Joël Godin

[An Act for the Substantive Equality of Canada's Official Languages, May 12th, 2023]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the minister for this presentation.

I am disappointed that the minister truly believes what she is saying. She said that she incorporated everything that was in the white paper into Bill C‑13. The white paper said that the central agency should be the Treasury Board and that it should have full power over the entire act. That was written in the white paper.

The minister also said that in the process of developing the bill, she considered all the requests submitted by organizations representing official language minority communities. The Fédération des communautés francophones et acadienne du Canada, or the FCFA, has made one clear request. The entire act needs to be overseen by the Treasury Board. Why did the minister not simply extend the Treasury Board's responsibility to encompass the entire act?

I have other questions. Regarding immigration, the minister said that, coincidentally, since 2023, there has been a 4.4% target. In the Liberals' marketing strategy this year, they note that, coincidentally, just as Bill C‑13 was being introduced, they reached the target. In the bill, the only thing the Department of Citizenship and Immigration needs to do is set targets and indicators.

We all know that we are behind and that we have some catching up to do. The FCFA recommends an increase of 12% to 20% to make up for lost time. Who will make the Department of Citizenship and Immigration fulfill its commitments? Who in this government will hold the department accountable so that it meets its immigration targets?

[An Act for the Substantive Equality of Canada's Official Languages, May 10th, 2023]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to commend my colleague from Beauport—Côte-de-Beaupré—Île d'Orléans—Charlevoix. I want to publicly announce that I am originally from her riding. I am very proud to have roots in Charlevoix.

Like her, I want to pay tribute to the people of Baie‑Saint‑Paul and Saint‑Urbain. I am thinking especially of the two volunteer firefighters who lost their lives in the floods. My thoughts are with their families.

I thank my colleague for that flight of oratory, for the poetry. Let us thank Mr. Duteil for his work, which my colleague did such a fine job of reading.

To begin, my colleague mentioned that it is up to Quebec to decide. I would simply like to remind her that this is a federal Parliament. The Conservative Party of Canada's mandate is to protect both official languages in Quebec—and we have worked closely with the Bloc Québécois on that—as well as in the rest of Canada, from coast to coast to coast. It is important to mention that.

I would like to hear my colleague's thoughts on the tactics the Liberals are using to delay the passage of Bill C‑13. It is important to understand that we are at report stage today. We are not at third reading. The Liberals are delaying the process. I would like to hear my colleague's thoughts on that.

[An Act for the Substantive Equality of Canada's Official Languages, May 10th, 2023]

Mr. Speaker, my colleague from Lac-Saint-Louis and I do not necessarily have the same views on this.

I would like to remind him that today, we are not debating the bill at third reading. We are debating the bill at report stage. The Liberals have moved 10 motions. I repeat that these motions should have been moved in committee when we were working on the amendments.

There has been some confusion, and the Liberals presented many duplicate amendments. These amendments were identical and when the liberals presented them in committee, they had to rescind them. There seems to be a breakdown in communication in that party.

I would like to thank my colleague for recognizing the work that the official opposition accomplished in collaboration with the Bloc Québécois with respect to what was done in Quebec to recognize that in Quebec, the common language is French. It is a rather unique situation in North America. We need to recognize that in Quebec, the language that is vulnerable is French. I would like to know whether my colleague thinks that English is in danger in the Province of Quebec. That is a big question mark for me.

I have another example that illustrates the prevailing confusion. My colleague just spoke about the preamble. He is questioning whether it is valid and wondering if it will be recognized by the courts. This demonstrates the lack of clarity in the Liberal government's work on the official languages bill. It is chaotic and messy. It is difficult to make heads or tails of it.

I would like my colleague to comment on that. I will listen carefully.

[An Act for the Substantive Equality of Canada's Official Languages, May 10th, 2023]

Mr. Speaker, I agree with you on listening to my colleague, a passionate Acadian, talk to us from his heart and soul today.

Now, I have a question for my colleague the member for Sackville—Preston—Chezzetcook. Today we are speaking at report stage, following the motions that his government moved in the House, instead of moving them in committee.

He appreciated the work that we did as members of the Standing Committee on Official Languages, so why are the Liberals delaying the process to pass Bill C‑13 again today?

