Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, the Liberal Prime Minister has said affordability is the best that it has been in decades, even though some Canadians are crowdfunding their way through this cost of living crisis. He is so out of touch. The costly Liberal Prime Minister is the only G20 leader to drag his nation into a recession. While families spend over 120% of their income on food and rent, new data shows the Liber…
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Mr. Speaker, targets may not matter to that Liberal minister, but disabled Canadians rely on those supports and they certainly deserve better. Large areas of Gros Morne National Park are covered in dry timber and at risk of wildfire because of the spruce budworm outbreak. Why have the Liberals refused to join the provincial control program, putting Newfoundland and Labrador forests at risk of fire…
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Mr. Speaker, when the cost of everything increases, the people who suffer the most are the young people, especially the ones who want to enter the housing market. As housing prices increase, rent prices also increase. This means that everything costs more. They cannot save for a down payment, and they feel like they are consistently on this hamster wheel. When they do not enter home ownership at a…
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Mr. Speaker, I am not sure if there was a question in there. Conservatives believe in Canadians and in the private sector. Conservatives do not believe that we need another bureaucracy to solve the housing crisis in this country. We regularly talk to stakeholders, experts in this space, and they tell us what they need. This is not the legislation they are asking for.
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Mr. Speaker, I just have a very simple question: What are the targets for the next 12 months on how many homes will be completed through Build Canada Homes?
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Mr. Speaker, I understand the frustration. We have to measure success by results, not by funding announcements, bureaucracies or another conversation to get some more advice that does not actually lead to more homes being built.
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Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my friend, who has strong ties to Newfoundland and Labrador, for that question. When we build out government bureaucracy, we build out the size of government and we increase government spending, which drives up inflation, which drives up the cost of everything, including the cost of homebuilding. That is not the answer. We want to unleash the private sector to be able …
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Mr. Speaker, I listened to my colleague's speech. One of the things he mentioned was accountability. I was really happy to hear that. I am going to ask him the same question I asked the other member, which I did not get an answer to. It is a very simple question: What are the targets for the next 12 months on how many homes will be completed by Build Canada Homes?
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Mr. Speaker, I will be splitting my time tonight with my friend and colleague, the member for Fort McMurray—Cold Lake. It is a pleasure to rise today, as it always is, to speak on behalf of the hard-working people of Long Range Mountains on a topic that I am passionate about, and that is housing. Before entering politics, I spent almost 20 years in the real estate industry as an agent, broker and …
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Mr. Speaker, I thank the member opposite for visiting my beautiful province. My response is that if we do not have an economy that has opportunity for our tradespeople, we can train them all we want, but they are not going to stay in the province if they do not have those good-paying jobs. We have an offshore oil and gas sector that has watched investment completely flee the province, with a 40% r…
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Mr. Speaker, under the costly Liberal Prime Minister, Canada is the only G20 country in a recession. In the past few days, we have learned so much more about the dire state of our economy under his watch. While the cost of living skyrockets, our economy has shrunk for two quarters straight. Businesses are fleeing. Capital investment has plunged for five consecutive quarters, and Scotiabank warns t…
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Mr. Speaker, my mom would often say that in order to fix something, we have to acknowledge that the problem exists. This is exactly the problem we are seeing with our country right now. If we try to deflect with rhetoric and talk about our leader and get all excited, we are not dealing with the actual issues. That is the problem with denying it.
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Mr. Speaker, I would agree with the member. Rural Canada and rural Newfoundland and Labrador have so much untapped potential and opportunity. Newfoundland and Labrador is a natural resource-based economy, but there are so many projects that are caught up in regulatory red tape. There are so many small and medium-sized business owners who have a taxation burden. They also have a regulatory burden t…
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Mr. Speaker, it is an honour to rise in the House today on behalf of the people of Long Range Mountains in Newfoundland and Labrador, some of the most industrious and self-reliant individuals, who are asking for fairness and economic stability, not just for themselves and this generation, but also for their children and grandchildren so they can thrive at home. I rise today to speak in support of …
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Mr. Speaker, clearly Liberal photo ops and empty Liberal announcements will not pay the mortgages of struggling Canadians. The Parliamentary Budget Officer just confirmed that there is less than a 1% chance that the Liberal government hits its own deficit targets. It is already borrowing $7 billion more than it admitted, while driving up bloated bureaucracy to $86 billion. The broad economic pictu…
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Mr. Speaker, when the member opposite is in his riding and he is talking to the Canadians standing in food bank lineups, facing consumer insolvency and struggling to afford groceries, I wonder if the response he gives Canadians is that we are 100% on the right track. Are these the statistics he gives them? Is this acceptable to the Canadians who live in his riding? It is sure not acceptable in my …
