Government Orders
Madam Speaker, I will reject part of the question. I would agree with the hon. member that nuclear technology is extremely important and it will be part of where we have to get in terms of net neutrality. I am proud to continue being a member of Parliament calling for the government to do more on this, and we have done more. I am very proud of the fact that nuclear is now part of green bonds. I ag…
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Madam Speaker, thank you for trying to keep the decorum. I think members are probably cheering so loudly in the back benches, but that is good. We will get them calmed down in here for interpretation. Let us remember, the last Conservative prime minister in this country said that Atlantic Canadians had a “culture of defeat”. That was Stephen Harper. I have not heard that from the member for Carlet…
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Madam Speaker, we are here today to talk about the opposition day motion that is being brought forward by the Conservative Party. Members know that I love to have the opportunity to speak to this and to have some good back and forth with my Conservative colleagues across the way, but I have a little work to do before I get there. This place is always an opportunity for us to bring together Canadia…
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Mr. Speaker, I want to come back to the points I was raising just before question period. The Conservatives never talk about the rebates that are given to families and businesses in Canada, nor do they talk about the fact that 100% of the revenue collected from the price on pollution is given back to families and businesses. There are also costs associated with climate change. Climate change is co…
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Madam Speaker, what drove that policy was a focus on vulnerable households. The member knows this policy applies across the country. I will not apologize for fighting for my region, which is energy insecure. We had to make some adjustments to a national policy that has made a difference across the country, including in his own riding. This was driven by equity in a national policy. I also want to …
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Madam Speaker, I support Bill C‑234. I also agree on the importance of acknowledging our farmers' relentless work in support of sustainable agriculture and having a certain tool to achieve it. That is exactly why I spoke about offset credits and their recognition by the Government of Canada in relation to the clean fuel regulations and the clean electricity regulations. Some companies could pay ou…
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Madam Speaker, I mentioned this in my remarks that it is unfortunate that the Conservative Party has sought to denigrate the idea of carbon pricing so much that it is all that ills Canadians, that what we see in challenges around affordability is tied to one policy. That is not the case. There are many other external factors. One of the things that is perhaps the most unfortunate is that there has…
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Madam Speaker, the hon. member knows that I do not necessarily have the power to persuade the government to do anything in this House, but I can certainly be a voice. There are a couple of things I would say. The hon. member and I have some shared things I would want to focus on; yes, these are solar, wind and renewable electricity. I presume, or at least hope, that she will support Bill C-49, whi…
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Madam Speaker, the good people of Saint John—Rothesay have a real champion here in Ottawa. He gave me a compliment, but let me say this: I believe the hon. member has indicated that he will not be re-offering in this place in the next election. That will be a great loss to Parliament, because he is one of the best constituency advocates in Ottawa for his people. When I watch him on social media, h…
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Mr. Speaker, happy new year to you and all my colleagues. I would like to thank the hon. member for Huron—Bruce for his remarks today. I will start by saying that he will have my support for the motion to keep the bill as is. That is a commitment that I have made very clearly in the House, including to my agricultural community in Kings—Hants. I want to make a comment and then ask a question. The …
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Madam Speaker, happy new year to you and to all colleagues in the House. Today, we have the opportunity to speak to Bill C-59, which is the legislation that would implement the initiatives in the fall economic statement before Christmas. Before I get too much further, I will be sharing my time with the hon. member for Nepean. One of the things I contemplated over the Christmas break was the decoru…
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Madam Speaker, I seek unanimous consent to ask the member a question.
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Madam Speaker, on a point of order, can the member for Carleton tell us if he will be continuing, so I can ask my question when he actually has a chance to re-engage on this?
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Mr. Speaker, I am looking for some clarification. I have sat here intently, hoping to ask the leader of the official opposition a question. I will get to the point. There has been a lot of actual points of order that have delayed the time for the leader of the official opposition to continue his unlimited time. However, does that time continue and extend out? When does Private Members' Business ac…
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Madam Speaker, on a point of order, I would like to seek unanimous consent to ask the member opposite a question specific to what he is talking about right now.
