Statements By Members
Mr. Speaker, after eight long years of the Liberal government, Canadians from coast to coast have had enough, especially those in rural Canada, like those from back home in New Brunswick. The urban-rural divide in Canada has only deepened under the current government. When the Minister of Environment states that it will not be investing in any new roads, rural Canadians feel unheard, overlooked an…
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Mr. Speaker, after eight long years of the Liberal-NDP government, Canadians are tired, ticked and overtaxed. The Liberals continue to fight to keep this punitive and ineffective carbon tax, which goes up again on April 1. In reality, they are fighting to keep grocery prices high and biting the hands that feed us. When we tax the farmer who grows the food and we tax the trucker who ships the food,…
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Mr. Speaker, it has been said that the character of a nation is revealed in how it treats its most vulnerable. I cannot think of a higher obligation for the House that houses the representatives of the people to take up than this very discussion. It is a matter of debate that should not be rushed. It should not be shut down and should not be in any way pushed through in expeditious fashion. We sho…
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Mr. Speaker, we request a recorded division.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. member for sharing his thoughts. However, I will take exception to where he is taking that thought. We cannot expect any parliamentarian who enters the House to separate what informs their decision-making process and the values they hold dear when it comes to debates in the House. If this is indeed the people's House, the House of Commons that represents the voices of…
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Mr. Speaker, I quoted the CEO, Krista Carr of Inclusion Canada. They are raising alarm bells on this matter and this issue at this point. If we do not get this right, we will never get to the other access points. It is absolutely critical that what we do in the House is the most fundamental basic thing, which is to make sure they have access to recovery and to hope. If we do not start there, we wi…
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Mr. Speaker, I always consider it an honour to rise in the people's House to speak in regard to matters of great importance and consequence for the nation of Canada. I rise with mixed emotions today as, obviously, many Canadians have been grappling and dealing with this issue and have been considering and discussing the issue for years and months. Even more recently, with the expansion of MAID, wh…
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Mr. Speaker, my colleague is from a neighbouring riding of Fredericton, and it is always good to have good debate and discussion with her. I want to assure her that the concerns we are hearing are that this pathway is being opened up and people do perceive that when someone is struggling in a season of difficulty, they may want to access, through the avenue of MAID, medical assistance in dying, fo…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
With regard to the October 26, 2023 announcement temporarily pausing the carbon tax on deliveries of heating oil: when the three year pause is completed in November 2026, does the government plan to tax home heating oil at the current carbon tax rate of $65 per tonne of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e), or will it be taxed at a higher rate, and, if so, what will that rate be?
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Mr. Speaker, what we did was vote non-confidence in the government as it needs to be replaced. After eight years of the NDP-Liberal government, Canadians from coast to coast are desperate for relief. A potato farming couple from Grand-Sault have seen their freight costs of oil rise over $300,000 a year, due to the implementation of the carbon tax. Now, these Liberals plan to quadruple it, which wo…
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With regard to the Auditor General’s report entitled “Modernizing Information Technology Systems”, in section 7.44: (a) what are details of the 22 high-risk projects monitored by the Treasury Board Secretariat (TBS), including, for each, the (i) name of the department or agency overseeing the project, (ii) project name, (iii) description, (iv) action taken by the government to address the concerns…
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With regard to the Auditor General’s report entitled “Modernizing Information Technology Systems”, in section 7.50: (a) which departments or agencies have requested funding for “modernization needs” and how much has each one requested; and (b) which departments or agencies were represented by the 83% of Chief Technology Officers that expressed they were not satisfied with the available mechanisms …
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Madam Speaker, today, we remember the real reason for the season. C is for the Christ child who was born in Bethlehem that first Christmas night. H is for the hope for all humanity that came down to us. R is for the fact that there was no room in the inn for Him. The question remains: Is there room for Him in our world and hearts today? I is for Immanuel, which means “God is with us”, and He is in…
