Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, this minister is so far behind, he thinks he is in first place, but these reports confirm that the Liberals are failing in every respect: protecting the environment, fail; respecting taxpayer dollars, fail; supporting Canadian workers, fail; standing up for small businesses and first nations, fail. The minister may try and greenwash over these failures, but Canadians know better. Afte…
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Mr. Speaker, the environment commissioner's latest report confirms that the Liberals are all talk and no action on the environment. They talk about the importance of the carbon tax, but ignore the impact it is having on small businesses and first nations. They talk about a just transition from oil and gas, but provide no support to Canadian energy workers who are losing their jobs. They fly across…
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Madam Speaker, I am looking for something to vote for. We have been waiting since 2019 in York—Simcoe for the Lake Simcoe clean-up fund. I know the members for Niagara Centre, Kingston and the Islands and Winnipeg North all know how badly that is needed. It was promised in 2019, and we are still waiting. I would also suggest to the member that I represent the Holland Marsh, again the soup and sala…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, it has been five years to the day since the Liberals cancelled the Lake Simcoe cleanup fund. The finance minister stood on the shores of the lake in 2019 and promised to bring the fund back, but it has been 1,826 days and there is still no funding to clean up and restore the lake. It is unbelievable. Finally, municipalities and organizations from around the lake are joining me and my …
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Lake Simcoe.
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, I appreciate my colleague's comments about agriculture. I represent Holland Marsh, the soup and salad bowl of Canada, and would like to say how important food security is now and moving forward. When we see the rising prices of fertilizer, can the member speak to how this will affect crop yield, with farmers not planting as much of their farm as they should be? How critical is this …
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Madam Speaker, I wonder if my colleague could speak to the divide we are seeing between rural and urban Canada. The constituents in my riding note the carbon tax right now. We look at this bill and there is really no relief for people who are just getting by. In my riding people have to drive everywhere. We do not have the option of a subway or public transit. We have a great first nation in York—…
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Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister likes to say that Canada is back, but last week I was in Poland at the Ukrainian border and Canada was nowhere to be found. Thousands of Ukrainian refugees are flooding through border towns like Medyka, where they are given humanitarian aid from around the world, including from countries as small as Uzbekistan. Other nations are doing their part, but Canada has almo…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, many of my constituents in York—Simcoe are hearing from family in Ukraine who are suffering as the Russian invasion continues. A letter shared with me reads, “I write this with a heavy heart. We are experiencing more bombing and more communities are being levelled to the ground. Chaos is spreading and many people are dying. The beautiful Saint Sophia Cathedral here in Kyiv is older th…
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Mr. Speaker, on April 1, the price of alcohol will go up yet again for Canadians due to the Liberals' ever-increasing escalator tax grab on beer, wine and spirits. Canadian restaurants and bars will continue to struggle due to the impacts of the pandemic. Another tax hike is the last thing they need. This automatic, permanent tax increase must be reviewed by Parliament every year so we can support…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Madam Speaker, I, like my colleague from Whitby, saw thousands of Canadians standing on the overpasses as the convoys moved through. I thank him for mentioning that we should not be looking at those who are struggling as our adversaries; rather, we should be looking at them with mutual respect and sometimes a little compromise. We know it was the flip-flop on the mandates for the truckers that spa…
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Mr. Speaker, the Liberals' made-in-Canada housing crisis has gotten out of control. It is the same situation across the country, including in my community of York—Simcoe. Working Canadians have been priced out of the housing market with no hope in sight. Home builders are stopping the construction of new homes. Liberal inflation has caused prices for materials to skyrocket. There is no way for bui…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, the hon. health minister suggests that rapid tests have been important to his government. Two summers ago my colleagues and I in the Ontario Conservative caucus tested a rapid test that was widely available in the U.S. and Europe, but had not received approval by Health Canada after months of delays. We were condemned by the Prime Minister and state media. The article is there. Inst…
Read full speech →Statements By Members
Mr. Speaker, it is time to get York—Simcoe moving. After decades, the Bradford bypass is finally being built, ensuring that residents can get from Highway 400 to the 404 faster and safer than ever. This connecting link will ease gridlock and traffic congestion, bring economic benefit and ensure that our growing region is ready for the future as new immigrants move into the area. The bypass has the…
Read full speech →Emergency Debate
Mr. Speaker, I will be sharing my time with the hon. member for Brandon—Souris. I am glad we are having this debate this evening. It is a very important issue, and it is necessary to address the growing sentiment that exists right here across this great country. Canadians are frustrated. They are sick and tired. Constant shutdowns, lockdowns, restrictions and mandates are having a terrible toll on…
Read full speech →Emergency Debate
Mr. Speaker, he is pointing out the provincial lockdowns. I am trying to show the government that the people who are outside right now are hurting. This is what has all led to this. This is the frustration that people have. People are crying in their businesses right now. They are literally crying. The gym owner I talked about, who the member alluded to, owes $40,000. She showed me that her paymen…
Read full speech →Emergency Debate
Mr. Speaker, no one should be making political games of this. Again, and I spoke to it in my speech, we are in a minority Parliament. Canadians have sent us here to work together and come up with a solution for this. Today, our leader put forth a suggestion to the Prime Minister that we should go out and meet with these people. Canadians do not want to see these convoys anymore. These are the conv…
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Mr. Speaker, it is my understanding that this is being studied at this time and being looked at.
