Government Orders
Madam Speaker, I want to try to find common ground. I think the leader of the NDP and I would both agree that the carbon tax disproportionately affects rural Canadians more than urban Canadians. My riding of York—Simcoe is now classified as urban. I think the leader of the NDP knows my riding as the soup and salad bowl of Canada, the ice fishing capital of Canada and the home of the Chippewas of G…
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Madam Speaker, the carbon tax, we know, disproportionately affects rural Canadians. I think we can all agree with that. I think even the member for Milton would agree with that. The government has come up with a meagre top-up. My riding of York—Simcoe includes all the farms and small communities like Pefferlaw, which is very north of Toronto, and we are not included now in that rural top-up. We ha…
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Madam Speaker, I always enjoy listening to the member for Winnipeg North. From a York—Simcoe perspective, since 2018, we are still waiting for the $40-million commitment for the Lake Simcoe cleanup fund. We still do not have it. We are still waiting on the freshwater action plan. Municipalities are calling me about that money. We are still waiting for our trees to be planted. In York—Simcoe, and I…
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Mr. Speaker, I enjoyed my colleague's speech. We know the carbon tax disproportionately affects rural Canadians. I was shocked this week to see that my riding of York—Simcoe is now classified as Toronto. The Liberals came up with this meagre top-up for people, which is about as handy as a front pocket on a pair of underwear, but now the people of York—Simcoe will not be getting it. All my farmers,…
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Madam Speaker, I rise on a point of order. Earlier today there was a speech. The member for Kings—Hants disclosed and misrepresented a personal conversation I had with him. I want to correct the record. The conversation I had was that the Liberal carbon tax plan was not working for the people of York—Simcoe. York—Simcoe is now considered urban, of all things, and included with the city of Toronto.…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, the desperate NDP-Liberal government's plan to pause the carbon tax on home heating will not help 97% of Canadians. This includes residents of York Region. They rely on natural gas and propane to heat their homes. The Rural Economic Development Minister said an exemption was not offered across Canada because those regions did not vote Liberal. News flash: 70% of York Region is represe…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, it has gotten so bad when this Prime Minister stands up in question period to answer a question, he does not know whether to answer the question or to say “not guilty”. Just this week, the Prime Minister directed his Liberal MPs and his NDP lackeys to shut down the ethics committee right when the RCMP commissioner was set to testify on the SNC-Lavalin affair. After eight years, this N…
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Mr. Speaker, we request a recorded division.
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Mr. Speaker, Canada's fresh fruit and vegetable growers should be paid for the fruit and vegetables they grow, full stop. Bill C-280 will ensure that fresh fruit and vegetable suppliers are not unduly disadvantaged by the bankruptcy of a produce buyer. The deemed trust established by this bill will also support the highly integrated produce trade between Canada and the United States. Farmers and o…
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Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister is running our country like he is the captain of the Titanic. He justified his record-high spending because interest rates were at historic lows. He encouraged Canadians to keep borrowing because those rates would stay low. He may as well have said that our country's finances were unsinkable. The captain of the crew of this ship ignored all the warnings about iceber…
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Madam Speaker, my hon. colleague is actually my neighbour in the soup and salad bowl of Canada, King—Vaughan. We were chatting earlier today about how important it is to get out in the community. I know my hon. colleague is always out in King—Vaughan, chatting with people. She told me that she had a number of conversations over the past week with people in the riding. Boots on the ground are impor…
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Madam Speaker, we request that the amendment be adopted on division.
Read full speech →Statements By Members
Mr. Speaker, small businesses are the cornerstone of our communities. They are the supporters of local sports teams, small-town fairs and charities. They are the job creators. They provide valuable goods and services to the community every single day. Unfortunately, after eight years of this NDP-Liberal government, it is now harder than ever for hard-working small business owners to stay open. Tax…
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moved that the bill be concurred in.
