Parliamentary Speeches
333 speeches by Marie-France Lalonde — Page 2 of 7
Routine Proceedings
Madam Speaker, furthermore, if the government's responses to Questions Nos. 2600, 2602 to 2607, 2609, 2613 to 2615, 2617 and 2618 could be made orders for return, these returns would be tabled in an electronic format immediately.
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Madam Speaker, the following questions will be answered today: Nos. 2599, 2601, 2608, 2610 to 2612 and 2016.
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Madam Speaker, I ask that the remaining questions be allowed to stand.
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Mr. Speaker, I have the pleasure of rising to acknowledge the vital role long-term care institutions hold in our communities and to recognize the incredible leaders, staff and families who support the thousands of Canadians who live in long-term care homes. I had the privilege of working in the retirement home sector for over 20 years, and I saw first-hand the remarkable work that caregivers do to…
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Madam Speaker, I ask that all questions be allowed to stand.
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Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 36(8)(a) I have the honour to table, in both official languages, the government's response to five petitions. These returns will be tabled in an electronic format.
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Mr. Speaker, federal contaminated sites are located on land owned or leased by the federal government, or on land where the federal government has accepted responsibility for the contamination. The Government of Canada has taken action through the federal contaminated sites action plan, FCSAP, and remains committed to properly managing those contaminated sites for which it is responsible. Through …
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Mr. Speaker, today is Air Force Day on Parliament Hill. It is an opportunity to highlight the incredible work of the Royal Canadian Air Force, or RCAF, as it celebrates its centennial year. For 100 years, members of the RCAF have served Canadians here at home and around the world. We thank them for their incredible dedication to Canada. RCAF aviators have participated in missions around the globe,…
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Mr. Speaker, in response to parts (a) and (b), National Defence has one contract, W8475-00CSH1/001/BQ, with IMP Aerospace & Defence, IMP, related to the servicing and maintenance of search and rescue aircraft in the period specified. It is the CH-149 in-service support contract, related to the servicing and maintenance of the CH-149 Cormorant search and rescue helicopter fleet. The active period o…
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Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for his question because it gives me an opportunity to talk about how the Conservatives failed to take action for nine years on priorities related to the modernization of the Official Languages Act and the action plan. I would like to remind the House that we have made historic investments by almost doubling the investments in the action plan and that we will co…
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Madam Speaker, the member's question reinforces the fact that we have introduced a wonderful defence policy update where we are increasing our spending. We have actually taken notes. We are listening to our partners. We are listening to our CAF members. There is $8.1 billion over the next five years, and we will continue to help our military as it is always ready for us.
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Mr. Speaker, I always have to wonder when our Bloc Québécois colleagues ask questions. We are making investments. I just spoke about a housing agreement between Canada and the Government of Quebec. Is he trying to say that it is not enough? Is it too much? I do not know. What I can say is that we have sat down with Quebec to negotiate our agreements from the start. In the case of housing, the agre…
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Mr. Speaker, we often borrow ideas from Quebec, because they are often very forward-thinking. For a number of years, the province of Quebec has had a price on carbon. It is a separate system that is fantastic for countering the harmful effects of climate change. My colleague spoke about child care. We drew inspiration from the Quebec system in order to benefit all Canadians. We will always work cl…
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Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to have the opportunity to contribute to the debate on the motion moved by the member for Jonquière, the Bloc Québécois critic for intergovernmental affairs, natural resources and energy. I would like to inform the House that I will be sharing my time with my colleague from Cambridge. Our government has repeatedly demonstrated its commitment to working collaborativel…
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Mr. Speaker, team Canada also includes the provincial team with the Government of Quebec. That has been the case since we took office in 2015. Personally, I entered provincial politics first, and I have been a member of Parliament since 2019. What I want to talk about is the massive investment of an additional $200 billion to improve health care in Canada. This will allow Quebeckers to have better…
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Mr. Speaker, it is with pride and a sense of accomplishment that I inform the House that on May 2, the Minister of Official Languages travelled to Orléans to announce that the federal government would be investing $36 million to build the new Mouvement d'implication francophone d'Orléans, or MIFO, community centre. Since 1979, MIFO, a pillar of the French-speaking community, has touched the lives …
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Madam Speaker, on this side of the House, we have always been there for francophones in Canada and Quebec. I find it very interesting to see my Bloc Québécois colleagues acting like they are the only ones who care about the French fact. They appear a little bothered by the fact that our government, which includes my colleague from Glengarry—Prescott—Russell, all Liberal members from Quebec and eve…
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Madam Speaker, I appreciate my colleague's question because it gives me the opportunity to talk about an announcement that was made earlier this year, in April, with the Canadian Forces Morale and Welfare Services. A settlement was negotiated with the non-public funds workers in Petawawa, Kingston and here in Ottawa, which includes a significant wage increase of 13.75% over three years. To be clea…
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Madam Speaker, once again, I appreciate my colleague's question, because we know that it is possible to find solutions and come to an agreement at the bargaining table, as we did in Kingston, Petawawa and right here in Ottawa. Once again, I would just like to say that the agreement that was negotiated will significantly increase wages by 13.75% over three years. We hope that the three parties that…
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Madam Speaker, I will take no lessons from the Conservatives when it comes to defence spending. The Conservatives let defence spending drop below 1%. They voted against a salary increase for our members. They voted against funding for Ukraine. They voted against Operation Unifier. They voted against $40 billion for NORAD modernization. They badly mismanaged our procurement for years. Today in the …
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Madam Speaker, unfortunately, during a response to an oral question, I mentioned that the action plan was worth $1.4 billion. I apologize for my inattention. It was $4.1 billion over five years.
