Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, what is clear, what we found out yesterday, is that, under the guise of fighting the pandemic, the Prime Minister voluntarily played with Canadians' mental health. He manipulated people to get votes in the last election. He kept parliamentary activities to a minimum to prevent us from scrutinizing his cabinet's decisions. He stigmatized all Canadians whose opinions differed from his. …
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Mr. Speaker, this morning, the chair of the Quebec Liberal caucus proved us right. For months now, we have been asking for greater clarity, for science-based decisions and, most of all, for a unifying rather than a divisive approach. Unfortunately, the Prime Minister has been doing the opposite for the past two years by demonizing everyone who disagrees with him. Will he finally admit that he is p…
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Mr. Speaker, this morning, the member for Louis-Hébert and chair of the Quebec Liberal caucus made himself very clear. He asked his government to provide a roadmap, a game plan for where we are going with all this. That is what we have been asking of the Prime Minister for the past two years, but there has been no response from him. The Prime Minister chose to politicize the pandemic that is divid…
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Mr. Speaker, the Fraser Institute has revealed where 35 developed countries rank on its Misery Index. Thanks to its high rates of inflation and unemployment, Canada is ranked the sixth most miserable country. That does not come from me, it is what the report says. This ranking does not even include January's data, which confirms that 200,000 jobs were lost. Jason Clements, the institute's executiv…
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Mr. Speaker, I thank the minister for her comments, but I invite the Prime Minister to leave his house and find a solution to the problem. In January, Canada lost 200,000 jobs and the unemployment rate reached 6.5%. In December, it was 5.9%. The Liberal government has no plan for creating jobs and no plan to reduce inflation, which means that Canadians, again, Canadians, are having a hard time pay…
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Mr. Speaker, Canadian athletes will soon be in Beijing for the Olympic Games, and on behalf of the entire Conservative Party team, I wish them every success and hope they win a lot of medals. However, according to the NGO Human Rights Watch, the freedom of expression that the International Olympic Committee is supposed to provide to athletes during the Beijing Olympics is worthless in China. We ar…
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Mr. Speaker, the Russians are about to invade Ukraine. They have amassed 100,000 troops along the Ukrainian border. They have also moved blood supplies to their field hospitals, as they anticipate the possibility of considerable loss of life. Ukraine has been pleading with Canada to send defensive weapons, but the Prime Minister is refusing its request. As proof of the imminent danger, Canadian tr…
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Mr. Speaker, Ukraine will likely be the theatre of a major conventional land war. We have been watching Russia's military buildup in Belarus, in Russia, in the Donbas region and in Crimea since the Russians held exercises in September. Russia has been threatening Ukraine for some time now, and this Liberal government has had months to prepare a military assistance plan for our friends in Ukraine. …
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With regard to government litigation related to non-compliance of contractual obligations, which has been commenced or has been ongoing since January 1, 2020, related to contracts signed by the government: (a) how many contracts are the subject of litigation; and (b) what are the details of each contract involved in the litigation, including the (i) date, (ii) description of the goods or services,…
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With regard to all contracts signed by the government where advance payments were made since February 1, 2020, broken down by department, agency, or other government entity: (a) how many such contracts were awarded; (b) what is the total value of those contracts; and (c) what are the details of each contract with advance payment, including the (i) date, (ii) description of the goods or services, i…
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Mr. Speaker, how much more evidence does the Prime Minister need to ban Huawei? This week we learned from the Washington Post that Huawei was promoting its products to governments saying that they could use voice recognition on citizens and even surveil politicians of interest. The Prime Minister knows that under the Chinese Communist regime, businesses are required to provide information to the r…
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Mr. Speaker, I do indeed know a thing or two about security, and we know that four of the countries in the Five Eyes alliance, which Canada is a part of, have decided to ban Huawei because it poses a threat to their national security. Why is Canada incapable of understanding that Huawei must be banned from 5G development for national security reasons? Yet more evidence came to light this week in t…
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Madam Speaker, it brings me no great joy to rise in the House today to speak to Bill C‑5. The first thing I want to point out is that this bill is an exact copy of Bill C‑22, which was introduced and debated in the previous Parliament. Then there was an election, so now we have to start over. On second thought, maybe starting over is not such a bad thing, because if Bill C‑22 had been adopted in i…
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Madam Speaker, that is precisely what I was saying at the beginning of my speech when I quoted my colleague from St. Albert—Edmonton. When we talk about opioids, we are talking about fentanyl. Let us not forget that there are criminal networks of dealers importing and selling these substances. Traffickers mix opioids, cocaine and other drugs, and the concentration becomes too high, which is why ev…
