House of Commons Hansard #40 of the 45th Parliament, 1st session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was c-12.
This summary is computer-generated. Usually it’s accurate, but every now and then it’ll contain inaccuracies or total fabrications.
Employment Insurance Act First reading of Bill C-249. The bill amends the Employment Insurance Act to ensure eligibility for those returning from maternity leave and increases benefits for family caregivers to 26 weeks, addressing issues mainly affecting women. 200 words.
Flight Attendants’ Remunerations Act First reading of Bill C-250. The bill aims to end unpaid work for flight attendants by requiring airlines to compensate them for all hours worked, including pre-flight, post-flight, and training time, to ensure fairness. 200 words.
Customs Act First reading of Bill C-251. The bill amends the Customs Act and Customs Tariff to combat forced and child labour in imported goods. It shifts the burden of proof to importers to show goods are not produced with forced labour, as in the U.S. 200 words.
Strengthening Canada's Immigration System and Borders Act Second reading of Bill C-12. The bill strengthens Canada's borders and immigration system, aiming to streamline asylum claims, combat organized crime, and regulate fentanyl precursor chemicals. While proponents highlight its role in enhancing security and efficiency, critics argue it is a repackaged version of a previous bill, lacks sufficient resources for border agents, fails to impose tough penalties for serious crimes like fentanyl trafficking, and raises concerns about privacy and the handling of asylum seekers. 48000 words, 6 hours in 2 segments: 1 2.
Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development Act Second reading of Bill C-228. The bill aims to increase parliamentary oversight and transparency in Canada's treaty-making process. It proposes requiring all treaties to be tabled, a 21-day waiting period before ratification, publication, and House advice and committee review for "major treaties." While Bloc members argue the current process is undemocratic, Liberals maintain existing transparency and accountability are robust. Conservatives express concerns about increased workload and potential delays that could hinder negotiation authority. 7900 words, 1 hour.
Steven Guilbeault LiberalMinister of Canadian Identity and Culture and Minister responsible for Official Languages
Mr. Speaker, I have said it before and I will say it again: Hate speech has no place in Canada. The Minister of Justice has offered to work with the Bloc Québécois on reforms that are before the House as part of Bill C-9.
We are prepared to work with the Bloc Québécois to improve the situation and ensure that hate speech has no place in this country.
Yves-François Blanchet Bloc Beloeil—Chambly, QC
Mr. Speaker, there is an incredibly easy way to solve the problem and free the government from the shame it has brought upon itself.
We will work to eliminate the religious exemption through the Liberals' bill. I challenge them, as much as they may support multiculturalism, to have the courage to vote in favour of our amendment to eliminate the religious exemption and thus ban hate, the spread of hate and incitement to violence in our media and on our streets.
Steven Guilbeault LiberalMinister of Canadian Identity and Culture and Minister responsible for Official Languages
Mr. Speaker, Bill C-9 is currently before the Standing Committee on Justice. The Bloc Québécois is free to make proposals regarding this bill and we invite its members to do so.
We will hear from experts on this issue and we are ready to work with the Bloc Québécois and all parties in the House to ensure, once again, that hate speech has no place in our country.
Melissa Lantsman Conservative Thornhill, ON
Mr. Speaker, we all know the Prime Minister does not shop for his own groceries, so maybe someone over there should tell him what is going on with food prices. Food inflation has now reached the highest level since 2023. With fruits, vegetables, meat and even Halloween candy, everything is getting more expensive, and it is rising faster, not slower. The cost of living is soaring because the cost of government is soaring. The Prime Minister is spending more than even Justin Trudeau did, which means higher taxes and higher inflation for everyone who lives in the real world.
Does the Prime Minister realize that his out-of-control spending means real costs for real Canadians?
Patty Hajdu LiberalMinister of Jobs and Families and Minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Northern Ontario
Mr. Speaker, time and again, we see the Conservatives fighting against policies that Canadians are not only benefiting from but also asking that we make permanent. This includes things like the school food program, which many advocates and, indeed, families have praised. In fact, in my own riding, I heard just yesterday from a food partner who is working with high schools to make sure kids not only get access to fresh food but also learn how to prepare it themselves.
These are the kinds of things helping Canadian families. Every step of the way, those guys fight against it.
Melissa Lantsman Conservative Thornhill, ON
Mr. Speaker, the Liberal minister sat here for 10 years while people lined up at food banks. Is that what she has to say? Runaway Liberal deficits doubled grocery prices. Now the same people who caused the crisis think the solution is just to spend more of other people's money.
