Don Davies

[Employment, October 9th, 2025]

Mr. Speaker, working families across Canada are struggling. Half of all Canadians are living paycheque to paycheque. The cost of essentials is climbing, and our economy is on the verge of recession. Unemployment is at its highest level in a decade, with young people hit hardest. One in six youth is out of work, with many more underemployed.

At the same time, Donald Trump's trade war continues to hurt Canadian workers and undermine our economic stability. Instead of putting forward real solutions, the Liberal government is planning an austerity budget. The Liberals want to cut services Canadians rely on and the good jobs that go with them, all to meet an arbitrary 15% target that puts neo-liberal ideology over common sense. They want to vastly increase military spending on things like Donald Trump's golden dome and expand fossil fuel infrastructure to the U.S. instead of investing in the productive and sustainable sectors that Canada needs for a prosperous future.

We think that is the wrong approach. New Democrats believe that now is the time for investment, in our communities, in our businesses, in our workforce and in our infrastructure. We believe that Canadians need bold action to strengthen our economy, create good jobs, build affordable homes and improve our public health care system. That means supporting technology and research, getting more value from our raw resources, developing sustainable industries and building infrastructure that improves people's lives, with Canadian labour, Canadian materials and Canadian companies.

Canada has an infrastructure deficit approaching $300 billion. There is no shortage of excellent projects that we can all agree are much-needed, things like modern and clean electricity grids, efficient public transit systems, community health care clinics and quality long-term care centres. Let us join together and start to construct these nation-building projects.

We are painfully aware that Canada has a severe housing crisis. Rents have more than doubled since 2015. Home ownership is out of the question for far too many Canadians. This crisis stems from decades of policy failure. It is clear that the private market cannot adequately meet the needs of low- and middle-income earners, yet only 3.5% of Canada's housing stock is non-market, far below the OECD average of 7%.

A secure, affordable home is the foundation of every Canadian's ability to function well in our society. New Democrats believe that the federal government has a critical role to play in ensuring that everyone has a decent place to call home. That is why it must take the lead in dramatically scaling up the construction of non-market housing of all types, including co-op, student, senior and supportive housing. It needs to start now, in the upcoming budget.

Canadians are also acutely aware that our public health care system is under serious strain. Millions of folks do not have a family doctor, wait times are growing and health care workers are burning out. Public health care is more than a service. It is a nation-building project. It is the heart of our national identity because it reflects our shared commitment to care for one another.

This is more than just a moral imperative. It is also an economic one. A healthy economy needs healthy workers. It is time to strengthen and expand our public health care system, not maintain the status quo. That means improving access to care, delivering universal public pharmacare and supporting our Canadian dental care plan.

Will the Liberals deliver a budget that invests in people, or will they choose austerity, service cuts and job losses instead?

[International Trade, October 9th, 2025]

Mr. Speaker, we all know that Donald Trump is erratic and very difficult to deal with. However, the Prime Minister's growing list of concessions and appeasements is clearly not working. The latest sees him offering up the Keystone pipeline to the Americans and getting nothing in return. This is an uneconomic, environmentally damaging project that directly contradicts his pledge to reduce integration with the U.S. economy.

What happened to the Prime Minister who promised Canadians a strong approach to Trump's aggression?

[Government Priorities, October 2nd, 2025]

Mr. Speaker, economic anxiety is rising across the country and Canadians are deeply concerned. Unemployment is at the highest level in a decade. This summer alone, 100,000 workers lost their jobs, with thousands more announced this week. Folks across our country are facing excessive costs for groceries, housing and utilities, and Trump's trade war threatens more damage. We must meet this moment with vision and resolve.

Yesterday, I met with the Prime Minister and made it clear that now is not the time for an austerity budget. Instead, Canada needs investment, not cuts. That means building infrastructure to strengthen communities, such as affordable non-market homes, clean energy and a strong public health care system. These are the kinds of nation-building projects New Democrats support, initiatives that create good, family-sustaining jobs and improve lives.

Now is our opportunity to deliver real results and lay the foundation for a prosperous and independent Canada for generations to come.

[Request for Emergency Debate, October 1st, 2025]

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to request an emergency debate on the government's proposal to dismantle Canada Post services and the growing national response to these deeply concerning changes.

Canada Post is older than Canada itself. It connects communities across this vast country and serves as a vital lifeline for hundreds of northern, indigenous and rural communities. At a time when our economy and sovereignty face mounting threats from Donald Trump, national institutions, such as Canada Post, are essential to our unity and our resilience.

Without a doubt, Canada Post is facing serious challenges. These challenges require thoughtful, transparent and inclusive solutions. Postal workers and their union have repeatedly put forward constructive proposals to modernize and strengthen the service, yet their voices have been ignored. In 2015, the Liberal Party promised to reverse Stephen Harper's plan to end door-to-door delivery. It called its approach “real change”.

