Debates of May 29th, 2026

The Economy

[Tim Hodgson, Liberal, Minister of Energy and Natural Resources]

Mr. Speaker, in that question, I think there were at least three conspiracy theories going on in the member's head.

What we are doing is trying to build Canada strong. That is why we are building nuclear in Ontario. That is why we are building new wind and transmission in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. That is why we are building new LNG and mines in British Columbia. That is why we are building everywhere across this country. That is why we are working with provinces and indigenous peoples to respond to what we can control.

The Conservatives should get off the conspiracy theories and start working to build Canada.

[Stephanie Kusie, Conservative, Calgary Midnapore, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the hypocrisy is palpable. Canadians were promised relief, but the Prime Minister's costly credit card budget is driving up costs for Canadians while driving investment away. Twenty billion dollars' worth of investment has left Canada in the last four quarters alone. Over $1 trillion has left since 2015. As a result, Canada is the only G7 nation in a recession.

Instead of putting his friends at Alto and Brookfield first, the Prime Minister should put Canadians first so they can finally get ahead instead of constantly being left behind.

How many more quarters of negative growth will it take for the Prime Minister to choose Canadians?

[Tim Hodgson, Liberal, Minister of Energy and Natural Resources]

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives really have to stop these conspiracy theories. When Canadian companies invest abroad, they are building strong. We have the single biggest foreign investment in this country in over two decades. We can look at Shell, which just invested $20 billion in this country.

The Conservatives cannot actually see beyond their conspiracy theories. We are building in every province in this country. The Conservatives should start helping.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship

[Gabriel Hardy, Conservative, Montmorency—Charlevoix, QC]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians like Noelle, Richard, Christiane and Aaron all ask me the same question: Why do asylum seekers, even those whose applications have been rejected and who should no longer be in the country, have access to free health care when taxpayers do not even have a family doctor? The interim federal health program has grown from $211 million a year to $1.5 billion in less than 10 years.

Does the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship think it is acceptable to give free health care to non-residents while some Quebeckers do not even have access to a doctor?

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

Mr. Speaker, we are always willing to review the various programs currently in place. My colleague should be reassured by the fact that we found $60 billion in savings across various federal government departments. We understand that Quebeckers and Canadians have been tightening their belts for some time now, and we need to do the same in the federal government. We are always willing to find a way, to find savings within the government, to do more with technology and to improve our processes. Canadians know that we will always be there to help them.

Public Safety

[Gabriel Hardy, Conservative, Montmorency—Charlevoix, QC]

Mr. Speaker, in the vast majority of cases, the firearms used to commit crimes in Canada were never owned legally and were often smuggled across the border. In 2024, the accused in over 80% of firearm-related homicides did not even have a valid license. Most of the other homicides involved mental health issues. Instead of investing in mental health prevention, in border safety, or in fighting street-gang crime, the Liberals are going to spend close to $1 billion targeting law-abiding citizens.

Why are the Liberals wasting taxpayer money on programs that do not work?

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

Mr. Speaker, we are taking action precisely to support honest people who obey firearm laws. The real question is, why do the Conservatives constantly oppose every single measure we put forward to limit the presence of assault-style weapons on Canada's streets, to limit crime? Every time we make a move to crack down on people, to crack down on criminals, we get blow-back from the Conservatives. Of course we want to support people who act within the law, but the Conservatives—

[The Deputy Speaker, Tom Kmiec]

The hon. member for Berthier—Maskinongé.

Justice

[Yves Perron, Bloc, Berthier—Maskinongé, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister has shown his true colours by claiming that 50% of the vote plus one would not be enough to win a referendum. He has shown that he will flout democracy if he is not happy with a decision made by the people. He has shown that he adheres to a long tradition of federalism that tramples on peoples' right to self-determination—a federalism prepared to cheat to win. Quebeckers, for their part, are deeply democratic. They proved this by accepting the result of the 1995 referendum.

Why is Canada fundamentally incapable of playing by the rules?

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

Mr. Speaker, let us look back at the last few weeks in Quebec. We saw the announcement of the largest aircraft order in Canadian history from Airbus, in Mirabel. We saw the start of construction at Nouveau Monde Graphite, in Saint-Michel-des-Saints. This represents thousands of jobs for Quebeckers. The Port of Québec has been designated as Canada’s primary port of entry. We are making progress in the economy, in jobs and in opportunities for Québec.

What does the Bloc Québécois like talking about? It talks about separation, rupture, instability and a referendum. All they do is pick fights all the time.

[Yves Perron, Bloc, Berthier—Maskinongé, QC]

Mr. Speaker, it was the Prime Minister who started this debate, not the Bloc Québécois. He was the one who raised the issue of referendum clarity. What is more, he did so regarding a referendum in Alberta where the law does not even apply. He cannot help himself. He just had to demonstrate that he will not respect democracy if he is not happy with what the people choose. The fact that he was so eager to start this debate when it was not even necessary speaks volumes.

Why is he so eager to prove that he is willing to cheat to win?

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

Mr. Speaker, let us talk about democracy. Let us talk about the democratic process. There will be an election in Quebec this fall. It has not even yet begun. The fate of my colleague's parent party has not yet been decided. Quebec is still a long way from achieving independence, even though the Bloc Québécois is working hard to cause this break, this separation, this split within Canada that would destabilize Quebec's economy.

Prime Minister of Canada

[Marie-Hélène Gaudreau, Bloc, Laurentides—Labelle, QC]

Mr. Speaker, in the span of two weeks, the Prime Minister announced that he will undermine democracy in a referendum by disregarding the 50%-plus-one rule; he announced, together with Alberta, a new pipeline that crosses the territory of another province without that province's consent; he forced the former environment minister to resign over his shift toward the oil industry; and he proved himself to be an anti-democratic Prime Minister and a proponent of predatory federalism in the service of the oil industry. All of this happened in just two weeks.

