House of Commons Hansard #117 of the 45th Parliament, 1st session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was tariffs.
This summary is computer-generated. Usually it’s accurate, but every now and then it’ll contain inaccuracies or total fabrications.
Opposition Motion—Measures to Support the Manufacturing Sector Members debate a Bloc Québécois motion condemning recent U.S. tariffs on metal-containing products. The Bloc argues targeted wage subsidies are needed, claiming the government’s reliance on loans is inadequate. Liberals defend their comprehensive support measures and emphasize careful trade negotiations over hasty agreements. Meanwhile, Conservatives criticize the lack of progress on trade, arguing Canada must leverage natural resources to negotiate from a position of greater strength. 49100 words, 6 hours in 2 segments: 1 2.
Military Justice System Modernization Act Report stage of Bill C-11. The bill proceeds through the report stage in the House of Commons, where members conduct a series of deferred recorded divisions on several motions, ultimately voting to concur in the bill as amended. 800 words, 25 minutes.
Spectrum Policy Framework for Canada Act Second reading of Bill C-268. The bill proposes a new spectrum framework to address persistent cellular connectivity gaps in rural and remote regions. Supporters across party lines, including the Conservative caucus, argue that the current 2007 regulations are outdated. The legislation aims to improve public safety and equity by mandating modernized policy reviews and requiring independent verification of carrier-reported coverage data to eliminate persistent service black holes. 8500 words, 1 hour.
Mark Carney LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, I will inform Mr. Simard that he is not interested in Quebec's SMEs. That will come as a surprise.
Julie White from Manufacturiers et Exportateurs du Québec welcomes the measures that the Minister of Industry announced yesterday. They will support our businesses, they will support our workers, and they will build a stronger, more resilient and more independent Canada.
Pierre Poilievre ConservativeLeader of the Opposition
Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Prime Minister.
He likes to blame the $1.85-a-litre price of gas on the fact that the oil is $100 a barrel. Here are the facts: In 2014, the same barrel of oil cost $100, but the price at the pump was $1.38 per litre. That is nearly 50¢ less than today. This is due to taxes, inflationary deficits that drive up prices, and anti-development policies that reduce the value of our dollar.
Will he get rid of all gas taxes for the rest of the year?
François-Philippe Champagne LiberalMinister of Finance and National Revenue
Mr. Speaker, allow me to help out the opposition leader. There is something called a conflict going on in the Strait of Hormuz right now.
The level of uncertainty is indeed unprecedented. Fatih Birol, the executive director of the International Energy Agency, said that this is the largest energy crisis we have ever faced.
Here we have the Leader of the Opposition pointing the finger at the government, even though we did the right thing. We helped Canadians by making things more affordable. We suspended the federal gas tax. People are already seeing the results at the pump. That is what responsible government looks like.
Pierre Poilievre ConservativeLeader of the Opposition
Mr. Speaker, increases in the price of a barrel of oil are partly responsible for the higher prices at the pump. In 2014, the price of a barrel of oil was exactly the same, at $100. However, gas prices were 50¢ cheaper. Also, U.S. gas prices are 15% lower than ours.
There is something that this Prime Minister is doing that explains the difference: taxes, inflationary deficits and a very weak dollar. Will he have the courage to stand up in the House of Commons and announce today that he will get rid of all gas taxes for the rest of the year, yes or no?
François-Philippe Champagne LiberalMinister of Finance and National Revenue
Mr. Speaker, exactly, we did the right thing. As the International Monetary Fund has noted, we introduced a targeted, temporary measure to help Canadians.
On our side of the House, we are prepared to do what is necessary. The federal government did the right thing by suspending the federal excise tax on fuel. We were there for Canadians. We will continue to be there, and we will continue to support industries, businesses and Canadians, because we believe in building Canada strong.
Pierre Poilievre ConservativeLeader of the Opposition
Mr. Speaker, it is just another illusion. The Prime Minister brings more costs, more debt and more taxes.
