Pablo Rodriguez

[Canadian Heritage, June 21st, 2022]

Mr. Speaker, that is a great question and was far better than any of the questions from the opposition. I congratulate my colleague on the excellent, or even extraordinary, work he is doing. I am happy to hear that the opposition appreciates him.

Our G7 allies are very interested in what Canada is doing in matters of culture and democracy, especially with respect to Bill C‑18, which would require that the web giants compensate Canadian journalists. Countries around the world are experiencing the same problem. The web giants use our journalists' content and often do not compensate them. This needs to change and we will make these changes with our allies.

[Canadian Heritage, June 16th, 2022]

Mr. Speaker, one of the benefits of the conversation with the Conservatives is that we heard one of the best jokes of the year when they said that they cared about culture. It was really funny. That was a hell of a secret meeting, when the room was full of Conservatives and staff and others. That was very, very secret. The problem is that they kept filibustering. My colleague who just spoke filibustered for four hours. When I was sitting there ready to answer questions, she spoke for four hours. I had to go and could not speak. Luckily, I could come back and explain our position, but the position is clear. We are there for Canadians, for our artists and for our culture and we are not abandoning them.

[Canadian Heritage, June 16th, 2022]

Mr. Speaker, I think the Conservatives should support this bill because this bill is about creators, and it is going to help them because Conservatives are very creative with the truth.

If Conservatives read the bill, they would know it is about online platforms contributing to our culture. If they have a problem with that, it is a shame.

[Canadian Heritage, June 16th, 2022]

Mr. Speaker, everyone knows that the Conservatives, when they wake up in the morning, think about filibustering. When they go bed at night, they think about filibustering. What do they do in between? They filibuster. That is what they do.

The Conservatives have abandoned the creators. They have abandoned our artists. They have abandoned our culture.

[Public Safety, June 16th, 2022]

Mr. Speaker, if my colleague wants to see squabbling, he should just look at the official opposition benches. They are having a hard time getting along.

The more serious issue is what they are doing while the government is working to solve the problems and challenges that Canadians are facing. The Conservatives are spending their time filibustering. Filibustering is the first thing they think about when they wake up in the morning and the last think they think about when they go to bed at night. How do they spend their time in between? They filibuster.

[Justice, June 2nd, 2022]

Mr. Speaker, for once the Bloc Québécois is saying why they are really here. They are in Ottawa only to prepare for sovereignty. That is what they have always said. It is their entire raison d'être, while everyone else is here to try to advance society, Quebec and Canada together.

There is something sad about putting immigration at the heart of the debate, because immigration is about men, women and children coming here for a better life. The Bloc members want to play partisan politics with this, which is sad.

[Canadian Heritage, May 31st, 2022]

Mr. Speaker, I have been clear on this since day one: The platforms have obligations, but the users do not.

Platforms are in; users are out.

It has been extremely clear since the beginning.

However, there is one thing I am wondering about. I respect my colleague very much. He comes from Quebec and knows how important Bill C‑11 is, yet he refuses to support the government in its efforts to defend Quebec's culture and the French fact in television production and in music.

I am both surprised at my colleague and disappointed in him.

[Canadian Heritage, May 31st, 2022]

Mr. Speaker, we are standing up for them, as we are standing up for other cultural workers, for producers, for actors, and for our technicians, which is something the Conservatives cannot do. They cannot say they are going to support Bill C-11 because it is important to tell their stories, because it is important for music, or because it is important for television. They never said that, and they never will.

[Canadian Heritage, May 31st, 2022]

Mr. Speaker, let us talk about representation. Yesterday, we heard a troubling revelation at committee. An organization dedicated to opposing Bill C-11 admitted that it was paid by YouTube and TikTok, but they claimed to represent exactly that, digital creators, saying they were grassroots. That is called astroturfing. Of course, this was never revealed before, and it raises serious questions. Did the Conservatives know this when they invited that organization?

[Canadian Heritage, May 30th, 2022]

Mr. Speaker, I think that we can all agree that we may disagree on some points, but we can still respect each other. I think that is fundamental in the House.

Bill C-11, once again, is very simple. We are asking those big streamers, those platforms, to contribute to Canadian culture. Why? Because that is important for us. It is important to be able to tell our stories and to keep telling those stories that are fundamental. That is the only thing the bill does.

We hear a lot of theories, conspiracy theories, and this and that, but we want to help our culture. For once, I would have loved for the Conservatives to help us, but I guess they will not.