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Mr. Speaker, yesterday the Liberals voted with the Bloc to keep the tax on farmers. This bill would have saved farmers nearly $1 billion between now and 2030. This Christmas season, people are hurting. P.E.I. farmers are paying between $30,000 and $75,000 more a year due to the carbon tax. A farmer in western New Brunswick has had his cost increase by over 30% on freight alone. This is unbearable …
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Madam Speaker, I will say to my hon. colleague that the real issue that is at stake is the fact that affordability across this country is a huge challenge for every Canadian. Farmers have been facing soaring input costs and competitive disadvantage for a long time here in Canada. That is not a small issue. Where I come from, they care about this. I hear about it. I receive far more calls on afford…
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Madam Speaker, it is always an honour to be able to rise in the people's House and share concerns and many reflections that we hear from back home. Today, I rise in the House to speak to our motion regarding Bill C-234 and its intention to remove the carbon tax from farm fuels, and to urge the government to take the pressure off its appointed senators to keep holding up this bill. Canadians are fr…
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Madam Speaker, I will remind my hon. colleague that it was the previous Conservative government that tried to pass meaningful Senate reform. The other side of the House fought that every step of the way. They tried to bring it about. Here is the issue. Are we going to listen to what our farmers are saying and enact what they want us to enact, or are we just going to acquiesce to an unelected body?…
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Madam Speaker, if one talks to those who grow our food, produce our food, work in our fields and those who represent the farmers, the overwhelming majority of them want this bill passed. This bill is a priority for the Canadian people. This bill needs to be enacted sooner rather than later. Today, we are talking about something that matters to those who put food on Canadians' tables. The best way …
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Mr. Speaker, after eight long years of the NDP-Liberal government, everything is up. Taxes are up, fuel is up, food is up and Canadians are fed up, but they are still hungry. Now, in the midst of this affordability crisis, the Prime Minister has doubled down on his plan to quadruple the carbon tax. We, as common-sense Conservatives, have brought forward Bill C-234, which would create another carbo…
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With regard to the new passport design: (a) how much was spent on the graphic design of the new passport; (b) which vendors were contracted or sub-contracted to do the graphic design work; and (c) how much was each vendor in (b) paid for graphic design work associated with the new passport?
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Mr. Speaker, our desperate Prime Minister, while in total free fall, is now trying to fool Atlantic Canadians by pushing the quadrupling of the carbon tax until just after the next election. It is clear now, more then ever, that the Prime Minister is just not worth the cost. After eight years, everything is more expensive. The government should listen to Premier Higgs of New Brunswick, when he tol…
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Mr. Speaker, after eight long years, Canadians cannot afford any more of these NDP-Liberal fairy tales. The carbon tax, with no way of measuring its effectiveness, according to the commissioner of the environment, is the most expensive, punitive, ineffective and useless virtue signal in the history of Canada. Last week, the Prime Minister finally admitted that Canadians cannot afford it when he an…
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Madam Speaker, on October 10, Prince Edward Island, and indeed all of Canada, lost a distinguished citizen and public servant: the Hon. Jim Lee, who served as premier in Prince Edward Island from 1981 to 1986. He accomplished many things during his time, including playing an instrumental role in the establishment of the veterinary school at the University of Prince Edward Island. He was also instr…
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Mr. Speaker, housing is absolutely a growing concern, and we are facing a housing crisis. One of the best things we could do is what the Leader of the Opposition has been calling on the government to do, which is to get rid of some of the gatekeepers that are blocking development in and around our cities, in our urban centres. We could reward and incentivize those who do build, those who are going…
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Mr. Speaker, I am glad to answer this member's question, absolutely. Personally, I never, ever supported a carbon tax. I want the member to know something: I made those points very clear. Furthermore, I want to ask the member opposite to explain why a colleague of his, the hon. member for Avalon has come out this very week and supported our motion to axe the carbon tax. He said: “Everywhere I go p…
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Mr. Speaker, it is an absolute honour to rise in the House today, and it is somewhat intimidating to follow the hon. member for Carleton, the leader of His Majesty's loyal opposition. We heard a very compelling case for supporting this motion. The fact is that Canadians are hurting from coast to coast to coast. They are feeling the effects of the soaring cost of living, the ever-increasing cost at…
