Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, I do not think that the Prime Minister wants to hear this. It is official: Canada is giving up the fight against climate change. On Thursday, the Liberals are going to announce a new pipeline for dirty oil from western Canada, on top of Trans Mountain, which has cost taxpayers $34 billion and which will cost us even more in climate disruptions. It is a dark day, as dark as the dirty o…
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Madam Speaker, it is really something to hear the government say what a fantastic budget this is for the environment when, internationally, nearly 2,000 NGOs gathered at the UN climate conference gave it the fossil of the day award, an environmental booby prize, for its constant backsliding, including in this budget. Funds for electric vehicle incentives, the tree-planting initiative and the emiss…
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Mr. Speaker, this is a climate capitulation budget. It cuts Environment Canada's budget by 15%, ends the electric vehicle incentive program for light-, medium- and heavy-duty vehicles and eliminates green renovation programs. However, something else is very much a part of this budget. Subsidies for oil and gas companies are being increased and extended. Can my hon. colleague tell me how many more …
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Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister is in good company having brushed off the COP summit to meet with oil monarchies, because Canada is an oil monarchy. That is its identity. It received a fossil award at COP, just like the oil monarchies. It ranks 61 out of 67 countries in the climate performance index, alongside the oil monarchies. Today, the Liberals want to take another step backward. They want to…
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Mr. Speaker, my hon. colleague from Honoré-Mercier really surprises me. He formed an environment and climate change committee within the government out of concern that the government is completely giving up on the fight against climate change. Today, he shows up in the House and delivers a speech that is literally greenwashing, where he brags about a budget that has been so harshly criticized that…
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Mr. Speaker, Bill C-4 eliminates pollution pricing for consumers, for individuals, but it does not propose any measures to offset the negative effects on the environment. Furthermore, members will recall that when the government eliminated the carbon tax, they sent a cheque to all Canadians outside Quebec. This little gift was sent out in the middle of the election campaign as a rebate for a tax t…
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Mr. Speaker, my hon. colleague is proud to talk about eliminating carbon pricing. I would remind the House that this was one of the marquee policies of this government, which boasted that 80% of people were receiving more money than they paid. The government scrapped it without putting any other measures in place. Here is what interests me as a member from Quebec. I would like to hear my colleague…
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Mr. Speaker, I appreciate my colleague's comments, including his remark about the GST break on new homes. In my riding, however, the problem is that people are unable to save up enough money to buy a new home. Rents are rising and house prices keep going up, making the situation all the more difficult. I would like to hear what my colleague has to say about our proposals for people who have not sa…
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Mr. Speaker, I understand that my hon. colleague has little or no interest in measures to fight climate change. The Conservatives do not want a carbon tax. Pollution should be free. That is fine. His colleagues have the right to think that. However, does my colleague agree that, in the midst of the election campaign, the government took $814 million from Quebeckers to send election cheques everywh…
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Mr. Speaker, the Bloc Québécois fully supports part 2 of the bill, but when it comes to measures like the GST exemption for first-time homebuyers, we think that it does not go far enough. We know that saving for a down payment is one of the biggest barriers to accessing home ownership. Obviously, there is also the fact that rent and housing prices have skyrocketed and that it is hard to save up. T…
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Mr. Speaker, the Bloc Québécois is generally against mandatory minimum sentences because they have not been proven to deter criminals from committing crime. What is more, they have been proven to cause countless injustices with respect to sentencing. Can my hon. colleague tell me whether she has seen any studies that prove that mandatory minimum sentences have a deterrent effect on crime? Is she n…
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Mr. Speaker, during the 44th Parliament, the Bloc Québécois introduced a bill to provide a framework for the use of the Jordan decision, and in particular to ensure that the Jordan decision cannot be invoked for primary designated offences such as sexual offences, murder, kidnapping, gun crimes or terrorism. I would like to hear what my hon. colleague thinks of this idea.
