Debates of Nov. 21st, 2025

International Trade

[Jacob Mantle, Conservative, York—Durham, ON]

Mr. Speaker, when Canadians travel, whether it is a holiday with family or a business trip with colleagues, they come back with good memories and maybe a souvenir or two. When the Prime Minister travels, he comes back with something very different: a hangover of tariffs. When he met with the Chinese, there were more tariffs. When he met with the Indians, there were more tariffs, and when he met with the Americans, again and again, there were more tariffs on steel, autos, aluminum, forestry and more.

How many more trips does the Prime Minister need before he will acknowledge the simple truth that every farmer, factory worker and steelworker in the country knows: His policy is failing them?

[Evan Solomon, Liberal, Minister of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Innovation and Minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario]

Mr. Speaker, we have to wonder what the opposition members will really support. They cannot support a deal to invest $1 billion in critical minerals from the U.A.E. They cannot support $70 billion coming in from the U.A.E. Maybe it is just because they want us to be distracted from what they also opposed; on Monday they opposed LNG Canada phase two in British Columbia, the new Darlington nuclear project in Bowmanville, 18,000 construction jobs, and the Red Chris mine expansion in northwest British Columbia.

The real question is, what does the opposition support?

[Jacob Mantle, Conservative, York—Durham, ON]

Mr. Speaker, an agreement for the future is no solution to today's problems. An agreement with the U.A.E. is no agreement when there is no investment. We know that Canadians have moved $124 billion out of Canada. If Canadians have no faith in the government, why would any foreign investor? More troubling, the real and present danger, is the inability to get a deal on the things that count: steel, aluminum and canola. Canada's chief trade negotiator said today that there are no negotiations ongoing with the U.S.

When will we start negotiations and get a deal?

[John Zerucelli, Liberal, Secretary of State (Labour)]

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives voted against the budget. I just want you to know what you voted against. You are cheering for voting against the largest pay increase for the military and a defence spending plan. You voted against the nuclear plant in your riding; a tax cut for 22 million Canadians; a national school food program, which the Conservatives called “garbage”; 1,000 RCMP personnel; and 1,000 border officers. This is what you voted against. When the Conservatives vote against the budget, they vote against Canadian—

[The Assistant Deputy Speaker, John Nater]

I will just remind the secretary of state to please address his comments through the Chair.

Finance

[Dan Albas, Conservative, Okanagan Lake West—South Kelowna, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the Parliamentary Budget Officer says that the Prime Minister abandoned his own fiscal anchor, the one he claimed was key to preserving Canada's AAA credit rating and keeping borrowing costs low. Fitch warns, “federal finances run a high risk of further deterioration.”

Is the Prime Minister breaking his own fiscal promises because he is incompetent or because he just does not care about Canadians' future?

[Leslie Church, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Secretaries of State for Labour]

Mr. Speaker, let us talk about how Canada is one of only a handful of countries around the world that maintain a AAA credit rating. That stamp of approval means that we have not just a strong fiscal position but also an enviable one.

The head of the IMF has said that Canada is acting decisively to use its fiscal space to make the investments that are going to boost our productivity and growth. We are on the right track.

Canada lost its AAA credit rating in the early 1990s, after the party opposite was in power with reckless deficits and ballooning debt.

[Dan Albas, Conservative, Okanagan Lake West—South Kelowna, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I am from B.C., and David Eby has taken us off a fiscal cliff simply because the province said the exact same things and was downgraded.

Now Canadians are paying nearly 50% more on their credit cards than in 2015, while the Prime Minister maxes out the taxpayers' credit card. The Parliamentary Budget Office says the government broke its own debt-to-GDP promise, and Fitch is warning of fiscal slippage.

Is the costly credit card budget proof of reckless spending or proof of total economic mismanagement?

[Wayne Long, Liberal, Secretary of State (Canada Revenue Agency and Financial Institutions)]

Mr. Speaker, the member should actually read the report before citing it when he gets up in the House. According to the Parliamentary Budget Officer's report, “current fiscal policy in Budget 2025 would be deemed sustainable over the long term.”

We have the best credit rating in the world. We have the best net debt-to-GDP in the G7. We are going to use that fiscal firepower to build the strongest economy in the G7.

[Kurt Holman, Conservative, London—Fanshawe, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister's costly credit card budget piles today's reckless spending onto tomorrow's taxpayers. After 10 years of Liberal budgets' failing to balance themselves, Canadians now put nearly 50% more of their expenses on credit cards.

Fitch warns that federal finances are at high risk of further deterioration because the government keeps blowing past its own fiscal anchors, and the fiscal watchdog says there is less than a 10% chance the government will keep to its spending promises. It is no wonder the Prime Minister wants to fire him.

How many more fiscal watchdog reports will it take for the Prime Minister to finally rein in his credit card spending?

[Tom Osborne, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the President of the Treasury Board]

Mr. Speaker, at every opportunity the opposition members had to make life more affordable for Canadians, they failed. They voted against more affordable early learning and child care, against lower taxes and against eliminating the tax on new home purchases. They have failed Canadians at every opportunity.

Where are the common-sense Conservatives? One member is here, and two members are behind the curtains.

Forestry Industry

[Marilène Gill, Bloc, Côte-Nord—Kawawachikamach—Nitassinan, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the news came as a shock: the Arbec mill in Port‑Cartier is laying off roughly 100 workers.

The federal government needs to wake up. Forestry industry representatives, including Arbec, were in Ottawa less than a month ago to share their concerns and discuss solutions.

A wage subsidy is needed, precisely to prevent layoffs like those in Port‑Cartier. For the sector in general, the federal government must offer 50% of the countervailing and anti-dumping duties to be paid.

How many more layoffs will it take for Ottawa to actually do something?

