Candidate Gender Equity Act  Madam Speaker, I am pleased to speak to Bill C-237, an act to amend the Canada Elections Act (gender equity). Today, 87 years ago, women were recognized as persons in Canada. The fight to get the right to vote was led by five trail-blazing pioneering Alberta women who changed history for all Canadians, paving the way for women's increased participation in public and political life.

Taxation  Mr. Speaker, the Liberals are making Alberta's dire situation worse. Medicine Hat's food bank use is up by over 300% this year over last. Another program for new mothers ballooned from 10 to 256 users during the same time. The Liberals are imposing a harmful tax that will make food, diapers, formula, and everything even more expensive for everyone.

Taxation  Well, thanks for the mansplain. Mr. Speaker, just reciting the same talking points is not cutting it. In once booming Lloydminster, people cannot afford to keep their homes and they cannot afford to buy new ones. Businesses are closed, projects are frozen, and people have lost their jobs.

The Environment  Mr. Speaker, the Liberals are so out of touch with hard-working Canadians. The federally imposed carbon tax is just another example. Families, farmers, energy workers, charities, and small businesses in Alberta have already been devastated by unprecedented job losses. Imposing a cash-grabbing tax on everything will only make things more difficult for all Canadians, especially for hard-hit Albertans at the very worst time.

The Environment  Mr. Speaker, tens of thousands of Albertans are out of work. People are losing their homes. Food banks and charities are bracing for the damage of a made-in-Ottawa carbon tax. Last week, one family feedlot told me it would add half a million dollars in annual costs, risking their livelihoods.

The Environment  Mr. Speaker, it is estimated that the Liberal carbon tax will take thousands of dollars every year out of the pockets of Canadian families. However, even supporters of the carbon tax say that the tax would have to be astronomically higher to have any impact on global emissions.

The Environment  Mr. Speaker, this new carbon tax will disproportionately hurt people living in rural and northern communities in Canada. This new tax will disproportionately hurt low-income Canadians, especially those living on fixed incomes, like seniors. Why can the Prime Minister not recognize that punishing the most vulnerable Canadians with higher gasoline, electricity and heating bills is not fair and will not actually achieve anything except more hardship?

Natural Resources  Madam Speaker, the Pacific NorthWest LNG project is a $36-billion investment that would create thousands of well-paying jobs and allow Canada to export clean energy to the world. Today Canadians see the news that the project's proponent is considering selling. In the spring, we warned the Liberals that delaying the rigorous assessment process longer would put the project at risk.

Natural Resources  Madam Speaker, time is of the essence for LNG, but the Liberals added barriers to the process at the worst possible time. The Pacific NorthWest LNG project is supported by the vast majority of local first nations, the City of Fort St. John, the BC Chamber of Commerce, and the Government of B.C.

Natural Resources  Mr. Speaker, the conditional approval of the Pacific NorthWest LNG project does not mean the Liberals really intend to actually have it built. The vast majority of the assessment was completed under Canada's already world-leading vigorous regulatory system, but the Liberals keep talking about multiple regulatory changes, which means that other energy projects and the livelihoods of hundreds of thousands of Canadians are left hanging in the balance.

Government Expenditures  Mr. Speaker, it is the bad Liberal pattern of entitlement and frivolous spending. Hundreds of thousands of Canadians are out of work and struggling to make ends meet while Liberals are lining their pockets with $1.1 million in personalized cash payouts and incidentals. The Minister of Innovation signed off on $113,000 for one staffer to move to Ottawa.

Government Expenditures  Mr. Speaker, the Liberals are so out of touch with Canadians. While thousands in Lakeland and across Alberta are losing their jobs, businesses, and homes, Liberal ministers are approving hundreds of thousands of dollars in staff moving expenses. For example, the Minister of Innovation approved $113,000 for one staffer to move to Ottawa.

Petitions  Madam Speaker, it is my pleasure to present e-petition 216. The whole Canadian economy relies on oil and gas exploration, extraction, transport, upgrading, refining, and processing. The industry is Canada's largest private-sector investor and contributes $17 billion annually to government programs and services across the country.

Oil and Gas Industry  Mr. Speaker, Lakeland residents want to know why the Liberals do not seem to care about the 110,000 Canadians who have lost their jobs in the energy sector, Canada's largest private investor, which contributes $17 billion annually to government programs and services across Canada.

Life Means Life Act  Mr. Speaker, I wholeheartedly support my colleague's initiative about life means life sentencing. I would like to share with my colleagues why I support the life means life act. I would like to read a victim impact statement of a friend of mine regarding the 2011 murder of my lifelong and childhood friend's sister, friends who I consider family.