Read full speech →Adjournment Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, in December I raised my question in the House of Commons about a proposed aerodrome in Georgina, in my riding of York—Simcoe. In other communities there have been high-profile incidents where corporations use the false pretense of building or expanding an aerodrome or an airport to cash crop dirt. Because aerodromes fall exclusively under the federal jurisdiction through the Canadian …
Read full speech →Adjournment Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the parliamentary secretary's response and the minister's willingness to engage me and my office on this very important issue for my constituents in York—Simcoe. I am not against building airports or aerodromes, and I am a private pilot myself, but it is clear that this process needs to be looked at. Dumping fill now is a lucrative business, and certain individuals have i…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
With regard to the impact of inflation on the Market Basket Measure (MBM) and the poverty line: (a) what is the current, or latest, MBM for the reference family and various poverty lines in each of the MBM geographic areas in Ontario; (b) what was the 2018-base MBM for the reference family and various poverty lines in each geographic area in (a); (c) what percentage of individuals living in each a…
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Madam Speaker, I am proud to rise today, like my colleague for Leeds—Grenville—Thousand Islands and Rideau Lakes, in support of Bill S-223. Bill S-223 seeks to combat forced organ harvesting and trafficking and would make it a criminal offence for a person to go abroad and receive an organ without the consent of the person giving the organ. The bill has passed the Senate an unbelievable three time…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, residents of York—Simcoe have many concerns about a proposed aerodrome in the town of Georgina. In Greenbank, Burlington, Tottenham and elsewhere, corporations have used a loophole in the federal aerodrome regulations to exploit municipal soil laws. They use the pretense of building or expanding an aerodrome to dump tonnes of contaminated fill at significant cost to the environment an…
Read full speech →Speech from the Throne
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for his speech. Clearly, for people in York—Simcoe, the throne speech just did not live up to the moment. I say that because we were looking for a vision in the speech, especially for our farmers. I have always said that we can move a General Motors plant but we cannot move a farm. We in York—Simcoe were looking for some vision for farmers. There was no mention of…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Madam Speaker, in Pefferlaw, we believe in rolling up our sleeves to help each other and in the power of our voices, and I am happy to rise today on behalf of the residents of Pefferlaw. The petitioners are calling on the Government of Canada to rehabilitate the historic Pefferlaw Dam and ensure the Pefferlaw River flows again. Built in the 1820s, the Pefferlaw Dam has a cultural, historical, envi…
Read full speech →Statements By Members
Mr. Speaker, ordinary Canadians are being left behind by the Liberal government. Inflation is out of control. Prices are skyrocketing. Wages are down. Unemployment is rising. Businesses are closing. When Canadians look at their country, they no longer see it as a place where they could build something for the future. That is on the Liberals. They have turned Canada into a country where it has beco…
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Madam Speaker, I was wondering if the hon. member could table the report that he is reading, or go on to the report about the Lake Simcoe clean-up fund, which we are waiting for in York—Simcoe. We would love to hear that.
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, I noticed the member had a number of notes and I wonder if there is anything else he wants to expand upon today.
