House of Commons Hansard #122 of the 45th Parliament, 1st session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was prices.
This summary is computer-generated. Usually it’s accurate, but every now and then it’ll contain inaccuracies or total fabrications.
Opposition Motion—Cancellation of Federal Taxes on Gas and Diesel and the Clean Fuel Standard Members debate a Conservative motion to eliminate federal gas and diesel taxes for the remainder of the year and repeal the Clean Fuel Standard. Conservatives argue this provides necessary relief for families facing inflation. Liberals defend their approach, citing targeted benefits for lower-income Canadians as more effective. The Bloc Québécois opposes the motion, contending that tax cuts primarily benefit the wealthy and oil corporations, arguing for measures that instead address the underlying cost of living. 50500 words, 6 hours in 2 segments: 1 2.
An Act to repeal certain restrictions on shipping Second reading of Bill C-264. The bill, Bill C-264, is a private member's motion by Conservative David McKenzie to repeal the Oil Tanker Moratorium Act, aiming to expand export potential for Canadian energy by allowing tanker shipments off the British Columbia coast. While supporters argue this will boost economic prosperity and energy security, opponents from the Liberal and Bloc parties contend it threatens vital ecosystems and harms Indigenous relationships and reconciliation. 8200 words, 1 hour.
Adjournment Debate - The Economy Jacob Mantle questions the inclusion of pension assets in government debt calculations. Ali Ehsassi defends the government's economic approach. Grant Jackson critiques the lack of specific initiatives to increase domestic food production, while Ehsassi asserts that the government’s comprehensive support measures and structural investments are adequately addressing affordability. 2400 words, 15 minutes.
Department of Finance—Main Estimates, 2026-27 Members debate the Department of Finance’s main estimates in a committee of the whole. The Conservative Opposition repeatedly challenges the Minister of Finance on fiscal management, including rising debt, the debt-to-GDP ratio, and infrastructure, arguing the government has failed to meet its own fiscal targets. The Minister defends the government’s record, highlighting generational investments in housing, infrastructure, and the economy, citing expert projections of Canada's strong fiscal position compared to other G7 nations. 37100 words, 4 hours.
Department of Finance—Main Estimates, 2026-27Business of SupplyGovernment Orders
Conservative
Kyle Seeback Conservative Dufferin—Caledon, ON
Mr. Chair, I am having a very hard time understanding what the Liberal EV and auto strategy is. I have a series of questions for the minister, and I hope he will actually try to answer the questions I am asking.
Minister, your government announced the end of the zero-emission vehicle mandate. Is it your position that there is still no zero-emission vehicle mandate in Canada for automobiles?
Department of Finance—Main Estimates, 2026-27Business of SupplyGovernment Orders
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Tom Kmiec
Before I allow the minister to respond, I will just remind members to ask the questions through the Chair, not directly to the minister.
The hon. minister has the floor.
Department of Finance—Main Estimates, 2026-27Business of SupplyGovernment Orders
Saint-Maurice—Champlain Québec
Liberal
François-Philippe Champagne LiberalMinister of Finance and National Revenue
Mr. Chair, I think the question was around the auto strategy. Since I was the industry minister at the time, yes, I think the investments we have made and the attraction of investment was the right thing. I believe that electrification is our north star. I am mindful that there have been delays in some plants and some adoption. This is not unique to Canada. We have seen that in a number of G7 countries—
Department of Finance—Main Estimates, 2026-27Business of SupplyGovernment Orders
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Tom Kmiec
The hon. member has the floor. Is the member intending to split his time?
Department of Finance—Main Estimates, 2026-27Business of SupplyGovernment Orders
Conservative
Kyle Seeback Conservative Dufferin—Caledon, ON
Yes, Mr. Chair, I am splitting my time.
I asked the minister about a zero-emission vehicle mandate, and he did not answer. I am assuming it is because the minister did not know the answer. In fact, the regulations that the government has put forward actually mean that only a fully electric vehicle will meet the tailpipe emissions target by 2035. Will he agree with me that this is a zero-emission vehicle mandate?
François-Philippe Champagne Liberal Saint-Maurice—Champlain, QC
Mr. Chair, as the member will have seen, we have been supporting the industry. We have been making sure that we can attract investments and that we understand the reality of the world today. When it comes to electric vehicles, there have been delays in adoption, and we need to adopt policies that would favour investment in the auto sector to support our workers and the industry. That is what we are doing.
Department of Finance—Main Estimates, 2026-27Business of SupplyGovernment Orders
Conservative
Kyle Seeback Conservative Dufferin—Caledon, ON
Mr. Chair, it is very frustrating when ministers will not answer questions. That is two questions I have asked, and two questions he did not answer.
Does the minister know how many vehicles were manufactured in Canada in 2025?
François-Philippe Champagne Liberal Saint-Maurice—Champlain, QC
Mr. Chair, Canada is one of the very few countries in the G7 that still has a very strong auto sector. That is why my colleague will be happy to see that we have supported workers, we have worked with Unifor and we have worked with unions to make sure that we position the auto industry for success.
Department of Finance—Main Estimates, 2026-27Business of SupplyGovernment Orders
Conservative
Kyle Seeback Conservative Dufferin—Caledon, ON
Mr. Chair, once again, the minister is either unwilling or unable to answer a question that I am asking. The answer to that question is this: 1.2 million vehicles. Does the minister know, of those 1.2 million vehicles, how many were electric vehicles that were manufactured in Canada?