How can the Liberals support this?

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

Mr. Speaker, if we want to talk about announcements the Prime Minister has made over the past two weeks in Quebec, let us talk about the GlobalEye aircraft set to be built by Bombardier, a flagship of Quebec's economy.

Let us talk about Nouveau Monde Graphite. This is an extraordinary announcement involving the largest graphite mine in the G7. It was the Prime Minister himself who made the announcement.

On this side of the House, we will always fight to attract investment to Quebec and to build Canada stronger together.

The Economy

[Tamara Kronis, Conservative, Nanaimo—Ladysmith, BC]

Mr. Speaker, on World Hunger Day, food security organizations came to the finance committee and told us that more people from more demographics are using food banks more often in Canada. Forty-three per cent of Canadians now say that the cost of groceries severely affects their ability to access food, and food inflation in Canada remains the highest in the G7.

The Prime Minister promised to lead, and he did: straight to the only recession in the G7. There are more costs, more taxes and more debt on the national credit card.

When is the Prime Minister going to show us that he is not just another Liberal and get serious about reducing the cost of food?

[Sophie Chatel, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food]

Mr. Speaker, talking about seriousness, Canadians know we are in the middle of a global economic disruption. Our Prime Minister is a serious person. He is working hard. He already cut taxes for 22 million Canadians. He also launched the national school food program, which helps families with affordability. In addition, he proposed to launch very soon a national food security strategy, which will really help families during this time of crisis.

[Tamara Kronis, Conservative, Nanaimo—Ladysmith, BC]

Mr. Speaker, two quarters of negative growth mean we are the only G7 economy in a recession. Excuses and deflection will not cut it. StatsCan has the receipts.

Liberals chose to add more debt, more spending and more people. By doing that, they created more pressure on housing, health care and food costs than the system can bear. Every dollar the government adds to the national credit card eventually shows up in the grocery aisle.

When the only thing growing faster than grocery prices is the lineups at the food banks, it is no wonder these Liberals have stopped talking about the middle class and those seeking to join it.

[Leslie Church, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Secretaries of State for Labour]

Mr. Speaker, in that member's own riding, next Friday over 36,000 of her constituents are going to receive the groceries and essentials benefit. That is up to a $530 payment for a couple in her riding. That is part of this government's plan to make life more affordable for Canadians, part of a plan that includes efforts not only to make life more affordable but to grow our economy as well. I hope she asks some of those 36,000 constituents whether they appreciate receiving the groceries and essentials benefit.

[Rachael Thomas, Conservative, Lethbridge, AB]

Mr. Speaker, after 11 years of Liberal spending, Canada is in fact the only G7 country in a recession. While one in three working Canadians is going into debt just to put groceries on their table, the Prime Minister, at 30,000 feet, is spending $95,000 on inflight food. We are talking about braised beef, special butter cups and fine wines.

Deficits have doubled, costs keep going up and Canadians are falling behind, so when will the Liberal government admit its failure and reverse course?

[Peter Fragiskatos, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, as we know, Canada has been especially dependent on the relationship with the United States. That relationship is experiencing a rupture. The global economy is experiencing a rupture. The result is that, if we are going to be serious about these matters, we must work together to better this country. If they do not want to listen to the Liberals, that is fine; they should listen to Stephen Harper. We must work together to find ways to ensure our future and our children's future. That is exactly what the Prime Minister is doing. Diversification is a priority. Building this country up, focusing on our resources and focusing on the infrastructure that will get our resources to market—

[The Deputy Speaker, Tom Kmiec]

The hon. member for Lethbridge.

[Rachael Thomas, Conservative, Lethbridge, AB]

Mr. Speaker, those same global problems are being experienced by all countries within the G7, but only Canada's leader, only Canada's Prime Minister, has led this country into a recession. It is only Canada. He is not worried, but why would he be? He is fine. He is fine because, again, he is enjoying fine wine, he is enjoying braised beef and he is enjoying luxury Normandy butter cups, whatever the heck that is. That is his reality, but that is not the reality of Canadians. Canadians are lining up at food banks like never before. Canadians are defaulting on their mortgages, and Canadians are declaring bankruptcy.

When will the government wake up to reality, the reality that is faced by everyday Canadians, and do something about it?

[Yasir Naqvi, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of International Trade and to the Secretary of State (International Development)]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians recognize that we are living in some really economically uncertain times. There are unjustified tariffs on Canadian autos, steel, lumber and aluminum, and there is a war going on in the Middle East that is impacting our economy and the global economy. That is why this Prime Minister and this government have a plan. Our plan includes diversifying our trade, making sure that we are engaging with other countries so that we can sell more of our goods and services. That is why we are investing hundreds of billions of dollars into our economy, so that we can keep creating good-paying jobs for Canadians.

Families, Children and Social Development

[Garnett Genuis, Conservative, Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB]

Mr. Speaker, Canada is now the only G7 country in a recession, and it is getting harder and harder for young people to start and grow a family. Parents are struggling to afford homes and balance the pressures of competing careers. Conservatives are proposing to make life easier through significant reforms to parental leave: more flexible leave, freedom to learn while on leave and the ability to earn caregiving income without clawbacks. These policies would mean more flexibility, more opportunity and more available child care. Will the government adopt these constructive suggestions?

[Rachel Bendayan, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, we have many programs that are helping Canadians deal with the rising cost of living. In fact, next week Canadians will start to receive Canada's new groceries and essentials benefit. For a family of four, that is $1,900 this year. That is real money that is going to help Canadians face the rising cost of living. A few days ago, there was a poll released that shows that Canadians' optimism, their sense that Canada is moving in the right direction, is at its highest level in over a decade.