Debates of March 23rd, 2026

Justice

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

Mr. Speaker, what is happening at the Supreme Court goes beyond political allegiances. Yes, secularism is being debated today in relation to Bill 21, but there is also the notwithstanding clause, and that is far more significant. That clause enabled us to require that signage be in French in Quebec. The notwithstanding clause has enabled us to pass no fewer than 41 Quebec laws throughout history, all of which are linked to our identity and social progress.

Do the Liberals realize that attacking the notwithstanding clause is tantamount to attacking everything that makes Quebec what it is?

[Joël Lightbound, Liberal, Minister of Government Transformation]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague for her question. As she knows, our position is clear and always has been. We are the party of the charter; we will defend the charter, and we will do so before the Supreme Court.

Now, as the Minister of Justice said, the case is before the Supreme Court and, ultimately, the fate of Bill 21 will be decided by the Supreme Court justices. It would be inappropriate for us to comment at this stage, and our position has been clear for a long time.

[Rhéal Fortin, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Liberals are attacking secularism by challenging Bill 21 before the Supreme Court. However, they go a lot further when they talk about limiting the use of the notwithstanding clause. They want veto power over Quebec's laws. Quebec's democracy would be subject to the whims of elected officials and judges from English Canada. The notwithstanding clause was the compromise that made the charter's enactment in 1982 possible. Without the notwithstanding cause, there would be no charter.

Will today's Liberals do the right thing and honour the compromise signed by the Liberals in 1982?

[Steven MacKinnon, Liberal, Minister of Transport and Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Mr. Speaker, it is astounding to see the Bloc Québécois try to dodge the real issue of concern to all Quebeckers, certainly to those living in the Outaouais. I am talking about the economic apocalypse that the leader of the Parti Québécois wants to unleash on the Outaouais region. He looked into the camera and said “it is what it is” to the hundreds, if not tens of thousands, of public servants in the Outaouais region and across Canada.

It is disgraceful. The Bloc Québécois should stand up for these Quebeckers, the ones helping us build Canada today.

The Economy

[Jasraj Singh Hallan, Conservative, Calgary East, AB]

Mr. Speaker, after a year of the Liberal Prime Minister, Canadians got more rhetoric, not results. Instead of energy security and thousands of new jobs, the Liberals blocked pipelines. Instead of investments and growth, the Liberals drove out more than half a trillion dollars' worth of it. Liberals liberalled.

Canada finished 2025 with a shrinking economy, the second-highest unemployment rate and the highest household debt and food inflation in the G7. Can someone over there explain why Canada has the second-worst unemployment and the only shrinking economy in the G7?

[Corey Hogan, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources]

Mr. Speaker, as the member opposite well knows, oil and gas production in Canada is up 34% over the last 10 years. Compare that to global production, which is up only 6%. These are record production levels that we are seeing.

We are seeing new infrastructure coming all the time. Obviously, there is Trans Mountain. We are now talking about optimizing that. We have Ksi Lisims. We have Taylor to Gordondale. We have Nexgen's and Denison's uranium mines. We have LNG projects from Cedar to Woodfibre, Tilbury and LNG Canada phase two.

We are building, and we will continue to build. We welcome the Conservatives to get on board.

Employment

[Jasraj Singh Hallan, Conservative, Calgary East, AB]

Mr. Speaker, that guy from Alberta should be ashamed of himself for supporting the same government that keeps blocking pipelines and other energy projects. That is why 100,000 jobs were lost in the last month. Most of those were in the private sector.

Other G7 countries' economies are growing. Canada's is shrinking. We are all facing the same global factors. It is shrinking because the Prime Minister keeps raising the deficits and his taxes.

Why do the Liberals not put their taxes, policies and deficits out of work so that Canadians can get back to work?

[The Speaker, Francis Scarpaleggia]

I know he meant “that hon. member”.

The hon. Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources.

[Corey Hogan, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources]

Mr. Speaker, I feel sad for the members opposite, who look through the good news to find the bad news every day and bring their misery to the chamber.

Here is the absolute reality. There has never been a better time to be in energy in Alberta. There has never been a better time to be in energy in Canada. We are building, and we are building strong. We welcome the Conservatives to get on board.

