Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, as things stand, conversations about housing are, naturally, conversations about Build Canada Homes. However, for the past year, Build Canada Homes has been having a lot of trouble getting its programs up and running. We have been told a number of times that the CMHC no longer exists and that people have to contact Build Canada Homes instead. Build Canada Homes' own standards dictate …
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, on February 17, a technical briefing was held about Build Canada Homes. During that meeting, it was stated that Build Canada Homes would provide a response to the organizations within 30 days so that they would know what to expect. Unfortunately, what we are seeing today, several months later, is that Build Canada Homes is unable to meet these deadlines because it does not have the ne…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I wish I were wrong, but the record of the last 10 years in this Parliament shows that I am not wrong and that funding does not reach Quebec, or if it does, it is only after several years' delay. Obviously, this means there is less money in current dollars available for the construction of these homes. When will we see a program that is truly adapted to the regions of Quebec? When wil…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague from Cowichan—Malahat—Langford for his thoroughness. He has the ability to keep things in perspective, which is nice to see in this Parliament, especially after the two very partisan speeches given by the parliamentary secretaries. I enjoyed hearing my colleague's ideas on how to improve accountability. I would like him to expand on that. How does he propose that …
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, the debate on Bill C-26 is a good time to take stock of what the new Liberal government has accomplished after a year in office, even though the Liberals have been in power for 10 years, as we all know. When it comes to housing, there has been talk of cutting spending and eliminating immediate affordability supports, such as the Canada housing benefit, and supports for existing social…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, five years ago, I rose in the House to note that my son, Léon, was finishing elementary school. Naturally, five years later, it is time for his high school graduation ceremony, which he will be attending on Saturday. I would like to tell him that I am very proud to be his father and offer him my sincerest congratulations, especially since he made a name for himself in Quebec with his …
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I find it ironic that the member from downtown Toronto gave a speech on the challenge of access to housing and housing construction, because I get the impression that, for the last 30 years, the federal government has been doing nothing but building housing in downtown Toronto. In rural regions like mine, Abitibi-Témiscamingue, it is virtually impossible to access any federal programs…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, one issue that is very important to me, particularly as the member for Abitibi—Témiscamingue, is access to housing for first nations. I would like to see a program created by and for first nations. I am thinking in particular of the Yänonhchia' program, which aims to develop indigenous expertise but is not necessarily reaching the communities because of the way federal programs are de…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague from Calgary Centre, whom I hold in particularly high regard. As I said, this is one of the few bills that involves an unconditional transfer. In effect, this means that Quebec's money will be returned to Quebeckers. For that reason, we are somewhat open to it. We generally find that, with programs such as the Canada housing infrastructure fund, Queb…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, here we are discussing a bill that concerns unconditional transfers to the provinces and the topic of Manitoba comes up. I find that interesting. I had the opportunity to visit its legislative assembly in late summer. Interestingly, Louis Riel has finally been recognized as Manitoba's first premier. I am drawing a blank. I would like my colleague to remind us what the federal governme…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, my colleague is asking why. It is because homelessness has increased by 20% in Quebec and 199% in Abitibi—Témiscamingue. While encampments have become a permanent fixture, while Pauline Marois has been working on a summit on homelessness, and while municipalities and Quebec have been investing, the federal government has contributed not one red cent. It even took a public outcry to pr…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I know my colleague is a combative man, someone who is not afraid to take a stand and argue a point. My question is simple: Did he argue with his government when it came up with the misguided idea of tabling an economic statement that fails to address any of the concerns that might have justified urgently presenting such a statement? After all, it is not a budget. We could have waited…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, the Department of Natural Resources announced on Thursday that we are facing another bad summer for wildfires. However, that is not apparent from listening to the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources. Two days earlier, he was at an energy trade show in Calgary, calling the oil sands one of the great industrial achievements in Canadian history. He was boasting about speeding up oil…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, what I see when I look at this bill, and its timing, is that the Liberal government has done basically only one thing to achieve the 15% cuts per department that were announced to perhaps one day balance the budget. Otherwise, running a $70‑billion deficit is no big deal. The aim, then, was to cut 15% in every department. However, it seems that the only department that actually did it…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague from Beauce for his remarks. He and I have something in common. We both come from former Créditiste regions. That is worth pointing out. He told us that he was making a non‑partisan appeal. I would like to hear him elaborate. Can he name any good things that came out of the economic statement, particularly in relation to the 25% tariffs that Donald Trump imposed o…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, it is sad for me to have to say this to my colleague from Beaches—East York, whom I knew and particularly appreciated at the Standing Committee on Industry and Technology for several years. First, if his wife is in the gallery, I would like to take the liberty of telling her that she and my colleague have a lovely kitchen, which we have had the pleasure of seeing many times in committ…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I feel like it is Halloween and I dressed up as the member for Simcoe North, but it is purely coincidental. No need to worry, we did not call each other to confer before starting the day. I would like to ask him a question. In his speech, he talked a lot about risk. One of the major risks that I see at the moment was raised by one of his colleagues on his Facebook page. I have to cred…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I rather like my colleague from Mississauga—Lakeshore. We should hear from him more often in the House. I would like him to talk about the budgetary projections and fiscal anchors the Parliamentary Budget Officer mentioned. She projects that the deficit will be $6.5 billion higher, reaching a total of $71.8 billion, compared to the economic update released just a month ago. I found th…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, when it comes to supply and appropriations, a major issue for me in the past year has been the announcement about budget cuts to science and research. This will save the government approximately $27 million to $35 million over five years. Will saving this amount over five years really make a difference when we know that the deficit is over $70 billion? The government will save a mere …
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I was quoting a post. As I was saying, according to Statistics Canada, the GDP contracted by 0.6% in 365 days. According to Yahoo! Finance Canada, Brookfield's stock value climbed by 19.56% in 365 days. The GDP contracted by 0.6%, while Brookfield stock gained close to 20% in value. Is that normal? I would like to hear what my colleague has to say.
