictions

[Tako Van Popta, Conservative, Langley—Aldergrove, BC]

Madam Speaker, after nine years of the NDP-Liberal Prime Minister, it is clear he is not worth the crime, chaos, drugs and disorder. His radical experiment in British Columbia with taxpayer-funded hard drugs and legalized street drugs has led to more crime, chaos and disorder.

Common-sense Conservatives have put forward a motion to put an end to this risky experimentation. Will the Liberals vote with us to ban hard drugs and to offer recovery and hope instead?

[Élisabeth Brière, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Families]

Madam Speaker, from day one, what we have been proposing to members of the public is to support them with treatment, harm reduction and enforcement. We are there to help and support them. Each journey is different. Each individual needs all the support they deserve. No one chooses to become addicted to drugs. That is why we are there to help.

[Mel Arnold, Conservative, North Okanagan—Shuswap, BC]

Madam Speaker, after nine years, the NDP-Liberal Prime Minister is not worth the crime, chaos, drugs and disorder caused by his wacko policies. It is wacko to allow drug use in parks, hospitals and playgrounds. It is wacko that the government's policy is exposing kids and health care workers to lethal drugs.

Will the Prime Minister and his government support our common-sense motion to ban hard drugs and offer recovery, or will they continue with his wacko drug policies of legalized use of meth and fentanyl in children's parks?

[Élisabeth Brière, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Families]

Madam Speaker, we have engaged with experts with a range of views, to learn from current experiences and to inform policies, moving forward. We are working with all federally funded programs and are ramping up mitigation and enforcement measures.

We expect provinces and territories to do the same. The evaluation is ongoing. We will do what we need to do.