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, I have the privilege and the honour to present, in both official languages, two reports of the Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food. While I have the floor, let me say that I am very proud that we are a very functional committee here on the Hill and are getting lots of good work done. I present the 15th report, entitled “Protecting Against Animal Biosecurity Risks: The Stat…
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Madam Speaker, the hon. member across the way raised a number of very interesting points of debate. I wish I had more time. He talked about carbon pricing and the fact that some other jurisdictions in the world do not have it. However, there are 77 jurisdictions that do have a form of carbon pricing. I was tempted to ask whether this is about carbon pricing itself or the fact that we have to get m…
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Madam Speaker, I hope that you are doing well. I wish to inform you that I will be sharing my time with my hon. colleague from West Vancouver—Sunshine Coast—Sea to Sky Country, British Columbia. I rise today to speak to a motion moved by the opposition. I like having the opportunity to engage in a dialogue with the members of the opposition about their thoughts, their policies and their feelings. …
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Madam Speaker, is it not true? Senator Michael MacDonald was not there. Senator Boisvenu was not there. Senator Manning was not in the Senate. I could go on. I have them all listed on my phone. I hear my Conservative colleague saying that is not true. Well, it is true. The leader of the official opposition is the only party leader in the House of Commons who is still a leader for certain senators …
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Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for his question. I will answer him in English because his question is very specific. I want to make sure I give my hon. colleague the best response I can. At the end of the day, I would have encouraged the Senate, as I did in letters I wrote publicly, including to the vice-chair of the agriculture committee, the member for Foothills, to maintain the bill as it …
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Madam Speaker, I could not help but notice that this is a vote that is really important to Canadian farmers. Surely, there would not be a member of Parliament who would not vote for our Canadian farmers. I would ask that we have a recorded division.
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Madam Speaker, I am not surprised that the Conservatives want to kill carbon pricing. They have wanted to kill it since the moment this government introduced it back in 2019. I want to explain something to my hon. colleague. Keeping a price signal on heating oil would have been strictly for politics and not for public policy. Let me explain that the 1.1 million households that use heating oil in t…
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Madam Speaker, I know that the Minister of Foreign Affairs is working on this question very closely. There will be more to be said, I am sure, from the government in the days ahead as it relates to the conflict between Israel and Hamas. It is not surprising that Conservatives continue to raise this. I do not know what else they have in their tool kit they want to talk about, but they have vandaliz…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, two weeks ago, the government introduced important adjustments to the national carbon pricing plan that matter across the country, including for the people I represent. First, we are doubling the rural supplement from 10% to 20%. This will mean that, on average, a family living in Kings—Hants will receive $200 more a year than those living in the city. This change is to ensure that th…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the 13th report of the Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food. The report is entitled “Stewards of the Land: Examining Canadian Agriculture's Environmental Contribution”. We maybe could have used a bit more of a simple title, but, of course, we are proud as a committee to talk about Canada's tremendous role in the agri…
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Mr. Speaker, in Nova Scotia people using natural gas would be using a heating source that is probably one of the lowest cost in the province, and my remarks reflect the fact that there is a series of programs. With the Canada greener homes grant there is a $5,000 grant available to people. I take notice that the member is talking about how we can make sure we front-load more money for people who a…
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Mr. Speaker, the hon. member raises a really important point that, particularly on heating oil, it is the market that is driving the price. It has nothing to do with the carbon price, but it has to do with the cost of the heating oil itself, which is anywhere from two to four times the price of alternatives. That is exactly why the government has been laser-focused on that question with affordabil…
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Mr. Speaker, the hon. member for Halifax packed a lot in that because he is an intellectual guy and wanted to get all of that in within a minute. There are a couple of things I would say. Let us remember why we have introduced our national programs on climate. It is that we see it every day outside our door. We saw it this summer in our neighbourhoods. He gave statistics for Nova Scotia Power with…
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Mr. Speaker, we are not only offering people $300 in savings, on average, because we are removing the carbon price on heating oil, but also offering people the ability to transition and to save thousands of dollars a year. The Conservatives are offering short-term solutions. However, $300 is extremely important. People in my riding have come to me to thank me for pushing for those changes and to s…
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Mr. Speaker, instead of just standing across the way and yelling and offering simplistic solutions, I would encourage the member from Prince George to reach out to Premier Eby, because I can promise some people in Prince George right now use heating oil and are in a difficult situation. He should direct them to the $10,000 grant that exists right now for his constituents. I hope he has. Maybe we s…
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Mr. Speaker, I sat and listened to the leader of the official opposition's speech, and not once did he actually mention the program we have in order to help with the transition. There are a million Canadian households in this country that are extremely vulnerable. They are sometimes paying in excess of double or four times the price of alternatives such as natural gas or electricity. We have built…
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Mr. Speaker, we are here to debate an opposition day motion from the Conservative Party. As I read the text of the motion, and this is a common occurrence, I find the need to clarify and provide more context to what the Conservatives are calling for. This follows a very important government announcement last week. If we look at the text of the motion, it provides no clarity, no context and no actu…
