Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, I think that Quebeckers and Canadians will agree with me that we have taken action by transferring $5.2 billion to Quebec under the Canada-Quebec accord. We are always prepared to do more. It is also very clear that Canada, like many other countries, is dealing with historic levels of irregular migration, but I believe that we can overcome that challenge, in partnership with the provi…
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Mr. Speaker, first of all, I would like to highlight the Bloc Québécois member's passion for immigration. Obviously, when we talk about a willingness to take in newcomers, we are entitled to wonder why, for example, PRAIDA, Quebec's regional program for the settlement and integration of asylum seekers, has not increased its capacity for several years. Obviously, this responsibility is shared betwe…
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to inform the House that the group will be meeting over the coming week. That does not mean that there is no preparatory work being done. Obviously, a working group with ministers requires advance preparation, and that work is currently under way. I spoke to Minister Fréchette this morning. I, too, am looking forward to some news because the status quo is unacceptable.
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Mr. Speaker, the Bloc Québécois is confusing capacity and willingness to integrate newcomers. What I said very clearly to my Quebec counterpart was that we would work together to distribute asylum seekers across the country. Ontario and Quebec have an excessive burden in terms of the number of asylum seekers relative to their population. We need the rest of the country to follow suit. That is what…
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moved for leave to introduce Bill C-71, An Act to amend the Citizenship Act (2024). (Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)
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Mr. Speaker, the status quo is the Bloc Québécois doing nothing for 30 years, while we make $5.2 billion available to Quebec for French language training, with clear results.
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Mr. Speaker, what we do not invite at these meetings is bickering. Working together is very important to us. For once, Quebec fully agreed with the news release we issued. In terms of French language training, we have given Quebec $5.2 billion since 2015. We are committed. We want to ensure, once again, that French, the common language, is strengthened in Quebec.
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Mr. Speaker, if he is criticizing the working group, perhaps he should direct his criticism at the Government of Quebec, because it was the Government of Quebec's idea. We were happy to work with the other provinces and agree to it. That is very important. The member was not at the meeting eight days ago, but we issued a unanimous news release announcing that we agreed to work together, better coo…
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Mr. Speaker, as nice as he is, the member across the way will not be surprised to know that he is not invited to the conference I am attending tomorrow with my provincial counterparts. Obviously, my colleagues and I need to coordinate to ensure that we act responsibly when it comes to temporary residents, access to permanent residency and Canadian citizenship, and asylum seekers. My colleague will…
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Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the member for Scarborough—Agincourt for her tireless advocacy on this matter. The Hong Kongers who are here are safe, and we have absolutely no intention of sending them back. I am pleased to announce today that we will be announcing, as of May 22, that the Hong Kongers who are here and have a valid status will be able to apply for a three-year open work permit while …
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Mr. Speaker, I think I answered the previous question the same way. This is practically the same question, and I already answered it before.
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Mr. Speaker, I do not know whether the member changed his notes between his three questions, but as I just said, I will be meeting with my ministerial colleagues this Wednesday, Thursday and Friday to talk about exactly that. That is our commitment to the provinces. Co-operation is needed. We will see what happens next, but of course we will be reviewing this with the provinces. We have not commit…
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Mr. Speaker, as the hon. member should be well aware, I am off to meet with my provincial counterparts this Thursday for precisely this purpose. I am looking forward to the follow-up. In particular, the provinces will be asked to define precisely what this integration capacity is. I am anxious to see what happens next.
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Mr. Speaker, we continue to work hard to get people out of Gaza. Yes, over 100 visas have been issued. People are travelling to Canada. We continue to push to get people out. Obviously, Canada does not control exits at Rafah. If people manage to get to Cairo, they can go through biometrics and from there, if successful, they can be directed to Canada.
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Mr. Speaker, what is very clear is that we will be there for Quebec to do more to support the French fact in Quebec. We have contributed $54 billion since 2015. That is a lot of money. I have a question for the member opposite. If he thinks that we should accept more asylum seekers from Haiti, would he be willing for Quebec to take in more?
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Mr. Speaker, obviously we want to support French integration. We have provided $5.4 billion to Quebec since 2015, specifically for French integration classes in Quebec, and it is working well. I know that the Bloc Québécois is perceived as a bickering machine, but I would like to acknowledge the contribution of the member opposite, who campaigned to ensure that spouses, partners, people who come h…
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Mr. Speaker, we continue to stand with the people of Hong Kong. We will work on processing times. We continue to work with people who seek refuge in Canada, and we will continue to do so.
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Mr. Speaker, sometimes I wonder if the Bloc Québécois is confusing the willingness and the ability to take in asylum seekers. What is clear is that Quebec is doing more than its fair share. However, 54% is an exaggeration. If we look at all the humanitarian streams that Quebec covers, the figure comes down to 24% or 25%. Yes, Quebec is doing more. Clearly, it needs to do more concerted work with t…
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Mr. Speaker, I would ask the member to come see me later to discuss the situation in person. Obviously, people who have to apply for a visa need to do so from Mexico. That is the rule. If exceptions need to be made, he can come and see me and we can discuss them together.
