Pandemic Day Act  Madam Speaker, I do not necessarily have a question for my colleague, but I thank her for her speech. Perhaps I will just make a comment. Rather than looking at what was done or not done and recapping the day or what was done during the pandemic, I think that this day must be dedicated to the families of those who died from COVID‑19.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship  Mr. Speaker, from January to August of this year, the RCMP intercepted 23,196 asylum seekers at Roxham Road. These were men, women and children, most of whom were fleeing poverty. These 23,196 people were welcomed to Canada by the police. Then they were either detained or taken by the police to file a claim for refugee status.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship  Mr. Speaker, the RCMP intercepted 23,196 refugee claimants at Roxham Road in 2022 alone. At the same time, 499 refugee claimants were processed through regular land border crossings. Border officers are dealing with 2% of refugee claimants, even though that is their job, and the RCMP at Roxham Road are dealing with the other 98%.

Cost of Living Relief Act, No. 1  Mr. Speaker, I know that the Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons stated that this bill and two others have measures to help people face inflation. That is fine. However, there may be other solutions available. One of the solutions put forward by the Bloc Québécois was to enlist experienced workers.

Cost of Living Relief Act, No. 1  Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for her speech. This is a fairly simple bill that gets right to the point. I think it is a good measure that will in fact give low-income Canadians a break in this time of inflation. My colleague spoke of seniors in her speech. We know that retired seniors are on a fixed income and that those who have a very low income receive the guaranteed income supplement.

Committees of the House  Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his excellent question. Just last week, I launched an appeal to doctors in eastern Quebec, a part of the region that I represent, to encourage them to take part in the Immigration Canada process that would allow them to become accredited doctors to assess the health status of refugees or immigrants arriving here.

Committees of the House  Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his comments. I completely agree with him. We are facing a truly difficult situation where we cannot continue having these discussions because the Russian leader will not. He will not have anything to do with them. What we are now seeing is that he is showing what may be his last card, the nuclear option.

Committees of the House  Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to speak this afternoon on this very important subject. It is too bad that my colleague has already left the chamber, as I would have liked to congratulate him on his eloquence during the brilliant speech he gave, which was basically off the cuff. I wish I had his wisdom.

Public Safety  Mr. Speaker, shots were fired in downtown Montreal again last night, and a body was found in the trunk of a burning car. Things are going from bad to worse. The year 2021 was the worst year of the decade for shootings; 2022 is on track to be even worse. The first step to solving a problem is acknowledging it.

Public Safety  Mr. Speaker, there has not been that much progress. Last year, 1,100 firearms were seized at the border, but at the same time Montreal and Toronto seized 2,500. That is more than double. It just proves that firearms are getting across the border and ending up in our cities. Last week, Yves Francoeur, from Fraternité des policiers et policières de Montréal, said on the show Tout le monde en parle that it has become common to arrest young people with illegal firearms that they purchased out of fear, to defend themselves.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship  Mr. Speaker, the federal government has turned Roxham Road into a permanent border crossing. That is according to the RCMP, not us. In 2020, the RCMP reached an agreement for “nursing services at the Roxham border crossing”. That is how the RCMP put it. Even the RCMP is treating Roxham Road like a legitimate border crossing.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship  Mr. Speaker, what the government is calling irregular entries are supposed to be irregular. In Quebec, 98% of the asylum seekers who crossed a land border went through Roxham Road. There is nothing confusing about it. No one is coming through regular border crossings anymore. Looking at all the provinces and all the entires via land, sea and air, Roxham Road is the route used by 64% of asylum seekers in Canada.

Business of Supply  Madam Speaker, I liked what my colleague said at first when he was criticizing what the Liberal government is doing. He then asked me if I would prefer to side with the NDP or the Conservative Party. We know that the NDP is walking hand in hand with the Liberal government, so I prefer to side with the Bloc Québécois, which says that we should take all the money that is currently being given to oil companies to help them pollute less and invest it in renewable energy.

Business of Supply  Madam Speaker, I am pleased that the federal government did not interfere in this particular Quebec jurisdiction. The carbon market is working very well in conjunction with California's, and we would not have wanted the federal government to proceed as it did in health care, for example, when it talked about hiring nurses, doctors and so forth and wanting to put conditions on the funds it gives to Quebec and the provinces.

Business of Supply  Madam Speaker, if I may, I would like to correct my colleague. I do not think that abolishing the carbon tax will help Quebeckers. The carbon tax does not apply in Quebec. That was what my speech was all about. We have not heard many speeches from our Conservative friends proposing effective environmental measures.