Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, yesterday the Liberal chair of the health committee suspended the meeting, with the cameras off, blocking emergency meetings from being held in public over the summer. Today, he cancelled the final health committee meeting entirely. This is a blatant abuse of power to shut the health committee down and block an investigation into the $300‑million PrescribeIT scandal. Conservatives are…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, it is always an honour to present a petition on behalf of constituents. I rise, for the 14th time, on behalf of the people of Dauphin, Manitoba, to present a petition on the rising rate of crime. Residents of Dauphin and the Parkland region are demanding that the Liberal government repeal its soft-on-crime policies that have fuelled a surge in crime throughout their communities. Since…
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Mr. Speaker, before I begin, I want to take a moment to thank a couple of people who have been part of my office this session and who will be moving on shortly. First I want to recognize Oliver Batchilder, who has been with my office as an intern through the parliamentary internship program. Oliver is sharp, diligent and very hard-working. In fact, I have told him he works harder than most full-ti…
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Mr. Speaker, I would like to speak today about Bill S-201, an act respecting a national framework on sickle cell disease. Sickle cell disease is a devastating inherited blood disorder. It causes chronic pain, organ damage, serious infections and a shortened life expectancy. Our best estimates suggest that 6,000 Canadians are living with sickle cell disease right now. I say “estimates” deliberately…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, thousands of Canadians are writing to the health committee demanding an investigation into the $300-million PrescribeIT scandal. However, Liberals MPs are silencing their voices and blocking an investigation. On April 28, the Liberal MP for Don Valley North turned off the committee cameras during an emergency meeting, and then she refused to say why. On May 5, the Liberal MP for Winni…
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Mr. Speaker, in this country, there are important life-saving drugs that Canadians suffering from serious conditions may not be able to access, not because the science is uncertain or the risks are unknown but because of the paperwork and the bureaucratic delays. That is the problem before us today. Health Canada's special access program was designed as a lifeline. It was designed for Canadians wi…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, it is always an honour to present a petition on behalf of constituents. I rise, for the 13th time, on behalf of the people of Dauphin, Manitoba, to present a petition on the rising rate of crime. Residents of Dauphin and the Parkland region are demanding that the Liberal government repeal its soft-on crime policies that have fuelled a surge in crime throughout their communities. Since…
Read full speech →Adjournment Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, it is always a pleasure to be here at the late show. Canadians across the country are demanding that the health committee investigate the Liberals' $300-million PrescribeIT scandal. When Conservatives called on the Auditor General to investigate, the Liberal Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Health moved to turn off the committee cameras. Since then, she has refused to explai…
Read full speech →Adjournment Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, this is a very simple question. Does the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Health support investigating the $300 million spent on PrescribeIT, yes or no?
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, the Liberals on the health committee are blocking an investigation into the $300-million PrescribeIT scandal. For over a month, they have stopped the committee from holding any new meetings to get answers. They have shut down meetings. They have turned off committee cameras. They have blocked the health minister from testifying. Now, in a disgusting political stunt, they are using Can…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize a truly outstanding achievement by a young resident student from Plumas, Manitoba. Lenjo Uebersax, a student from Plumas Elementary School, has been named Mathletics' top grade 8 student in Canada and ranks 30th worldwide. This is a huge achievement. As his teacher Mark Dodds explained, this is “one of the largest academic competitions in the world”. More rec…
Read full speech →Adjournment Proceedings
Madam Speaker, my question is simple. Why are the Liberal MPs blocking the health minister from testifying at the health committee on the $300-million PrescribeIT scandal?
Read full speech →Adjournment Proceedings
Madam Speaker, the Liberals did not answer my question. My question was simple. Why are the Liberal MPs blocking the health minister from testifying at the health committee on the $300-million PrescribeIT scandal?
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, documents now reveal that the Liberals' $300-million PrescribeIT failure processed fewer than 5% of prescriptions at its peak. That means that, after burning through $300 million, PrescribeIT failed to deliver 95% of prescriptions. When Conservatives on the health committee tried to investigate, Liberal MPs turned off the cameras. Then they abruptly shut down meetings. Yesterday, they…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, I will bring it back to how the topic today actually impacts many Canadians. This is a very special subject, and it impacts so many Canadians. It is about opioids. The member was talking about the safety of children. Right now, we have a government that actually endorses fentanyl use and drug consumption sites next to kids here in Canada. Through an exemption, there are actually fed…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, it is always an honour to present a petition on behalf of constituents. I rise for the 12th time on behalf of the people of Dauphin, Manitoba, to present a petition on the rising rate of crime. Residents of Dauphin and the Parkland region are demanding that the Liberal government repeal its soft-on-crime policies that have fuelled a surge in crime throughout their communities. Since 2…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Chair, how many years would it take before the minister no longer considered the interim federal health program temporary? Is it longer than four years?
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Chair, does the minister understand that immigration levels impact health care demand, yes or no?
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Chair, why is the minister giving rejected asylum claimants luxury health benefits like physiotherapy, counselling and home care through the interim federal health program?
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, maybe the Liberals need a taxpayer-funded counselling session to understand why Canadians are furious. After leaving Afghanistan, Fawad Ahmad went to the United States where he choked his wife and threatened to choke her again. He later entered Canada and claimed asylum, but was rejected. Yet the Liberals kept him eligible for taxpayer-funded luxury health benefits like physiotherapy …
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Chair, does the minister believe that a rejected asylum claimant who has been charged with rape or sexual assault should remain eligible for physiotherapy benefits?