In 2018, then minister Carla Qualtrough led a two-phase, evidence-based review of Canada Post and unveiled what she called a “renewed vision” for the corporation, one that pledged to put service to Canadians at the heart of its mandate.

However, that vision was never implemented, and that promise has since been abandoned. Without any mention during the last election campaign, and without any debate in the House, the government recently announced drastic cuts to Canada Post services, including ending daily home mail delivery, closing rural post offices and eliminating door-to-door delivery for millions of Canadians.

These changes would mean fewer services for Canadians and significant job losses at a time when unemployment remains high. They would also very much hurt businesses in this country, including small businesses. They would disproportionately harm seniors, persons with disabilities and residents of rural and remote communities, those who rely most on accessible, dependable postal services and who are least able to absorb the impact of these cuts.

What is more, the government made this announcement in the midst of collective bargaining negotiations between Canada Post and its workers. Dropping such a sweeping restructuring plan into the middle of that process is like dropping a bomb. It constitutes direct interference and shows a fundamental lack of respect for collective bargaining and workers' rights.

Tens of thousands of postal workers are now on picket lines across the country. Mail and parcels are not being processed or delivered, and post offices are closing. Today, on Parliament Hill, workers and allies rallied to defend good jobs and a strong, public postal service, reinvigorated with revenue streams for the future. They rally to send a clear message: Postal workers deserve better and Canadians deserve better.

The House must not remain silent. We must have a rigorous, honest and urgent discussion about the future of Canada Post and about how to protect and strengthen it, for the benefit of all Canadians.

That is why I am calling on the Speaker to grant an emergency debate on this critical issue for this most cherished institution.

[Climate Change, September 19th, 2025]

Mr. Speaker, alarming reports reveal that Canada will miss our 2030 climate targets, yet the Liberal government is abandoning key climate policies the Liberals once called essential. Before entering politics, the Prime Minister said that he believed in climate action, but now in office, he is ripping policies right out of the Conservatives' playbook.

Canadians know economic development must be sustainable. Will the Liberals deliver nation-building projects, like the NDP's east-west electricity grid, to provide low-cost clean energy to Canadians and enhance Canada's sovereignty?

[Points of Order, September 16th, 2025]

Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order.

Standing Order 158 speaks to the conduct of visitors in our galleries. I received a notice during question period that Air Canada flight attendants who were in the gallery were wearing red T-shirts that said “Unpaid Work Won't Fly”. They advised that they sent a picture of their shirts to the Sergeant-at-Arms or whoever controls admission to the gallery and received explicit permission to be in the gallery with those shirts. Twenty minutes into question period, they were asked to leave, and they were advised that some member on the government side expressed that they were uncomfortable with the T-shirts.

I am just wondering, Mr. Speaker, if you could rule on whether members of the government are allowed to kick out Canadians who are watching the people's business in their House of Commons when they are wearing T-shirts that were approved by the House of Commons.

[Questions on the Order Paper, September 15th, 2025]

With regard to Canadian counter tariffs and other countermeasures put in place by the government since March 4, 2025: (a) how much money has been collected, in total, and broken down by (i) month, (ii) countermeasure; and (b) how much of the money collected has been allocated to help for workers in total and broken down by program?

[Employment, September 15th, 2025]

Mr. Speaker, unemployment has surged to its highest level in a decade. Young people are being hit the hardest. One in six cannot find work. Our economy is facing a recession and millions of Canadians are worried about their jobs, yet the Liberals are planning to slash services people rely on and eliminate family sustaining jobs through an austerity budget this fall.

Will the government reverse course and create much-needed jobs through bold initiatives, such as a youth climate corps, as New Democrats have proposed?

[Democratic Institutions, June 20th, 2025]

Mr. Speaker, New Democrats want to build our economy and create family-sustaining jobs, but it must be done right. Today, the Liberals and the Conservatives are ramming Bill C-5 through Parliament with shockingly little debate or public input. This bill creates Henry VIII powers, letting the Prime Minister override laws by decree. It guts environmental protections, undermines workers and threatens indigenous rights. This bill will end up in court.

Why is the government violating democratic values and risking critical economic projects with tactics from Donald Trump's playbook?

[Post-Secondary Education Financial Assistance for Persons with Disabilities Act, June 19th, 2025]

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-217, An Act to amend the Canada Student Financial Assistance Act and the Income Tax Act.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to introduce the post-secondary education financial assistance for persons with disabilities act. I wish to thank the hon. member for Courtenay—Alberni for seconding this important piece of legislation.

The bill would provide tuition-free post-secondary education for all Canadians living with disabilities. This is not only fundamentally just; it is an investment in the potential of our citizens. When we remove barriers to education, we unlock talent, drive innovation and strengthen our communities. While there has been progress in broadening inclusion for students in Canadian colleges, universities and trade schools, there is still much more to be done.

I call on all parliamentarians to support this vital initiative. Let us work together to ensure that every Canadian has the opportunity to learn, grow and contribute fully to our society, because when people with diverse abilities succeed, we all succeed.

(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)