House of Commons photoWon his last election, in 2021, with 50% of the vote.
Ethics October 20th, 2020
Mr. Speaker, since the beginning of this pandemic, we have been focusing on helping Canadians. Yesterday, there were 2,400 new cases of COVID-19, and we will continue to focus on helping families, businesses, workers and grandparents. We will continue to focus on Canadians and keeping our commitments to them. We will continue to try to keep this Parliament running because now is the time to rise to the challenge for Canadians, not to follow the Conservatives into an election.
Ethics October 20th, 2020
Mr. Speaker, after years of neglecting Newfoundland and Labrador, after years of a Conservative government that could not quite get nominations to the Supreme Court right, we were proud to nominate the very first Newfoundlander and Labradorian to the Supreme Court of Canada.
Our appointments to the bench are made with a merit-based process, and we draw from a broad panel of experts in order to get the right people to the bench across the country. We will continue to do so, and we will take no lessons from the Conservatives, with the way they did partisan appointments.
Ethics October 20th, 2020
Mr. Speaker, after all the Conservative partisanship, in 2016, we reformed our judicial appointments system, making it merit-based. We are working with independent committees to make decisions and recommendations. We will always choose the best people to work in our justice system. We will continue to strive to have a justice system that truly reflects our entire country.
Ethics October 20th, 2020
Mr. Speaker, we reformed the judicial appointments process, making it merit-based and creating independent committees to make recommendations on judicial appointments.
We will continue to look for the absolute best jurists across the country to step up and will continue to appoint people who reflect the great diversity of this country so that we have a bench that looks much more like Canada. We will continue to appoint the highest-qualified jurists, with a merit-based approach that we reformed after the Conservatives made it political.
Lobster Fishery Dispute in Nova Scotia October 19th, 2020
Mr. Speaker, here in the House, we debate facts. It is disappointing to see the Conservatives, the Bloc Québécois and the NDP continue to claim that nothing has been done over the past 21 years.
On the contrary, a huge amount of work has been done over the past 21 years, especially in the past five. We were directly involved, as was the former minister of fisheries and oceans and member for Beauséjour, as treaties were signed and progress was made.
I completely agree that there is still a lot of work to be done. That is what we committed to doing today and have been committing to for weeks, and that is what we will continue to work on in partnership with indigenous people across the country.
We are not trying to find quick and easy solutions, because they do not exist. We are trying to find solutions that will work for all Canadians, particularly indigenous Canadians.
Lobster Fishery Dispute in Nova Scotia October 19th, 2020
Mr. Speaker, it is a pleasure to hear from the leader of the official opposition. I just wish he had actually gotten his facts straight.
Over the past 21 years, since the Marshall decision, governments of all stripes, including the former Conservative government, have made progress on the question of resolving the moderate livelihood. Licences and tags have been transferred from commercial fishers to indigenous Mi'kmaq fishers. Much work has been done.
Over the past five years, we have significantly accelerated that work and moved forward even further on reconciliation, as we did in many other areas of the country. We will continue to do so.
It is interesting that yet again the examples the Leader of the Opposition brought up were focused squarely on the oil and gas issue, which is an important issue, but only one of many issues facing Canadians right now.
We will continue to work in partnership with indigenous people. We will continue to put the nation-to-nation relationship first and foremost in our engagement with indigenous peoples. We will continue to build this path forward that all Canadians of every background expect this government and all governments to walk together.
Lobster Fishery Dispute in Nova Scotia October 19th, 2020
Mr. Speaker, I will be sharing my time with the member for South Shore—St. Margarets.
As Prime Minister, my number one priority is to keep our communities safe. I want to make it absolutely clear that our government strongly condemns any form of violence, harassment and intimidation toward the Mi'kmaq in Nova Scotia. There is no place for racism in our country. The appalling violence in Nova Scotia must stop now. It is unacceptable, it is shameful and it is criminal.
Yesterday I spoke with Premier McNeil, and we will continue working with him and the provincial government, as well as the RCMP, to make sure that everyone remains safe. The police are responsible for ensuring the protection of every single citizen in this country, including the Mi'kmaq, and preventing the escalation of violence. That is why the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness approved a request from the province on Friday for more police resources to be deployed in order to keep the peace so the Nova Scotia RCMP can effectively do their job.