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Mr. Speaker, we keep hearing the Liberals say that this is a visionary budget for future generations. However, the budget provides no new money for the environment, to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. There is also no money for protecting parks. This morning, the commissioner of the environment and sustainable development said that Canada was not on track to meet its greenhouse gas reduction targe…
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Mr. Speaker, this budget is the epitome of climate capitulation. The Department of the Environment's budget is being cut by 15%. The emissions cap for the oil and gas sector is being eliminated. Oil companies are getting tax credits. That is just a short list. The commissioner of the environment and sustainable development was clear this morning. He confirmed that, even before the budget, Canada w…
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Mr. Speaker, we in the Bloc Québécois strive to be thorough, to work based on science, traditional knowledge and local expertise. We think it would be interesting to study this bill, because it raises a number of rather important questions. For example, we believe that harmonizing fishing seasons across a large ecosystem with regional differences poses risks to some species and could be problemati…
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Madam Speaker, I am somewhat surprised by the leader of the official opposition's reaction to the budget. The tax cuts should make him happy. There is also talk of extending funding for oil companies and abolishing emissions caps in the oil and gas sector. The budget talks about amending the clean electricity regulations, most likely to weaken them, and the same goes for fossil fuel regulations. T…
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Mr. Speaker, since this government came to power, the fight against climate change has experienced a lot of setbacks. Carbon pricing is gone and there is no money for electric vehicles. There are pipelines and LNG projects. We were told that we would see a climate competitiveness strategy. Looking at this budget, we see a $589-million investment in this strategy until 2030. Of the $589 million, $5…
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Mr. Speaker, the Liberals announced today that they are scrapping their program to plant two billion trees. This decision to abandon this strategy is a big deal. It was one of the only green measures left over from the Trudeau era, and this is happening on the same day as a budget full of bad news for the environment. The budget will provide details about the new federal strategy, known as climate…
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Mr. Speaker, we are talking about the Criminal Code, which is under federal jurisdiction. However, the administration of justice is largely Quebec's responsibility. We know that there are already problems, particularly around the fiscal imbalance. Additional transfers are needed, including for health care. Can my hon. colleague acknowledge that there is a fiscal imbalance and explain how Quebec wo…
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Mr. Speaker, right now, the St. Lawrence River is at its lowest level ever. The drought currently affecting Quebec is impacting ecosystems, the local economy, maritime trade, and agriculture. Towns are bringing in drinking water from different locations. There are drought issues. We saw the forest fires in Canada; this year was the second-most devastating year for forest fires after 2023. We had c…
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to ask my hon. colleague a question, and I would like to congratulate her on her election. The current bill you are proposing does not amend the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, which is the enabling legislation of the Department of the Environment. However, it is the Department of the Environment that is responsible for the current weather forecasting services. Why…
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Mr. Speaker, the federal government is not content to force us to pay so that Ontario can compete with Hydro-Québec. It goes beyond that. If Ontario develops its nuclear sector, it will generate more radioactive waste too. What might happen to that waste? Most likely, it will get stored at Chalk River, where it is stored now, on the shores of the main source of drinking water for millions of Quebe…
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Mr. Speaker, Ottawa just announced $2 billion to build a nuclear plant in Ontario. For years Quebec has been offering to sell them real clean electricity, but Ontario and Doug Ford refuse. Today, the federal government announced that it will make Quebeckers pay for a nuclear power plant in Ontario that will enable it to compete with Quebec's truly clean energy. Quebeckers are losing three times ov…
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Madam Speaker, I would like to know what my hon. colleague thinks of the government's recent announcement that it plans to hire 1,000 additional Canada Border Services Agency officers. According to the union, there is a shortage of 2,000 to 3,000 officers. Is my colleague satisfied with this announcement about hiring 1,000 additional officers? Does he think CBSA should aim more towards what the un…
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Mr. Speaker, the Bloc Québécois has a solution for tackling the deficit. At present, the government is still subsidizing the oil and gas industry, despite the fact that, in 2023, it announced a minor measure to phase out subsidies to that industry. In 2024, it was supposed to introduce a new measure to further phase out the subsidies, yet in 2024, the oil and gas industry received $28.5 billion in…
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Mr. Speaker, if we want to do something about high food prices, we need to tackle the real causes of rising prices. Climate change impacts are directly related to significantly higher food prices. We need to step up the fight against climate change, accelerate greenhouse gas emissions reduction and develop well-funded strategies. We need strategies to address crop loss due to unpredictable weather…
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Mr. Speaker, we have to remember how this bill came into being. Despite the extremely serious sexual allegations involved in this case, the Liberal government's former minister of national defence flatly refused to meet with the military ombudsman 12 times, refused to look at the evidence and even claimed that he wanted to avoid interfering in the investigations. My question is simple. Why should …
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Mr. Speaker, the former prime minister's entourage clearly knew that Mr. Vance was facing allegations. There was talk about serious suspicions of sexual misconduct cases. This matter is extremely serious and outrageous. I have young daughters and I feel disgusted. The bill introduced in the previous Parliament was the same as this one and it failed to pass. Does the government truly intend to pass…
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to come back to the very essence of this bill. One of the recommendations in the Arbour report is recommendation 5, which I mentioned earlier. It proposes completely removing from CAF jurisdiction the investigation and prosecution of Criminal Code sexual offences committed within Canada. As I understand it, that was the only recommendation that required legislation. Does …
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Mr. Speaker, this bill responds to the recommendations in the Arbour report, including recommendation 5, which essentially proposed completely removing from CAF jurisdiction the investigation and prosecution of Criminal Code sexual offences committed within Canada. I would like to know whether my hon. colleague agrees with this recommendation, which is central to this bill.
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Mr. Speaker, it is interesting to hear my Conservative colleague speak. We remember that there were very clear allegations of sexual misconduct against Jonathan Vance at the time. However, he was still appointed chief of the defence staff, even though the Canadian Armed Forces had just been criticized for their handling of sexual misconduct and sexist culture. Instead of appointing someone with an…
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Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order. My hon. colleague seems to be saying that there are problems with the interpretation. He did not hear half of my question. Is that because he was not wearing his earpiece or because there are problems with the simultaneous interpretation?
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Mr. Speaker, I understand that my colleague would like some changes to be made to how things are handled abroad, outside Canada. Could she clarify whether the NDP intends to suggest amendments in this respect? If so, what kind of amendments would they be?