[Questions Passed as Orders for Returns, May 8th, 2023]

With regard to the issuing of passports: (a) how many passports were mailed to the wrong address, broken down by month since January 1, 2022; (b) how many reports of individuals receiving (i) a passport with errors, (ii) another individual's passport, has the government received; and (c) what is the protocol when an individual receives another individual's passport in error, including whether or not the Privacy Commissioner is notified?

[Labour, April 28th, 2023]

Madam Speaker, I think my colleague has missed the point of what we have been saying for the last 10 days.

The bureaucracy has increased by 50% in terms of costs paid by Canadian taxpayers, who are receiving fewer services. Now 155,000 Canadian public service workers are on strike. It is the largest strike in Canadian history.

This government's inaction over the past two years is what created this dispute.

When will the Prime Minister come back and fix this problem?

[Labour, April 28th, 2023]

Madam Speaker, we will propose solutions when we form government.

In Portneuf—Jacques-Cartier, schools in Shannon and Valcartier are closed and parents are having to take time off work because traffic is being disrupted. Canadian citizens have unanswered questions about their tax returns. There are delays in issuing passports to young people who have invested all their savings in their year-end trip, and families will lose thousands of dollars without those passports.

The government is solely responsible for this strike. Where is the Prime Minister when it is time to negotiate, find a solution and get the country out of this crisis?

[Seniors in Portneuf—Jacques‑Cartier, April 28th, 2023]

Madam Speaker, as the member for Portneuf—Jacques-Cartier, I have the pleasure of regularly meeting with the seniors in my riding. Every time I meet with them, I can only admire how strongly they feel about being community builders.

I would like to thank our presidents: Lynda Lavoie‑Leclerc from Cap‑Santé; Jacqueline Gignac from Deschambault‑Grondines; Micheline Côté from Donnacona; Ghislaine Lepage‑Alain from Lac‑Beauport; Micheline Bernier from Neuville; Yves Laroche from Pont‑Rouge; Sylvie Lefebvre from Portneuf; Robert Julien from Saint‑Alban; Carole Dolbec from Saint‑Augustin‑de‑Desmaures; Martine Germain from Saint‑Basile‑de‑Portneuf; Michel Després from Sainte‑Brigitte‑de‑Laval; Étienne Dusablon from Saint‑Casimir; France Laprise from Sainte‑Catherine‑de‑la‑Jacques‑Cartier; Gaétane Martel from Sainte‑Christine‑d'Auvergne; Raymond Groleau from Saint‑Gilbert; Denyse Julien from Saint‑Léonard‑de‑Portneuf; Louise Barette from Saint‑Marc‑des‑Carrières; Yvon Marcotte from Saint‑Raymond; Marie‑France Delisle from Saint‑Ubalde; Shirley Kiley from Shannon; Gaétane St‑Laurent from Stoneham; and Édith Boivin, who will be meeting with me this Saturday in Rivière‑à‑Pierre.

I simply want to give them my thanks.

[An Act for the Substantive Equality of Canada's Official Languages, April 26th, 2023]

Madam Speaker, I listened with great interest to my colleague's speech.

I would like his thoughts on the fact that today we are debating motions moved by the government. As a member of the Standing Committee on Official Languages, he participated in the clause-by-clause study of the bill. I would like to know if all of this is consistent. He probably heard what I heard. This bill urgently needed to be adopted and the Liberals were quite adamant about it. I would like the member to tell me whether we are wasting our time today because we are delaying yet again the adoption of the bill that was urgent. We also saw obstruction from the government in committee.

I am a bit confused. I would like my colleague to help me untangle all this.

[An Act for the Substantive Equality of Canada's Official Languages, April 26th, 2023]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to acknowledge and thank my colleague for Churchill—Keewatinook Aski. We worked very actively on Bill C‑13, although we did not always see eye to eye.

I heard her say in her speech that she was satisfied with Bill C‑13 and that the central agency, the Treasury Board, would do the work associated with the act as a whole. She talked about language provisions.

I would like her to reassure me. Were these supposed to be the provisions with teeth that would halt the decline of French and protect and promote the two official languages? I have serious doubts about the effectiveness of Bill C‑13.

I would like her to tell us more about the role of the central agency, the Treasury Board.