Joël Godin

[Carbon Pricing, March 21st, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, my colleague from Beauce did not get an answer, so I will try again.

The Bloc Québécois is keeping this Prime Minister in power, even though he broke our immigration system, raised taxes and doubled our national debt. It is costly to vote for the Bloc Québécois. It is going to cost even more come April 1, because this Liberal-Bloc government is going to raise the tax by 23%. That is unacceptable.

What did the Prime Minister promise the Bloc Québécois in return for keeping this government in power?

[Privilege, March 20th, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, I wish to raise a question of privilege.

On this International Day of La Francophonie, the fact that our institution behaved this way is a bit of an embarrassment.

I rise today on a question of privilege concerning the Liberal government's chaotic attempt to amend the New Democratic Party's opposition motion, moved on Monday. On Monday evening, with one minute left to debate the NDP opposition motion, the Liberal government House leader proposed a long, complex and unilingual amendment. As we know, extensive procedural arguments followed. However, given that the amendment was available in English only, francophone members could not fully participate in the debate.

Furthermore, translation delays prevented members from considering the amendment in French until immediately before the vote. In my opinion, the government's conduct obstructed the ability of francophone members to take part in House business. I consider this obstruction serious enough to constitute a breach of privilege.

House of Commons Procedure and Practice, third edition, states the following at page 111:

A Member may also be obstructed or interfered with in the performance of his or her parliamentary functions by non-physical means. In ruling on such matters, the Speaker examines the effect the incident or event had on the Member's ability to fulfill his or her parliamentary responsibilities. If, in the Speaker's view, the Member was not obstructed in the performance of his or her parliamentary duties and functions, then a prima facie breach of privilege cannot be found.

It is impossible to codify all incidents which might be interpreted as matters of obstruction, interference, molestation or intimidation and, as such, constitute prima facie cases of privilege.

We have an absolute constitutional right to use either official language in parliamentary proceedings. However, the actions of the Liberal House leader—a member from Quebec no less—on Monday night diminished the ability of francophone members to participate in very important procedural deliberations in the House. The hon. member for Gatineau treated francophone members of this place like second-class members.

I would also refer the Speaker to Standing Order 65, which reads as follows:

All motions shall be in writing, and seconded, before being debated or put from the chair. When a motion is seconded, it shall be read in English and in French by the Speaker, if he or she be familiar with both languages; if not, the Speaker shall read the motion in one language and direct the clerk of the table to read it in the other, before debate.

Unfortunately, neither the Speaker nor the clerk was able to read the amendment in French because it did not exist in French. It is shameful, it is shocking, and frankly, for an officially bilingual country, it is embarrassing. For those who do not know, the use of both official languages, French and English, in Canada and more specifically here in the House of Commons, has been required under the Constitution since Confederation.

If the Chair agrees that there is a prima facie question of privilege, I am ready to move the appropriate motion. I thank the Chair for his attention.

[Right Hon. Brian Mulroney, March 19th, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague, the chief opposition whip and member for South Surrey—White Rock, for her excellent speech.

I, too, am pleased to rise today to pay tribute to the Right Hon. Brian Mulroney, the 18th Prime Minister of Canada.

Before I list some of his many achievements, I want to say how proud I am of the fact that he had roots in Sainte‑Catherine‑de‑la‑Jacques‑Cartier, one of the 28 municipalities in the beautiful riding of Portneuf—Jacques-Cartier. His ancestors and parents lived there. His time there was brief, since his mother and the entire family left the town when she was six months pregnant with Brian to move to Baie‑Comeau, hence his nickname, “the boy from Baie‑Comeau”.

Brian Mulroney left an indelible mark on the history of our nation, not only through his remarkable political achievements, but also through his vision, leadership and dedication to Canadians. Under this Progressive Conservative prime minister, Canada enjoyed a period of unprecedented prosperity and economic growth. His commitment to bold economic reforms, including the free trade agreement with the United States and Mexico, created new opportunities for our country internationally and strengthened our position in world trade.