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Mr. Speaker, the Bloc Québécois has several proposals for cracking down on criminal organizations. I would like my hon. colleague to talk about the idea of prohibiting criminal organizations from openly displaying their emblems or patches. We are currently seeing criminal organizations wearing them with impunity and promoting their criminal activities completely legally. To us, that is a problem. …
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Mr. Speaker, is my hon. colleague's government in favour of creating a specific offence to make it a crime to recruit young people to commit offences, as organized crime currently does?
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, it is an honour to present this petition signed by Canadians who are concerned about the Prime Minister's inaction on sustainable finance. These petitioners draw the attention of the House to the fact that 10 years ago, in a speech, the Prime Minister referred to what he himself called the “tragedy of the horizon”. Among other things, he called for climate risk to be integrated into t…
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Mr. Speaker, I would basically like to come back to the issue of the religious exemption. It seems to me that the government has shown a willingness to potentially study it if the opposition parties bring it to committee. I would like to know whether my Conservative colleagues share our point of view on the importance of debating this issue, which is happening on the streets of Quebec.
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Mr. Speaker, I have a relatively simple question and I would like a relatively simple answer. There is currently an exemption in the Criminal Code known as the religious exemption. Does my colleague agree with that exemption?
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Madam Speaker, we have often said that we want to move this bill forward and work on it in committee. However, it is important for us to remind the House that we have concerns, particularly with respect to the right to protest. In Quebec, we have a long history of peaceful protests. I would like my colleague to tell us at what point he thinks it could become a crime to obstruct access to a place. …
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Madam Speaker, intimidation-related offences are probably one of the most urgent issues right now. We see that with online bullying. Bill C‑9 is relatively weak. We in the Bloc believe it could go further in that regard. Obviously, we will be proposing amendments to that effect in committee. I would like to know why the government seems to have limited its own ability to intervene in order to prev…
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Madam Speaker, it is simple. If we really want to tackle high food prices, we need to tackle the real causes. The main cause in North America, the main factor driving up prices, is climate disruption, droughts, floods and crop losses. We are having problems again this year. We are now witnessing a competition between the Conservatives and the Liberals over which one is the more pro-oil and pro-gas…
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Mr. Speaker, the Bank of Canada, the undisputed authority on inflation, estimated that the planned increase in the carbon tax this year would have raised prices by 0.1% in Canada in the provinces where the tax applied. I would remind the House that it did not apply in Quebec. In Quebec, the projected increase was 0.01%, which is marginal. That is one-hundredth of 1%, or one cent per $100 purchase.…
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Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to hear my colleague talk about climate change. I am pleased to hear her make the connection between the cost of food and extreme weather events such as heat waves and droughts, which have a major influence on inflation and the price of food. We in the Bloc Québécois are offering solutions. The government once pledged to abolish some of the oil and gas subsidies, but…
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Madam Speaker, we said that we were open to studying this bill in committee in order to amend it. The Bloc Québécois will definitely move amendments to have the religious exemption for hate crimes abolished. The Minister of Justice has said several times that he is open to this idea. He said it again here in the House. I would like to know whether the Conservatives are prepared to support an amend…
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Mr. Speaker, the 250 municipal officials are reminding us that climate change is real. This summer alone, 95 communities experienced unsafe air quality, 54 were impacted by wildfires, 37 were forced to evacuate and 29 experienced extreme heat. As the mayor of Montreal said, we need to develop the economy by moving away from fossil fuel development as much as possible. Do the Liberals not understan…
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Mr. Speaker, people say that when the U.S. sneezes, Canada catches a cold. That is undoubtedly why, while Donald Trump rails against climate change at the UN General Assembly, Canada is turning into a climate change denier with Bill C‑5. Some 250 elected municipal officials have formed a coalition to ask the Prime Minister to build the country instead of burning it. They are demanding that the gov…
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Mr. Speaker, as we have already mentioned, we want to retain some flexibility to amend or remove certain provisions of the bill, particularly those that could unreasonably restrict freedom of expression or the right to protest. Among the provisions currently proposed, the Bloc is particularly concerned about the ones that would criminalize obstructing or interfering with people's access to certain…
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Mr. Speaker, in our view, the offence of intimidation is probably the one that represents a truly important need. Among other things, it will make it easier to crack down on online hate speech. Does my hon. colleague think that the current provisions on intimidation are sufficient? In his opinion, do police forces and prosecutors need more tools than what is being proposed?
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Mr. Speaker, I understand that my Conservative colleagues have some concerns about this bill, including with respect to freedom of expression and the right to protest. To us, the new provision criminalizing the act of obstructing or even interfering with people's access to a place is somewhat more concerning. Obviously we will look into this more and work on the bill in committee. However, I would…
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Madam Speaker, what we have seen over the past few months is that this new government is all about “drill, baby, drill”. It is open to the idea of pipelines. It is praising the oil sands, when they are already the main environmental issue in Canada. Emissions from oil sands production alone are higher than all of Quebec's greenhouse gas emissions. Given that the government is backtracking on the e…
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