Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, the member listened to my speech. He heard very clearly that there is a judicial process and that the government is moving on legal action to recover the taxpayer dollars we agree need to be recovered. The member suggests there are Liberal insiders. The member for Winnipeg North made the distinction that the elected members of the Privy Council, when they became aware of this, address…
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Mr. Speaker, the 8% increase in government spending is due to the measures proposed in the motion that we studied and that the hon. member voted in favour of. This motion includes a tax cut, a GST rebate for first-time homebuyers and spending related to the removal of the carbon tax. We will be tabling a budget in the fall, and it will show the effectiveness of government spending.
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Mr. Speaker, it is unfortunate for the people who are sitting in the public gallery or who may be watching at home, because the opposition clearly has not delineated the facts on a few things, and one is that there is a process. The motion before us talks about 100 days. My question to the hon. member is this: Does he suggest that there should not be a court process, that if GC Strategies or its a…
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Mr. Speaker, I understand I have about 16 minutes left in my remarks, which is a great opportunity to be able to litigate the opposition day motion that has been put before this House. A lot of Conservative members have stayed around, and I look forward to engaging with them in my round of questions. It is always fun to barb back and forth and to engage in this House. I think this is important. Ev…
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Mr. Speaker, because of the U.S. government's position, there is great deal of uncertainty all over the planet regarding free trade. However, as my colleague mentioned, there are other opportunities for us, particularly with Europe, Australia, New Zealand and Japan. Many G7 countries are looking into how we can reduce greenhouse gases. It is important to address economic challenges while maintaini…
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Mr. Speaker, it is always a privilege to rise here in the House of Commons. I particularly enjoy participating in opposition day debates. I am pleased to have the opportunity to interact with all my colleagues here, particularly the members of the Bloc Québécois, but also the many Conservative members who speak French. Today's opposition motion was moved by my hon. Bloc Québécois colleague from Sa…
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Mr. Speaker, eight out of 10 people in Canada paid the carbon tax in provinces where a federal backstop applied, such as Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Manitoba, Ontario, Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Newfoundland and Labrador. Families who paid the carbon tax received a payment from the federal government. When the Government of Canada decided to end carbon pricing, it sent them a final payment. Quebec…
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Mr. Speaker, this is the first time I have delivered a speech entirely in French in the House. It is a very proud moment for me. The Minister of Finance was very clear in the House of Commons. The federal budget will be presented in the fall. I think it is better to do so in the fall because we currently have many challenges ahead of us, including the relationship between Canada and the United Sta…
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Mr. Speaker, this was a final payment from the Government of Canada for Canadian families living in a province that had a federal backstop. It was therefore a final payment for those families. It did not apply to Quebec or British Columbia.
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, one of the differences between the way we have handled the public policy issue versus the way the Conservatives have is that this government and this Prime Minister recognized that the policy of carbon pricing at the consumer level had become divisive and that there had to be a change. Instead of just cutting the consumer carbon price, we recognized there were rebates tied to the cons…
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Mr. Speaker, the member talked about the government living within its means, and of course, this government has committed to an operational balanced budget within three years, recognizing that there have to be major capital expenditures, particularly for our Canadian Armed Forces, which the Prime Minister highlighted today. Does the member not recognize the irony that her Conservative Party platfo…
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Mr. Speaker, the hon. member did very well for the first five minutes in showing a level of nuance. I enjoyed the Cs he laid out. I will lay out a C, which is the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers in this country. Its statistics show that oil and gas sector production increased by 41% in the last 10 years. We never hear that from the opposition benches whatsoever. Here is another C: the …
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Mr. Speaker, let me start by again offering my congratulations to the hon. minister. We are very proud of her in Nova Scotia, and the Nova Scotia members of Parliament who sit in the Nova Scotia caucus. I know we have not shared our time, but I wonder if she could provide a bit of reflection on her Lebanese heritage, her story and what it means to be the Minister of Immigration.