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Mr. Speaker, one of the biggest things that is affecting the cost of everything is the fact that the cost of doing business is going up. This is indisputable. The wage earner cannot be lifted up, as has been famously said, by tearing down the wage payer. When they continually attack those who grow the economy and produce wealth, more wealth is not generated. It is better to go after a government t…
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Mr. Speaker, throughout Atlantic Canada, people are hurting. The soaring cost of living and the never-ending carbon tax increases are eating away at their pocketbooks and their morale. I see it on the furrowed brow of the farmer who has seen input costs go through the roof. I see it on the face of the single mom who is trying to put food on her table and get her kids to school and practice. I see …
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Madam Speaker, I would say this. The energy sector in Canada has been doing an incredible job up to this point in innovating and leading the way around the world with some of the best practices for extraction for energy as it relates to carbon capture initiatives and turning lands back into usable, functional areas and environmentally, eco-friendly development. This sector has had some of the best…
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Madam Speaker, I want to assure my hon. colleague from across the way, the most distinguished member from Avalon, that we have definitely heard the concerns of the region. That is why we are standing against this bill on principle. We have heard the concerns and the reflections of the premiers from a couple of the provinces, but we also have heard concerns about various bills that the government h…
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Madam Speaker, I would like to thank my hon. colleague for Saanich—Gulf Islands. It is so nice to see that she is recovering and doing well. I wish her all the best for a full and speedy recovery, and I continue to pray for that. I look forward to seeing her back in the House in person. As it relates to Bill C-49, what is really important is that we feel, overall, that the bill is detrimental to t…
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Madam Speaker, I thank the hon. member for Calgary Nose Hill for that great question and, absolutely, I could not agree with her more that the carbon tax is having devastating consequences on Atlantic Canadians. They feel it every time they fill up their car. They feel it every time they fill up their fuel tanks for their homes. They feel it every time they go to the grocery store, because everyth…
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Madam Speaker, I appreciate my hon. colleague's passion and exuberance regarding the question, but the bottom line, once again, is that the government has missed the mark. This legislation is poorly written. We cannot vote on legislation based on our aspirations or because we hope that it is good; we must vote on bills as they are written. Right now this has so many concerning loopholes in it. The…
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Mr. Speaker, as I was saying previously, it is so important that we get this right as it relates to Bill C-49. The critical importance of natural resource development, along with the critical importance of getting the renewable sector right and making sure that we expand the economic opportunities for the region of Atlantic Canada, are absolutely vital and important to not only the citizens of Atl…
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Mr. Speaker, it is an honour to rise in the House today to speak to this particular bill. It is good to be back in the House after our break. It was not really a break but constituency time, with very busy summers for a lot of us. It is good to see so many familiar faces on all sides of the aisle and to have this discussion. Today, I rise to speak to Bill C-49, an act to amend the Canada-Newfoundl…
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Mr. Speaker, when we are considering resource development and this bill, I think all Canadians want us to strike the right balance. They want us to balance out the responsibility to be good stewards of the environment and to ensure we care for the planet, not only for our generation but for future generations. That is an utmost priority for all Canadians as well those who live in my region in part…
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Mr. Speaker, it has been said about leaders that many communicate, but few connect. The tremendous address by the Leader of the Opposition about hope and home a couple of weeks ago connected with Canadians from coast to coast, so much so that even the Prime Minister lifted lines from it. Home has been described as both a place of origin and a place of destiny, a familiar and safe place, and Canadi…
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Mr. Speaker, due to the government's overreach, overspending and overtaxation, the financial pressure on Canadians has become overwhelming. In my region and across Canada, Canadians are struggling. Our Atlantic premiers have been clear: They need relief and they need it now. Meanwhile, the government is busy doing its dastardly dance of disorder with the Davos wonder class, amassing wealth and jet…
