Debates of Feb. 13th, 2026

Tribute to Thérèse‑De Blainville Constituents

[Madeleine Chenette, Liberal, Thérèse-De Blainville, QC]

Mr. Speaker, some people in Thérèse‑De Blainville really know how to go above and beyond.

Today, I would like to pay tribute to Serge Paquette, who has devoted more than a quarter of a century to serving the Town of Blainville. Throughout all those years, Serge has been much more than an elected official. He has been a supportive neighbour, a beacon in the community and a source of support for everyone. He could be found at community events, working with organizations and on the ground, where real life happens on a daily basis. His commitment has guided the town's evolution and strengthened the human fabric of our community. I would also like to acknowledge the role that his wife, Eliane Boisvert Paquette, has played. Well known and respected in Blainville, she brings warmth and humanity to local life. Her presence and involvement are an integral part of the legacy they have built together. Their journey encapsulates the true meaning of public service: a daily commitment based on human relationships and a sincere desire to see one's community thrive.

On behalf of the people of Thérèse-De Blainville, I would like to thank Serge Paquette for his remarkable career and pay tribute to Ms. Boisvert Paquette.

Housing

[Eric Melillo, Conservative, Kenora—Kiiwetinoong, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the Canadian dream of home ownership is fading for young Canadians. A new report from CMHC highlights that homebuilding is expected to fall in each of the next three years and that housing prices will rise. Another report from the Missing Middle Initiative shows that nearly half of young Canadians are having to leave the community that they were raised in because they cannot afford to live there. The report states further that over 90% of young Canadians are concerned about the state of housing in Canada.

It is time to restore hope in the promise of Canada, hope in the promise that, if people work hard and play by the rules, they can afford a good home in a safe neighbourhood. That is why Conservatives are advocating for a plan to take the sales tax off of new homes under $1.3 million, a plan to cut bureaucracy and accelerate homebuilding so that all Canadians can afford a place to call home.

Scouting Week 2026

[Jacques Ramsay, Liberal, La Prairie—Atateken, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to call attention to scouting week 2026, which is taking place across Canada from February 16 to 22.

The francophone scouting movement includes over 10,000 youths and 3,700 adult volunteers. Becoming a scout means embracing the values of service to others, leadership, solidarity and respect for nature. Simply put, scouting means patiently helping 10,000 young people learn to be responsible citizens and get involved in their communities.

I would like to send a special shout-out to the 33rd Candiac-La Prairie scout group in my riding of La Prairie—Mackenzie—Atateken. These enthusiastic young people and their mentor, François De l'Étoile, worked hard raising funds at Christmas markets for their trip this summer to the Kandersteg International Scout Centre in Switzerland. Their initiative and determination would make Baden‑Powell proud.

I would like to give a scout salute to everyone participating in scouting week 2026, and I thank them for their outstanding commitment.

Automotive Industry

[Michael Cooper, Conservative, St. Albert—Sturgeon River, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the Liberals have signed on to using $52 billion of taxpayer money to subsidize EVs. However, there is one big problem, and that is that only a single EV model is manufactured in Canada. Consequently, 52 billion taxpayer dollars will be going directly to subsidize foreign EVs and foreign auto workers. This is at a time when thousands of Canadian auto jobs have been lost in the face of U.S. tariffs.

Meanwhile, the Liberals are opening the floodgates to 50,000 Chinese EVs. This is a straight-up $52-billion foreign giveaway that undermines Canadian autos and Canadian jobs. We literally cannot make this stuff up. Liberal incompetence knows no bounds.

Public Safety

[Kevin Lamoureux, Liberal, Winnipeg North, MB]

Mr. Speaker, less than a year ago, Canadians elected a prime minister and a large Liberal government. At the end of the day, part of that platform was to bring together a legislative agenda to deal with crime and issues such as lawful access, hate propaganda, bail reform and restoring mandatory minimums. We have substantial legislation to deal with making our communities safer. The problem is that the Conservative Party wants to filibuster the crime package, which is not serving Canadians in a very positive way.

Further, we have the budget implementation bill, which would deliver for Canadians in every way.

I am calling upon the Conservative Party to stop filibustering and to start listening to what Canadians want. They want a strong, healthy Canada. Conservatives need to get off their back ends and start supporting our legislation.

Housing

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

Mr. Speaker, the Liberals have stolen all our ideas.

A recent Missing Middle Initiative report shows just how many young people have lost hope of ever owning a home. For parents and grandparents, the signs have been obvious for years. If we are honest about it, the problem started well before Donald Trump became the President of the United States. Despite the Liberals throwing tens of billions of dollars at the problem, the fact remains that 10 years of structural incompetence and Liberal policies have caused house prices and rent to double and, with that, the lost hope of home ownership for a generation.