It is not just Liberal deficits driving up food costs. They voted against removing every hidden food tax that they themselves imposed: packaging taxes, the industrial carbon tax and another 17¢ a litre because of the fuel standard. It is a religion to them. Food prices are soaring and fridges are empty.
Why do the Liberals not scrap the hidden taxes they imposed?
Patty Hajdu LiberalMinister of Jobs and Families and Minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Northern Ontario
Mr. Speaker, again, we see the member and, indeed, the entire Conservative Party pretending there is a tax on food. Canadians are smarter than that. They know, when they go to the grocery store, that food is not taxed.
Instead of imaginary problems, we are coming up with real solutions on this side, whether it is for families, seniors or workers. We are here for Canadians, in both the good times and the bad.
I will just add that I hope this concern is going to translate into support for the budget that will be tabled later on.
Scot Davidson Conservative New Tecumseth—Gwillimbury, ON
Mr. Speaker, greeters at Walmart grocery stores are no longer saying hello. They are apologizing, but it is the Liberals who should be apologizing for the inflationary deficits that have driven up food prices. Inflation data out today confirms that food prices have once again skyrocketed. They are up 4% as everyday groceries become even more unaffordable for families.
We just need the number. How much higher do food prices need to go before the Liberals admit their policies are starving Canadians?
Dominic LeBlanc LiberalPresident of the King’s Privy Council for Canada and Minister responsible for Canada-U.S. Trade
Mr. Speaker, our colleague referred to apologies. Perhaps he would like to lean forward a couple of rows and suggest to his boss, the Leader of the Opposition, that he should apologize to the men and women who serve in Canada's RCMP for attacking their integrity and attacking the work they do to protect all Canadians. He should be ashamed of himself. He pretends to stand up for the police. He attacks them unfairly, and he should apologize to the women and men who serve in the RCMP. That would be a good apology.
Scot Davidson Conservative New Tecumseth—Gwillimbury, ON
Mr. Speaker, the Liberals are so focused on listening to their own spin that they have tuned out the grumbling sounds of millions of hungry Canadian stomachs. The Prime Minister said he would be judged by the prices people pay at the grocery store. With food prices up another 4%, thanks to his Liberal government's inflationary deficits, Canadians have made up their minds.
The Prime Minister is an empty suit making empty promises that have led to too many empty stomachs. How is this acceptable?
Anna Gainey LiberalSecretary of State (Children and Youth)
Mr. Speaker, we on this side of the House recognize that families need supports in meeting affordability questions. This is why we have supports in place and why time and time again we have stood for the national school food program; early learning and child care, making it affordable and accessible across the country; dental care; and the Canada child benefit. At each and every opportunity, the members opposite voted against these supports for families, for children and for Canadians from coast to coast.
Carol Anstey Conservative Long Range Mountains, NL
Mr. Speaker, under the Liberal government, everything is costing more, especially food. New food inflation data shows prices in Atlantic Canada are climbing faster than the national average, and in Newfoundland and Labrador, people are under tremendous pressure. Our province already has the highest unemployment rate in the country, yet families are being hit again at the grocery store. Beef is up 14%, sugar is up 9% and meat is up 6%. Runaway Liberal spending is fuelling inflation, and every dollar Liberals waste makes life harder.
When will the government stop the reckless spending and start making life affordable for the people of Newfoundland and Labrador?
Joanne Thompson LiberalMinister of Fisheries
Mr. Speaker, I welcome this opportunity to share with the member across the way from Newfoundland and Labrador that a single mom in her riding who earns $15,000 a year can now access up to $25,000 because she will automatically get the benefits for her and her children. This is good news, this is affordability and this is not a slogan.
Carol Anstey Conservative Long Range Mountains, NL
Mr. Speaker, while the Liberals brag, more and more people line up at the food banks in Newfoundland and Labrador. The Liberals voted against our motion to reduce food costs. It is not good enough. Sneaky hidden Liberal food taxes, like the clean-fuel regulations, are driving up food costs, and since March, food prices have risen 48% faster in Canada than in the U.S. This year alone, food banks are expecting four million visits.
When will the Prime Minister end his inflationary spree and finally make life affordable for Canadians?
Joanne Thompson LiberalMinister of Fisheries
Mr. Speaker, I would like to again remind my colleague of the benefit of the school food program. I have spoken with moms who are absolutely grateful. Their children now have food in their belly and are not separated from all the other children who can expect the basic right to have food in the morning. I also want to remind my colleague of the importance of the dental program, the child benefit and $10-a-day child care.
This is affordability; it is not loose slogans.
Éric Lefebvre Conservative Richmond—Arthabaska, QC
Mr. Speaker, inflation continues to spiral out of control under the Liberal government. The government is spending more, and Canadians are the ones paying the price.