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Madam Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague for that, and I thank the NDP for supporting this bill. I would love to see my Liberal colleagues on the other side here unanimously consent it right to the Senate tonight. This bill is so important to fresh produce farmers. We have been talking about this since 2014. We were all elected here to get things done for our constituents. We have an opportunity t…
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Madam Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague and the Bloc for supporting this bill, along with my Liberal colleagues. It took so long to support this, but I think we are talking about it more and more. I picked up the Liberal budget that came out last fall and leafed through it and thought that it must be missing pages because there was no vision for the country. I believe that agriculture in…
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Madam Speaker, we all know here in the House that climate change is real and that it is happening. However, when the bill first came up, another external event was COVID. I met a farmer in the riding, and at the beginning of COVID, everyone was worried about getting paid. He came to me saying, “Scot, I don't think I'm going to plant my field this year because I'm worried about getting paid.” He sa…
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moved that the bill be read the third time and passed. Madam Speaker, we want to get to a vote right away tonight. I know all my colleague are excited to get Bill C-280 passed. It is a pleasure to rise once again to speak to my private member's bill, Bill C-280, the financial protection for fresh fruit and vegetable farmers act. I am encouraged by the support this common-sense Conservative bill ha…
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Madam Speaker, right now, far too many Canadians are sitting around their kitchen table with their head in their hands, saying, “What do we do now?” They are filled with anxiety, fear and apprehension about what the future holds, and it is no wonder. As inflation continues to rise, everything continues to get more and more expensive. Young parents, working families, seniors and students are seeing…
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Madam Speaker, I always thank my colleague for his support of my plastics bill. I think he has spoken 96 times now on the importance of my plastics bill, Bill C-204, that is going through the Senate again. It will be back in the House. In support of Lake Simcoe, I am glad he also supports our plan to put 15% of federal government properties into houses that people can afford.
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Madam Speaker, I am going to try to make my colleague understand. In York—Simcoe, people feel that they are on the outside looking in. They are paying the carbon tax, and right now they feel like they are subsidizing China to produce. They are looking around and saying to me, “Scot, we have got onions coming in from Egypt and Morocco. We are losing our competitive edge internationally.” This has g…
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Madam Speaker, I would say two things to the hon. member for Winnipeg North. First of all, the carbon tax relief would be instant for Canadians. The Liberals looked at where they were in the polling, and, all of a sudden, we have Bill C-56. Let us rush, rush again. I would also say, to bring up housing because it is so important in my riding, the Liberals have had, think about it, eight years to b…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, new documents show the Liberals billed Canadians more than a quarter of a million dollars for a three-day cabinet meeting supposedly focused on tackling inflation. Instead of coming up with any real plans to make life more affordable, the out-of-touch Prime Minister and his cabinet spent their time eating expensive meals at high-end restaurants. Inflation is out of control, but the Li…
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With regard to David Johnston's appointment as the special rapporteur tasked with assessing the extent and impact of foreign interference in Canada's electoral processes: how much total financial compensation is the government providing to David Johnston in relation to his role as the special rapporteur?
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Mr. Speaker, we are here in closure again with the Liberal government. Does the member opposite agree that more time to study this bill at committee would have helped strengthen it? I am looking at letters from stakeholders. They were pleading for more time. I wonder if the member could answer that and speak to our being in closure again.
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Mr. Speaker, on a point of order, I am confused about the member who is online. If he has the highest attendance virtually, does that mean he has the worst attendance in Parliament?
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Madam Speaker, I have been listening tonight. We know that democracy is going to be changed with this virtual Parliament. I wonder if the member has heard if the Liberal government has tabled or is going to table a stop-work order on Centre Block to save billions of dollars. Should we then, with their arguments, just make all of Parliament virtual? Do we need to spend $3 billion on Centre Block no…
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Madam Speaker, it is always interesting to hear my colleague from Winnipeg North speak about how much the Liberal government is doing. People in my riding of York—Simcoe are on the outside looking in. I am going to give the hon. member a couple of examples. He spent about five minutes talking about oceans, but the member's government did not support my Bill C-204, which was to stop the export of p…
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Madam Speaker, through you, I want to thank my colleague for Kingston and the Islands for his speech.