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for her ongoing commitment to gender equality in the House. Consistent with the intent of the bill, the Bloc Québécois supported it and also proposed amendments in committee, in a spirit of collaborative development. However, the Liberals, who now have a majority, rejected one that I think is crucial. I would like to hear the minister's thoughts on this matter. It…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, there is something to be said about the time when there was a minority government. We were able to strike a sort of balance between a more progressive vision of the justice system, championed by the Bloc Québécois, and a more traditional vision focused on law and order, with harsher penalties, advocated by the Conservatives. Unfortunately, the Liberal majority means that the governmen…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, according to my research, two trials were halted in my own riding in 2023 because of incessant defence motions. Clearly, the Jordan decision ended up being applied. Is that a problem with our justice system? Is there a lack of resources? Ultimately, will this bill help address that, or are we basically still leaving victims to fend for themselves when justice is not taking its course …
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, there is a growing scourge in our society, namely the use of the Internet to access violent material or material that sexually exploits children. This is a very serious matter and I would like to ask my colleague, the parliamentary secretary, a question. What solutions does Bill C‑16 propose, particularly in terms of what is required of Internet service providers, to stamp out this sc…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, there is clearly something important in this bill. However, in committee, the Liberals decided to vote against a Bloc Québécois amendment that would have applied mandatory conditions to any offence against an intimate partner, including purely financial disputes, such as fraud. These included a no-contact order, a ban on cross-examination, house arrest and a ban on possessing firearms…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, Bill C‑16 makes certain amendments to the Firearms Act. The bill “amends the Firearms Act to clarify that an individual whose firearms licence or registration certificate has been revoked is required to deliver their firearm”. Furthermore, no individual is eligible to hold a licence if it is suspected that they “may have engaged in an act of domestic violence or stalking.” We know t…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, let us all raise a glass today in honour of World Milk Day. Today is a reminder of how important dairy farmers and processors are. Lucky for us, we have dairy farmers in almost every region of Quebec. The dairy sector is a major driver of rural development, employment and the vitality of our regions and local economies. Consequently, continuing to protect supply management is essentia…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, I feel like I am unrecognizable today. In summary, I have concerns when I look at Bill C‑31, especially the part about public contracts. The bill says that this division amends the financial administration to authorize the government to make regulations with respect to the conditions under which contracts may be entered into, despite any other act of Parliament. Essentially, the mai…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, there are a lot of Ottawa Senators fans in the Outaouais region, and we salute them. However, there are also a lot of fans who love truly great hockey, and they want to watch the Montreal Canadiens' playoff games at the Slush Puppie Centre. However, the National Hockey League and the Senators are standing in their way. They invoked territorial rights to prevent Habs games from being b…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I spoke about Témiscamingue earlier. I will do so again because we did not get an answer in the economic statement about what is happening with the forestry industry, a key sector for Témiscamingue and for the Quebec and Canadian economy. There are no measures to help lumber mills retool. I am thinking in particular of the Béarn sawmill. In recent weeks, Chantiers Chibougamau announce…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I know that my colleague from Vancouver East has two issues she is passionate about: the living conditions and housing conditions of first nations. In the budget statement, the government clearly fails to address two major concerns affecting many Canadians. In the current context, the government has missed an opportunity, particularly to implement initiatives such as the Yänonhchia' i…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, like Quebeckers generally, I am a bit fed up with the centralist, exclusive vision of elite sports that Canada constantly displays. My colleague alluded to this in his speech when he said he was proud to see investments of $750 million. In the meantime, families, young people and seniors are not getting any help even though they need access to physical activity too. Where is the feder…
Read full speech →Statements By Members
Mr. Speaker, I can hardly contain my excitement over the Montreal Victoire winning their very first Walter Cup. Our champions defeated the Ottawa Charge by a score of 4 to 0. This is the first time in the short history of the Professional Women's Hockey League that the cup has been won by a team north of the U.S. border. All Quebeckers are celebrating alongside our captain, the GOAT and playoff MV…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, cost overruns are a Liberal hallmark. First there was Cúram, which is now costing taxpayers $7 billion following yet another cost overrun according the economic update. Everyone has heard about ArriveCAN and Phoenix, and now there is PrescribeIT, a software designed by the federal government to meddle in health care and prescribe medication. It cost $300 million, almost eight times mo…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, Alto has confirmed that the section of high-speed rail between Montreal and Ottawa will go through 1,700 properties. With no input from the owners, 500 of our best pieces of farmland will be cut in half. When the Alto people tell us that they are consulting towns and farmers, it is all for show, because they already know exactly where they want to go and what land they want to expropr…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, perhaps this is nothing more than a tall tale that started in Rouyn, but in the early part of the last century, two Anishinabe hunters, the Mackimoot brothers, returned to their community with a glittering stone from Conia Asini. Then, a prospector from Nova Scotia, Edmund Horne, took his canoe to the township of Rouyn. Once there, potentially as a result of contact with the Anishinab…