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Mr. Speaker, Canadians are tired the government's tepid tiptoeing through the tulips of political expediency with clear non-answers displayed just like that. Canadians are financially battered, beaten and broken, and they are tired of being belittled. When will the government end the delays, the denials and the deflection, and finally address the escalating dismay of being overlooked, overwhelmed …
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Mr. Speaker, the carbon tax has been in place in some jurisdictions in Canada now for nearly 15 years. The commissioner of the environment admitted at committee recently that Canada has no metric by which to measure whether there has been any reduction in carbon as a result of its implementation. With no results other than its diminishing effects on Canadian pocketbooks, why in the world would the…
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Mr. Speaker, I, too, want to reflect the sentiments you just expressed to our friends and neighbours in Nova Scotia and throughout the country who are continuing to battle forest fires. I thank our first responders and firefighters and their families for their huge sacrifice in making this recovery possible, getting these fires under control and protecting the good people of our region. I rise tod…
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Mr. Speaker, today marks the beginning of the 58th annual National Prayer Breakfast and leadership dinner here on Parliament Hill. The Canadian National Prayer Breakfast is the longest-running parliamentary event in Canada and is the longest-running national prayer breakfast in the world. I am deeply grateful and honoured to be serving as chair for this year's event that is seeing people from coas…
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Mr. Speaker, the current Liberal government continues to play a game of over–under with Canadians. While the Liberals gamble with our future through overtaxation and overspending, Canadians receive underwhelming results and overwhelming debt. While the Liberals and their elite friends rule over us, Canadians are under the heavy burden of doubling mortgage and rent costs, as well as record-high cre…
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Madam Speaker, I note the seriousness of the subject we are tackling here this evening. Having this happen to one of our colleagues, a member of this House, has sent shockwaves throughout the country and among fellow parliamentarians. The fact is that there was a delay in the response, and I believe others around the world are looking at Canada's response to this and saying they do not know how se…
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Madam Speaker, my hon. colleague's very thorough speech causes all of us to take time to reflect and think about the seriousness of the matter we are facing right now, and also about the absolute critical importance of Canada to do everything it can to restore its place on the international stage. What I mean by that is so that our allies have confidence in dealing with us as it relates to securit…
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Mr. Speaker, I grew up in the small forestry town of Nackawic, New Brunswick, which also happens to be the home of the world's largest axe. At the rate this government is increasing taxes, including a 41¢-per-litre hike on Canadians' heating, eating and meeting, we might need an even bigger axe to slay all of these back-breaking taxes. Will the Prime Minister, who is out of touch, take his boot of…
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Mr. Speaker, it takes an “unforgettable” amount of incompetence to increase public service spending by 53% and still end up with the biggest federal public service strike in history. Where is the Prime Minister this weekend? He is making a “brand new start of it in old New York”. We jest, but with how often he is out of the country, one would really think he is Frank Sinatra. We all know that at t…
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With regard to the First-Time Home Buyer Incentive (FTHBI) announced by the government in 2019, from September 1, 2019, to date: (a) how many applicants have applied for mortgages through the FTHBI program, broken down by province and municipality; (b) of the applicants in (a), how many have been approved and have accepted mortgages through the FTHBI program, broken down by province and municipali…
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With regard to inquiries and reports received by the RCMP in a language other than English or French, broken down by year for each of the last five years: (a) how many oral inquiries or reports did the RCMP receive, broken down by language; (b) how many written inquiries and reports, including emailed or online, did the RCMP receive, broken down by language; and (c) of the items in (b), how many w…
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Mr. Speaker, after eight years, whether it be our seniors on fixed incomes fighting the ever-rising cost of living, or families experiencing punishing fuel and grocery costs or our farmers, producers and transporters who literally keep our land, grow our food and haul our goods, Canadians are being crushed by soaring input costs, including the ineffective and punitive carbon tax. Canadians from co…
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