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, today we remember a man who was much more than Uncle Melv. He was a husband, father, grandfather, uncle and steady presence in the lives of those who loved him. Uncle Melv's story began with unimaginable tragedy. At just three years old, he and his sister were the only two survivors of nine. Their entire family died in a devastating fire at our family property, yet through his life, h…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, it is an honour to rise today to present a petition on behalf of the people of Newfoundland and Labrador with respect to the recreational food fishery. The petitioners are calling on the government to allow all residents of Newfoundland and Labrador fair and equitable access to the food fishery by allowing them to go out on the water seven days a week to fish for cod, regardless of wh…
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Mr. Speaker, Canada is the only country in the G7 in a recession. In Newfoundland and Labrador, parents are watching their children pack their bags to leave the province because the Liberal government is driving up the cost of living, killing opportunities and local jobs. This is a full-blown Liberal recession. Statistics Canada has confirmed that in my province, one in 10 workers are unemployed. …
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Mr. Speaker, the minister can quote all the empty good-news Liberal promises she wants, but the real data has already arrived in Newfoundland and Labrador. The facts are already in, and they prove that we have the worst economy in the G7. While other nations grow, our economy is shrinking, and our young people are paying the price. With one in 10 workers unemployed at home, skyrocketing consumer i…
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Mr. Speaker, Canadians do not want empty promises and empty announcements. The minister can deflect, but the reality is that rent has skyrocketed. After years of costly Liberal housing failures, energy prices rise because the Liberal government's identity is to punish Canadian energy and target regular families. With the Liberal Prime Minister, it is more costs, more inflation and more of the same…
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Mr. Speaker, costly Liberal policies drive inflation up, forcing Canadians to pay more for gas, food and rent. Members do not need to take my word for it. The April stats prove it. Inflation, gas prices and food prices are all up, yet the Liberal Prime Minister keeps spending: $290 million for the failed PrescribeIT scandal, $200 million for a gravel space pad in a Liberal riding and $742 million …
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Mr. Speaker, to start, Conservatives would cut $20 billion in consultants. The failed gun grab is another example of the trillion dollars of spending by the costly Liberal government. The Prime Minister is more interested in $524,000 being spent on food for his private jet than in making life more affordable for hard-working Canadians who actually pay the bills. It is more cost, more cover-up and …
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Mr. Speaker, after too many years of this costly Liberal government, Canadians are broke. They are lining up at food banks, and our streets are more dangerous than ever, yet the Liberal government has spent over $742 million on a failed gun grab. While in Newfoundland and Labrador, hard-working Canadians are choosing between gas for their trucks and heat for their homes, the Prime Minister is wast…
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Mr. Speaker, in addition to what the hon. member mentioned in his comments, the Liberals also cut out private training colleges from Canada student grant applications. In Newfoundland and Labrador, there is a full ecosystem of universities and colleges that meet the demands of the private sector for the workforce. I completely understand this frustration and concern. There is always a top-down app…
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Mr. Speaker, to conclude my earlier speech on Bill C-30, the Liberals brag about $37 billion in spending, but they should walk into any grocery store in Long Range Mountains and ask families how they are managing. They do not want to hear about billions for international conferences. They want to know how they can afford to drive their kids to hockey or keep food on the table. Seniors on fixed inc…
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Mr. Speaker, the member across the way consistently stands up in this House and is always the person to ask questions of members opposite. However, if we do not have an economy that has opportunities for our young people, we can train them all we want but at the end of the day there is no job for them to go to. In Newfoundland and Labrador, we have enormous resource potential, but we have an out-m…
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Mr. Speaker, I appreciate my colleague and friend's excellent explanation of exactly the same thing that I hear time and again whenever I am in my riding. I go to the grocery store and I see how people are struggling. I have constituents consistently reaching out and talking to me about impossible decisions that they have to make between eating and heating their homes, and seniors who cannot affor…
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Mr. Speaker, despite the illusions with the Liberal Prime Minister, it is more cost, more carbon taxes and more of the same. He is just another Liberal who is completely out of touch. The Liberals tell us that gas prices are up to $1.83 only because world oil prices are at $100 a barrel. In 2014, under the Conservative government, oil was also $100 a barrel, yet gas was only $1.38. The Liberal gov…
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Mr. Speaker, that simply does not answer the question. Families in Newfoundland and Labrador deserve better than her talking points. They know that the math does not add up. Oil prices are the same as they were a decade ago, but the price at the pump is skyrocketing because of a weak dollar and higher Liberal taxes. Our economy is struggling. Our dollar is devalued. Therefore, energy and food cost…
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Mr. Speaker, that was an incredible speech. I just want to draw attention to, once again, the heckling and comments about majority rules, while my colleague was trying to communicate during his speech. I just want to give the member an opportunity to speak to what further message that sends to victims and other people who may be looking to see what the government's response is on this important pi…
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Mr. Speaker, I want to give my hon. colleague an opportunity to put a fine point on this powerful message that she has communicated with respect to communicating “I believe you” to victims, and how choice is so important to empower them in these situations, as it relates to this legislation. I want to give her that opportunity because it is such a powerful point.
