House of Commons Hansard #94 of the 45th Parliament, 1st session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was agreement.
This summary is computer-generated. Usually it’s accurate, but every now and then it’ll contain inaccuracies or total fabrications.
Oil Tanker Moratorium Act First reading of Bill C-264. The bill seeks to repeal the Oil Tanker Moratorium Act, an action supported by the Conservative Party, who argue the current ban hinders the Canadian energy industry and limits resource exports to international allies. 200 words.
Food and Drugs Act First reading of Bill C-265. The bill amends the Food and Drugs Act to reform the special access program, aiming to simplify the process for doctors to access unapproved medications and prioritize clinician decision-making in life-threatening situations. 200 words.
National Framework on Skilled Trades and Labour Mobility Act First reading of Bill C-266. The bill proposes establishing a national framework to streamline and harmonize credential recognition for skilled tradespeople, aiming to reduce regulatory barriers and facilitate labour mobility across Canadian provinces and territories. (Bill C-266) 200 words.
National Framework on the Durability of Electronic Products and Essential Home Appliances Act First reading of Bill C-267. The bill seeks to establish a national framework promoting the durability and repairability of electronic products and home appliances to reduce electronic waste, lower consumer costs, and support a more sustainable circular economy. 100 words.
Canada-Indonesia Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement Implementation Act Report stage of Bill C-18. The bill, Bill C-18, passed third reading on division. The Liberal government promoted the agreement as a strategic move to boost trade diversification, while Conservatives criticized the lack of urgent results regarding U.S. tariffs and non-tariff barriers. The Bloc Québécois raised concerns about investor-state dispute settlements and requested greater protections for human rights and the environment. 14500 words, 2 hours.
Criminal Code Second reading of Bill C-246. The bill proposes mandatory consecutive sentences for multiple sexual offences, aiming to [end sentence reductions] for perpetrators. Conservatives argue the measure ensures [justice for victims], while the Bloc Québécois supports [submitting to committee] for further study. Liberals, however, contend the proposal is [potentially unconstitutional], noting that the government is already addressing these issues through other legislative efforts like [bail reform legislation]. 5800 words, 40 minutes.
Natural ResourcesOral Questions
The Speaker Francis Scarpaleggia
Order, please. I am hearing a little too much of the member for Vernon—Lake Country—Monashee.
The hon. Leader of the Opposition has the floor.
Pierre Poilievre ConservativeLeader of the Opposition
Mr. Speaker, the world cannot put meaningless pieces of paper and meaningless MOUs in its gas tank. It needs real energy that comes out of our ground. The Prime Minister said he wants to keep it in the ground, and yet today we have the hilarious spectacle of the Liberal natural resources minister saying that Canada will do what it can to help with its stockpiles for the current energy shortage. Our stockpiles are zero.
Will the Prime Minister flip-flop again and adopt my policy that we should have a strategic oil and mineral reserve so that we can supply the world in the future?
Mark Carney LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, there are many policies of the member opposite that I will not adopt. One of them is flip-flopping, jumping around and searching for ridings every election.
The second thing I will not adopt is the importance of having the most competitive oil and gas in the world. Our oil exports have never been higher. Under this government, exports are over five million barrels per day, and that will increase, because they will be low-carbon, low-cost and low-risk.
Pierre Poilievre ConservativeLeader of the Opposition
Mr. Speaker, sometimes the Prime Minister makes it too easy.
Today we have zero oil stockpiles. We have a strategic maple syrup stockpile, which he could use to put maple syrup on the pancakes that he flip-flops on, but we do not have any oil to supply to the world in the time of this crisis.
Will he reverse the antidevelopment policies that he has supported, which have come from the previous Liberal government, in order to unlock our production and power the world and the paycheques here at home?
Mark Carney LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, this is the way the G7 oil reserve works: If a nation is an importer, it has to have an oil reserve. If a nation is an exporter, which Canada is under this government, if it has record exports, which Canada does under this government, that is how it supplies the world.