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Madam Speaker, part of this is about preparing our country for the future. I spoke about this in 2020. I wonder if the member could comment on this. Our country lacks CL-215 water bombers. Public Safety has asked the military for help. We do not have a fleet of water bombers; we are short of them. Australia has the polar opposite forest fire season than we do. It would make sense to have shared re…
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Madam Speaker, in my riding what people are talking about, alluding to the member's mention of the carbon tax, is affordability. They are talking about competitiveness globally. We are seeing onions come in now from Mexico and Morocco because Canada is becoming uncompetitive. This is about affordability. I think the member for Kingston and the Islands has had four electric vehicles. He could be on…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, batten down the hatches. Canada is at the greatest risk of mortgage defaults of any other developed country, and it is because the Prime Minister is steering this ship right off course. Liberal government deficits are causing inflation. Inflation is causing higher interest rates, and higher interest rates are causing Canadians to default on their mortgages. The Liberal government is f…
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Mr. Speaker, the minister alluded to his having prepared the country, that we know climate change is here. I would like to ask the minister this. I had a cabin burn down in northern Ontario. The firefighting force up there told me it was short water bombers. If we look to the CL-215, the government could have procured more water bombers. The president of Viking said yesterday that if a Canadian pr…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
With regard to reports of "March madness expenditures" where the government makes purchases before the end of the fiscal year so that departmental funds do not go unspent, broken down by department, agency or other government entity: (a) what were the total expenditures during February and March of 2023 on (i) materials and supplies (standard object 07), (ii) acquisition of machinery and equipment…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, Canadians are on the ropes, trying to pay this Liberal carbon tax. It raises gas prices by 41¢ a litre every single time they fill up. However, like a one-two punch, the Prime Minister is now forcing a second carbon tax on Canadians, adding another 17¢ to the cost of fuel. Canadians are already down for the count, having to take on extra jobs and turn to food banks just to get by. Ins…
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Mr. Speaker, I would request a recorded division.
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Mr. Speaker, I have a point of order on that point of order. Those numbers are part of the member's speech.
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Mr. Speaker, York—Simcoe is the soup and salad bowl of Canada and Lake Simcoe. At this very moment, the planting season has begun for fresh fruits and vegetables, and I want to wish all farmers right across Canada the best of luck. I know we are not allowed to use props, and I will set him down, but Gwilly flew in all the way from Bradford West Gwillimbury for this debate tonight. Canadian farmers…
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Madam Chair, I will be splitting my time this evening with two of my colleagues. I would like to ask the minister if he knows the average rent for a one-bedroom apartment in Keswick.
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Madam Chair, this is what frustrates Canadians. We ask a question and we expect an answer. This minister should know the answer to that, so I am going to try one more time. I am going to make it really easy for him because I know he can answer questions. What time is it?
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Madam Chair, the cost is now over $2,500 in York Region. It is enough to make most Canadians' eyes water. It has become far out of their reach. In York Region alone, house prices have gone up 122% since 2013. I will ask the minister something else: When is the last time he applied for a building permit?
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Madam Chair, just to correct the minister, I was never a mayor. I was a small business person before I got into politics. Does the minister know personally how long it takes to apply for a building permit?
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Madam Chair, I would like to know from the minister just how long it takes now to apply for a building permit.
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Madam Chair, to Canadians now this is not a game. These are questions this housing minister should know as a representative of Canada. These are important issues to Canadians. For a building permit now, the time has increased from 90 days to almost a full year. This is unacceptable right now. This is due to red tape and various other things that are happening in municipalities and it is unacceptab…
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Madam Chair, I can say what I would not do. I would not give the gatekeepers at CMHC $27 million in bonuses. If we look at where housing has gone in Canada, this is rewarding something that just is not happening at CMHC. Does the minister agree that, instead of finding new ways to line their pockets, the CMHC should be focused on lowering costs for housing for Canadians?
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Madam Chair, I will make it easy for the minister. I will ask more broadly if he can tell me the average in York Region, please.
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Madam Chair, I would like just the number, please.
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Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order. I think what the member was trying to convey is that Liberals are like atoms: They make up everything.
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Mr. Speaker, my colleague is a respected critic for public safety. We talk about surprises, and I was surprised. I wonder if he could tell the House why he was removed as critic and why the leader of the NDP removed him at the height of Bill C-21, seeing as he represents rural Canadians so well in his riding, and replaced him with the NDP House leader, who is really an urban MP. I wonder if the me…
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