I invite my colleagues to learn more about him by taking a look at an authorized biography written by Guy Gendron called Brian Mulroney: L'homme des beaux risques. In reading it, I learned a lot about his political life and the corridors of power.

Brian Mulroney played a decisive role in advocating for human rights and social justice. His leadership in the fight against apartheid in South Africa and his support for international efforts to promote peace and democracy earned Canada a reputation as a defender of fundamental humanitarian values.

He was also an ardent defender of the French language. It was under his government that the Official Languages Act was amended to include the obligation to promote both official languages, English and French, here in Canada. Then there was the privatization of several Crown corporations, such as Petro-Canada and Air Canada. I am not sure he would be happy about the use of French at Air Canada nowadays, but that is a topic for another time.

As prime minister, Brian Mulroney also demonstrated great diplomatic skill, strengthening Canada's ties with its international partners while preserving our national sovereignty and identity.

Beyond those political achievements, Brian Mulroney was a man of principle, integrity and compassion. His passion for public service and his commitment to the well-being of all Canadians will be remembered for generations to come. His respect, generosity and social skills were phenomenal.

For example, I was at the Montreal airport one day with my colleague and friend from Sackville—Preston—Chezzetcook on a mission for the Assemblée parlementaire de la Francophonie, and we happened to run into the Right Hon. Brian Mulroney. It was really something to see him. He was the one who influenced me, motivated me and inspired me to get into politics. He cut an impressive figure because of his stature and his unique voice, but also because of his open and approachable nature and the interest he took in me and my colleague. There is a photo of us on my Facebook page. It was a privilege for me to meet and talk with him.

This may or may not be a coincidence, but Saturday, March 23, the day of this legendary Irishman's funeral, is the same day that Quebec City will host its St. Patrick's Day parade.

In closing, I would like to express my profound gratitude to the Right Hon. Brian Mulroney. He has left quite a legacy, and it will be a lasting one.

I would like to extend my deepest condolences to the great woman behind him, Mila; his children Caroline, Ben, Mark and Nicolas; and the 16 Mulroney grandchildren.

Prime Minister, thank you and Godspeed.

[International Day of La Francophonie, March 19th, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, tomorrow, March 20, is International Day of La Francophonie. The Organisation internationale de la Francophonie's theme this year is “Créer, innover, entreprendre en français” or create, innovate and engage in French.

As president of the Canadian Branch of the Assemblée parlementaire de la Francophonie I want to issue an invitation. We are more than 321 million French speakers in the world. We have to make daily efforts to grow the French language. Here at home in Canada and in Quebec, the decline is a sad reality and we have to be vigilant and do what it takes to turn things around.

My party, the Conservative Party of Canada, recognizes the decline of French. We will continue to take meaningful action to slow this decline across the country.

Tomorrow, I invite francophones and francophiles to do something meaningful in their community to promote our language, French.

Let us be proactive ambassadors. Let us celebrate our beautiful language every day. Let us create, innovate and be proud of our language, French.

[Justice, February 27th, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, it is unbelievable. I do not know how he can look himself in the mirror at the end of the day.

I would like to remind the House that we, the common-sense Conservatives, will axe the tax, build the homes, fix the budget and stop the crime.

This Liberal government allows violent criminals to serve their sentences in the comfort of their living rooms with the complicity of the Bloc Québécois. A teenage girl was lured by a former police officer now serving his sentence at home. A woman was attacked with a knife by her ex-spouse, who was previously arrested twice for domestic violence.

When will the Liberals stop their soft-on-crime policies? When will they protect victims?

[Canada Early Learning and Child Care Act, February 14th, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague from Nanaimo—Ladysmith, who recognizes that what I said in my speech is appreciated by a very large majority of people in the NDP. It is common sense. We need to put money in the right places so that our Canadian families, mothers and fathers, can go to work, create wealth and then benefit from social programs.

[Canada Early Learning and Child Care Act, February 14th, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague from Trois-Rivières. We also have the pleasure of working together on the international scene to defend the French fact.