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Mr. Speaker, we are indeed in the process of expediting the permits that will be granted to asylum seekers. I have a question for the member for Lac-Saint-Jean. Does he agree with his party leader, in other words, the leader of the Parti Québécois, who wants to freeze immigration? Does he realize what that means in rural ridings like Lac-Saint-Jean? It means no more fishing, no more Quebec agricul…
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Mr. Speaker, we should not even try to understand. One minute he wants interference, the next he does not. The member did not answer my question. I wonder if he stands with his party leader, the Bloc Québécois leader, who is irresponsibly calling for a freeze on temporary immigration to Quebec. That is totally irresponsible. They should talk to the farmers and those who work in the fisheries in th…
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Mr. Speaker, what I agreed on with Minister Fréchette, when I met with her two weeks ago, was that we would exercise our full powers in our respective areas of jurisdiction under the Canada-Quebec agreement, in a reasonable and reasoned manner. This is what I intend to do with her in the months to come. Canadians and Quebeckers will be well served as a result.
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Mr. Speaker, obviously, no country in the world would hand over all its powers to someone else. I agreed with Minister Fréchette that we would exercise our respective responsibilities in our areas of jurisdiction in order to serve Quebeckers effectively. That is what I intend to do. That is what the minister intends to do as well.
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Mr. Speaker, what the member opposite refuses to acknowledge is that we have a good relationship with the Government of Quebec. I even visited Minister Fréchette two weeks ago to discuss our shared issues and find common ground. We have agreed to work together on reducing the number of people who are here temporarily, but we need to do it the right way. I look forward to doing so, not only with Qu…
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Mr. Speaker, the Bloc Québécois should pay attention to the news. We made it very clear that we are going to reduce the number of people who are here on a temporary basis from 7% to 5%. I have a question for the Bloc Québécois members. Where would they make cuts? I want them to be very specific, because I know there are many temporary workers in their ridings who work with farmers. Are they going …
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Mr. Speaker, I know the hon. member does not follow what is going on in the rest of Canada very closely, but I want to point out that, with the Ontario government's collaboration, we have been able to speed up applications, and permits have been granted. That is what we told the Quebec government. We are certainly willing to work with Quebec to speed up access to work permits. We can do more. We w…
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Mr. Speaker, I am well aware that the member across the way followed very closely the decisions we made with respect to asylum seekers from Mexico and reinstating electronic travel authorization and visitor's visa requirements for Mexican citizens. We told Minister Fréchette and the Government of Quebec very clearly that we will work in partnership with them. The Bloc is not happy that we are work…
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Mr. Speaker, yesterday I asked the member to kindly read the Canada‑Quebec accord. I should have been more specific. I would simply ask her to read section 13 for more clarification. Clearly, we collaborate very closely with Quebec, and we all have our responsibilities to carry out. I welcome Minister Fréchette's recent remarks. We will keep working together on our priorities, which are ultimately…
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Mr. Speaker, imagine being a doctor and being asked to accept 10 patients, but instead being sent 20. That is ridiculous, and that is the situation Quebec families find themselves in. What I am hearing from the Bloc Québécois is contempt for Quebec families. What do they say to Quebeckers who want to be reunited with their loved ones from abroad? This is tearing Quebec families apart. It is tearin…
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Mr. Speaker, I am prepared to answer the question when the member across the way assures me that she has read the Canada-Quebec accord.
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Mr. Speaker, I have a question for the member opposite. What does she have to say to Quebec families who are waiting to be reunited with their loved ones?