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Chair, the minister did not answer the question. Does she think it is okay for this rapist to qualify for luxury health benefits?
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Chair, how much more population growth can Canada's health care system currently handle?
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Chair, would removing 74,000 failed asylum claimants in Canada reduce any demand on our health care system?
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Chair, the immigration minister stated on the record that luxury health benefits like physiotherapy, home care and counselling are “essential services” for rejected asylum claimants. How are these essential benefits if Canadian taxpayers do not receive them?
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Chair, what if an asylum claimant does not pay for the government's copay program?
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Chair, does the minister have any issue with funding luxury health benefits for criminals she calls vulnerable?
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Chair, does the minister know how many more people our health care system can handle? It is a very simple question.
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Chair, the minister claims that the interim federal health program is temporary, but the Parliamentary Budget Officer says that the average program coverage for asylum claimants is now four years under her watch. Is four years temporary?
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Chair, why should a rejected asylum claimant receive physiotherapy, counselling and home care when most Canadians pay for those benefits themselves?
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, according to the Parliamentary Budget Officer, 74,000 rejected asylum claimants remain eligible for luxury health benefits like physiotherapy and counselling under the Liberals. One of those rejected asylum claimants was Fawad Ahmad. After leaving Afghanistan, he went to the United States, where he choked his wife and threatened to choke her again if she called the police. He then ent…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Chair, William Imona-Russel was a rejected asylum claimant who raped two women and murdered a 20-year-old girl while still in Canada. This rapist would qualify for luxury health benefits like speech therapy under the Liberal government. Does the minister think that is okay?
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Chair, is the immigration minister considering expanding luxury health benefits for rejected asylum claimants, yes or no?
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Chair, how can they be essential if Canadians do not get them?
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Chair, the immigration minister referred to rejected asylum claimants who were charged with assault and rape as “vulnerable people”. Why is she calling criminals vulnerable people?
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Chair, does the minister realize that once they become provincially eligible, they no longer get those services?
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Chair, does the immigration minister understand that Canadian taxpayers are not entitled to physiotherapy, home care or counselling benefits?
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Chair, is the minister okay with giving luxury health benefits to rejected asylum claimants as long as they pay a 70% discount on the benefit?
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, yesterday the Liberal House leader defended luxury health benefits for asylum claimants whom his own government rejected, stating they are “the most vulnerable people on...earth”. Really? How about William Imona-Russel, the rejected asylum claimant who raped two women and murdered a 20-year-old girl while still in Canada? Under the Liberals, criminals like him remain eligible for luxu…
Read full speech →Adjournment Proceedings
Madam Speaker, on April 28, the health committee held an emergency meeting on the Liberals' $300-million PrescribeIT program failure. During that meeting, the parliamentary secretary for health moved a motion to shut off the committee cameras. She never explained why. I will ask her directly. Why did she shut off the cameras?
Read full speech →Adjournment Proceedings
Madam Speaker, the member did not answer my question. Canadians want to know why the Liberal parliamentary secretary for health turned off the cameras at the health committee during an emergency meeting on the $300-million PrescribeIT program failure. It is a very simple question. Why did she vote to turn off the committee cameras?
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, I am really glad that the hon. member brought up the Parliamentary Budget Officer, because she just released a damning report revealing that nearly 74,000 rejected asylum claimants remain eligible for luxury health care benefits under the Liberals' interim federal health program. This includes rejected asylum claimants who are listed as wanted for failing to show up at their removal p…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, the Liberal member asked a question around groceries and why we do not support, basically, subsidies for Canadians. The Liberal government is already taking the money away from them. I wonder if the hon. member could explain the whole value chain and how much the clean fuel standard costs our entire supply chain when it comes to food.
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Mr. Speaker, I rise today to support Bill S-233, which is a bill that should not be controversial. It should not be controversial to say that people who care for us deserve to be protected. It should not be controversial to say that a nurse should not be punched, bitten, spat on, sexually assaulted or threatened while doing their job. It should not be controversial to say that when someone assault…
Read full speech →Adjournment Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, I am sort of confused, because yesterday at the health committee, the board chair of Health Infoway actually said that the program was a success, yet the Liberal government has been shutting it down. However, it still managed to spend $300 million and was still sending fax messages after 10 years. I will go back to my original question: Why did the parliamentary secretary for health v…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, the bill is about how much money the Liberals have actually wasted here. The PrescribeIT program is a blinding example, and it is absolutely a waste of $300 million. Canada Health Infoway is a so-called non-profit organization funded by the federal Minister of Health. For nearly a decade, the Liberals poured money into a program called “PrescribeIT”. They promised PrescribeIT would el…
Read full speech →Adjournment Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, it is always an honour to be at the late show to follow up on some questions that need to be answered. Last week, Conservatives called an emergency meeting of the health committee to investigate the $300 million the Liberals wasted on PrescribeIT. When we moved a motion to call on the Auditor General to investigate the program, the Liberal parliamentary secretary for health moved a mo…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, the Liberals gave Canada Health Infoway $300 million for PrescribeIT, a program that they promised would replace fax machines for prescription drugs. Instead, less than 5% of the prescriptions went through the program, and PrescribeIT is now being quietly shut down with no results. Canadians still do not know where their money went. Yesterday at the health committee, the chair of Cana…
Read full speech →Adjournment Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, the Liberal member did not answer my question, so I will ask it again. Does the parliamentary secretary for health believe it is fair that rejected asylum claimants receive better taxpayer-funded health benefits than those Canadians who are paying for them, yes or no?
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