The additional officers will maintain law and order, support ongoing criminal investigations and hold to account the individuals who have perpetrated the outrageous acts of violence and destruction we have seen. There have already been arrests made and charges laid in more than one case, and there are more expected in the days ahead.
There is a treaty right to fish, and it is a right that was affirmed by the Supreme Court in the Marshall decision 21 years ago. Above all, there is a right to live and fish in peace without being subjected to threats or racism. I know some harvesters have had a challenging commercial fishing season this year. Everyone wants to know that the stocks they depend on for their livelihood will be protected. Our government will continue to ensure conservation underpins our decisions while we continue to implement first nations' rights.
For many Canadians in coastal communities across the country, fishing is not only part of their everyday lives, it is also part of their identities. It is a complex and personal matter and has long been the subject of disputes.
Since 2015, our government has been taking concrete action to rebuild relations with first nations, Inuit and Métis peoples. Unfortunately, reconciliation does not happen overnight, especially when the injustices have already gone on for far too long.
On the weekend, the Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations and the Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard spoke with Chief Sack and the Minister of Indigenous Services. They also spoke with the Assembly of Nova Scotia Mi’kmaq Chiefs to reaffirm our commitment to working in partnership with them.
We are also listening to commercial fishers in Nova Scotia and elsewhere as they share their concerns. One thing is clear: Any solution will require peaceful dialogue, without violence. Perpetrators will be arrested and held accountable.
Twenty-one years ago the Supreme Court affirmed the indigenous peoples right to fish for a moderate livelihood. Five years ago tonight Canadians elected a government that made reconciliation a core priority for the path forward for Canada.
Since then, we have invested massively in education. We have built and renovated schools and supported better health and mental wellness. We have eliminated boil water advisories and implemented historic legislation to protect and revitalize indigenous languages and ensure indigenous children are safe in their communities. There is much more to do.
The real work of reconciliation cannot just be between the federal government and indigenous peoples. The real work of reconciliation must include all orders of government and, importantly, all Canadians. In order to right historic wrongs, we need an approach that does not just recognize inherent treaty rights, but implements their spirit and intent. That is why we will work with commercial fishers and Canadians to ensure this is done fairly. I understand this is challenging. This is not an inconvenience, but an obligation. If we are truly to be the country we like to think of ourselves as, then this is the road we must walk together.
I am glad we can be here tonight to participate in this emergency debate to address these issues with dialogue together, just like Canadians elected us to do. As we are still facing the health and economic threats of a global pandemic, the House should remain focused on the issues that directly impact the safety of our citizens and their livelihoods. As always, our government is here to find solutions, to resolve conflicts and to build a better Canada that works for everyone.
Taxation October 8th, 2020
Mr. Speaker, we recognize the extraordinary front-line workers like Jennifer who every day help keep food on our shelves and keep our economy rolling even in the most difficult moments of the shutdown. That is why we stepped up on supports for workers, for small businesses, for families. We will continue to work to ensure that we are supporting Canadians through this pandemic and beyond.
In regard to the wealthy, the first thing we did was to raise taxes on the wealthy 1% and lower them for the middle class. Unfortunately, the NDP voted against that initiative.
Taxation October 8th, 2020
Mr. Speaker, the first thing we did when we took office in 2015 was raise taxes on the wealthiest 1% and lower them for the middle class. That is exactly what we did, but unfortunately the NDP voted against that initiative.
We will always look for ways to spur economic growth and ensure our tax system is fair to everyone. We will always help the middle class and those working hard to join it. We will get through this pandemic together by taking care of our health and our economy.
Ethics October 8th, 2020
Mr. Speaker, our federal system has some of the strictest rules governing political donors. The Liberal Party's rules are even stricter. All of our fundraising activities are public and we even invite journalists to attend to observe what is going on.
Instead of acting in secret, the other parties like the Conservative Party and the Bloc Québécois should make their fundraisers public so that the public can see who is funding them.