I salute the work of the Minister of Natural Resources and the Minister of Finance, who, working with G7 counterparts, confirmed with my G7 leader counterparts today the release of 400 million barrels from that strategic reserve.
Pierre Poilievre ConservativeLeader of the Opposition
Mr. Speaker, of the 400 million barrels of oil released from that strategic stockpile, how many are coming from Canada? There are exactly zero.
The Prime Minister's excuse, the reason we have no stockpiles, he says, is that we are a producer of oil. This is exactly the opposite of logic. The United States is a producer of oil. They have stockpiles. We have reserves, which the Prime Minister is successfully keeping in the ground.
Just last week, we saw an $8-billion project cancelled under his watch. We are importing gas from Australia. Why will he not get out of the way so that we can produce our own energy?
Mark Carney LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, the member opposite thinks he is on a rich vein, but he is tapping a dry well.
Under this government, production has never been so high. Exports have never been so high. We approved Bay du Nord. We are working with the Province of Alberta to produce the lowest-cost, lowest-carbon oil and gas. We are expanding our exports. We are expanding our future.
Christine Normandin Bloc Saint-Jean, QC
Mr. Speaker, 85,000 seniors have been having problems receiving their OAS payments since the new Cúram computer system was implemented. One federal public service union is even describing Cúram as the new Phoenix. Cost overruns for implementing Cúram are already approaching $5 billion, 10 times more than SAAQclic, which caused a real scandal. When we raise these issues, the minister accuses us of fearmongering.
Is the Prime Minister taking the Cúram fiasco more seriously than his minister? Will he launch an inquiry?
Mark Carney LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, the fact of the matter is that this is Service Canada's responsibility. Now there are 7.7 million people who are not having problems and for whom things are working well. Over the past week, the number of people experiencing delays related to these issues has been reduced by 10,000.
There are some issues, but it is Service Canada's responsibility to implement solutions.
Christine Normandin Bloc Saint-Jean, QC
Mr. Speaker, Cúram is a financial disaster, but for thousands of seniors, it is also a human tragedy. Some people are having to go into debt to pay their rent, buy groceries and pay their bills. The government keeps defending its decision to replace an outdated system with a malfunctioning system. Cúram has left thousands of seniors worried and anxious since it was first introduced.
Will the government, especially the Prime Minister, finally accept responsibility and take this situation seriously?
Mark Carney LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, as the government, we take this situation, like every other situation, seriously. That is because we are the government. Words are not facts, however. Cúram is not a financial disaster. There is a budget. Cúram is staying on budget.
Sébastien Lemire Bloc Abitibi—Témiscamingue, QC
Mr. Speaker, he is quite the banker. We are talking about $5 billion in cost overruns. Add to that the human cost for seniors struggling with Cúram. It was supposed to cost $1.75 billion, and it is not over yet. We know this because it is the same old story every time. The costs keep climbing.
There are private firms and consultants laughing all the way to the bank as they listen to the Prime Minister today. This government acts like it has no obligation to manage public money properly. It is as though no one were responsible.
I would like to hear from the Prime Minister. When will there be a public and independent inquiry into the Cúram fiasco?
Mark Carney LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, the funny thing is that the government offered a briefing to the Bloc Québécois and has yet to receive a response. There was no response to our offer for a briefing. There were discussions in committee.
Mark Carney Liberal Nepean, ON
Yes, Mr. Speaker, it is interesting. It is a good idea to have a discussion before having an inquiry.
Melissa Lantsman Conservative Thornhill, ON
Mr. Speaker, for years the Liberals have known that there are hundreds of Iranian regime officials here in Canada. Two hundred and thirty-nine had their visas cancelled, yet we just learned that the government managed to remove exactly one of those. Its excuse is that they might claim asylum, there are no flights to Iran and we must protect their privacy. Meanwhile, an Iranian Canadian critic of the regime has gone missing, and police are now investigating that as a homicide.