[Sandra Cobena, Conservative, Newmarket—Aurora, ON]

Mr. Speaker, according to Statistics Canada, over 100,000 jobs were lost in the first two months of this year. Today, Algoma Steel will be laying off 1,000 workers. These are families who are now left wondering how they are going to pay their bills and put food on their tables.

After years of warning signs, the Liberal government continues to impose policies that weaken our competitiveness and cost Canadian jobs. Will the Liberals explain why they have given Canada the second-worst unemployment and the only shrinking economy in the G7?

[Mélanie Joly, Liberal, Minister of Industry and Minister responsible for Canada Economic Development for Quebec Regions]

Mr. Speaker, obviously, it is a tough day for many families in Sault Ste. Marie and many workers at Algoma, but we will bring back these jobs. We are working on the plan to make sure that the workers get their jobs back.

I have been to Sault Ste. Marie twice. I have met with the Algoma Steel CEO. I am meeting with him again. They have two interesting projects. The first one is on the defence front, and the second one is in infrastructure. We will build homes in Canada using steel from Algoma, and we will build ships, planes and vehicles across the country with Algoma steel as well.

[Sandra Cobena, Conservative, Newmarket—Aurora, ON]

Mr. Speaker, when it comes to taking responsibility, the Liberal government has a long record of making excuses and getting very few results. After 10 years, Canadians are carrying record household debt, they are facing the highest food inflation in the G7 and they are living in the only shrinking economy in the G7. These are the consequences of policy choices that have driven up costs and made it harder for businesses to grow and create those jobs.

When will the Prime Minister cut his taxes, slash red tape and empower our businesses so that Canadians can get back to work?

[David McGuinty, Liberal, Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, in the past week alone, we have announced a $40-billion plan to transform Canada's north and Arctic, with $10 billion in major projects; a $900-million investment to support drone development and quantum technologies; a $200-million investment in Canada's space launch capabilities in Atlantic Canada; a $300-million contract for new modular assault rifles; and over $1.4 billion for domestic ammunition production in Ontario and Quebec. Our focus is on delivering security, sovereignty and thousands of jobs.

[Pat Kelly, Conservative, Calgary Crowfoot, AB]

Mr. Speaker, Algoma Steel is laying off 1,000 workers today, who will join the 108,000 full-time workers who lost their jobs in February. The Liberal government cannot blame outside factors. The rest of the world exists in the same global economy, but only Canada has a shrinking economy among G7 countries.

When will the Liberals get out of the way and get rid of their taxes, antidevelopment laws and bureaucracies that are killing Canadian jobs, and let Canadians get back to work?

[Mélanie Joly, Liberal, Minister of Industry and Minister responsible for Canada Economic Development for Quebec Regions]

Mr. Speaker, I have a lot of time and respect for my colleague, but when he says we cannot blame anything happening in the world for what is happening at Algoma, I think he does not understand the 50% tariffs by Washington against Algoma workers, because that is the reality.

We have been in solution mode. We have said that for the 1,000 workers at Algoma, we will be there to support them and help them find jobs.

We are also in discussion with Tenaris, an important steel company in Sault Ste. Marie. We will create jobs at Tenaris as well.

[Pat Kelly, Conservative, Calgary Crowfoot, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the government has spent the last 10 years setting the stage for today's rising unemployment. The industrial carbon tax, antidevelopment laws, bloated bureaucracy, staggering debt and deficits, failure to approve a single pipeline, failure to build any major projects, which it promised to do, and its failure to secure a trade deal, which it also promised to do, are all killing Canadian jobs.

When will the Liberal government at least stop making things worse?

[François-Philippe Champagne, Liberal, Minister of Finance and National Revenue]

Mr. Speaker, let me bring some facts to this discussion.

Fact one is that Canada has the lowest net debt-to-GDP in the G7. Fact two is that Canada has one of the lowest deficits-to-GDP in the G7. Fact three is that Canada has the second-fastest growing economy in the G7. Fact four is that we have attracted more foreign direct investment lately than we did in the last 18 years.

We should celebrate Canada, celebrate our workers and celebrate our industry. Canada will build the strongest economy in the G7.