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Mr. Speaker, our colleagues have been talking about a budget. We have estimates before the House here. I had the opportunity to review some of them. I think the member for Whitby actually talked about the fact that MPs have the ability to look through the expenditures of government that are being proposed. He talked about housing. I think that is really important. We are proposing to not only remo…
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Mr. Speaker, as I was listening, I could not help but be inspired by the member's personal story of growing up in the United Kingdom. She mentioned her interaction with the Sovereign. I, too, was fortunate to have a brief interaction. I appreciate her comments, her connection and the way that Canada's constitution runs through the United Kingdom, but also that we have diversity across this country…
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Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order. I will keep it brief. You are more than capable of keeping time. I am here to listen to what the minister has to say, and I think the Chair can keep time. We do not need hon. members screaming “time” when the minister is trying to actually respond to the question.
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Mr. Speaker, it is always a privilege to be able to stand here in this place, particularly on opposition days. I know the member for Winnipeg North enjoys it, and so do I. It is a good opportunity for us on this side of the House to critique and also perhaps to find fallacy in some of the arguments that are being put forward by opposition members. I have had the opportunity to look into the opposi…
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Mr. Speaker, my humble question back to my hon. colleague, who I know does a lot of good, important work on housing policy in this place, is about why the Conservative Party would propose to get rid of the supply-side funding that was supporting homebuilding, and has been supporting homebuilding in this country, to fund the GST tax cut. Those two things do not add up, and I know the hon. member kn…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, all parliamentarians have before us the main estimates and the supplementary (A)s that were provided in relation to what this government is planning on spending on defence. We as parliamentarians have an ability to look at the outlay of money here in this place to be able to make those decisions. The government has committed to a budget in the fall session. It is important. I did not …
Read full speech →Speech from the Throne
Madam Speaker, my hon. colleague from Oshawa referenced Mr. Carrie, her predecessor, who helped, in her words, deliver an incredible amount of federal funding to the constituency of Oshawa. I remind her that of course it was our government that helped deliver that funding, whether it was the $259 million into the Oshawa plant on the auto side or the Oshawa port investments. Again, I am looking the…
Read full speech →Speech from the Throne
Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the hon. member for Whitby for his speech today, which had lots of passion. What needs to be noted in the Hansard of the debate here is that he is an absolute champion for sustainable finance. He has hosted a number of forums outside Parliament, bringing stakeholders together from across the country. I am interested in his thoughts on that. He mentioned regulator…
Read full speech →Speech from the Throne
Mr. Speaker, I welcome my colleague to the House. His predecessor, Mr. Lehoux, was a very good member of Parliament. I will work with him to advance agricultural issues in the House. Listening to my colleague's speech, I understood how important the agricultural sector is to Beauce. However, during the election campaign, I was a bit surprised because there was no mention of the importance of suppl…
Read full speech →Speech from the Throne
Mr. Speaker, I congratulate the hon. member on his maiden speech in Parliament. I welcome him to this place, particularly as an Atlantic Canadian. There are a few things I want to make sure he knows, as he enters this place, in the ways the government has helped to support the good province of Newfoundland and Labrador, whether that was by changing the approval time for offshore oil and gas permit…
Read full speech →Speech from the Throne
