Orders of the Day
Mr. Speaker, our Conservative colleagues talk a lot about corruption. One way to combat corruption in politics is to have a system where political parties receive a per-vote subsidy. The Conservatives are the ones who did away with that system. I would like to hear my colleague's thoughts on that.
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Mr. Speaker, we agree with the Conservatives. The government's refusal to produce the documents requested by Parliament is unacceptable. However, the Conservatives have done the same thing in the past. In fact, under Mr. Harper, the Conservative government fell on that very issue. Has my colleague given any thought to ways of preventing this kind of situation from happening again? Would he be will…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Mr. Speaker, I have asked two or three times now what could be done to prevent this kind of situation from ever happening again. This does not seem to be of any interest to the Conservatives. The Conservatives have also been reprimanded for refusing to table documents at Parliament's request. We agree that the Liberals are no better. What guarantee do we have that the Conservatives will not do the…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Mr. Speaker, I would like to know what my colleague thinks about this. Of course it is unacceptable that the government is refusing to comply with an order of the House to produce documents. We have heard allegations that this also happened with previous Conservative governments. I would like to know whether my colleague has any ideas about what we can do to prevent this type of situation from hap…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Madam Speaker, I was wondering whether my colleague has any ideas as to what measures could be put in place to prevent this kind of situation from happening again, to prevent the government from simply refusing to give access to documents and getting away with it as it is now.
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, I am very proud to mark the 350th anniversary of Pointe‑aux‑Trembles, which is known for its rich history, heritage sites and larger-than-life personalities. Local luminaries include authors Robert Chevalier, Claire Wojas and Serge Bouchard, athletes Rodrigue Gilbert and the Dufour‑Lapointe sisters, artists Marie‑Claire and Richard Séguin and Christian Bégin, and the Léger family of p…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, the Governor General has had three years to learn French. Taxpayers even paid $28,000 for her to take lessons. Clearly, she has not been trying. Why should she bother? She already landed the job. This is another example of history repeating itself for francophones. Today, we are talking about Mary Simon, but it was the same thing when Air Canada appointed Michael Rousseau. When will t…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, my colleague is blaming the Bloc Québécois and talking about Quebec. However, when it comes to immigration, we have no idea where the Conservatives stand. Do they agree on the need for a more equal distribution? What are their concrete commitments? In terms of official languages, for example, we know that almost all official language funding is spent on English in Quebec. Have the C…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I would like my colleague to comment on the fact that the exemption for religious texts that promote hatred is maintained in the bill. What does he think of the religious exemption for incitement to hatred?
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I congratulate my colleague on her speech. Would she agree that we should split the bill? That way, we could deal with part 1, which covers everything dealing with sexual content, separately from the other parts of the act that we find more problematic.
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, I want to congratulate my colleague on his excellent speech. Personally, I think this is a case of major interference in Quebec's businesses and financial services. How does my colleague think the financial community in Quebec will react? What dynamic can we expect to see?
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, I congratulate my colleague on his French, and I salute all Franco-Manitobans. We have heard several Liberal ministers say that they are going to take action to protect French in Quebec and that they recognize that French is in decline in Quebec. However, an analysis of the public accounts reveals that 94% of official-language funding programs in Quebec are used to strengthen Englis…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, the budget implementation measures in Bill C-69 are full of interference in the jurisdictions of Quebec and the provinces. Whether it is a question of housing, health, education or the banking sector, the fiscal imbalance really is on full display. I would like to know what my colleague thinks.
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, by hiring unilingual anglophone employees, Canada Post is undermining the right of all its employees in Quebec to work in French. This issue is putting the reformed Official Languages Act to the test. Let us not forget that Quebec and the Liberals reached a compromise that does not require federal corporations to comply with the Charter of the French Language. Canada Post is using tha…
Read full speech →Government Orders
With regard to the Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada Client Support Centre, in its Montreal offices: what is the number of (i) unilingual anglophone, (ii) bilingual, (iii) unilingual francophone, agents?
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, as everyone knows, the Liberals say they have stopped subsidizing oil, but they continue to do so indirectly. They are subsidizing big oil through the pipeline project, as well as through all the subsidies to help carbon capture and, basically, to help make tar sands oil cleaner. Does my colleague think that oil companies really need these tax credits? Will this not just lead to eve…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, we saw in the motion that the Liberals seemed to be trying to prevent the release of the report. Earlier, we heard the Minister of Environment and Climate Change say that he had stopped subsidizing oil when in fact he continues to subsidize the oil companies in all manner of ways, including the pipeline and so-called carbon capture. What does my colleague make of this doublespeak?