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

Mr. Speaker, Canada has already lost 100,000 jobs this year, and today, Algoma Steel is laying off 1,000 workers. The Liberal Prime Minister cannot blame only global factors, because Canada has the only shrinking economy, the second-highest unemployment, the highest food inflation and the highest household debt in the G7. These are problems that the Liberals created, and the Liberal Prime Minister has made it worse by blocking growth with anti-energy laws, failing to approve a single new major project and breaking his promise to secure a trade deal last year.

When will the Liberals get their taxes and policies out of the way so that Canadians can get back to work?

[Steven MacKinnon, Liberal, Minister of Transport and Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Mr. Speaker, I was proud to be in Sault Ste. Marie not 10 days ago to meet with the United Steelworkers and representatives of Algoma Steel, who are proud to be deploying the most efficient and largest electric arc furnace in North America. They are going to be able to produce steel for our ships, for our homes, for applications all over the country and, surprise, also for a high-speed rail network.

This is important work. This is going to be done by the men and women of the United Steelworkers in Sault Ste. Marie and Algoma.

Public Services and Procurement

[Sébastien Lemire, Bloc, Abitibi—Témiscamingue, QC]

Mr. Speaker, there has been a dramatic turn of events in the Cúram software saga. For weeks now, the Liberals have been insisting that there are no cost overruns even though costs have jumped from $1.75 billion to $6.6 billion.

On Friday, the federal government admitted to the media that the $6.6-billion figure was far from a grand total. The Liberals admitted that they forgot to include operating costs. According to one expert, this could cost an additional $660 million per year. That is a bit like paying for a SAAQclic scandal every year.

When will there be an independent public inquiry?

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Minister of Jobs and Families and Minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Northern Ontario]

Mr. Speaker, the number of Canadians waiting to start their OAS is declining. In fact, Canadians expect a modern benefit delivery system that makes sure their benefits are available when they need them.

There were 7.7 million Canadians transferred to the new system without any problem, and those who are waiting are largely paper applications. We have a plan and a process to get through those. If anyone is in urgent need, we can get their money to them within 24 to 48 hours.

[Sébastien Lemire, Bloc, Abitibi—Témiscamingue, QC]

Mr. Speaker, admitting that there is a problem is part of the solution. Every time Ottawa gets involved with IT, it is a disaster.

Today the Auditor General showed us in her report that this is not over yet and that, by replacing the disastrous Phoenix software with a new system called Dayforce, the Liberals are repeating the same mistakes all over again. The Auditor General revealed that they want to speed up the three-year transition, while also ignoring certain expenses. They still want to cut corners, even after having cut corners with Phoenix, Cúram, ArriveCAN, and so on.

When will there be an independent public inquiry into these disasters?

[Joël Lightbound, Liberal, Minister of Government Transformation]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for the question about the Auditor General's report on the transition to a modern pay system, namely Dayforce.

I want to thank the Auditor General for her report in which she notes that the transition is going well and that progress is being made. She has recommendations and we accept those recommendations. She also says that Canadians will get value for what is being invested in this new system.

It is the opposite of what was done with Phoenix. We have learned from past mistakes. We are proceeding gradually to ensure that the transition is done properly and that public servants get paid on time and accurately.

The Economy

[Dominique Vien, Conservative, Bellechasse—Les Etchemins—Lévis, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the government's economic record is abysmal, with 100,000 jobs lost in two months. Today it was announced that 1,000 workers at Algoma Steel are being laid off.

While our G7 partners are moving forward, Canada is moving backward. How did the Liberals manage to turn Canada into the country with the second-worst unemployment rate and the only declining economy in the G7? How did they do that?

[Mélanie Joly, Liberal, Minister of Industry and Minister responsible for Canada Economic Development for Quebec Regions]

Mr. Speaker, it goes without saying that our thoughts are with the workers at Algoma Steel in Sault Ste. Marie. I had the opportunity to meet with the workers and their union, as well as with Algoma Steel management. We are in problem-solving mode because we know that, contrary to what the Conservatives are saying, these job losses are due to the tariff war.

Nevertheless, we are helping Algoma Steel develop new business projects, projects that will bring jobs back. We are confident that we can achieve this over the next few months.