Certainly, Mr. Speaker, I would share the desire to want to focus on regulatory reform. I would like to hear more from all members on this side of the House on some of those pieces. We have heard a lot about the oil and gas sector. The government is signalling its desire to drive and build big natural energy projects across the country, whether conventional oil and gas or renewable in different ty…
Read full speech →Speech from the Throne
Mr. Speaker, I would like to welcome the hon. member to this House. Vernon—Lake Country—Monashee is a beautiful area. I have had the chance to be there myself. There are lots of good junior A hockey towns as well. I believe Salmon Arm may be close to the member's constituency, if not within it. The member talked a lot about agriculture, and I think that is important. Representing an agricultural r…
Read full speech →Speech from the Throne
Mr. Speaker, it is a privilege to rise here in this place, this being the first time I have had the opportunity to address Parliament since my re-election into this place, and this marks the third time I have had the good privilege of being able to maintain the confidence of the good people of Kings—Hants. I want to start by recognizing the Deputy Speaker's nomination to that chair, and certainly …
Read full speech →Speech from the Throne
Mr. Speaker, ultimately, the government is tabling estimates. That is why we have heard numbers being quoted from this side of the House today in terms of the overall aggregate. They are talking about half a trillion dollars, or a $500-billion budget, but at the end of the day, if we actually look at where the government had taken things on revenue and on spending versus the revenue collected, ess…
Read full speech →Speech from the Throne
Mr. Speaker, I served as minister of agriculture and agri-food and rural economic development for a short time before Parliament was dissolved. Like my colleague, I represent a riding that is home to many supply-managed farms. In fact, my riding has the largest concentration of supply-managed farms east of Quebec. Therefore, I fully support the supply management system. The importance of any given…
Read full speech →Speech from the Throne
Mr. Speaker, let me start by saying congratulations to you on your election to the Chair. It is very well deserved, and I know you will keep us in good standing here in the House. Even if the hon. member for Calgary-Centre and I do not always agree, I think he does deliver his speeches here with a level of class and professionalism that should be the way in which this place operates. I listened to…
Read full speech →Speech from the Throne
Mr. Speaker, my hon. colleague from Acadie—Bathurst is a champion of rural communities, here in Parliament and of course in New Brunswick. As far as housing is concerned, it is very important to lower taxes, as the government mentioned in the Speech from the Throne when it talked about eliminating the GST. That being said, we must also build the necessary infrastructure. Our programs for the munic…
Read full speech →Speech from the Throne
Mr. Speaker, I am going to continue what the member for Courtenay—Alberni started with, which is offering congratulations and a level of gratitude to the member for his service in this place, with this of course being his resignation speech. I think about the way my former colleague Scott Brison stepped aside so Joe Clark could run for a seat as leader at that time. I have great respect for my pre…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Madam Speaker, as I read the report that we are studying before Parliament, a couple of things come to mind as they relate to Kings—Hants. One is that there is a significant forestry sector in our constituency. There is also the Michelin tire plant, and I think about the cross-border trade. I know there was a lot in the report about electric vehicles, but there is even the presence of Michelin tir…
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Madam Speaker, I agree. We should be concerned when there is criticism of our local mayors and the people who step up to serve our communities. The member for Carleton should actually stand in this place and start naming them. Are they my mayors? Are they the member for Cowichan—Malahat—Langford's mayors? Who is the member talking about? He likes the bogeyman, but these are people trying to serve …
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Madam Speaker, unfortunately, I missed part of my hon. colleague's question. However, I completely agree that it is important to invest in social housing. The reason we are having this problem is that for 30 years, the federal Conservative government—but also the federal Liberal government—moved away from investing in non-profit organizations and the provinces for building social housing.