I would like to remind my colleague that the Conservative Party did a lot to ensure that official languages were included in this bill. We worked very hard, with the collaboration of our colleague from La Pointe-de-l'Île, who worked with me to try to put more in Bill C-13.

I would like to remind my colleague that I myself was at the committee. I moved amendments. Official languages are in the bill thanks to the Conservative Party of Canada.

Also, I would like to remind the House that all the Conservative senators—because there is a Conservative caucus in the Senate—voted in favour of Senator Cormier's amendment. How many Liberals or Liberal-appointed independents voted against it?

That is the question we should be asking.

[Canada Early Learning and Child Care Act, February 14th, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to tell viewers at home that they do not need to adjust their video, even though the tie does not match. My colleague is a colourful character and I really appreciate his presence at the Standing Committee on Official Languages. As for the tie, I will give him some fashion advice this evening.

I just want to say to my colleague that today we are talking about the amendment that seeks to include the official languages clause in the bill on child care and early childhood services. I think it is important to focus on 2024 and stop living in the past of more than 10 years ago.

We need to look what the Liberal government has done in the past eight years. Recently, it prevented a committee from doing its work because it said that translating the documents would cost $300 million. That is disgraceful. It is unacceptable. This is a parliamentary right. Every parliamentarian needs to receive information in both official languages. Who is in government right now? It is the Liberal government.

[Canada Early Learning and Child Care Act, February 14th, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague from Peterborough—Kawartha, who does excellent work on the Standing Committee on Human Resources, Skills and Social Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities. It was a pleasure for me to work with her on the official languages section on this bill.

It is always a pleasure for me to rise in the House to debate important issues that affect Canadians.

People who know me know that I am a staunch defender of the French fact, so I am particularly enthusiastic about speaking on official languages, obviously in French.

That is a valid question. Why are official languages mentioned in the Canada Early Learning and Child Care Act? The answer is quite simple. The current Liberal government has once again forgotten francophone minority communities. That comes as no surprise.

However, as we have already seen when modernizing the Official Languages Act, the Liberal government claims to be the champion of official languages, but lacks courage when it comes time to take meaningful action. That is what the Liberals are: all talk and no action.

Because of the Liberal government's lack of vision and ambition, the elephant gave birth to a mouse, as I like to say when describing Bill C‑13. It aims to modernize the Official Languages Act. It was the first official languages review process in over 30 years. The government turned a deaf ear to stakeholders across the country. This is yet another missed opportunity. That has often been our experience with this Liberal government, which has been in power for eight years.

There is no obligation to count the rights holders. The federal authorities' powers are diluted. There is no central agency. There is no accountability. That is how it is with the Liberals. No one is ever accountable. What about the Commissioner of Official Languages, who is still awaiting the order in council granting him his powers? It is written in the act, but who is going to table that order before the government? Is it the President of the Treasury Board? Is it the Minister of Canadian Heritage, who is one of the two ministers named in the legislation, but will not even appear before the Standing Committee on Official Languages? Is it the Minister of Official Languages? Is this the Minister of Justice? Who is it? No one knows and, in the meantime, the commissioner is waiting to take action. I would like to remind the House that French is in decline across Canada. The Liberals' approach to official languages is not serious, and it shows how little interest they have in this country's bilingualism.

Bill C‑35 passed unanimously here in the House last June. Today, however, we are debating a Senate amendment put forward by Senator Cormier, an Acadian, who stood up for francophones. He wants to add the words “official language minority communities” to the first sentence of clause 8, after “including early learning and child care programs and services for Indigenous peoples”; and he divides clause 8 into two paragraphs. It is not complicated. However, we are still debating that today. Wow.

The first paragraph sets out the government's financial commitment. The second paragraph outlines the mechanisms that the federal government will use to provide the funding. Adding the words “official language minority communities” after the word “including” does not detract from any rights of any other minority or of indigenous peoples, but seeks to eliminate any ambiguity before the courts. The Liberals did a sloppy job, the Senate raised a red flag and made the necessary corrections. The Liberals always fly by the seat of their pants and leave things to the last minute. There is no discipline.

