Mr. Speaker, I wish to inform the House that Her Excellency the Governor General has seen fit to authorize this chamber to proceed with the election of a Speaker.
House of Commons photoWon his last election, in 2021, with 50% of the vote.
Mr. Speaker, I wish to inform the House that Her Excellency the Governor General has seen fit to authorize this chamber to proceed with the election of a Speaker.
Foreign Affairs September 27th, 2023
Mr. Speaker, as I said a few days ago, this incident was an embarrassment to Canada and to all parliamentarians. That is why we continue to emphasize how we stand with Ukraine, how we continue to fight against Russian propaganda and disinformation, and how we will continue to ensure that the rules of this place and the independence of the Speaker are fully respected.
Small Business September 27th, 2023
Mr. Speaker, through the depths of the pandemic, we were there to support Canadians, to support workers, families, seniors, young people and yes, small businesses. We have been there to support them and we continue to support them while inflation postpandemic is making the recovery harder.
That is why we put forward measures to support them and why we are going to continue to be there to support small businesses from coast to coast to coast and to support Canadians while we grow our economy, fight climate change and create an economy that works for all Canadians.
The Economy September 27th, 2023
Mr. Speaker, I thank the new member for Notre-Dame-de-Grâce—Westmount for her commitment to making life more affordable for all Canadians.
One of the first things we did when coming into office was to scrap Stephen Harper's flawed plan to send child care cheques to millionaires, by implementing a non-taxable Canada child benefit that provides more generous support to the Canadian families that need it the most. Since then, millions of parents have received support, including thousands of families in the member's riding that just got their monthly payment last week. This is a concrete way we are directly making life more affordable for Canadian families with hundreds of dollars a month.
Government Accountability September 27th, 2023
Mr. Speaker, Canadians are feeling the impact of the rising cost of living across the country, especially when it comes to groceries and housing. That is why we are taking immediate action to put more pressure on the CEOs of the major grocery chains to make groceries more affordable. We will also support small businesses by extending the loan repayment deadlines and we will help get more apartments built by eliminating the GST on new construction.
We are already seeing the benefits. This week, a Toronto-based company announced that it will build 5,000 new rental units across the country, a project that it had put on hold.
We will always be there to help Canadians.
Government Accountability September 27th, 2023
Mr. Speaker, Canadians are feeling the impact of rising prices across the country, including on things like groceries and housing. That is why we are taking immediate action to increase the pressure on CEOs to ensure groceries are affordable, we are supporting small businesses by extending the term loan repayment deadline and we are increasing the construction of apartments by removing the GST.
We are seeing the impacts already. This week a Toronto-based company shared that it will now build 5,000 more new rental units across the country, which were otherwise on hold.
We will continue to focus on delivering for Canadians, while he focuses on fights.
Government Accountability September 27th, 2023
Mr. Speaker, while the Leader of the Opposition concentrates on personal attacks on me, I will stay focused on Canadians, on building more affordable housing, on delivering things like the grocery benefit, on delivering child care at $10 a day right across the country over the objections of Conservatives and on delivering a dental benefit for families that cannot afford to send their kids to the dentist, something Conservatives voted against.
We will continue to stay focused on fighting for Canadians while the Leader of the Opposition fights with everyone around him.
Housing September 27th, 2023
Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for Etobicoke Centre for his question and hard work.
This week, we announced that it will be easier for developers to access low-cost financing to build apartment buildings for families, students and seniors. This measure will help build up to 30,000 new rental units per year.
Together, we can get more housing built so everyone has an affordable home.
Foreign Affairs September 27th, 2023
Mr. Speaker, the hard-working women and men of the Parliamentary Protective Service ensured the safety of everyone in this room by thoroughly clearing, through metal detectors and security, everyone who came into this room. When it comes to the respect for the independence and the authority of the Speaker, this government will continue to respect the independence of the Speaker's office and therefore the responsibility of the Speaker in this matter.
Foreign Affairs September 27th, 2023
Mr. Speaker, the Speaker of this House of Commons invited an individual without apparently doing that Google search, but it is not up to the government of the day to oversee or to have a veto power over those who the Speaker or, indeed, members of official parties choose to invite into this House. If the member wants to change hundreds of years of parliamentary privilege and Westminster democracy then, absolutely, let us have a debate about that.
However, on this side of the House, we respect the independence of the Speaker's office.