Mike Bossio

[Cannabis Act, May 30th, 2017]

Mr. Speaker, we have seen in the past that prohibition has not worked. It did not work with alcohol and it is not working with marijuana today. Today our youth are the highest consumers of cannabis in the world. All we are doing is making criminals wealthy. We do not know the composition of the cannabis that our youth are smoking today. The balance between CBD and THC is something that we really need to understand.

Should we be allowing criminals to continue to profit from this? Should we be allowing criminals to continue to manipulate the genetics and biochemistry of this drug just as we used to under prohibition with those who produced alcohol? Should we be using the revenue from this to educate, enforce, and rehabilitate youth, rather than once again compensating criminals?

[Budget Implementation Act, 2017, No. 1, May 9th, 2017]

Mr. Speaker, in our budget we have announced some significant investments in health care and child care spaces: $11 billion in health care, $11 million in affordable housing, and $7 billion to create 40,000 child care spaces. How are these kinds of investments going to benefit the constituents of the member's riding?

[Budget Implementation Act, 2017, No. 1, May 9th, 2017]

Madam Speaker, the member opposite has indicated that he does not feel there is much in the budget that will help everyday Canadians. I would like to remind him of things that are actually in the budget that will be helpful to Canadians: $725 million for veterans, $20 billion into public transit, $11 billion into health care, $11 billion into affordable housing, $950 million into innovation clusters, $10 billion into agriculture, $30 million into the Trans-Canada Trail, $7 billion to create 40,000 child care spaces, $5 billion for water and waste water infrastructure plans, and the list goes on.

Would the member not agree that these are beneficial things: creating child care spaces, taking care of our veterans, creating affordable housing for people, keeping our seniors healthy, happy, and living longer in their homes through home care? I think he would agree that these are good things for everyday Canadians.

[Privilege, May 1st, 2017]

Mr. Speaker, I have been listening off and on to the discussions today in the supposed debate that is occurring in the House around parliamentary privilege and the right to access Parliament Hill. Everybody on this side is in full agreement with the member. From a parliamentary privilege standpoint and right to access, the Liberals agree. However, all members across the way wish to talk about is the filibuster occurring in the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs.

The Liberals are in agreement as far as parliamentary privilege is concerned. Maybe the member could go back to his caucus and discuss putting an end to this filibuster so we can actually get to the important work Canadians elected us to do.

[The Environment, April 7th, 2017]

Mr. Speaker, we know that 95% of human-caused mercury deposited in Canada comes from foreign sources. The objective of the Minamata Convention on Mercury, an international agreement on mercury control, is to protect human health and the environment from human-caused emissions and releases of mercury and mercury compounds. The coming into force of this international agreement is important to the health of Canadians and the protection of the environment.

Would the Minister of Environment and Climate Change please advise this House on when Canada will ratify the Minamata Convention on Mercury?

[The Budget, April 4th, 2017]

Madam Speaker, I agree with the member on the importance of climate change. I think the approach our government has taken has been very balanced. The investments we have made into climate resiliency infrastructure are important. Investing in innovation in green technology is important, and so is putting a price on pollution. Our government's approach has tried to reach a balance so that it does not have a massive effect on our economy, while at the same time it tries to deal with the climate change issues.

Would the member not agree that through a balanced approach, trying to achieve our Paris targets and at the same time trying to grow our economy can happen hand in hand?

[The Budget, April 4th, 2017]

Madam Speaker, the member likes to talk a lot about what is not in the budget rather than celebrating what is in the budget. I can see why he would be green with envy as for what is actually in the budget: $180 billion to be spent on infrastructure; $625 million to veterans; $2.7 billion into training; $225 million over the next four years to identify and fill skills gaps; $11 billion to affordable housing; $6 billion to home care; $5 billion to mental health initiatives; $950 million to innovation clusters; $1.26 billion to innovation for agriculture; digital; advanced manufacturing; and the list goes on and on.

I would like to know how much the member feels he could have accomplished by trying to balance a budget and also get things done for Canadians. This government has made the commitment to make those investments in Canadians to create the jobs for the future and to help our businesses grow.

[Wilton Cheese Factory, April 3rd, 2017]

Mr. Speaker, 150 years gives one plenty of time to mature, to ripen, to age to perfection. After 150 years, a celebration is definitely in order. I am, of course, speaking about the 150th anniversary of the Wilton Cheese Factory in historic Loyalist Township.

Founded as a farmers' co-operative in the same year as the birth of our great country, the Wilton Cheese Factory continues to serve our community under the family-run ownership of the Jensens, beginning with a handshake deal with master cheese maker Arne Jensen, who came to Canada as an immigrant in 1925. Through hard work and rural entrepreneurial spirit, he, his son, his grandson, and everyone who has worked at Wilton has made important contributions to the fabric of our community.

Eastern Ontario has a long, proud history of cheese production, and Wilton still operates today in the best of this tradition.

Please join with me in extending congratulations to everyone at the Wilton Cheese Factory for aging so well.

[The Budget, April 3rd, 2017]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to take a step back and talk about veterans.

As the previous member stated, the previous government did not just close those offices; it really did absolutely nothing for veterans in its time.

We have been in power for 18 months, and in this budget alone we are adding $725 million in funding. In fact, the veterans ombudsman was pleased about three specific aspects of what we are doing in this budget. They are eliminating time limits for spouses and survivors to access vocational rehabilitation; expanding access to the military family resource centres; and providing a benefit for caregivers, including spouses and family members.

We are also adding a centre of excellence for PTSD, and a pension decision will be made public by the end of this year.

Does the member not feel that these actions will benefit our veterans?

[The Budget, April 3rd, 2017]

Mr. Speaker, I very proudly stand behind our government's record when it comes to climate change actions. We are taking a multitude of different actions, by establishing a price on pollution, by investing in innovation. Through the price on pollution, that is one tack to dealing with climate change. By investing in innovation and in green technology, we hollow out the need for fossil fuels in the future, so that we can deal with climate change in that respect. We are making the investments today that are going to help us evolve from our dependence on fossil fuels.

I am very proud of the actions that our government has taken so far. I am very proud of the work we have done at the environment committee around the Federal Sustainable Development Act that addresses some of the issues around the 17 sustainable development goals. There is the work we have done on protected spaces, and the report we are about to complete on the Canadian Environmental Protection Act. We are taking a lot of the measures necessary to make a cleaner environment, cleaner water, and cleaner air for future generations.