Here is an idea: Why not remove the GST on all new homes to start restoring the hope, at least, of home ownership among young Canadians?

[Jennifer McKelvie, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Housing and Infrastructure]

Mr. Speaker, it was most disappointing to see the Conservatives, yesterday, voting against a national strategy for housing for young Canadians.

On this side, we care deeply about housing affordability for young Canadians. That is why we have the Build Canada Homes act before the House, which would catalyze innovation in homebuilding and bring down home costs for young Canadians and all Canadians.

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

Mr. Speaker, we voted against more bureaucracy and more red tape instead of getting the job done. Our kids are worried, and our grandkids are worried. In 10 years, home ownership among 30- to 34-year-olds fell from 60% to 52%. It is even steeper among young people: 93% of gen Zs and millennials are worried about the state of housing in Canada today. Unfortunately, unaffordability is reshaping communities, with nearly half of young Canadians reporting that they have considered leaving their current city or province. This is not a tariff issue. It is a self-inflicted wound caused by failed policies.

Can we at least agree to start restoring the hope of owning a home among young people by removing the GST on all new homes?

[Peter Fragiskatos, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, the government has taken a step in that direction. The GST measure is known to the member, and it is awaiting royal assent.

With respect to getting home ownership going in this country, I agree. We need to collectively do more to push that. This is something the Canadian Home Builders' Association, in particular, has emphasized.

They have also emphasized the need to attack regulatory red tape at the municipal level. That is why the government has put in place the housing accelerator fund. In return for federal dollars, municipalities are required to be more flexible when it comes to zoning. That is exactly what we are seeing in almost 240 municipalities.

[Michael Barrett, Conservative, Leeds—Grenville—Thousand Islands—Rideau Lakes, ON]

Mr. Speaker, Liberal government policy is crushing the dream of home ownership for Canadians, but it does not need to be that way. We have the land, the resources and the skilled workers to address this problem, but a staggering 87% of Canadians are concerned about housing in Canada, and nine in 10 of those people are young Canadians.

The Liberals have an opportunity to work with Conservatives to take a real team Canada approach. Will they work with us to take the tax off new homes and slash development charges by half to restore the dream of home ownership for young Canadians?

[Jennifer McKelvie, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Housing and Infrastructure]

Mr. Speaker, Conservatives have the opportunity to work with us on this side of the House by supporting the budget implementation act, which has funding for housing-enabling infrastructure through the build Canada strong fund. It also includes measures to decrease the GST, in particular for first-time homebuyers and young Canadians. Importantly, the Conservatives can support the Build Canada Homes act, which would catalyze innovation and modern methods of construction to bring down homebuilding costs for everyone.

[Michael Barrett, Conservative, Leeds—Grenville—Thousand Islands—Rideau Lakes, ON]

Mr. Speaker, with all those words and all the billions they spend, the Liberals, still, are not getting homes built. The government's own housing agency, the CMHC, is blowing the whistle. Construction of new homes will drop by as much as 18% with all the “catalyzing” the Liberals are doing.

Canadians know that another Liberal bureaucracy is not the answer. That is why, today, we approach the Liberals and extend our hand in the spirit of collaboration with real solutions that would help address the problems Canadians see and the end of the dream of home ownership.

Will the Liberals slash development charges or cut them in half, take the tax off new homes and work with us today?

[Jennifer McKelvie, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Housing and Infrastructure]

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives are all talk, and we are all action. In 100 days, Build Canada Homes has secured landmark agreements with provinces and cities. It has advanced construction on six federal lands. We have lined up thousands of new homes for construction. Over the past month alone, affordable housing projects have gotten well under way in Nova Scotia, Quebec and Ontario. We are ready to deliver 7,500 homes right away. This is how we accelerate housing.

The momentum is building. The Conservatives should join us.

[Gabriel Hardy, Conservative, Montmorency—Charlevoix, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation is forecasting a decline of nearly 20% in housing starts over the next two years. Less production means less supply. Demand, on the other hand, continues to rise. What is going on? Prices are going up.

In Montmorency—Charlevoix, the average price of a home has gone from $249,000 a decade ago to more than $500,000 today. Week after week, the Liberals congratulate themselves for their policies. However, the construction industry is talking about a lost decade for home ownership.

When will these announcements lead to shovels in the ground and construction in the real world, not just on paper?

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

Mr. Speaker, we are talking about housing. I have met with the mayors in my riding. They are eagerly awaiting the historic investments in municipal infrastructure that we need to build more homes in Quebec.