Today, Statistics Canada announced that consumer prices rose by 2.4% over the past year. The situation is even worse in Quebec, where prices rose by 3.3%. What is more, the price of gas increased by 2.7% in Quebec.
The Liberals' deficits are costing Canadians dearly and costing Quebeckers even more.
In his next budget, will the Prime Minister commit to bringing spending and the deficit under control and stopping inflation?
Steven MacKinnon LiberalMinister of Transport and Leader of the Government in the House of Commons
Mr. Speaker, our friend across the way comes from a national assembly in Quebec City where decisions need to be made. He is well aware of that. We made the choice to support families, support child care services, support day care centres, support dental care, support pharmacare, support our seniors, and support our youth. I think that is the choice he would have made at the National Assembly of Quebec.
Why is he now standing up and criticizing us? He is going to vote against it. Let him take responsibility for that.
Mario Beaulieu Bloc La Pointe-de-l'Île, QC
Mr. Speaker, imagine being this out of touch with Quebeckers: On Thursday, the federal government announced $52 million for Quebec's health care system, but not for treating the sick. No, that $52 million is for anglicizing our hospitals. What our hospitals need is money to care for Quebeckers, not money to anglicize Quebec. English is alive and well in Quebec, including in hospitals.
When will the government stop its crusade to anglicize Quebec?
Steven Guilbeault LiberalMinister of Canadian Identity and Culture and Minister responsible for Official Languages
Mr. Speaker, with all due respect to my colleague opposite, he knows full well that our government did more for official languages than any other government in the history of this country with the reform of the Official Languages Act. We have invested $2 billion in official languages.
For the first time in the country's history, we are set to meet our targets for francophone immigration outside Quebec. Not only that, but we are going to double or even triple them by the end of the year. We are the first government to have done that. We are also making investments like this for francophone communities outside Quebec. What the member is saying is patently untrue.
Mario Beaulieu Bloc La Pointe-de-l'Île, QC
Mr. Speaker, English is hardly at risk in Quebec. It is unacceptable to waste $52 million of our money to anglicize our hospitals, rather than providing people with actual health care. Obviously, the Government of Quebec has spoken out about this, saying, “Once again, the federal government is infringing on Quebec's jurisdictions....Instead, it should be transferring the money to Quebec with no strings attached and letting the government that is responsible for health decide how best to use it”.
Why not transfer the money to Quebec so that it can be put to good use in providing actual health care to Quebeckers?
Steven MacKinnon LiberalMinister of Transport and Leader of the Government in the House of Commons
Mr. Speaker, I am shocked, and I think that most Quebeckers are too.
This government is investing in essential services for people from linguistic minorities across the country. Take, for example, the Dr. Georges-L.-Dumont University Hospital Centre in Moncton and the health care centres in the Prairies. Of course, we are also investing in health care in Quebec.
Is the member suggesting that English-speaking Quebeckers should be denied critical care in the language of their choice? That is what he is suggesting. Shame on him. We will keep—
Jasraj Singh Hallan Conservative Calgary East, AB
Mr. Speaker, the Liberal Prime Minister’s economic record is even worse than Justin Trudeau’s. By doubling the deficit, he is making everything more expensive, especially groceries.
Today’s devastating inflation numbers confirm that Liberal deficits are crushing Canadians. Rent is up 5%, groceries are up 4%, and the four core inflation numbers are all above the bank's target. The so-called budget expert’s math is not mathing.
Will the Liberals stop their inflationary deficits that are driving up the cost of living?
Wayne Long LiberalSecretary of State (Canada Revenue Agency and Financial Institutions)
Mr. Speaker, I know that the Conservative Party opposite has a hard time, but here are some facts. We have had 21 straight months in the targeted inflation rate from the Bank of Canada. Our economy grew jobs in September. We have the lowest debt in the G7. We have the lowest deficit in the G7. We have the lowest net debt-to-GDP in the G7. Our economy has had challenges, but it is strong and it is growing.
Our Prime Minister was elected to build the strongest economy in the G7, and that is exactly what he is going to do.
Jasraj Singh Hallan Conservative Calgary East, AB
Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister has built the fastest-shrinking economy in the G7.
Did the Liberals not learn anything from Justin Trudeau, that the more they spend, the worse it gets for Canadians? Ten years of deficit spending has left Canadians with high inflation, and it is only getting worse. In typical Liberal fashion, the Prime Minister promised to cap government spending, yet he is going to double the deficit.
After 10 years of Liberal deficits, what do the Liberals not understand? The more they spend, the more expensive things get for Canadians.
