Debates of April 24th, 2026

International Trade

[Kyle Seeback, Conservative, Dufferin—Caledon, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the answer from the Liberal government is $5 billion collected on Canadian automakers, which is putting Canadian auto workers out of work, and $4 billion of those tariffs are to be paid by Honda and Toyota. They will not continue to pay those tariffs. The government's answer is, “Don't worry. There's nothing to see here because we're going to sign a free trade deal with Ecuador”.

The Brampton auto plant that closed is in the Minister of International Trade's riding. The Liberals' strategy of delay led to that plant closing. When will they give up on this strategy of delay and get the tariffs off for Canadian workers?

[Anita Anand, Liberal, Minister of Foreign Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, our strategy is actually to double non-U.S. trade over the next 10 years and to continue working on the CUSMA review, as the minister is doing.

I will also say that, in the meantime, we are building trade relationships with Indonesia, China, India, Mexico and Brazil. We are looking forward to an FTA with the ASEAN in 2026 and working on Mercosur as well. That is what working for the Canadian public is all about. That is what building Canada strong means.

[Scott Aitchison, Conservative, Parry Sound—Muskoka, ON]

Mr. Speaker, under the Prime Minister, tariffs on steel have doubled, tariffs on lumber have tripled and barriers on Canadian manufacturers have only expanded, yet he has not secured the removal of a single one of those tariffs. While he says those tariffs are part of the reason that Canada's economy is struggling, Mexico is getting close to a deal with the U.S. There are 2.6 million Canadians who depend on trade with the United States for their livelihoods.

Why is the Prime Minister dragging this out instead of fighting for tariff-free trade, and when will he deliver the results that he promised Canadian workers?

[Maninder Sidhu, Liberal, Minister of International Trade]

Mr. Speaker, as we approach the CUSMA review, we need to focus on trade diversification. Our efforts are working. They are leading to real results.

Last year, there was a 17% increase in non-U.S. exports. Fact number two is that we also had 170 million metric tons from the port of Vancouver, which is a historic record. That is more shipments to China, Japan and South Korea. Just in from the port of St. John's, cargo is up by 30% at that port alone.

Our efforts to open up new partnerships around the world are working. That includes Indonesia, Ecuador, UAE with the European Union, and of course others such as India, ASEAN, Mercosur, Philippines, Thailand, UAE and Saudi Arabia. We are at the door. We are creating opportunities for Canadian workers.

[Scott Aitchison, Conservative, Parry Sound—Muskoka, ON]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians have heard this over and over again, but alas, Canadians cannot survive, and their jobs will not survive, on Liberal rhetoric alone. Tariffs are higher, and they are broader. They are hurting Canadian workers, yet the government has not gotten any of them removed.

On behalf of the 2.6 million Canadians whose livelihoods depend on trade with the United States, where is the plan? Where are the results?

[Tim Louis, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the President of the King’s Privy Council for Canada and Minister responsible for Canada-U.S. Trade]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians sent us to Ottawa to get the best deal, not to settle for a bad deal. We are working at our pace to make sure we get the best deal for Canadians. We are consulting with Canadians. We are consulting with industries. We are using every legal, diplomatic and economic tool, and we are working with provinces, territories and Canadians to make sure we get the best deal possible.

We are not going to negotiate in public, but we are working together.

[Kathy Borrelli, Conservative, Windsor—Tecumseh—Lakeshore, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the new section 232 tariffs are gutting our tool, mould and die companies in Windsor-Essex and across the country. These shops are vital to our manufacturing industry. Hundreds of thousands of skilled workers will lose their jobs.

Where is the Liberal Prime Minister's plan? Workers need results now in order to survive. When will the Prime Minister finally do his job, get to the table and put our workers first for a change?

[Karim Bardeesy, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Industry]

Mr. Speaker, I entirely reject the premise of that question. We are there for the workers right now. My colleague, the deputy government House leader, is in Windsor today marking the reduction of the excise tax, which will help workers and all residential households in Windsor.