[Claude Guay, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources]

Mr. Speaker, softwood lumber is the lifeblood of Canada's small forestry communities, which are essential to our country's economy. We have been clear that the tariffs on softwood lumber are absolutely unjustified, and we are working at all levels to resolve the softwood lumber dispute.

We have announced a number of programs, including $50 million to support employment, $500 million to make changes and $700 million to help with cash flow. We are also considering other future measures to support our forestry workers.

[Marilène Gill, Bloc, Côte-Nord—Kawawachikamach—Nitassinan, QC]

Mr. Speaker, we need to take action before industries shut down. Things are bad in the forestry sector, Ottawa knows that, but I do not know if it truly understands.

Yesterday, there were 100 layoffs at Arbec in Port‑Cartier. Last week, workers in Amos learned they would be laid off for Christmas. Last June, there were layoffs in Lac‑Saint‑Jean, Mauricie and elsewhere. After all these job losses, the Liberals still refuse to provide the solutions the industry is calling for. We need wage subsidies and money to compensate for the Americans' illegal tariffs.

Why are the Liberals still waiting?

[Claude Guay, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources]

Mr. Speaker, I do not really understand the question from my Bloc colleague, because there are already three programs in place, and I just mentioned that we are planning new ones. There is a program to support businesses with wages and transformation, and others will follow.

Finance

[Bernard Généreux, Conservative, Côte-du-Sud—Rivière-du-Loup—Kataskomiq—Témiscouata, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister acts as though the public purse is his own personal credit card. The result is that Canadians are falling further into debt and paying more for everything. To make matters worse, the Parliamentary Budget Officer confirmed that the Prime Minister has scrapped the plan to reduce the debt-to-GDP ratio, a crucial commitment if we want to ensure that Canada does not end up having to borrow at a very high price.

How many more warnings will it take before this Prime Minister finally stops spending money like it grows on trees?

[John Zerucelli, Liberal, Secretary of State (Labour)]

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives voted against budget 2025. They voted against skilled tradespersons. Budget 2025 supports our skilled trades folks with major investments in local infrastructure, clean energy economy projects and expanded training for every worker across the country.

Members should not take just my word for it but also the word of the building trades unions. They said they are thrilled with the budget and the fact that it passed, calling it monumental for skilled workers, with $50 billion in infrastructure and $75 million in training. However, they had another thing to say: that those who supported the budget acted in—

[The Assistant Deputy Speaker, John Nater]

The hon. member for Côte-du-Sud—Rivière-du-Loup—Kataskomiq—Témiscouata.

[Bernard Généreux, Conservative, Côte-du-Sud—Rivière-du-Loup—Kataskomiq—Témiscouata, QC]

Mr. Speaker, my colleague is trying to defend the indefensible, but the facts speak for themselves. Fitch Ratings, which assesses our credit rating, issued a warning, in black and white, that the country's finances run a high risk of further deterioration because of this government's reckless spending.

Rather than spewing more rhetoric, can my colleague explain why this government is completely ignoring the warnings of experts and stubbornly insisting on running Canada's economy into the ground?

[Leslie Church, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Secretaries of State for Labour]

Mr. Speaker, budget 2025 has two fiscal anchors: a debt-to-GDP ratio baseline and balancing operating expenditures over the next three years. Our former Parliamentary Budget Officer, Kevin Page, recently stated that he is comfortable with budget deficits of about 2.5% of the GDP given the current economic context.

Canada is ahead of Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom and France, and that includes the significant investments that we are making in this budget.

[Scott Anderson, Conservative, Vernon—Lake Country—Monashee, BC]

Mr. Speaker, do members remember when the Liberal government told us the budget would balance itself? For 10 years, the government has promised to spend less, while throwing money in every direction. Having finally blown up the economy, the Liberals' brilliant solution is to spend twice as much but change the name of spending to “investment”. Even the PBO, the budget watchdog and Fitch Ratings are pulling their hair out.

How many more fiscal watchdog reports is it going to take for the Prime Minister to rein in his costly credit card spending?

[Wayne Long, Liberal, Secretary of State (Canada Revenue Agency and Financial Institutions)]

Mr. Speaker, this week we passed a historic budget, a budget to build Canada and to build our economy the strongest in the G7.

Every member of the House knows that trade relationships across the world have changed. Our relationship with the U.S. has been fractured. Our Prime Minister is doing the right thing by travelling around the world to build up trade relationships.

On this side of the House, we are serious about building the strongest economy in the G7. The party opposite continues with its crazy line of questions.

Transportation

[Jason Groleau, Conservative, Beauce, QC]

Mr. Speaker, members of the Standing Committee on Transport, Infrastructure and Communities have learned that the Liberal Party is encouraging the Driver Inc. scam.

Canada Post is awarding contracts to drivers who have not even been trained. It is unbelievable. It is shameful.

How can this government condone practices that jeopardize road safety and the lives of Canadian families? This has to stop immediately.

Will the Minister of Transport intervene in this matter, yes or no?

[Sophie Chatel, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food]

Mr. Speaker, this government is dedicated to ensuring the safety of all modes of transportation. We are also investing heavily in all of our transportation infrastructure. We are there to ensure the safety of infrastructure and transportation.

One thing is clear: Transportation in Canada is not only safe, but among the safest in the world.

[Jason Groleau, Conservative, Beauce, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the only security the Liberals care about is Brookfield's financial security.

It gets worse. The Liberal Party refuses to convene the Standing Committee on Transport, Infrastructure and Communities. It has been blocking the work for four weeks because it does not want to hear from victims of motor vehicle accidents. It is appalling. It is embarrassing. It shows a total lack of respect for the families who are waiting for answers.

Will the committee chair, the member for Vaudreuil, stand up and reconvene the Standing Committee on Transport, Infrastructure and Communities, yes or no?