Ryan Williams

[Questions on the Order Paper, September 16th, 2024]

With regard to complaints received by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission, broken down by year since January 1, 2016: (a) what is the total number of complaints (i) received, (ii) resolved; (b) what was the average resolution time, in days, for complaints regarding (i) radio, (ii) television, (iii) telecommunications, (iv) other, broken down by type; (c) what is the total number of complaint proceedings (i) started, (ii) completed; and (d) what is the average completion time, in days, for proceedings in (i) radio, (ii) television), (iii) telecommunications, (iv) other?

[8 Wing CFB Trenton, June 19th, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, this year, we celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Canadian Air Force, a century of dedication, bravery and excellence in the skies.

At the heart of this legacy stands CFB Trenton, celebrating its 93rd anniversary. This year, its spectacular air show not only showcases our advanced aircraft and skilled pilots, but also symbolizes the spirit and the strength of our air force.

At 93 years old, 8 Wing, CFB Trenton is more than just a base. It is a cornerstone of our national defence, a strategic hub with global significance. From humanitarian missions to critical operations, its role in supporting both domestic and international efforts is unparalleled.

Our men and women in Trenton exemplify the commitment and capability to define our air force, ensuring peace and security in an ever-changing world. It is not just the members; it is also the families of the members and the military families who serve alongside them.

Here is to another century of the Royal Canadian Air Force. Let us give a hand to our men and women in the military.

[Taxation, June 18th, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, the finance minister's latest tax hike is a direct hit to the Canadians who are lucky enough, after nine years of the Liberal government, to find themselves still in the middle class. Despite the government's attempts to start a class war, the real Canadians who would be hit the most by the tax are the middle class. They are the union leader and the worker selling the home they inherited from their parents, the small business owner trying to retire by selling their business and the farmer selling the family farm to their children. They are the real victims of the Liberal government's cruel tax hike, which would rob the working class and middle class to pay for the obese government and its reckless spending. The job-killing capital gains tax would make finding a family doctor even harder, raise food prices even higher, drive the number of home starts even lower and make starting a small business even pricier. Instead of Liberal-NDP tax hikes, we need common-sense tax reforms that will make taxes lower, simpler and fairer. This will bring home prosperity to all Canadians and all who live here.

[Business of Supply, June 6th, 2024]

Madam Speaker, we are talking about a deep level of corruption that should have been found earlier. Whistle-blowers caught this. If not for them, we would not be here. How many times have we said in the House of Commons that, if it wasn't for whistle-blowers or this publication or journalism, we would not be here? There are too many times.

Perhaps a better way than looking at maybe just one instance of having one organization have a different mandate would be to really look at what the Ethics Commissioner's role is.

Here is the problem with the government. We can look at the Information Commissioner, whose budget has been slashed. However, here is the stat that just boggles me and would boggle Canadians' minds: The government slashed the salary of the Ethics Commissioner by more than $110,000 per year.

We are looking at where the priorities lie with the government, and we talk about corruption all the time here. Why was the priority not in ethics in the government from the start, so we could stop the corruption that we are seeing almost every day?

[Business of Supply, June 6th, 2024]

Madam Speaker, the response of the government is incredible to Canadians. It is not just about this issue or this scandal, as there have been so many this morning. At the security and public safety committee meeting this morning, they were trying to figure out foreign interference. Certain MPs were involved in foreign interference and foreign entities on our own soil. The member for Pickering—Uxbridge said, boo hoo, we should get over it. That was a perfect response.

When we look at this scandal, this epic scandal for Canadians, of course the Liberals say to get over it, that they will fold it into the government and there is nothing to see here. However, there is much to see. Should Canadians get over it?

[Business of Supply, June 6th, 2024]

Madam Speaker, I thank the member for his work. I enjoy working with him on the industry committee.

When I used to serve on boards and it came to pecuniary interests, we used to ask if anyone was making any money, and 90% of the time people were making money. This is not just in one instance, but in many instances.

The solution from the government is to dissolve SDTC and put it back into the government. The very problem that created all of these instances, of course, was that the minister and the department had that knowledge. The member even mentioned that a member of ISED was sitting on the board.

How do we ensure that we maintain the creation of sustainable technology and innovation as a whole in Canada given how muddled this whole process has been and how corrupt the government is?

[Business of Supply, June 6th, 2024]

Madam Speaker, the appetite for Canadians for corruption is very low, but specifically, right now, given the fact that the financial burden of Canadians is becoming quite high, this corruption, after nine years of this Liberal government, is just becoming far too much for Canadians.

We know that of all the individuals being investigated, we are asking the RCMP to look into this one individual, who may or may not be investigated, as it is very concerning. A former industry minister, Navdeep Bains, appointed the chair of the board. Subsequent members to the board, who he knew at the time, had conflicts of interest and doled out $140 million of taxpayer money where directors voted 186 times in instances with conflicts of interest. However, more concerning to Canadians with the burden of the cost of living is that this minister got a million-dollar job with Rogers Communication at a time when he promised cellphone bills would be down 25%, and this government subsequently promised 50%. Rogers has posted its best profit ever off the backs of Canadians.

Canadians demand an answer. Why was this appropriate for this government to treat this individual and others this way and for the further corruption coming from this story and others?

[Ethics, June 4th, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister is not worth the cost, the incompetence or the outright corruption.

Today the Auditor General found that $123 million was given out to Liberal friends in the so-called green slush fund at Sustainable Development Technology Canada, or SDTC. Fifty-nine million dollars was given to projects that should never have been awarded at all; $76 million of funding was given to projects that had a conflict of interest, and conflict of interest rules were not followed in 90 cases. In one instance, the Prime Minister's personal friend siphoned off $217,000 to her own company.

“Corruption” is an understatement. This is shameful. The Auditor General found that the Prime Minister and the industry minister have been found at fault, and the SDTC will be folded up into a federal agency. Yeah, that should help. This is on top of everything Canadians are going through.

Shame on the Liberal government for the disregard of taxpayer dollars. Only Conservatives will end the corruption and bring common sense back to Ottawa.

[Business of Supply, June 4th, 2024]

Madam Speaker, my hon. colleague and I have a lot of fun in the industry committee together, and I enjoy serving with him.

Open banking is supposed to be giving less regulation and more competition to the banking sector. The federal government should only be introducing regulations that bring an API, or application programming interface, that forces the banks, on consumer consent, to give up their information. It should not be telling any company what to do, except for enforcing these regulations, which force the banks, on one's consent, to give one's banking information back.

The open banking industry fintechs have been fighting to get through this. They are doing it all illegally right now on the backs of only the provinces. The federal government needs to get out of the way.

[Business of Supply, June 4th, 2024]

Madam Speaker, when it comes to competition, I do not think there is any industry we are really protecting and one that is really protected. Every part of the Canadian economy is a monopoly or an oligopoly. That is just simple fact, and that is after nine years of the Liberal government.

When we look at every single sector, whether that be telecommunications, banking or airlines, the government has done nothing to create competition in any of that. The result is that Canadians, and I do not know if the member's constituents should be happy, are all paying more than every other G7 nation, every one, because of the government's inability to create competition. Saying that we are protecting something when everything under the government is under a monopoly or an oligopoly is pretty rich.