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for Haliburton—Kawartha Lakes for his concern, which we can feel, and for his commitment to this issue. These are deeply troubling issues that are difficult to address, but I think that he is doing so with great dignity. The fact that the bill is now at third reading is also a testament to his strong leadership. We just quickly completed report stage, but I think it…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, the Liberals are abusing their majority to cover up the Cúram software scandal. After spending months denying that any problem related to OAS or any cost overruns even existed, the government has added $451 million for Cúram and the Canada Revenue Agency to its economic update. That means another cost overrun where none was supposed to exist, to fix problems where no problems were sup…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, that is why the program has gone over budget five times already. The Liberals have had a majority in committee for seven days now. Already, they have killed an investigation into the Cúram cost overruns, which now total $7 billion. They decided that the investigation into Driver Inc. should be in camera, as though they care more about protecting dangerous truckers than the lives of Qu…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I have been following the bill's progress. There is something shocking about how Liberal arrogance is what is driving the decision to revisit committee discussions when there were amendments that responded to the justice's report and acknowledged her work. In particular, there was a Bloc Québécois amendment that addressed timely trials. However, the new majority got this amendment rej…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for Cambridge for her concern because she began and ended her speech by talking about those who served, those who came away with trauma or physical effects, those who need help. We heard from some of these individuals in committee. I would like my colleague to tell me whether she thinks that there will be political repercussions for the government because the Libera…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, what do they have to hide? The Liberals have just proven that a public inquiry is absolutely necessary. They know that Cúram is causing problems with the processing of OAS pensions because they are spending an additional $451 million to fix the problem. They know that there have been cost overruns. They have just added to them. In short, they have proven that the two problems are real…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, for months now, the Liberals have been insisting that there are no issues with Cúram. They keep saying that it is not true that pensioners are having trouble receiving their OAS. They are saying that it is not true that there are cost overruns and, above all, that there is no need for an inquiry or to hand over documents. In a dramatic turn of events, the government announced in the e…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I would like to hear my colleague's opinion about the risk of mistakes or of any issues that this might raise for gender-diverse individuals. Does she have any concerns about abuses by authorities?
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, go Habs, go! Spring is well and truly here because our Canadiens are in the playoffs. It has been a long time since their nickname, “Les Glorieux”, the glorious ones, has been so well-deserved. That is because, this year, the Canadiens have a new Maurice Richard in Cole Caufield, our first 50-goal scorer since Stéphane Richer in 1989–1990. I was five years old back then. This year, th…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, a Quebecker is once again proving that Quebec produces the best basketball talent. Cassandre Prosper is the first player from Quebec to be drafted to the WNBA in nearly two decades. The Washington Mystics selected the young 20-year-old guard 19th overall last night at the annual draft in New York. The Rosemère-born athlete will be able to help her new team make the playoffs. I certain…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for her very insightful remarks. It is refreshing to hear someone talk about transparency and accountability in the House. The Cúram software was known to have glitches. Five countries have adopted the Cúram system and experienced significant glitches. Australia has been dealing with Cúram glitches for 20 years. The same goes for Ontario. In 2015, a report by th…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, I request a recorded division.
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Madam Speaker, I want to sincerely thank the member for Richmond—Arthabaska for his leadership on this issue. He has been raising it in the House for weeks and giving specific examples from his riding. Let us talk numbers. The government is bragging about the fact that there were 85,000 cases but now there are 69,000 or even 63,000. That is the number we were given this morning. Should we be comme…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Madam Speaker, my colleague from Lac-Saint-Jean put his finger on something absolutely crucial. How was this managed internally? What instructions were public servants given? Were they given proper training in a timely manner? Were they given clear and accurate information? There were cost overruns. The deputy minister told us today that about 5% of cases had errors. What is happening with the add…
Read full speech →