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Madam Speaker, the latest Statistics Canada data is heartbreaking for our country. Nearly 10 million Canadians, including 2.4 million children, are now living in food-insecure households. At home, this means parents in Cow Head and Mainland are skipping meals so their kids can eat. It means seniors are choosing between heat and meat, yet this week's budget shows the Liberals are still addicted to …
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Madam Speaker, before the Liberals took power, children and families did not need school food programs to feed their families. Canada now has the highest food inflation in the G7. A new report from Dalhousie University confirms that one in three Canadians is now forced to borrow money just to buy groceries. Canadian families are being crushed by a decade of Liberal credit card budgeting. The Liber…
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Mr. Speaker, I would just like to point out some financial indicators we have right now, particularly as they pertain to small business. The CFIB has said that for six quarters in a row, we have had more small businesses closing down than are starting up. It has described us as being in an “entrepreneurial drought”. About 55% of entrepreneurs are saying they do not suggesting opening a business. H…
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Mr. Speaker, I will be splitting my time. It is always an honour to rise in the House, and I rise today to speak to Bill C-30, on the spring economic update. Unfortunately, the legislation confirms what Canadians already feel in their daily lives: that after years of costly Liberal fiscal policy, life is becoming more expensive, less predictable and harder to manage. Before I dive into the details…
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Mr. Speaker, Canadians are feeling the pressure every time they pull up to the pump, and they are not getting the relief that they were promised. The Prime Minister claims affordability is a priority, but his plan only scrapped a fraction of fuel taxes for a fraction of the year, leaving Canadians still paying almost 15% more than the Americans because of high taxes and a weak dollar. In Newfoundl…
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Mr. Speaker, I am honoured to rise today in support of Bill C-234, introduced by my colleague and friend from Edmonton Manning. This is a bill I often speak about when I am home in Long Range Mountains and I am asked to share about my work in Ottawa, not only because it concerns heroic Canadians, but also because it demonstrates what can be achieved when members work collaboratively for the benefi…
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Mr. Speaker, I can speak to a specific example as well. In my riding specifically, students applying to be heavy-duty mechanics often try to enter programs and they are completely filled. The private institutions then look at the entire educational path ecosystem and decide which communities they would like to have their operations in. That complements the communities that have the needs and the w…
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Mr. Speaker, I absolutely agree. I think it is divisive in nature. I hear all the time from people in my riding that they do not like the divisiveness that Canadians are experiencing right now. They do not like how one group is pitted against another, and this is the exact type of policy that creates this division in our communities and among Canadians. Again, we are trying to correct bad actors i…
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to point out that the member opposite has taken up a tremendous amount of time and not once has he spoken directly to this concurrence motion. The reality is that there are people in my riding who are really interested to know how the government is going to respond to this. He talked about being disappointed. Do you know who is disappointed? It is the young people in this…
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Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to rise today to speak to the request that the government reconsider its policy on the distribution of student grants based on the type of regulated institution where students are studying and instead align with decisions about eligible institutions made by the provinces and territories. Student financial assistance for students from rural, remote and coastal communities,…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, after years of the Prime Minister's recycled speeches and empty promises, Canadians are still waiting for relief that never comes. There was nothing new in his latest message; just the same words, while costs rise and families fall further behind. In March, Canada again had the highest grocery price inflation in the G7. In Newfoundland and Labrador, families are paying more and gettin…
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Mr. Speaker, I wonder if my colleague could speak to the ecosystem that is currently created between public and private institutions that collaboratively work together to address the labour market shortages. Is this something that he would like to expand on, with respect to this recommendation?
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Mr. Speaker, this question was posed by the member previously and my colleague provided a procedural answer, which I thought satisfied the question. In addition to that, comments and statements like that are divisive to the Canadian people on prioritizing certain priorities. Essentially, he is saying that the concerns from coastal and rural communities about this very important issue are not as im…
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Mr. Speaker, it is always an honour to rise in the House, and specifically today to speak to Bill S-201, an act respecting a national framework on sickle cell disease. To begin, I want to acknowledge the important intent behind the legislation. Sickle cell disease is a serious, lifelong condition that affects approximately 6,000 Canadians and their families across this country. It is a painful, co…
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Mr. Speaker, the Single Parent Association of Newfoundland and Labrador in that member's riding reported that the high gas prices are driving single parents to make impossible decisions, such as whether to heat their home or put food on the table, yet $10 billion is how much this Liberal government will still collect in fuel taxes this year, while people in Newfoundland and Labrador pay some of th…
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Mr. Speaker, 35% is how much more Canadians are paying because of rising global oil prices. In Newfoundland and Labrador, fuel is not a choice; it is a necessity. Truckers need it to deliver goods, and families need it just to get through the week, yet Liberal taxes are driving prices even higher, while the Liberals pretend that a partial tax cut is real relief. Their plan applies to only a fracti…
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Mr. Speaker, obviously, I cannot stop any war, which is exactly why this proposal is so important. We are proposing that the Government of Canada, the Liberal government, do what it can in the face of what is happening right now and what Canadian families are facing. This is a meaningful measure that could reduce prices by 21¢ per litre on diesel and 25¢ on gas. We know we do not have control over…
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Mr. Speaker, I sit on the Standing Committee on Environment and Sustainable Development. The industrial carbon tax is something we are studying right now. We have heard numerous reports that it does nothing, simply because of carbon leakage. That means that, instead of these producers investing in our economy, they go into other countries that do not enforce an industrial carbon tax, so it has an …
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