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Madam Speaker, today we are welcoming the Canadian Remembrance Torch to Parliament Hill. The Canadian Remembrance Torch was created by accomplished McMaster students and now serves as an important symbol for the contribution of Canadian veterans. The founder of this torch, Karen Hunter, whose family has a long tradition of serving in our armed forces, was the visionary behind the symbol. It is a s…
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Madam Speaker, let us talk about our government's investments in the action plan for official languages. We will be investing $1.4 billion over the next five years to help the French fact. Our government is the only one that has recognized the decline in French. We have modernized the Official Languages Act. We are working with the Treasury Board. We are working with the commissioner. We understan…
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Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize that May 5 is World Pulmonary Hypertension Day. The rare form of the disease is called pulmonary arterial hypertension, or PAH, which severely impacts the health and quality of life of patients who are affected. I commend the Pulmonary Hypertension Association of Canada and its patient ambassadors Donna Downes and Shirley Druhan from my riding of Orléans for …
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Mr. Speaker, it was a privilege to welcome French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal to Canada last week, on his first official foreign visit outside the European Union. As chair of the Canada-France Inter-Parliamentary Association, I also met with my French counterparts, Christopher Weissberg, Chair of the French branch of the Association, and Senator Yan Chantrel, Chair of the France–Canada Friendship…
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Mr. Speaker, the Defence Public Affairs Learning Centre, or DPALC, provides Department of National Defence and Canadian Armed Forces, or CAF, personnel with specialized military public affairs and communications training. This directly contributes to the objectives of the defence team, including the CAF, to uphold transparency and to effectively communicate the complex work undertaken by our membe…
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Madam Speaker, it is always interesting. I have a great deal of respect for my Bloc Québécois colleague, but what the Bloc really wants is to pick a fight. Canada, our government, is working closely with Quebec on everything from health care to immigration. We have even engaged with Quebec on child care to look at what they are doing, so we can implement it nationally. We know that Quebec is there…
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Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to inform the House that this morning, the Minister of National Defence introduced Bill C-66, the military justice system modernization act. This legislation is designed to implement nine recommendations from Justice Arbour's and Justice Fish's reports. More specifically, it aims to remove the military justice system's jurisdiction over criminal sexual offences committed …
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Madam Chair, let us set the stage as a beginning. When I think about Ukraine, I think our friends are in a fight for their very existence. Russia's illegal and unjustifiable invasion has resulted in the deaths of tens of thousands of Ukrainian civilians. To be clear, when we think about this attack, it is also an attack on all those who value peace, freedom and democracy. We, as Canadians, have a …
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Mr. Speaker, today, March 20, marks the International Day of La Francophonie. I would like to thank the francophone organizations and institutions across the country and in my community of Orléans for the outstanding work that they do in advancing and promoting the French language. I would also like to recognize two francophone leaders from Orléans, Nicole and Louis Patry, who received the 2024 Ch…
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Madam Chair, I apologize. To guide these efforts, the Prime Minister of Canada and the President of Ukraine signed an agreement on security co-operation between our two countries in Kyiv this past February. I am very pleased with the agreement, and the reason we are talking about it tonight is that it builds on previous bilateral agreements between Canada and Ukraine, as well as on the larger NATO…
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Madam Chair, I thank my hon. colleague for his question. I like to believe that we share a common goal when it comes to support for Ukraine. From the very beginning, Canada has been there in support. We were also very much engaged in the Canada-Ukraine free trade agreement. We believe that this is a way to help support the rebuilding and to look at current components where we can help Ukraine in i…
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Madam Chair, I have a great deal of respect for my colleague, but I have to smile a bit because from day one, Canada has been firmly committed to providing help to Ukraine. I mentioned the training to help Ukrainian soldiers, the new co-operation agreement and the aid for rebuilding Ukraine. We recently announced $40 million to provide Ukraine with artillery ammunition during the 20th Ukraine Defe…
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Mr. Speaker, on February 12, I had the privilege of visiting students in grades five and six at the Maple Ridge French immersion elementary school in Orléans along with the Minister of Veterans Affairs for Valentine's Day. It was quite touching to talk to the students who took part in the Valentines for Vets program by making Valentine's Day cards. It was an opportunity for them to send our vetera…
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Mr. Speaker, last week, I had the pleasure of welcoming Marcos Farid Somarriba-Castillo, a student from Cairine Wilson Secondary School, along with his parents. It was a particularly significant occasion for him as it marked his very first time at question period and in the House of Commons. As a parliamentarian, I take great joy in being able to help students like Marcos who choose the co-op prog…