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, it seems that the Conservatives moved this motion because the Liberals wanted to censor the report. Now the report has been released. The Liberals keep saying that they have stopped funding oil, although they continue to fund oil companies in many ways, from building pipelines to subsidizing new carbon capture processes. Could my colleague comment on the fact that the Liberals keep …
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, my question is not about the substance of Bill C‑40, but about the time allocation motion. There are times when the Liberals filibuster, for example at the Standing Committee on Official Languages. They have done that at several meetings now because they refuse to accept the majority decision at the Standing Committee on Official Languages. In this case, they are tabling a time alloca…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, initially, it seemed that the government had done everything it could to cover up the issue. It began by refusing to hold a public inquiry. I want to know whether the government is now actually prepared to get to the bottom of the matter and expand the commission's terms of reference.
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Madam Speaker, I rise on a point of order. I would like to seek unanimous consent to change my vote. I made a mistake. I want to vote no.
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Madam Speaker, there have been discussions among the parties and, if you seek it, I believe you will find unanimous consent for the following motion: That the House recall Quebec's rich history, punctuated by bold gestures to defend and ensure the vitality of its only official language, French; That it unreservedly affirm that the strength of the Quebec nation certainly does not lie in bilingualis…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, one of the factors driving up food prices is climate change. The Retail Council of Canada representative explained that recent droughts and heat waves in California and western Canada have had a direct impact on the produce aisle. The price of lettuce and cauliflower increased by 30% during major heat waves that devastated crops, including in California, Arizona and Quebec. There are …
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, the Bloc Québécois is naturally in favour of this bill. I hope this will give citizens effective recourse. I heard about a lot of cases of abuse of power against people who wanted to be served in French, including at the Montreal airport. This seems to be done with impunity. There was even a university professor who was jailed for being a bit too insistent on being served in French.…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, that is nonsense. Unfortunately, it will not be long before the member for Alfred-Pellan's wish to anglicize Quebec comes true. The Liberals are working on it already. The Office québécois de la langue française reports that the federal government is the worst employer in Quebec when it comes to the right to work primarily in French. Quebec's French language commissioner has proven th…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, here we go again, having to talk about the Liberals' blunders when it comes to the French language. Last week, the member for Alfred-Pellan wanted to promote English to the status of an official language in Quebec. Obviously, he was criticized by the parties in the Quebec National Assembly. Even the Quebec Liberals described it as an attack on Robert Bourassa's legacy. In this Parliam…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, there is not a penny more for French in his official languages action plan. There is only one francophone state in North America. Only one. However, that is one too many for the member for Alfred-Pellan, who wants us to make English an official language. I will say it again for those sitting at the back who have not yet understood: In order for Canada to be bilingual, Quebec needs to …
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, last Thursday was the Canadian Open golf tournament in Hamilton. Clearly that Ontario town learned nothing from the last Grey Cup final and the heartfelt plea from Marc‑Antoine Dequoy. At the Hamilton Golf and Country Club, almost all the signage and ads were in English only. It goes beyond signs. For example, Quebec golfer Marc‑Olivier Plasse was introduced by the former president of…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, let us talk about the report from the Office québécois de la langue française. When it comes to upholding the right to work in French, the federal public service ranks dead last across all economic sectors. We asked the Commissioner of Official Languages about this yesterday. He noted that the number of complaints related to language of work has gone up, not down. In fact, the nationa…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, why is the federal government Quebec's worst employer when it comes to French? It is because the Liberals lack political will. By overhauling the Official Languages Act, the Liberals were supposed to impose a regulatory framework that ensured equality between French and English in federal institutions. We are still waiting. The Commissioner of Official Languages said that there needs …
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Madam Speaker, I would like to know what my colleague thinks about the questions from earlier to the effect that the Bloc Québécois should not criticize the Speaker because he is a Quebecker. I believe that where the person lives should not even come into play. There was another incident with the president of the Assemblée parlementaire de la Francophonie. Some people were saying that the Bloc Qué…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, while the Liberals were making headlines with their contradictions about French, the report of the Office québécois de la langue française slipped by almost unnoticed. However, guess which sector heads the list of workplaces where working in French is often the most difficult? It is the federal government. The federal government is the worst economic sector in Quebec when it comes to …
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, according to the Office québécois de la langue française, the federal government is the worst workplace when it comes to anglicizing workers. The impacts are catastrophic. Take Gatineau for example, where the federal government is the largest employer. Between 2016 and 2021, the proportion of people working primarily in French fell from 77% to 62%, a drop of 17% in just four years. Qu…