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Mr. Speaker, it will perhaps be cold comfort for the member opposite to find out that we are indeed increasing the number of people who will be eligible to come out of Gaza. There are a number of matters beyond our control, notably the ability to extract people from the Rafah gate. That is something that falls within matters of other governments. We plead with them to let those people out, but, ag…
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Mr. Speaker, no country in the world, no federal government would give all immigration powers to a federated state. The fact remains that with Quebec, we have a very important agreement, the Canada-Quebec accord, which gives a lot of powers to Quebec. There are responsibilities on both sides, Canada's and Quebec's. We will continue our good relationship with Quebec and continue to focus on people …
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Mr. Speaker, I wonder what $5.2 billion means to the member across the way. Since 2015, our government has maintained good relations under the Canada-Quebec accord and that will continue. It was a good meeting with Premier Legault. The member across the way refuses to admit it, but it is clear that there is work to do with our two governments. It is a question not so much of power, but of responsi…
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Mr. Speaker, I think that it is fair to talk about reality. Imagine if I send someone a bill for $500, we talk and the next day I hold a press conference to double the bill without justification. That is kind of what we are dealing with here. We are responsible governments. For my part, I talk to the people in my riding, in downtown Montreal, who are welcoming asylum seekers. They have not receive…
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Mr. Speaker, the member is partly right. It is true that there has been a historic influx of asylum seekers in Canada and that those numbers have gone up by about 50% to 60%. There is more work to be done, but it does not involve sending money to Quebec because Quebec does not spend that money on asylum seekers. I admit that the distribution of asylum seekers must be fair, and we are working on th…
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Mr. Speaker, as the member well knows, the pathway for people fleeing war in Sudan opens today. We worked with a number of Sudanese umbrella organizations on this important measure so that Canadians are really showing that they are opening their doors to people fleeing war. I am always ready to be more flexible as we see the situation evolve. It is clear that we, as Canadians, need to do more when…
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Mr. Speaker, as the member knows full well, since 2015, we have paid Quebec $5.2 billion under the arrangement we have with the Government of Quebec, the Canada-Quebec accord. We are prepared to do more. We are prepared to sit down and work with Quebec. Ideally, we do not do that in public. It should be known that we have a good relationship with Quebec. We are currently working with our officials…
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Mr. Speaker, guess who is not at the negotiating table and never will be? It is the Bloc Québécois. It is strange to hear such a statement. We met with officials from Quebec the very Monday that this statement was made. We are talking. We are discussing. We are negotiating. It is important that both sides work together to know who is doing what. We will do that with Quebec. We have a good relation…
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Mr. Speaker, it is very nice of the member to say I am six feet, three inches tall when I am actually only six feet, one inch and a hair. Given his line of questioning, it seems to me that the Bloc Québécois is still looking to pick a fight with the federal government. However, that is not enough for it. Now it is looking for a fight with the Quebec government, and it has found one. It is clear th…
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Mr. Speaker, first of all, I would like to point out that we are already transferring $5.2 billion to the Quebec government, partly for French-language instruction. I hope the member opposite is not saying that he wants to deport people who do not speak French in Canada. That would be an illegal, immoral and inhumane thing to do. We are well aware that more work needs to be done to share the burde…
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Mr. Speaker, obviously all of our initiatives to send asylum seekers to other provinces need to be done humanely and consensually. The language criterion is one of many, but should not be the main criterion. We all need to make an extra effort. The federal government has a role to play; Ontario, Quebec and all the provinces do as well.
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Mr. Speaker, there are definitely two provinces that are doing more than their fair share: Ontario and Quebec. Quebec has made superhuman efforts with respect to asylum seekers, whether it is those who have crossed at Roxham Road or those who arrive at Trudeau Airport. We have transferred $5.2 billion to Quebec since 2015. Half of that federal money is going to Quebec for temporary housing. We are…
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Mr. Speaker, I am sure the member opposite would agree that immigration is a vital resource for Canada, Quebec and our economy. What the member is proposing is a motion on which Quebec has not even been consulted. Now, out of the blue, he has made himself the spokesperson for the other provinces so that we can consult them again, when this is something we have already done and do every year. We ma…
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Mr. Speaker, it is inaccurate that we have been able to extract people from Gaza in 2024. We have a unique program, unique in the world, to get family members of Canadians out from Gaza. It has of yet been unsuccessful because of unco-operative local authorities at the Rafah gates. We urge them to help us in getting those people across the border. That said, I have asked my department to review th…
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Madam Speaker, before I begin my speech, I would like to acknowledge that we are gathered on the unceded territory of the Algonquin Anishinabe nation. I am pleased to rise today to discuss this motion and provide members with information on the immigration targets set by the Government of Canada. In the area of immigration, we remain committed to working with our partners in the provinces, territo…
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Madam Speaker, as the member well knows, the plan that I put forth in the fall deals with permanent residency numbers. We know that the number of temporary foreign workers we have in Canada, under various descriptions, has increased significantly in the last couple of years. This has been good for the economy, but it is also something that has gotten out of control in some sectors, which we acknow…
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Madam Speaker, the answer is no. We need provinces to step up and actually do their jobs in regulating designated learning institutions that they have authority over. We trusted for far too long, and perhaps we should have verified this. However, this is really something that needs to be brought under control. That is notably in Ontario, but there are other provinces that need to do a better job a…
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Madam Speaker, I am in politics to work with the Government of Quebec. I am not in show business. There is no question that we can work with the Government of Quebec. Everyone knows the Bloc Québécois does not speak for all Quebeckers. Several members in the House come from Quebec, including the Prime Minister. We are hearing very clearly that the federal government has a role to play in immigrati…
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Madam Speaker, the survey in question shows conclusively that immigrants are good for the economy. There is much left unsaid by the Bloc Québécois. They ask us to revise the targets, but I think what they mean is we should lower them without consulting the government of Quebec. I believe they should make more of an effort if they wish to have a reasoned discussion of the issue. I ask the members o…
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