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Mr. Speaker, first of all, perhaps the member was not in the chamber when I made my remarks specific to the fact that this program is available across the country. There is a $10,000 federal grant to vulnerable Albertan households that are still using heating oil. He should help his constituents find that program. Maybe he has not; maybe he did not know about it. I am happy to share the informatio…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, my constituents in Kings—Hants expect the government to walk a line between helping to support Canadians with important programming that matters to them but also being fiscally responsible. The President of the Treasury Board announced that the government would be examining ways to reduce departmental spending without compromising important programs that matter for Canadians. Could th…
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Mr. Speaker, we are here to talk about a really important piece of legislation, but if you will permit me, I just want to take 30 seconds to mention a constituent I made a promise to. She is actually one of your constituents, but we may have some crossover in the days ahead with redistribution. Mary Fraser is a resident of south Berwick, and I had the privilege of going to her 100th birthday at th…
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Mr. Speaker, I am at a loss for words because that is a tremendous question. I cannot answer for the Conservatives, my hon. colleague knows that, but I am glad that he put it on the record. I sat in the House today listening to the speech from the member for Kingston and the Islands, and when I heard the question that was asked by the member for Cumberland—Colchester as to whether or not he would …
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague for his question. We could assess our process here in the House of Commons and review the method used to study bills related to free trade agreements, like the one with the European Union or other countries. That might be a good idea. However, the process does not yet exist, so for now this remains the prerogative of the executive, of the government. However,…
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Mr. Speaker, I want to address some of the comments again, because the member referenced the Conservatives in her question. There were a couple of things that were said by the member for Cumberland—Colchester. It was not only that the legislation was woke, but also that somehow Canada was taking advantage of Ukraine. I think it is very condescending to suggest that the sovereign Government of Ukra…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
moved for leave to introduce Bill C-359, An Act to amend the Feeds Act, the Seeds Act and the Pest Control Products Act (provisional registration and approval). Mr. Speaker, it is great to be up again to introduce this private member's bill. As you mentioned, the title of the bill is an act to amend the Feeds Act, the Seeds Act and the Pest Control Products Act on provisional registration and appr…
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Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the 12th report of the Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food, entitled “Bill C-275, An Act to amend the Health of Animals Act (biosecurity on farms)”. This piece of legislation was brought forward in the name of the member for Foothills. The bill will be up for third reading at some point, I am sure. I would like to t…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, our government is focused on helping Atlantic Canada drive the tremendous economic opportunities that exist for clean energy in our region. That is exactly why we advanced Bill C-49, in close partnership with Newfoundland and Labrador and Nova Scotia. We also have a mutual goal of getting off coal-fired electricity while expanding clean energy grids. Premiers Higgs and Houston were bo…
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to recognize that my hon. colleague has ties to Acadia University, having played on the men's football team. We share an affinity for the beautiful Annapolis Valley. We differ on ideology. I think it is important and incumbent on corporate leaders that they are mindful of the circumstances we are in. That is exactly why the Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry cal…
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Madam Speaker, as always, it is a privilege to rise in this place and talk to opposition day motions. As I said before, and will say again, it provides an opportunity for the opposition parties to put forward some level of policy intent and ideals. For Canadians watching at home, opposition day motions are not binding on the government in any way whatsoever, but they allow us to debate the topics …
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Mr. Speaker, I left off talking about the importance of the government, and ultimately the Liberal Party, being somewhere between the two prisms that we see in the House. As I said, the Conservative opposition day motion is not binding on the government. The opposition party has not put forward any detailed plans of what exactly it would cut in terms of program spending. I think it is important, a…
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Mr. Speaker, my comments were never meant to draw the ire of the opposition. It is simply that when I read the text of the motion and what the Conservatives are proposing, the idea that it would bring interest rates back to balanced is unrealistic. I do not mean to offend the opposition party. I know they have tough skin on that side. This government is trying to walk a balance between being fisca…
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Mr. Speaker, I apologize. In normal times, I would try to respond in French, but that was an extended question. I want to give the best answer possible. We are going to have a great debate on the fall economic statement, where the Minister of Finance will provide an update on the fiscal finances of the country, including what the government intends to do in the days ahead. Therefore, that debate i…
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Madam Speaker, I am very glad to see that there is a motion for closure today because we are in a global race to help drive Canada's offshore future and Canada's clean energy future. I have chastised some of my Conservative colleagues for not getting on board. Ultimately, we will have a vote on this, and they will be able to lay out their position and rationale on why they are against it, but we a…
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Madam Speaker, I want to give a tip of the cap to the member for Coast of Bays—Central—Notre Dame. He is the first member of the Conservative Party in almost three full days of debate who has actually pulled out and referenced one provision. I may not agree with what he is raising, but could the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources at least reassure all parliamentarians in this House of two th…
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Madam Speaker, on a point of order, I would like to seek unanimous consent to table a document from Premier Houston in relation to a comment that he made on calling on—
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Madam Speaker, I would agree with the hon. member that DFO needs reform. I want to clarify the position of Atlantic Liberals, which is that we support the carbon price, but we are calling for amendments and constructive dialogue on being able to ensure that it better resembles the lived realities of the constituencies he and I represent. I want to tell a little story. In the provincial election of…
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