Madam Chair, I want to start by saying that I will be sharing my time with the member for Saint‑Hyacinthe—Bagot—Acton.
I want to go back to what was just said. Let us remember that, in 1953, there was a gentleman in Iran, Prime Minister Mossadegh, who was overthrown so that the shah of Iran could take his place. This was done by the British and the Americans. However, what people often forget is that Canada provided logistical and diplomatic support for the overthrow of Mr. Mossadegh, who wanted to nationalize oil resources. Members must remember that it is always a little dangerous to change one regime by imposing a new one on the people.
I want to come back to the Liberals' position on the debate we are having tonight. This is the first time the Prime Minister has faced an international crisis of this magnitude. Unfortunately, he failed rather embarrassingly in his first response when he gave his unreserved and, once again, blind support to Donald Trump's and Israel's military offensive. Sadly, he made that statement without first consulting our allies. It is not okay to blindly support such an offensive. It is not okay to fail to consult key allies before making such a statement. It is not okay to not have a consular contingency plan in place before a conflict erupts. All of Canada's allies had already prepared contingency plans. The writing was on the wall. The Americans have been sending ships to the Persian Gulf for weeks. Several of our allies already had a plan to repatriate people in case a conflict broke out. Unfortunately, Canada did not have one, which explains why it is so difficult for Canadians and Quebeckers who are stuck there to return as quickly as French, German or Romanian citizens. The Romanians have deployed consular services that are much more effective and faster than Canada's.
It is not okay that no measures have been announced to deal with the consequences this conflict will have on our constituents. It is extremely distressing to see the results we are facing and the way this government is managing the situation. They call this their new government, and this is their first major international crisis. That is the Liberals.
It is no different on the Conservative side. I just talked about that. They support the Americans. They were even proud of the Prime Minister's first statement. They have said so. The Leader of the Opposition told us earlier that he was proud of the Prime Minister when that statement was made. I sometimes wonder whether this Prime Minister is a Conservative dressed in red and vice versa. In short, for one day, everyone was on the same page, Conservatives and Liberals alike. However, it is not right to support someone like Donald Trump, who has clearly stated publicly that once the conflict is over, he plans to choose the next regime or the next leader in Iran, in Tehran. It is just wrong to take such a position. I invite all parties to think more carefully when dealing with an issue as complex as the one we are discussing this evening.
It is also not okay for the NDP to hold a press conference in the foyer of the House to call for an emergency debate and then not participate in the debate. I see the Prime Minister nodding his head and seemingly agreeing with me. As I said, the NDP is not currently participating in the debate, even though it held a press conference calling for an emergency debate on this issue.
All this is to say that none of the positions heard today in the House are worthy of a G7 country, yet all of the parties here, except ours, aspire to govern Canada. I believe that, from the outset, we have been in the best position to see what should have been done. I hope my colleagues are taking note.
First, the government should have consulted our allies. Second, it should have prepared a contingency plan for consular services before the conflict erupted. Finally, it should have taken steps to deal with the consequences unfolding here at home.