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Mr. Speaker, Bill C-356 reiterates the Conservative leader's talking points about the housing crisis. According to him, the municipalities are responsible for the housing crisis by tying up real estate development projects in supposedly needless red tape. One of the Conservatives' proposals is to set a target for increasing the number of housing starts. Beginning on April 1, 2024, the target would…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, I congratulate my colleague on her speech. Earlier, during oral question period, we heard the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance tell us how important the Quebec nation and the French language in Quebec are for her. However, there is nothing in the budget to subsidize French. From 1995 to 2002, I found that 94% of funding of official languages in Quebec went to support En…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, yesterday's insults send a very clear message to Quebeckers. As far as the Liberals are concerned, anyone who cares about the future of French in Quebec is an extremist who deserves to have the worst insults hurled at them. However, yesterday's discussion was about Statistics Canada data. Those folks are not extremists, but their numbers are extremely worrisome for the future of our n…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, this is not the first time the Liberals have gone off the rails. Let us not forget the member for Saint‑Laurent, who claimed that Bill 96 would prevent anglophones from receiving medical care in Quebec; the West Island members, who threatened to vote against their own reform of the Official Languages Act if it better protected French in Quebec; or the Liberals taking pride in all thei…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, a leopard cannot change its spots. Yesterday, in committee, the Liberals revealed what they really think about protecting French. According to the Liberals, people who are worried about the anglicization of Montreal are extremists who deserve to be disparaged with vulgar insults, which I will not repeat. That is how the Liberals treated witnesses yesterday because they were talking ab…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, for three years now, the Liberals have been saying that they recognize the decline of French in Quebec, that they will take steps to promote French in Quebec. However, we have yet to see them take any action. There were no measures in the latest budget either. What does my colleague think? Do they want to protect French in Quebec or do they want it to continue to decline?
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, since the Official Languages Act was first enacted, the Canadian government has been saying that it wants to protect the French language in Canada. However, in Quebec, home to 90% of francophones, it has used its official languages legislation to support only English. For two years, the Liberals have been saying that they now want to protect French, even in Quebec. However, we see not…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, in this budget, we see a lot of interference in the jurisdictions of Quebec and the provinces. Take, for example, pharmacare and dental insurance. Quebec already has such programs, but the government refuses to provide the right to compensation. What does my colleague think about that?
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, I would like to know why this bill does not comply with the Quebec-Ottawa agreement on labour and why it does not properly respect the collaboration with Quebec's partners.
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Chair, my colleague from Montarville was wondering earlier about the government's strategy. The government is fearmongering and constantly hinting at the possibility of a Russian invasion. It has also removed all non-essential staff from its embassy in Ukraine, while the majority of European countries have maintained their staff on site as a sign of solidarity with Ukraine. I would like to hea…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, the Bloc Québécois will be supporting the motion. I would like the member to give us more information on the last part, which aims to recognize Palestine as a state, as several other countries have done. We tabled a motion to that effect a few years ago, but we did not have enough support. I would also like the member to tell us about her proposal to try and put an end to the occupati…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, perhaps French is in decline at the federal level because never before have the Liberals appointed so few francophones to decision-making positions. Francophones were appointed to only 21% of the key departmental positions that are supposed to be bilingual. That is the worst record since 2015. When Liberal ministers make political appointments, they appoint only unilingual anglophones…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, first of all, I want to congratulate my colleague from Rimouski-Neigette—Témiscouata—Les Basques for his excellent speech and his dedication to the French language. He mentioned a lot of figures, including the percentage of funding allocated to French-language research funds compared to English-language research funds. I think it was something like 95% for English. It reminds me of of…
Read full speech →Statements By Members
Mr. Speaker, after the English-only Grey Cup controversy, and the hockey game in Winnipeg, Manitoba, where Punjabi was used in place of French, Louis Riel must have turned over in his grave. This Saturday, francophones had to endure more disrespect, this time at the NHL all-star game in Toronto, where the national anthem was performed in English only. Need we remind people that Canada is supposed …
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, the Bloc Québécois agrees with the principle of the motion. We spoke out against rising auto theft at the port of Montreal before the Conservatives. We think they are taking liberties with the logic underpinning today's motion. They are taking shortcuts that distort reality. For example, claiming that Bill C‑5 is responsible for the increase in auto theft since 2015 is clearly false…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, what we are seeing is a marked tendency to extinguish the francophone presence in Canada. It is happening in the justice system, as my colleague demonstrated. It is also happening with appointments, such as that of Governor General Mary Simon, and in major events, such as the all-star hockey game and the Grey Cup. I am appealing to my colleagues in the national parties. If they choose…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, Bill C‑59 mentions the creation of a federal department of municipal affairs, to be known as the department of housing, infrastructure and communities. This could open the door to more interference, more disputes and more delays, despite the urgency of the housing crisis. My colleague also talked about removing the bureaucracy. What are his thoughts on the creation of a federal depa…
Read full speech →