In addition, the third shift has come to Stellantis in Windsor. The millionth battery cell has just been manufactured at the NextStar plant. We are working hard to develop the economy of Windsor with Windsorites, while also helping them with the diversification that they and we know we need to do in this changing era.

[Scot Davidson, Conservative, New Tecumseth—Gwillimbury, ON]

Mr. Speaker, it has been 278 days since the Prime Minister's own drop-dead deadline for a trade deal with the United States. In that time, 2.7 million Canadian jobs that depend on cross-border trade have been threatened by tariffs and uncertainty. While Mexico is at the negotiating table, the Prime Minister is on YouTube calling Canada-U.S. trade a weakness instead of fighting for our businesses and workers.

There has been enough talking. We just want the date. When will Canada have the trade deal with the U.S. that the Liberals promised?

[Kody Blois, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, we already have a trade deal with the United States. It is called CUSMA, and we are going through the review process. We understand the challenge to Canadian workers and to Canadian industry. As the Minister for Intergovernmental Affairs and the Prime Minister have made very clear, we are at the table. We are having conversations with the U.S. administration. We are engaging.

The Conservatives have made very clear, and the Prime Minister has made very clear, that we are not going to settle for a bad deal. In the interim, we are supporting industries and supporting workers who are being impacted by the tariffs, which we feel are unjustified.

We will take no lessons from the Conservatives. I will take Canadians back to 2018 when they would have had us fold before we got the best deal for Canadians.

[Scot Davidson, Conservative, New Tecumseth—Gwillimbury, ON]

Mr. Speaker, by the time I finish asking this question, Canada will have done more trade with the United States than the value of this Prime Minister's trade agreements with Ecuador, India and the UAE combined.

The reality is that our trade relationship with the United States, what the Prime Minister calls a weakness, represents over $900 billion in annual trade and 2.7 million jobs, but he refuses to fight for these workers under our economy. Will the Prime Minister admit that the only real weakness is his own?

[Anita Anand, Liberal, Minister of Foreign Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, the reality is that we, along with this country as a whole, are continuing to diversify non-U.S. trade. That means real results. There have been more than 12 agreements over the past six months across four continents, which is a result that I ask my hon. colleague to acknowledge.

Furthermore, as we work to double non-U.S. trade, we will build Canada strong internally. We will bring down internal barriers to trade. We will build national projects.

[Jim Belanger, Conservative, Sudbury East—Manitoulin—Nickel Belt, ON]

Mr. Speaker, tariffs on softwood lumber have tripled to 45%. Now hundreds of workers in Nairn Centre and Gogama are facing indefinite sawmill shutdowns, leaving families in real uncertainty.

Workers in my riding whose jobs rely on free trade with the U.S. need real action now. When will the Liberals fight against these tariffs and fight for tariff-free trade?

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

Mr. Speaker, we will always stand with mill towns. The combined duties and tariffs are scheduled to go down to 35%, based on the updates that came out the last couple of weeks, so there is a small correction there, but all still too painful and all still unjustified with the United States.

That is why we are working to both control the issues we can control and engage with the Americans on this issue. We have given $2.5 billion of supports to the forestry sector. We are going to be taking receipt of the forestry transformation task force's report imminently, and it has many great ideas. We will be there for workers, and I welcome the member to join us and work with us on that.

[Jim Belanger, Conservative, Sudbury East—Manitoulin—Nickel Belt, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister was elected on the premise that he was the man. Well, it seems that the man with the plan has disappeared.

The Liberal government has been on the sidelines for far too long, failing to secure a single reduction on tariffs, while North Ontarians continue to lose both patience and jobs. Communities are being pushed to a breaking point, yet there is still no progress and no real results from the Liberal government.

When will the Prime Minister finally get his act in gear and deliver the fair trade deal he promised a year ago?

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

Mr. Speaker, as my colleagues across the way have heard countless times, we will continue to make sure we get the best deal, not just any deal.

Let us talk about the last year. Wages have grown faster than inflation every month that the Prime Minister has been Prime Minister. FDI, foreign direct investment, is the highest in 18 years, double that of the next nation in the G7. We have record oil production, and non-U.S. trade is way up. Last year we created more jobs than the United States did.