Why are the Liberals protecting terrorists, and when will the minister finally have them removed?
Gary Anandasangaree LiberalMinister of Public Safety
Mr. Speaker, let us be very clear. Those who are senior members of the IRGC will be removed. As we speak, right now, there are 28 individuals who are facing removal. We are going through due process and they will be removed. Let us also be very clear that if the party opposite wants more information, the Leader of the Opposition can go get a security check, and we will be more than glad to provide the requisite information for them to be accurate in their analysis.
Melissa Lantsman Conservative Thornhill, ON
Mr. Speaker, the minister knows there are 700 IRGC agents in this country, and those are just the ones we know about. The minister knows that dissidents are being threatened. He knows that activist businesses are being shot out, and he knows that intimidation is happening under his watch, yet, after three and a half years, the Liberals have deported exactly one of those terrorists.
Will the minister commit to returning to the House within one week with a plan to expel more than just one regime activist?
Gary Anandasangaree LiberalMinister of Public Safety
Mr. Speaker, the Canada Border Services Agency is working diligently to ensure the safety and security of Canadians, including 28 who are going through the process of being removed. Canada has identified the IRGC as a listed terrorist entity under Canadian law. We have listed Iran as a state sponsor of terrorism. We will continue to ensure the security of Canadians by removing those who are inadmissible.
Michelle Rempel Conservative Calgary Nose Hill, AB
Mr. Speaker, Mahdi Nasiri ran the Iranian regime's hardline propaganda newspaper and held other very senior positions within the Iranian regime, yet the Liberals let him enter Canada on a visitor visa, and then they let him stay here. Earlier today, the minister claimed that the Global News reporting was false and that there are not 700 Iranian agents in Canada.
I will ask the minister to be clear. How many senior Iranian officials like Mahdi Nasiri are in Canada?
Gary Anandasangaree LiberalMinister of Public Safety
Mr. Speaker, there are 28 current ongoing investigations that are going through our legal system, and they are deemed to be senior members of the IRGC. The Canada Border Services Agency is making a diligent effort to have them removed, but let us also be clear. We need to work with facts. Seven hundred IRGC members is not a fact. It is contrived by the Conservative Party. I am more than glad to offer a briefing to the Leader of the Opposition if he gets his security clearance.
Michelle Rempel Conservative Calgary Nose Hill, AB
Mr. Speaker, the reality is that this number was reported by a credible Canadian news outlet. The minister will not answer how many are here. There is a loophole in the law that allows senior propagandists and senior officials of the Iranian regime, like Mahdi Nasiri, to stay in Canada. The Liberals are just letting this happen. They are letting the IRB say that yes, senior propagandists and Iranian officials who subjugate women stay in Canada. The law needs to change.
Will the minister agree to our common-sense Conservative proposal to table, within a week, a plan to review these loopholes and ensure that officials are—
Public SafetyOral Questions
Gary Anandasangaree LiberalMinister of Public Safety
Mr. Speaker, there are some important pieces of legislation that are now going through the House, which the opposition has been filibustering and obstructing. What we need right now is to be able to work together to ensure the safety and security of Canadians. The Canada Border Services Agency is working diligently on the removal of 28 individuals who are believed to be members of the IRGC. They will continue to investigate credible information that goes to them, and we will continue to ensure the safety and security of Canadians.
Frank Caputo Conservative Kamloops—Thompson—Nicola, BC
Mr. Speaker, Canadians have compassion over world events. Sometimes those world events spill onto Canadian streets. Such is the case with the situation in Iran. Three synagogues in Toronto were shot up within the last few days. One Iranian dissident was kidnapped, and it is now a homicide investigation. Only one Iranian regime official has been deported.
The question is this: Will the Liberals agree to table a plan within the next week to show Canadians how they will deal with this Iranian issue so that Canadians can walk their streets safely?