Let us look at gas, for example. The Prime Minister likes to blame the $1.85-a-litre cost at the pumps on the fact that we have $100 global oil prices, but in 2014, we also had $100 global oil prices and the price at the pump was $1.38, almost 50¢ cheaper, even though the world price was exactly the same. The difference is explained by the Liberal Prime Minister's inflationary debt and newly renamed carbon taxes on top of a weak dollar.
Will the Prime Minister at least take all Liberal taxes off gas for the rest of the year?
François-Philippe Champagne LiberalMinister of Finance and National Revenue
Mr. Speaker, I know it is Tuesday, but let me help the Leader of the Opposition. He may have heard of the Strait of Hormuz. He may have heard about Iran. He may have heard about a conflict. What we are seeing is unprecedented. Members do not need to take it from us. They can take it from the head of the International Energy Agency, who says that this is the biggest shock we have seen in energy.
On this side of the House, we are happy to do our part. We are very pleased to have suspended the federal excise tax on gas. We heard from Canadians, who said, “Give us a break. Help us at this time.” We are happy to do our part. We are going to build Canada strong.
Pierre Poilievre ConservativeLeader of the Opposition
Mr. Speaker, the Strait of Hormuz might explain why global oil prices are $100 a barrel, but they were $100 a barrel back in 2014, and at that time, when Conservatives were in power, gas prices were 50¢ a litre cheaper. South of the border, they have the same global oil price of $100 a barrel, yet their gas prices are 15% cheaper.
The difference is explained by high Liberal taxes, including the newly renamed carbon tax; the inflationary spending; and the weak dollar the Prime Minister has caused through his incompetent economic policies.
Will he at least have the courage to stand up and announce that he will get rid of all the taxes for all the year?
Tim Hodgson LiberalMinister of Energy and Natural Resources
Mr. Speaker, here is what the head of the International Energy Agency says: Oil and gas may be in short supply, but so are two other commodities, “trust and predictability.” He believes this government has all four of those, plus nuclear ambition, plus uranium, plus critical minerals, plus potash. That is how we help the world.
Pierre Poilievre ConservativeLeader of the Opposition
Mr. Speaker, they cannot even trust the Prime Minister to stand up and answer questions.
In fact, after a year of being Prime Minister, promising to build at unprecedented speeds, he was asked last week if he even supports ever building a pipeline to the Pacific, and his response was, “So all of that lines up to it’s more likely than not, which means more probable than possible. But none of that says it’s certain. Still a lot of work to be done.”
It is like a riddle from Dr. Seuss.
How much will the cost of green eggs and ham be next year?
Tim Hodgson LiberalMinister of Energy and Natural Resources
Mr. Speaker, if the Leader of the Opposition would take some time away from his social media clips and look at what is happening, we are building a new pipeline from Taylor to Gordondale, we are building a new pipeline—
Natural ResourcesOral Questions
Tim Hodgson Liberal Markham—Thornhill, ON
Mr. Speaker, if the Leader of the Opposition would spend less time on his social media clips, he would see that we are building a pipeline from Taylor to Gordondale, he would see we are building a pipeline in British Columbia, and he might see that the Premier of Alberta just said, again, that she has never been more optimistic about the opportunities in Alberta than today.
Maybe he should read the newspapers.
Pierre Poilievre ConservativeLeader of the Opposition
Mr. Speaker, last week the Prime Minister said he is not even sure he ever wants to see a new pipeline to the Pacific. Now he is insisting on an industrial carbon tax that will not only raise housing and food costs by raising the price of everything that goes into making them but will also make it impossible for energy companies to produce enough oil to put in a future pipeline.
Canadians want a pipeline without a carbon tax. Why does he insist on giving them a carbon tax without a pipeline?
Tim Hodgson LiberalMinister of Energy and Natural Resources
Mr. Speaker, let me quote again from what the Premier of Alberta said last Thursday. She has never been as optimistic as she is now about the future of Alberta, working with this federal government.
Maybe they should try working with this federal government for a minute.