I urge my colleague to vote in favour of the budget implementation bill so we can distribute the funds that our municipalities need to build housing in Quebec.

[Gabriel Hardy, Conservative, Montmorency—Charlevoix, QC]

Mr. Speaker, yes, as my colleague said, everyone is waiting.

Young Canadians are having a hard time with the cost of living and the cost of rent. The Liberals tell us they are taking action, but nothing is being done except announcements, photo ops and empty promises. They have a plan: “one day”; “we will see”; “build something”; “potentially”; “surely”; “soon”; “a project is being reviewed right now, but will be announced later”.

I have a clear proposal for the Liberals. Why not eliminate the tax on homes under $1.3 million, new homes, to jumpstart construction and give our young people access to home ownership?

Will they finally use our idea?

[Sherry Romanado, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, the good news is that Build Canada Homes is delivering results.

In our first 100 days, we took action by signing major agreements with provinces and cities and moving forward with six construction projects on federal land, including one in my riding of Longueuil—Charles-LeMoyne. Yes, the Longue-Rive project in Longueuil is building more than 1,000 housing units, 40% of which are off-market.

That is what it means to deliver on promises. I invite my colleagues on the other side to share in the good news with us.

Pensions

[Christine Normandin, Bloc, Saint-Jean, QC]

Mr. Speaker, according to the government, 85,000 pensioners are experiencing problems with their OAS because of the Cúram software, the same software that has incurred almost $5 billion in cost overruns. It has produced 85,000 victims and cost $5 billion more in public funds than anticipated, yet the Liberals are acting like there is nothing wrong. They are treating 85,000 people as though they are rare and isolated cases, and they think it is normal to blow the budget like that without explanation.

When will there be an independent public inquiry into Cúram?

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

Mr. Speaker, the modernization of this system is a necessary upgrade of a 60-year-old system. It already offers a faster and easier way to access benefits.

Currently, 7.7 million seniors are receiving their monthly benefits this way. This is the largest digital transformation initiative ever undertaken by the Government of Canada. Service Canada is striving to ensure that anyone facing urgent problems or needs is helped quickly.

[Christine Normandin, Bloc, Saint-Jean, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the government is not talking about the 85,000 people affected or the $5 billion in cost overruns.

I would like to give the Liberals a short briefing so that they understand the extent of the problem. In Quebec, with SAAQclic, ministers resigned over cost overruns of $500 million. The Liberals have now basically reached $5 billion in cost overruns, but they are simply shrugging their shoulders. They are so used to spending Quebeckers' money like water that they think they do not need to be accountable. Well, they are wrong. It is time for an independent public inquiry.

When will they order a public inquiry?

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

Mr. Speaker, as I said, this is the largest digital transformation ever undertaken. The vast majority of seniors are registered in the system and are receiving the right benefits on time.

We have contacted members' offices to ask them for the names of the people affected and we have also offered members a briefing on the system.

[Claude DeBellefeuille, Bloc, Beauharnois—Salaberry—Soulanges—Huntingdon, QC]

Mr. Speaker, we need an independent public inquiry into Cúram because the Liberals are out of touch with reality.

Imagine causing financial problems for 85,000 retirees and thinking that it is no big deal. Imagine letting 85,000 people fall through the cracks thanks to a computer system and responding by just asking us to pass on their names and saying the government will look into the issues. There are people who have not received their old age security payments for nine months.

What are these people supposed to live on?

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

Mr. Speaker, our government continues to support seniors, including through the Canadian dental care plan and the new Canada groceries and essentials benefit.

Processing OAS claims is a top priority, and the department is working hard to address this issue. The department has implemented an OAS action plan to mobilize all available resources to resolve this issue.

Housing

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

Mr. Speaker, day by day, year by year, the dream of home ownership is fading away for young Canadians. The Prime Minister's promise was for 500,000 new homes, but CMHC reported this week that he will actually build only 216,000 and that homebuilding will decline every year to 2028.

Does the Prime Minister dispute the CMHC's findings, and if he does not, will he admit that he made a promise he knew he could never keep? We all know what that is called.

[Yasir Naqvi, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of International Trade and to the Secretary of State (International Development)]

Mr. Speaker, this is precisely the reason that the Prime Minister and his government are completely focused on building more homes in our country. It is why we have brought in a piece of legislation, Bill C-20, which would create Build Canada Homes, which would ensure that we build more housing across the country. That is why we have hired somebody like Ana Bailão, who has the knowledge and expertise to make this happen. We are taking concrete actions. We are not just talking about things. I am really happy to hear that there is some talk of collaboration from the opposition. That is a good sign. Let us work together to build more housing across our country.