We are well aware of how much work and resources official language minority communities must put into defending their language rights. Let us talk about that. Even though the Federal Court of Appeal ruled in favour of the Fédération des francophones de la Colombie-Britannique in its case against Employment and Social Development Canada, the federation still has to fight with the Minister of Official Languages to have that ruling enforced. It is unbelievable. What a waste of time and money. However, as we saw again today, the Liberals think that money grows on trees.

Early childhood is a critical period for children when it comes to learning language skills and developing their identity. All too often, access to early childhood services in French is essential for francophone minority communities to pass on their language and culture.

These services are vectors for French learning, ensuring that children acquire the language skills they need to prepare them for an education in their own language, and facilitating their integration into francophone schools across Canada. This contributes to the implementation of the right to education, as enshrined in section 23 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. We believe that this amendment is relevant and necessary.

I would also like to point out that the references to official language minority communities already found in clause 7 and clause 11 are thanks to the Conservative Party of Canada. I was the one who introduced them. I had the support of the Bloc Québécois, but the NDP and the Liberals voted against some of the amendments we proposed. However, we were able to get some of them through. Unfortunately, some others were rejected, and we had to go through the Senate. The Conservative Party of Canada made sure that francophones across Canada were included in the bilateral agreements for early childhood services.

I would also like to take a moment to thank the folks at the Commission nationale des parents francophones and at the Fédération des communautés francophones et acadienne du Canada for their hard work on this file.

The Liberals are not in favour of this amendment because they had to go through the Senate. Even the Speaker of the Senate, the government representative, clearly indicated that he would not support Senator Cormier's amendment. That was the stance the Liberal government was taking. Again, the Liberals flip-flopped. Francophones are the ones who took a stand.

As I said, the Liberals were not in favour of this amendment. The government's position was that this amendment was not necessary or appropriate. However, today, out of the blue, the Liberals are saying that they are in favour of the amendment. What is the reason for that?

Every individual should have access to early child care services in the official language of their choice, and that is non-negotiable as long as our country, Canada, is a bilingual country. I want to emphasize the concept of French and English bilingualism, because it is important to remember that this government appointed a governor general who is bilingual, but who does not speak French. I would also like to add that only one province in Canada is bilingual. This government appointed a unilingual lieutenant governor who, obviously, does not speak French, because the Liberals are inconsistent. Their intentions and desires may go beyond what is set out in the laws, but, unfortunately, the Liberal government does not walk the talk.

The Liberals realized that they would lose support in francophone regions and decided to adopt the Conservative Party of Canada's common-sense position. Yes, it is common sense. As long as we are a bilingual country, we should be consistent and protect both official languages.

We saw the Liberals use this same tactic with the pause on the carbon tax in Atlantic Canada. It is so odd. The Liberals reacted blindly, in panic mode. They punished all other Canadians outside the Atlantic provinces by denying them heat pumps. That was a problem. They were just reacting.

Then the Liberals changed their minds and said that Albertans and British Columbians might be able to use the credit. Again, they were improvising. It is unfortunate. This government is a disaster. It is shameful to try to score political points off our country's bilingual identity.

In closing, my message for francophones across the country is simple: Here in the House of Commons, the Conservative Party of Canada is the only party that can truly protect their interests. We will continue to take concrete action and stop the decline of French, which is a fact across Canada. We will also protect and promote our two official languages. We will not pit French against English. We intend to protect both official languages, French and English.

[Canada Early Learning and Child Care Act, February 14th, 2024]

Madam Speaker, we are redoing a debate we had last spring. On June 19, this bill was passed here in the House of Commons and sent to the other place. Today, the debate is on the amendment to add the language clause. I will quote the government representative in the Senate, the Hon. Marc Gold, who gave a statement following a speech by Senator Cormier. He said, “I have a prepared text that I am going to read. Let me begin by saying that what I will try to do is present the government's position. The government does not support this amendment”.

I just want to know what happened on the Liberal side. Why the about-face? Why did they change their minds again? This government is apparently going to support the amendment. We are wasting time, and that is not good for official language minority communities.