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Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague and I congratulate him on his election. We did not win his riding. I do believe in the concept of occasional criminals and career criminals. There is nothing to be done for some criminals, while others simply have bad luck. However, lighter sentences will work in favour of new criminals, youth, who will say to themselves that if they commit an offence, they will…
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Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for her question. That is part of the ideological debate, the position we should take on matters of public safety. As I mentioned, being indigenous, Black, white or other is irrelevant. We are all human beings with two hands. When we decide to commit a crime with a gun, for example, we have to pay the price. I know that the notion of indigenous group or race was…
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Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for his question. Based on what I hear from my colleagues, rural areas in Alberta and Saskatchewan are experiencing serious problems with people breaking into isolated homes while the owners are present. These people show up drunk, high and armed. These offences happen often and are a huge problem. This type of breaking and entering in rural areas is a problem t…
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Madam Speaker, I would like to thank the hon. member for his question. Obviously, I do not have the information with me. However, one thing is certain: Law and order follow a certain basic logic in our society. Do we want a society where people know that, if they commit a crime, there are practically no consequences, or do we want a society that makes sure that people who decided to commit a crime…
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Madam Speaker, every week, we hear from Canadians who do not understand why a certain judgment was handed down, why a person who committed a crime received a short sentence or a third of a sentence. We often hear questions about judgments. The most important part of our job is creating laws. The administration of justice is the purview of judges. Of course, we need to provide the justice system an…
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Madam Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague. I actually did mention in my speech that I was not talking about drug users. Drug use is a problem that needs to be managed. In this case, we are talking about criminals like drug dealers and drug traffickers. That is where we think we need to continue to focus and step up our efforts, not the opposite.
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Mr. Speaker, I was expecting that answer from the minister. I would respond that since 2015, he has been donating to the Liberal Party. What we are seeing right now is that the contract, the kickback, is very high. We would like to know why we are maintaining a five-year contract for the land on Roxham Road. Does the government intend to let the Roxham Road problem go on indefinitely?
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Mr. Speaker, when the Prime Minister says he does not think about public finances, we know he is telling the truth. He just renewed a five-year contract with a Liberal friend to lease land near Roxham Road without a call for tenders. Will the Prime Minister show some transparency and tell us how much taxpayers will have to pay for that five-year contract?
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his question. It is good to see him in the House, so I thank him for being here. The fact is that all the committees are already overloaded because they have to conduct their own studies on specific subjects or bills. For example, the Special Committee on Canada-China Relations had to be established because there were so many subjects that needed to be studied…
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Mr. Speaker, I think it is important I begin by providing some background so that people can understand why we are debating a motion today about what happened in Afghanistan. Let us remember that exactly 20 years ago, Canada was part of an international military coalition seeking to combat terrorism in Afghanistan. At the time, in the wake of the September 11, 2001 attacks, Canada decided to join …
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his question. He is a great soldier who served missions in Afghanistan and Iraq. When he was elected for his first term in office, he was just getting back from Iraq. I thank him for his military service. We know the Taliban are capable of the worst cruelty imaginable. They are lawless people who will do whatever they want to a five-year-old child because that…
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague from Jonquière for his question. We all like to poke fun at each other on Twitter from time to time. In the first part of his question, he says that the purpose of our motion is to make the government look bad. However, if the government had done its job properly, we would not be debating this motion today, and we could have debated a motion about something else. …
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Mr. Speaker, I was answering the minister's question about the fact that our election platform did not say anything about the number of refugees we were prepared to take in. That is where the discussion started. I will give my colleague the floor.
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Mr. Speaker, I do not have to apologize for bringing up what was obviously a tragic event. At the time, the Liberals hitched their campaign to that tragic event to boost their numbers in the polls and portray the Conservatives as heartless. That is what happened with that tragic event. Back to the matter at hand. Let us talk about international relations and foreign affairs, specifically our relat…
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That is what you did, and that is what happened. There is nothing at all distasteful about saying that; that is what happened during the 2015 election campaign. Remember that, everybody: You played politics with that.
