Business of Supply  Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague, whose work I admire very much and whose valuable contributions to these discussions I appreciate. We have the evidence, the facts, right here in the House. The question is why. Individuals who become MPs or even the Minister of Finance know that changes will be made to the tax system.

Business of Supply  Mr. Speaker, I would first like to thank my colleague from Skeena—Bulkley Valley for his tireless efforts and the excellent work that he does on the Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics, often on short notice. He advocates for the issues that he cares about both inside and outside the House.

Pensions  Mr. Speaker, on Friday, Sears received approval to liquidate its assets. Because our bankruptcy laws are inadequate, our workers and retirees will be the biggest losers. They could lose their pensions and their benefits. It is absolutely ridiculous that the Liberals are letting the big CEOs off the hook at the expense of workers and retirees, who sometimes struggle to make ends meet.

Employment Insurance  Mr. Speaker, many seasonal workers in Saguenay—Lac-Saint-Jean were counting on the Liberal government to solve the EI spring gap problem. They can see the Liberals breaking yet another promise. Discrimination against the regions must stop. As a result of the EI gap, these seasonal workers in Saguenay—Lac-Saint-Jean might end up without any income for several weeks.

The Saguenay Community  Mr. Speaker, over the course of the summer, I had the privilege of talking to many of my constituents about matters that are important to them, such as softwood lumber, support for seniors and the future of agriculture. I deeply value the trust that my constituents have placed in me.

Pensions  Mr. Speaker, yesterday, I launched the “end pension theft” campaign in Jonquière, along with steelworkers, machinists, and retirees from Sears, Rio Tinto Alcan and Abitibi-Consolidated. They were all pleased to see the NDP stand up for the pensions of the workers of Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean, because the Liberals made all sorts of promises in the election campaign and, once in power, they just cross their fingers.

Dairy Industry  Mr. Speaker, the government promised to fully compensate dairy farmers. A number of farmers in Saguenay—Lac-Saint-Jean have hit a wall because they cannot get the assistance they are owed, given that there is not enough money. Simply put, the government program is underfunded. After the diafiltered milk saga, the Liberals are still chipping away at supply management.

Pensions  Mr. Speaker, in Quebec, many companies used unfair strategies to steal a portion of our workers' retirement plans in order to make their foreign parent companies richer. Cliffs Natural Resources, AbitibiBowater, White Birch Paper, and Nortel are prime examples. Now it is Sears that is using our flawed bankruptcy and restructuring laws to steal from our workers.

Softwood Lumber  Mr. Speaker, despite the government's announcement, a lot of work remains to be done to save all the forestry jobs once and for all. Just yesterday, Unifor organized a day of action across the country, including in my home of Jonquière. I marched side by side with the workers to acknowledge the importance of the forestry sector, which is central to the Saguenay—Lac-Saint-Jean communities.

Softwood Lumber  Mr. Speaker, yesterday, the government finally announced a plan to help the softwood lumber industry, which is going through a very rough patch that is only going to get worse with time. The Kénogami and Dolbeau supercalendered paper mills are also in grave danger. Hundreds of jobs are in jeopardy, and if nothing is done, thousands of jobs will be lost all across the Saguenay—Lac-Saint-Jean.

Government Appointments  Mr. Speaker, yesterday, the NDP tried to tease out more information about the appointment of Ms. Meilleur, a former Liberal minister, to the non-partisan official languages commissioner position. The Liberals say they have nothing to hide, but they prevented the committee from looking into it.

Softwood Lumber  Mr. Speaker, today we heard an announcement from the government, which has finally decided to move after 10 months of inaction on softwood lumber. It was only after communities took action. Hundreds of workers and their families demonstrated in the streets to make the government understand just how much of an impact U.S. countervailing duties have had on their jobs and the local economy.

Cannabis Act  Mr. Speaker, in his speech the member for Mégantic—L'Érable spoke of organized crime. I would like to bring to his attention that several articles and studies show that the level of THC will be higher in the cannabis sold by organized crime than in the cannabis sold by government agencies.

Cannabis Act  Mr. Speaker, Bill C-45 leads me to speak about Havre du Fjord, a home I recently visited in my riding of Jonquière. This is a home for youth struggling with addiction and alcohol problems. The employees of this house have seen a growing number of people use their treatments. These people also participate in rehabilitation programs.

Softwood Lumber  Mr. Speaker, today, the softwood lumber crisis is having a very real impact on workers. As we speak, across Saguenay—Lac-Saint-Jean, plants have stopped operating at capacity in Kénogami, Dolbeau-Mistassini, Saint-Félicien, Girardville, Saint-Thomas, and in Normandin. This means that 1,285 workers are going to lose hours and the pay that goes with it, not to mention the stress this will put families under.