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Madam Speaker, we are here today to discuss an opposition day motion from the Conservative Party in relation to housing. I welcome the opportunity to rise in this place and talk about the importance of housing, because this is a national conversation right now. I want to give some context from my own riding of Kings—Hants. I was elected in 2019. I remember going to communities, particularly in rur…
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Madam Speaker, I actually think the proposal as is would be helpful. My speech gave another level of nuance. I hope the member for Brandon—Souris can have a conversation with the leader of the official opposition to say that it is fine if we want to have this policy, but it should not be on the back of actually cutting the federal funding. The funding is helping to build the homes that would be ne…
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Mr. Speaker, the member for Timmins—James Bay raises some really important questions that, frankly, I do not have the ability to answer. However, I will repeat what I said in my speech: If someone wants to become the prime minister of this country, they have to go through the security vetting process to get national security clearance. Whether there are skeletons in his closet or not, the member h…
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Mr. Speaker, today, we are debating a confidence motion in the Prime Minister and the government. I think this gives members of Parliament a great opportunity to lay out a variety of issues, not only of the government but also the Conservatives, who are bringing this motion. It gives an opportunity to examine and look under the hood of where that party stands on a number of issues, including some …
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Mr. Speaker, I said we are second in overall cumulative economic growth; of course, we are second to the Americans. I would ask the member to find me an advanced economy in a western liberal democracy that has been able to keep pace with the United States. There is none. I agree, and I said in my speech, that the productivity question is an important one. I think the member opposite and I would sh…
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Mr. Speaker, although the hon. member and I may share some slightly different views of the world, I like and appreciate the way he comes to this place in a respectful debate. I would say that, although he may not be satisfied with everything that has happened with the current government, I suspect there are many things he can agree with. He should continue to push the government and work with a go…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, this summer, Canadians across the country were filled with immense pride watching team Canada athletes represent us so well in the Olympic and Paralympic Games. In Kennetcook, we gathered at Findley Park to celebrate Wyatt Sanford's Olympic bronze. In Rimouski, they cheered for Maude Charron and, in Victoria, for the big man, Greg Stewart. That same story can be repeated for every sin…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the 21st report of the Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food entitled “Supplementary Estimates (B), 2024-25: Votes 1b, 5b and 10b under Department of Agriculture and Agri-Food”.
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Madam Speaker, I guess what I would say is similar to the member's question. Sometimes members of Parliament, even within the same party, have different views. I am glad to know she supports a consumer carbon price and will continue to push the leader of the NDP to change and reverse his policies as the environmental critic. With respect to the point around Trans Mountain, the member will remember…
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Madam Speaker, it has only been three minutes, but what I would say is that it is incumbent on all members of Parliament to ask themselves that question. Getting back to this motion, the Conservatives continue to use this as a delay tactic, not allowing other important questions to come before Parliament. When they go home tonight, I would encourage opposition members in the Bloc Québécois and the…
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Madam Speaker, I was concerned when the member for Victoria, who certainly purports herself in this place to be a strong environmental champion, had very little to say when the NDP backed away from the importance of carbon pricing as a credible plan to be able to move—
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Madam Speaker, I find it interesting that the Conservative Party is moving a concurrence report on the environment. I listened to the member for Portage—Lisgar and, to some extent, the member for Dauphin—Swan River—Neepawa as well. I did not hear a whole lot about what the Conservative Party actually stands for in relation to environmental plans. This government is the first in Canadian history to…
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Madam Speaker, today, we are here to talk about the 10th report of the environment committee, because the Conservatives have once again moved a concurrence motion in the House. It is important for us to explain to Canadians, who may be watching the proceedings of the House of Commons and asking themselves why we are still sitting in this situation two months later. It bears repeating a little of w…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Madam Speaker, I will respond very quickly, because my hon. colleague covered a lot. First of all, the Atlantic accord is a joint jurisdiction, so while the Conservatives like to bring up the Impact Assessment Act, it does not apply in the context of the Atlantic accord. Therefore I will correct the record or certainly help educate the member on that particular point. As it relates to the Conserva…
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Madam Speaker, regarding the importance of Canada's natural resources sector, the oil sector, which is primarily in western Canada and Newfoundland and Labrador, is extremely important to Canada's economy, particularly considering the money that flows to the provinces. This sector, with its investments and the revenue it generates, is extremely important for the economy in Quebec and Nova Scotia, …
Read full speech →Emergency Debate
Madam Speaker, the hon. member for Etobicoke—Lakeshore is a great member of Parliament and a good friend to the Canada-U.S. relationship. I would be remiss if I did not recognize the fact that it there was an election tonight in Nova Scotia. Tim Houston, who was the premier going into the election, was re-elected with a majority mandate. I would like to congratulate him on his successful election.…
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