Committees of the House  Madam Speaker, it is nice to be able to resume where I left off back in December. Just to refresh the memory of everyone in this place, we were discussing the 10th report of the Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food. I have been a proud member of that committee for six years now and I would say that it is the best standing committee out of any committee of the House, because we often arrive at our decisions on a consensus model.

Business of Supply  Madam Speaker, I just want to touch on an issue that was brought up by the member for Kamloops—Thompson—Cariboo. He was talking about being proactive versus reactive. My issue is that most of this motion deals with the Criminal Code, which is fundamentally a very reactive piece of legislation, in that it is brought to bear after the fact.

Business of Supply  Madam Speaker, it seems, upon observation of the Conservative Party these days, that it is guided in its policy by two principles: one, it has to rhyme, which is why we see the words “axe” and “tax” and “bail” and “jail”, and, two, it has to fit on a bumper sticker. This is a fundamentally unserious way of dealing with a very serious issue, and I will give a clear example.

Business of Supply  Madam Speaker, I was wondering whether my colleague across the way could put today's Conservative motion in the context of two things: first of all, the massive cuts to the Canada Border Services Agency in 2012 by the previous Harper government and, second, the December votes of the supplementary estimates, in which the Conservatives voted against important line item spending for both the RCMP and the Canada Border Services Agency.

First Nations Clean Water Act  Madam Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague from Nunavut for the outstanding work she does on this file every day and every week. Arguably, fresh water is our most precious resource. In Canada, we are lucky to have one of the largest reserves of fresh water anywhere in the world.

Fall Economic Statement Implementation Act, 2023  Madam Speaker, related to the economic measures in this bill, it is no secret that the massive profits we are seeing in some corporate sectors and the high food price inflation Canadians are facing are directly linked. We have heard the Minister of Industry express many times in the House and out in the public that he is disappointed with grocery CEOs who have seen their profits and profit margins double since 2019.

Petitions  Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to rise today to present a petition on behalf of the amazing and hard-working volunteer fire departments in my riding, namely, those of Port Renfrew, Mesachie Lake, Honeymoon Bay, Lake Cowichan, Youbou, Sahtlam, North Cowichan, Duncan, Cowichan Bay, Mill Bay, Shawnigan Lake, Thetis Island, Malahat, Highlands and the City of Langford.

Questions Passed as Orders for Returns  With regard to federal funding investments in infrastructure, programs, and services in the Cowichan-Malahat-Langford riding: what are the total monetary investments in that will come into effect as a result of the adoption, on December 7, 2023, of Supplementary Estimates (B), 2023-24 for (i) a new school in Port Renfrew on the traditional unceded territory of the Pacheedaht First Nation, (ii) a new marine safety centre in Port Renfrew on the traditional unceded territory of the Pacheedaht First nation, (iii) all housing initiatives in the riding, (iv) all childcare initiatives in the riding, (v) the wine producing sector in the Cowichan Valley?

Questions on the Order Paper  With regard to federal support for Canada’s grocery sector, between February 1, 2006, and October 1, 2015: (a) how much federal funding was provided to Canada’s major grocery companies (Loblaws, Metro, Walmart, Sobeys, and Costco) to support business development, by (i) year, (ii) dollar amount, (iii) company; (b) how many federal subsidies were provided to those major grocery companies (Loblaws, Metro, Walmart, Sobeys, and Costco) to support business development, by (i) year, (ii) dollar amount, (iii) company; and (c) what programs were responsible for managing federal funding and subsidies to Canada’s grocery sector, by federal department or agency?

Questions on the Order Paper  With regard to federal support to Canada’s grocery sector, between November 1, 2015, to January 1, 2024: (a) how much federal funding was provided to Canada’s major grocery companies (Loblaws, Metro, Walmart, Sobeys, and Costco) to support business development, by (i) year, (ii) dollar amount, (iii) company; (b) how much federal subsidies were provided to those major grocery companies (Loblaws, Metro, Walmart, Sobeys, and Costco) to support business development, by (i) year, (ii) dollar amount, (iii) company; and (c) what programs were responsible for managing federal funding and subsidies to Canada’s grocery sector, by federal department or agency?

Questions on the Order Paper  With regard to lobbying conducted by Canada’s grocery sector, between February 1, 2006, and October 1, 2015: (a) how many meetings did the federal government have with Canada’s major grocery companies (Loblaws, Metro, Walmart, Sobeys, and Costco) to request federal funding, by (i) year, (ii) company; and (b) how many meetings did the federal government have with those major grocery companies (Loblaws, Metro, Walmart, Sobeys, and Costco) to request federal subsidies, by (i) year, (ii) company?

Greenhouse Gas Pollution Pricing Act  Mr. Speaker, here we go again with Bill C-234. It does not seem to want to go to the Governor General just yet. As previous colleagues have said, this is a bill I am intimately familiar with. We did see a previous version of the bill in the 43rd Parliament, and of course, now that we are here at the beginning of 2024, the bill has had an approximately two-year journey to go through both houses of this Parliament, only to end up back in the House because the Senate has decided to amend it.

Greenhouse Gas Pollution Pricing Act  Mr. Speaker, I am in favour of keeping the bill in the same form that passed the House at third reading. I have been on the agriculture committee for a long time, and I hear the Conservatives talk a lot about the carbon tax. However, I would like to hear from my hon. colleague about the other costs.

Canada Labour Code  Madam Speaker, I would like to ask where the member has been. We have seen all the evidence of corporations making record profits while workers suffer. Of course inflation is hurting workers. It is hurting workers in my riding. It is hurting workers from coast to coast to coast.

Canada Labour Code  Madam Speaker, that is indeed a great question from my hon. colleague, whom I have the pleasure of sitting with on the Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food. All I can say at second reading stage is that this is a debate and vote on the principle of the bill, and that is one provision of the bill that I have personally identified as problematic.