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Mr. Speaker, when it comes to refugees and taking people in, this pertains to specific situations and would not necessarily be included in an election platform. It is also a matter of planning and responding. Back in 2015, Prime Minister Harper said that we would take in 10,000 Syrians. Then, during the election campaign, a dead little boy washed up on a beach. The Liberals then said that they wou…
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Mr. Speaker, could the minister explain why the refugee program changed one criterion from “in Afghanistan” to “outside of Afghanistan”?
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to know how many Canadians have been imprisoned by the Taliban.
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Mr. Speaker, could the minister tell us how many Canadians have been imprisoned by the Taliban?
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Mr. Speaker, do I have to accept an answer like that? We are talking about resources. Does the minister believe that Canada currently has the resources to receive 40,000 Afghans?
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Mr. Speaker, the government decided to set a target of 40,000 Afghans to be brought to Canada. Why was the number 40,000 chosen?
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Mr. Speaker, I can tell the minister that 1,280 Canadian citizens and permanent residents were left behind in Afghanistan. Next question, does the government know how many interpreters currently stranded in Afghanistan or Pakistan are awaiting their turn to come to Canada?
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Mr. Speaker, can the minister tell us if she knows how many Canadians were left in Afghanistan after August 31?
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Mr. Speaker, I understand that the minister is new to the job. Can the people who are with her answer us? Was the Department of Foreign Affairs at least informed by the Americans several months in advance that they were pulling out of Afghanistan?
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Mr. Speaker, can the minister tell us when the 40,000 Afghans will be welcomed into Canada?
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Can you confirm that your government knew the date on which the American troops were going to pull out of Afghanistan well in advance, several months in advance?
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Mr. Speaker, does this very good relationship mean that we regularly share intelligence with our colleagues, yes or no?
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Mr. Speaker, I will be sharing my time with the member for Selkirk—Interlake—Eastman. I have a question for the Minister of Foreign Affairs. Has Canada always had good relations with the United States, yes or no?
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Mr. Speaker, I have to wonder whether the minister has the information. All the proper Canadian agencies have already conducted their investigations and national security audits, and the reports have been filed. We all know the answer, and everyone knows that Huawei poses a threat to 5G and to Canada's national security. Could the minister be honest and set a date for when Canada will finally say …
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Mr. Speaker, this side of the House has been telling the government for three years now that Huawei poses a threat to Canada's national security. In 2019, Ralph Goodale, who was the minister of public safety and emergency preparedness at the time, was ready to address this. That was two years ago. All members of the Five Eyes have banned Huawei, except Canada. Even the Canadian industry has severe…
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Mr. Speaker, I will repeat my question. Could the Prime Minister be more specific about how long that will take? Can we get a timeline? At this point, can he tell us how many of those refugees have already come to Canada and how many have yet to be resettled?
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Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister cannot get his priorities straight. Last week, he again approved the entry of illegal migrants at Roxham Road, but, in the meantime, he is unable to follow through on his commitment to bring 40,000 refugees from Afghanistan to Canada. He can do whatever it takes to encourage illegal migrants, but, when it comes time to bring over those who helped us in Afghanistan, …
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Mr. Speaker, I understand that the Prime Minister is saying that there are complications and that things are not easy on the ground, but at the same time, when a promise is made it is nice to have a date and real action. Can we have an idea of how long this will take? How will it be done? Can these people who are at risk of being killed by the Taliban on a daily basis still believe that Canada wil…
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Mr. Speaker, today I would like the Minister of Public Safety to confirm that the problem in Canada right now is due to illegal guns, guns that cross the border, including ghost guns, as they are called, and not due to law-abiding hunters and sport shooters. Is the minister prepared to state clearly that the problem is those people, the criminals?
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Mr. Speaker, the wave of deadly violence in Montreal has cost the lives of three innocent teenagers in the past few weeks. The Premier of Quebec and his public safety minister are calling on the Liberal government to take its responsibilities. For years we have been trying to convince the Prime Minister of Canada that violent murders are committed by street gangs and criminal groups, not by law-ab…
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Mr. Speaker, the Liberal government wasted millions of dollars in the fight against COVID-19. However, it could recover some of those millions, such as the $100 million it overpaid to the Prime Minister's friend and former member Frank Baylis, or the $81 million it paid to Tango Communications Marketing, another Liberal Party friend. Both contracts were awarded without tender. Worse still, Tango C…
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