François-Philippe Champagne Liberal Saint-Maurice—Champlain, QC
Mr. Chair, as I have said, what we have been doing in terms of investment, and we can think about the Volkswagen investment, is to prepare the country to make sure that we will have an industry that can support a different kind of technology, whether we are talking about an internal combustion—
Department of Finance—Main Estimates, 2026-27Business of SupplyGovernment Orders
Conservative
Department of Finance—Main Estimates, 2026-27Business of SupplyGovernment Orders
Conservative
Kyle Seeback Conservative Dufferin—Caledon, ON
Mr. Chair, it is becoming quite embarrassing now. I have asked three questions, and the minister has not even attempted to answer any of them.
I will answer that question as well. It is 20,000 vehicles. Out of 1.2 million vehicles manufactured in Canada, 20,000 of those are fully electric vehicles that will meet the zero-emission vehicle mandate. Does the minister know what percentage that is of the vehicles manufactured in Canada?
François-Philippe Champagne Liberal Saint-Maurice—Champlain, QC
Mr. Chair, the member may not like my answers. I know that the Conservatives are allergic to good news, but I am an experienced member of the House and will continue to answer and to provide the facts to Canadians who are watching at home.
What I was saying is that we have made sure that the industry could succeed. Whether we are talking about internal combustion engines or whether we are talking about electric vehicles, I think the member has seen us investing to support the industry.
Department of Finance—Main Estimates, 2026-27Business of SupplyGovernment Orders
Conservative
Kyle Seeback Conservative Dufferin—Caledon, ON
Mr. Chair, 1.6% of the vehicles manufactured in Canada will meet the Liberal zero-emission vehicles mandate. That means that 98.4% of the vehicles manufactured in Canada will not. Why did the Liberals set up a zero-emission vehicles mandate that will make 98.4% of the vehicles manufactured in Canada illegal by 2035?
François-Philippe Champagne Liberal Saint-Maurice—Champlain, QC
Mr. Chair, I am talking about the facts. I am just trying to help the member understand the nature of the industry in Canada, and I will continue to do so because people at home understand that we have different investments in the country. We have been able to attract significant investment. What I said is that we are supporting the industry with respect to internal combustion engines, but at the same time, we have also played a big role in attracting investment in the vehicle of the future, so we have—
Department of Finance—Main Estimates, 2026-27Business of SupplyGovernment Orders
Conservative
Department of Finance—Main Estimates, 2026-27Business of SupplyGovernment Orders
Conservative
Kyle Seeback Conservative Dufferin—Caledon, ON
Mr. Chair, when he says that electrification is the north star in Canada, and we only manufacture 1.6% of our vehicles as electric, what he must mean by “electrification is the north star in Canada” are the 50,000 Chinese electric vehicles that he is now allowing into Canada.
Is it not really what he means when he says electrification is the future or the north star, that it is the 50,000-plus Chinese electric vehicles that he is going to be bringing into the country?
François-Philippe Champagne Liberal Saint-Maurice—Champlain, QC
Mr. Chair, what I am saying is that we need to prepare for the cars of the future. In fact, it is nothing surprising that when the same thing has been done for 100 years and the technology is changed, there is a longer time of adoption. I will just remind my colleague that Tesla took 17 years to be profitable. The Model T of Henry Ford was not an instant success. It is normal that when we do the same thing for a century, we have consumer adoption and change in technology. We can look to Europe and around the world and talk to the manufacturers. We do not need to look at talking points. Talk to the CEOs of the global—
Department of Finance—Main Estimates, 2026-27Business of SupplyGovernment Orders
Conservative
Department of Finance—Main Estimates, 2026-27Business of SupplyGovernment Orders
Conservative
Kyle Seeback Conservative Dufferin—Caledon, ON
Mr. Chair, if electrification is the future, as he keeps saying, then why did he just give $464 million to Ford to convert its factory, which was going electric, back to an internal combustion engine factory?
François-Philippe Champagne Liberal Saint-Maurice—Champlain, QC
Mr. Chair, that is what I said; just look at the record. We need to invest in different technology for now. The north star is the long-term view. That is why we have these investments that prepare us. We need to support the industry with the cars we make today, but also prepare for the future. That is what we see. If we look at the automakers, they have—
Department of Finance—Main Estimates, 2026-27Business of SupplyGovernment Orders
Conservative
Department of Finance—Main Estimates, 2026-27Business of SupplyGovernment Orders
Conservative
Kyle Seeback Conservative Dufferin—Caledon, ON
Mr. Chair, so in eight and a half years, he is saying that Canadian auto manufacturers will go from producing 1.6% of their vehicles as fully electric to 100%. No, that is absolutely impossible.
The minister said Canada “would never be a back door to cheap Chinese vehicles which are overly subsidized”. Does he still believe that, in light of his government letting in 50,000 Chinese vehicles into Canada every year?
François-Philippe Champagne Liberal Saint-Maurice—Champlain, QC
Mr. Chair, let me just correct the record of what I said before, because there were statements made that did not reflect it. What I said is that we are investing in supporting the industry. We need to support the industry with the cars they are making today, but at the same time, if we talk to the OEMs, the car manufacturers, they are also preparing for the cars of the future. Therefore, we want to invest in what they produce today, but also be able to support them when they are going to be producing the cars of the future.
Department of Finance—Main Estimates, 2026-27Business of SupplyGovernment Orders
Conservative
Kyle Seeback Conservative Dufferin—Caledon, ON
Mr. Chair, the minister also warned that Chinese EV producers benefit from “unfair, non-market practices” and “don't respect labour law and environmental laws”, and yet his government is letting in 50,000 Chinese electric vehicles every year.
Were his words wrong then, or is his position wrong now?