Trade wars are brutal, but we are going to win this trade war. We want the member's help doing it.

Foreign Affairs

[Peter Schiefke, Liberal, Vaudreuil, QC]

Mr. Speaker, Canada has long been a proud and active member of the international francophone community.

Can the Minister of Foreign Affairs inform the House of the government's efforts and priorities in advancing Canada's bid to host the Sommet de la Francophonie and explain how this initiative will strengthen our cultural ties, our economic partnerships and our leadership within the global francophone community?

[Anita Anand, Liberal, Minister of Foreign Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, when I was in France last month, I submitted Canada's bid to host the Sommet de la Francophonie in our country. This summit will help strengthen economic ties in our francophone and acadian communities.

I also met with the secretary general of the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie to reaffirm Canada's commitment to economic and cultural partnership. The French language remains a central part of Canada's identity.

International Trade

[Mel Arnold, Conservative, Kamloops—Shuswap—Central Rockies, BC]

Mr. Speaker, is the Prime Minister waving the white flag on U.S. tariffs?

He sits by and does nothing while U.S. tariffs on steel have doubled, and they have tripled on lumber. He has failed in negotiating the reduction of a single tariff. Sawmills and the B.C. towns that they support are reeling from his failure to negotiate a deal. Speeches, illusions, excuses and failures are not going to cut it for the millions of families' livelihoods that are at stake.

When will the Prime Minister start delivering results instead of excuses?

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

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister and his team, the ambassador and the ministers involved, we are prepared and ready and stand willing to negotiate in good faith a deal with the United States. It will not be any deal; it will be a deal acceptable for Canada.

Contrast that with the Conservative position, with the member's colleague going to Washington and saying that Canadians are having a hissy fit and their getting up every day and systematically urging us to take any deal. We will not do that.

[Mel Arnold, Conservative, Kamloops—Shuswap—Central Rockies, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister's illusions tactic and excuses are no help to Canadians. Instead of getting a trade deal last July, as he promised, he squandered his leverage with concessions made 10 months ago. He does not even show up to do his job, while Mexico makes progress ahead of him.

Why did the Liberal Prime Minister make the strategic error of dragging this out instead of using the leverage we had at the beginning of the talks to get tariffs removed on Canadian goods?

[Maninder Sidhu, Liberal, Minister of International Trade]

Mr. Speaker, we all know the vital importance of the Canada-U.S. relationship, especially as it relates to trade. I have seen it first-hand in the private sector. I spent 13 years facilitating international trade, utilizing NAFTA and CUSMA in thousands of transactions.

We will continue to be at the table. We need to ensure that we take a team Canada approach. That is exactly what we are doing. We do not want to go back to 2018, when the Conservatives asked us to capitulate and take any deal.

Indigenous Affairs

[Chak Au, Conservative, Richmond Centre—Marpole, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the Liberals say that they defend private property rights, yet in the Cowichan case they chose not to argue extinguishment, which is how fee simple ownership has been historically defended. They weaken protections and then claim to defend them.

Will the Liberals withdraw their directive and instruct their lawyers to defend private property rights to protect Canadians, yes or no?

[Brendan Hanley, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Northern and Arctic Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, let me be clear. We disagree with the B.C. Supreme Court's ruling. That is why we appealed it back in September.

As a government, we always prefer to negotiate instead of going to court. I can tell members that in all of our negotiations, dating back to 1970, no agreement between the federal government and first nations has ever led to Canadians losing their privately owned land, not a single one. All discussions of aboriginal title at the federal level exclude private property. No modern treaty, negotiated agreement or federal approach has led to people losing privately owned land.

Public Safety

[Kristina Tesser Derksen, Liberal, Milton East—Halton Hills South, ON]

Mr. Speaker, earlier this week, Bill C-22, an act respecting lawful access, was referred to the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security. As this critical piece of legislation continues its parliamentary journey, it is important to remind Canadians how overdue a lawful access regime is in our country. This has been requested by law enforcement agencies for decades.

Could the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Safety expand on how crucial this legislation is for the safety and security of all Canadians?