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Mr. Speaker, with regard to part (a), no Canadian Armed Forces, CAF, personnel were on exchange with the Israeli military during the period in question. There are nine personnel deployed to Qatar under Operation Foundation, an operation through which the CAF works with the U.S. and other partners to counter terrorism. These personnel provide HQ support in the U.S. Combined Air Operations Center, a…
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Mr. Speaker, the Chief of the Defence Staff, or CDS, and Deputy Minister, or DM, directive for Canadian Armed Forces, or CAF, reconstitution initiated a concerted, defence team-wide effort to rebuild the strength and numbers of its members and, at the same time, build on the structure and competencies that are necessary to defend and protect Canadians. The directive calls on the defence team to op…
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Mr. Speaker, the Royal Canadian Navy, or RCN, continues to meet needs at home and to support Canada's international commitments abroad. For example, the RCN is able to meet high-readiness requirements for deploying frigates annually, two per coast, while maintaining a minimum level of personnel on other ships and shore establishments to support force generation objectives. However, as with any pla…
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Mr. Speaker, in response to parts (a) to (e) of the question, Canadian Armed Forces, or CAF, members are not forced to take a lower pension due to assignment to a transition unit. A member’s pay in a transition unit is at the rate and increment they are entitled to and is not lower than the rate they had been receiving immediately prior to being sent to a transition unit. If a member is not changi…
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Mr. Speaker, building a defence team where all members feel protected, supported, respected and empowered to serve is a top priority. As such, the Canadian Armed Forces, CAF, makes certain to respect and protect, in a holistic manner, the spiritual dimension and needs of all its members. The CAF does not track religious denomination or faith tradition information from members who are enrolling unl…
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Mr. Speaker, as outlined in Canada’s Indo-Pacific Strategy, Canada has committed to expanding existing military capacity building initiatives that advance joint priorities and interoperability with regional partners, including the Philippines. As part of this commitment, National Defence is in the process of negotiating a non-legally binding defence cooperation arrangement, or Memorandum of Unders…
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Mr. Speaker, the Department of National Defence, or DND, administers the largest real property portfolio in the Government of Canada. The portfolio stretches from coast to coast to coast, occupying approximately 10 million square metres of floor space; 21,000 buildings, including nearly 6,200 buildings that provide over 11,600 residential housing units; 2.2 million hectares of land; and 13,500 wor…
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Mr. Speaker, with a mandate to protect and defend Canadians and Canadian interests at home and abroad, the defence team must have a focused approach to sustainability, while ensuring continued operational readiness. National Defence spent $390,836,130.63 on fuel purchases between December 1, 2022, and December 1, 2023. This includes the following categories of fuel: light fuel oil, aviation fuel, …
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Mr. Speaker, the well-being of Canadian Armed Forces, or CAF, personnel is of the highest priority to the CAF and National Defence, and the retention of trained and experienced personnel is fundamental to the professionalism and operational effectiveness of the organization. The Defence Team wants every Canadian to see service to Canada within the CAF as a first-rate career choice, which is why ef…
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Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 34(1), I have the honour to present to the House, in both official languages, the report of the Canada-France Interparliamentary Association regarding its participation in the 49th annual meeting in Île-de-France and Normandy, France, from April 1 to 8, 2023.
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Mr. Speaker, last week, we spent more than 30 hours voting in the House. The Conservatives voted against a salary increase for members of the Canadian Armed Forces, against $500 million in military aid for Ukraine and against funding for Canada's military operations here and abroad. The Conservatives have no problem and no shame voting against our armed forces and the support they need to accompli…
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Mr. Speaker, on November 25, I had the honour of taking part in Santa's parade of lights along St. Joseph Boulevard, which we are proud to call the heart of Orléans. We celebrated the 26th anniversary this year of Santa's Parade of Lights, the largest Christmas parade in eastern Ontario. It is always a special moment to walk along St. Joseph Boulevard to give out candy canes to the young ones and …
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Mr. Speaker, as outlined in Canada’s Indo-Pacific strategy, Canada has committed to expanding existing military capacity-building initiatives that advance joint priorities and interoperability with regional partners, including the Philippines. As part of this commitment, National Defence is in the process of negotiating a non-legally binding defence co-operation arrangement, or memorandum of under…
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Mr. Speaker, Canada’s approach to emergency management is a whole-of-government effort. Provincial and territorial authorities, Indigenous governments, and municipalities are the first to respond when a major natural disaster occurs. They may submit a Request for Federal Assistance, or RFA, to Public Safety Canada, which can ultimately result in the employment of the Canadian Armed Forces, or CAF,…
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Mr. Speaker, I agree with the hon. member. We need to replace the CP-140 Aurora patrol aircraft. However, we need to replace them with something that will serve the operational capability of the armed forces. No decision has been made yet.
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