Justin Trudeau

[Election of the Speaker, December 5th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, on behalf of the government and all of our colleagues in the House, I would like to extend my heartfelt congratulations to you on your election. Today's vote speaks to the confidence the members have in you.

I would also like to begin by thanking our esteemed colleagues who ran for the position. Canadians are fortunate to have such dedicated people serving them in Parliament. I would be remiss not to give a special thanks to our dear friend from Halifax West, who has served the House extraordinarily well and honourably for the past four years as Speaker.

As I rise for the first time in this 43rd Parliament, I would like to take a few moments to thank the people of my riding of Papineau, who once again placed their trust in me. I have been representing them in the House for over 10 years, and they again expressed their confidence in me for a fourth time during this past election. I sincerely thank them, and I will work hard to properly represent them, as always.

In October, Canadians placed their trust in us. They are counting on us to represent not only their interests, but also their values. I know that in recent months, the 338 members who are here in the House today had the privilege of meeting Canadians across the country.

Regardless of political stripe, we have all seen the values that unite us. Canadians are hard-working, generous and ambitious. They are involved in their communities. They help those in need.

However, this does not mean that Canadians agree on everything. In a country as big and diverse as ours, it is normal for people to disagree and engage in heated debate. Canadians meet each other with respect and understanding. When it is time to make things happen for their family or their community, they know how to put their differences aside. They expect nothing less from their members of Parliament, and rightly so.

They sent us here with clear instructions to work together to make life better for them, to keep our communities safe and our economy growing, to protect our environment and to create more opportunities for people to get ahead. Common ground does exist in this Parliament, and I know we can build on it.

Mr. Speaker, in the best of worlds, the Leader of the Opposition and I would not have had to put you in that chair. We would respect your wishes and leave you seated among us, but I am afraid the House needs you.

I have had the privilege of serving in the House of Commons for over 10 years now, and I know that debates can quickly become very heated. My colleagues on both sides of the House know that too.

Every member in the House has a responsibility to respect the civility of this place. Canadians chose each and every one of us to be guardians of this Parliament, and we must live up to the distinct privilege that comes from serving Canadians.

I am a third-generation parliamentarian, and what that emphasizes to me personally, as it does for many people in the House who have had friends, mentors and family members sit here, is that we get to occupy these seats for a blink in time in the life of this country. We occupy positions of extraordinary privilege in representing tens of thousands of our fellow citizens, being their voice and serving them directly. While we occupy these extraordinary seats, it is on us to continue to strive every day to represent them and serve them well.

However, while I know that every member will strive to ensure constructive and therefore productive debates, there will be times when our differences will get the best of us and we will get carried away. We will then look to you, Mr. Speaker, Parliament's referee, to keep us in line. I know you to be uniquely qualified to assume this role, a belief that obviously many of our colleagues in the House share as well.

Mr. Speaker, once again, I want to sincerely congratulate you on your election. You are more than worthy of this honour. I thank you and wish you the best of luck.

[The Environment, June 19th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, unfortunately, there are still politicians who believe that we have to choose between the environment and the economy.

The reality is that the only way to move forward as a society is to protect jobs and the environment at the same time. That is exactly what we are doing by safely accessing new markets for our resources while investing historic amounts in the transition to green energy. All the profits from this pipeline will be put toward the transition to green energy because Canadians know that we need to show leadership in that regard.

[Canada Summer Jobs Program, June 19th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, on this side of the House we are unequivocal. We will always stand up for a woman's right to choose. The fact of the matter is that we have seen around the world women's rights eroded by conservative governments, by conservative leaders, by conservative politicians. The reality is that Canadians deserve to hear political parties and leaders stand up unequivocally to say that we will defend women's rights. We will defend women's rights to choose.

Why can the Conservatives not just say that?

[Rural Economic Development, June 19th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for Montarville for his tireless work.

We have always been partners with rural regions. We created an infrastructure fund especially for rural communities. We are currently crafting a strategy for rural Canada based on the ideas of the very people who live there. We have connected 380,000 households to high-speed Internet, and our investments will make it possible for every Canadian household to connect.

Our record is proof that rural Canadians are always a priority for us.

[Government Policies, June 19th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, while the NDP works hard to come up with catchy slogans, we actually moved forward on delivering for Canadians. We have lowered the prices of drugs by taking an approach that includes creating collaboration with provinces as we move forward toward pharmacare.

We are also moving forward on a $40-billion national housing strategy, because we know that Canadians need to have affordable homes and the security that comes with it.

We have also been investing in new training, jobs and opportunities for Canadians, while lifting people out of poverty.

While the NDP has been working on slogans, we have been acting.

[Government Priorities, June 19th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, it is always interesting to hear the Conservatives pretend they stand up for the middle class. We know their approach has always been to give advantages and benefits to the wealthiest in the hope that it will trickle down to growth for everyone else.

The first thing we did as a government was lower taxes for the middle class and raise them on the wealthiest 1%, and the Conservatives voted against it.

Then we brought in a Canada child benefit that gives more help to nine families out of 10 by stopping the cheques being sent to the millionaire families the Conservatives kept helping.

[Housing, June 19th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for Nepean for his question and his hard work.

With the first-time homebuyer incentive, we are helping middle-class families achieve the dream of home ownership by increasing the RRSP withdrawal limit and reducing their monthly mortgage payments without increasing the amount they need to save for a down payment.

We are putting home ownership within reach for more middle-class families. We are building on our historic commitments to giving more Canadians a safe and affordable place to call home.

[Ethics, June 19th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, we are committed to a robust regime to combat money laundering and terrorist financing.

With budget 2019, we created the action, coordination and enforcement team and the money laundering centre of expertise. These will help better identify and meet evolving threats. We have provided over $160 million to the RCMP, FINTRAC and CRA. We support policing and real estate audit teams.

The Conservatives actually cut over $500 million from the RCMP's budget, while we will ensure that law enforcement teams have the resources and tools they need.

[Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, June 19th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, the UN reported this week that 70 million people are currently displaced around the world.

I am sure the hon. member does not think this is because of something I tweeted a few years ago. The reality is that more and more people are immigrating all over the world. Canada has a robust system to ensure that everyone who arrives in this country, through regular or irregular migration, is processed properly.

All of our system's rules are carefully followed.

[Carbon Pricing, June 19th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, the members opposite continue to mislead Canadians. The reality is that the climate action incentive and our plan to put a price on pollution actually get more money in the pockets of middle-class Canadians than without a price on pollution. This is in fact an environmental tax break for middle-class families. That is what we are moving forward with, a way to both protect the environment, fight climate change and make it affordable for Canadians.

The plan that the Leader of the Opposition is planning on putting forward tonight surely will not do that.