Pierre Poilievre ConservativeLeader of the Opposition
Mr. Speaker, they have doubled the deficit, driving up inflation, and now they have increased gas prices with increased taxes at the pumps and a weaker dollar than ever. To top it all off, the Prime Minister, as we have been saying, is just another Liberal, but at least Justin Trudeau was able to stand up on his feet and answer questions.
Will he stand in his place today and answer, will he get rid of his industrial carbon tax so we can build a pipeline and get rid of the gas taxes so Canadians can fill their tanks and fill their grocery carts?
Patty Hajdu LiberalMinister of Jobs and Families and Minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Northern Ontario
Mr. Speaker, on one hand, they say that families do not want help. They have fought against school food programs. They have fought against early learning and child care. They have fought against support for families. Now, when we actually move forward to support the skilled trades community and get more great-paying jobs across the country, they fight against that too.
Here is what Russ Shewchuk from IBEW said: “This announcement will supercharge the skilled trades across Canada” and help build Canada strong.
Let me ask the question, what do they support? Do they support hard-working people? Do they support hungry kids? It is clear they do not have—
TaxationOral Questions
Sébastien Lemire Bloc Abitibi—Témiscamingue, QC
Mr. Speaker, Alto has confirmed that the section of high-speed rail between Montreal and Ottawa will go through 1,700 properties. With no input from the owners, 500 of our best pieces of farmland will be cut in half. When the Alto people tell us that they are consulting towns and farmers, it is all for show, because they already know exactly where they want to go and what land they want to expropriate.
Alto is steamrolling our farmers. Will the Prime Minister finally ask it to get the farmers' consent, instead of running roughshod over them?
Steven MacKinnon LiberalMinister of Transport and Leader of the Government in the House of Commons
Mr. Speaker, of course we are going to get the farmers' consent. Of course we are going to work with communities, with mayors, with reeves, with all the stakeholders in Ontario and Quebec. We are going to build green technology that will be a game-changer for mobility in Canada. We are going to invest in this project because Canada is ready to welcome cutting-edge mobility technologies. It will make a difference in the lives of 40% of Canadians.
Jean-Denis Garon Bloc Mirabel, QC
Mr. Speaker, the Alto steamroller is barrelling down on the people of Mirabel for the high-speed train project. At first, Alto employees were knocking on people's doors to ask permission to perform inspections on their property, but now, they are sending letters to try to buy unlimited access to properties for three years, day or night, for $1,500.
Imagine how stressful that is for citizens who have not been consulted, but who are being visited by employees and receiving letters implying that their property will be expropriated.
Will the government pause the Alto project and try to earn social licence instead of intimidating people in their own homes?
Steven MacKinnon LiberalMinister of Transport and Leader of the Government in the House of Commons
Mr. Speaker, the member is all up in arms because workers are surveying the land and doing all the work that needs to be done for a 1,000-kilometre high-speed rail line between Quebec City and Toronto that people dream of. Stakeholders, including in the agriculture sector, will be involved. People dream of having that great technology here in Canada, and they are taking note of the opposition and demagoguery from the Bloc Québécois.
Joël Godin Conservative Portneuf—Jacques-Cartier, QC
Mr. Speaker, our young people need hope for the future. The Liberals seem to think that everything is fine and there is nothing wrong with the cost of living, but what I hear in Portneuf—Jacques-Cartier is that everything costs more. Taxes are higher, debt is rising and we are maxing out the national credit card. The deficit is huge: $1 trillion since the Liberals took office.
When will this costly Liberal Prime Minister stop spending recklessly and mortgaging our young people's future?
Steven MacKinnon LiberalMinister of Transport and Leader of the Government in the House of Commons
Mr. Speaker, I will continue along the same lines. My colleague, the Minister of Jobs and Families, just spoke about the workforce training program. We will obviously invest the same amount of money on a pro rata basis in Quebec. That means 51,000 jobs, mainly for young people, people in the fields of engineering and construction, and all kinds of people who will help us achieve this great ambition of building a high-speed train in Canada. It is called Alto, and it will be built with our young people. It will truly give them hope.