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, tonight we have listened, and we have seen and heard that we need a good bill, not that we have a good bill, but that we need a good bill. We are here to hold the government to account, and I wonder if my hon. colleague could tell us how the government has prorogued and has filibustered committees. Again, we are here to hold the government to account and get a good bill for Canadians.…
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Mr. Speaker, I request a recorded division.
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Mr. Speaker, at the outset, I would like to again give my deep appreciation to everyone who has contributed to see Bill C-204 get to where it is today, and this is very exciting. I would like to thank my colleague, the member for Central Okanagan—Similkameen—Nicola, the Conservative shadow minister for the environment, for his support and assistance. I am also grateful for the insight and wisdom o…
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Madam Speaker, I look forward to Bill C-204 coming into effect. We have innovative companies in Canada that are making a difference with plastic waste. We do not want plastic waste in our world oceans. We do not want to see it thrown over the fence and exported to the third world.
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Madam Speaker, as my colleague knows, controlling plastic pollution is very important to me. That is why Bill C-204 takes a small step to having a toolbox we can use to all work together and highlight the issues that are out there. Canada has to take a leadership role when it comes to plastic pollution. We know that our world's oceans are drowning in plastic now. I would like to thank my colleague…
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moved that the bill be concurred in.
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Madam Speaker, clearly no one in the Liberal government has had to buy a two-by-four lately. Even the most essential items have become unaffordable, like plywood to fix a roof or food to go on the barbecue. It is unbelievable. The Liberals' out-of-control spending is putting inflationary pressures on the middle class, students and seniors, who are struggling just to make ends meet. Why is the Libe…
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moved that the bill be read the third time and passed. Madam Speaker, York—Simcoe is a great riding, the soup and salad bowl of Canada. It is a privilege to rise in this House and speak once more to Bill C-204, an act to amend the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, final disposal of plastic waste. I am very grateful to my colleagues who have supported this proposed legislation and who worked t…
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Madam Speaker, Canadians have put us here to work together, especially in these times and especially on the environment. At committee, I was pleased to work with the Bloc and the NDP to ensure that Bill C-204 would have a balanced approach, with the environment, industry and Canadian industry. Together, Canada will to once again take a leadership role with plastic pollution.
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Madam Speaker, I want to thank my hon. colleague, my neighbour from Barrie—Springwater—Oro-Medonte, for his leadership role in protecting Lake Simcoe. As the House knows, I even wore hip waders in the House for Lake Simcoe. The bill is so important to me. Microbeads of plastic waste are quite big now. We want to protect the world's oceans. I always believe that small things add up to big things. T…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
With regard to environment impact assessments conducted by the Department of Environment and Climate Change and the Impact Assessment Agency of Canada, since January 1, 2019: (a) how many requests for assessments have been (i) received, (ii) accepted, (iii) turned down; (b) who requested each assessment in (a) (for example the public, the federal government, the municipal government, etc.), broken…
Read full speech →Statements By Members
Mr. Speaker, the Liberal budget is a massive lunch box letdown for York—Simcoe residents. The budget raises taxes on families, with no plan to create jobs or support small businesses. It lets down pensioners in Pefferlaw, who are on fixed incomes and struggling to overcome the rising costs of living. It lets down young families in East Gwillimbury, whose dreams of owning a home are being pushed fu…
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Madam Speaker, the Deputy Prime Minister has told Canadians they will need a booster shot every year to counter the new and deadly variants of COVID-19, but right now the vast majority of Canadians have yet to receive any vaccine at all and those who have are waiting months for their second dose. The Liberal government has failed to procure vaccines and has failed to increase our domestic producti…
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Mr. Speaker, the Chippewas of Georgina Island First Nation has been on a boil water advisory for years, and even though half the island still does not have clean drinking water, the Liberals are pressuring the band to lift the advisory anyway. The Liberals are also refusing to work with the community to improve Georgina Island's water treatment facilities. Clearly, they think access to clean water…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, have you ever been to Pefferlaw? We would love to have you stop in. It is a great small town in the great riding of York—Simcoe. I rise today to present a petition on behalf of the residents of Pefferlaw. The petitioners are calling on the Government of Canada to rehabilitate the historic Pefferlaw Dam and to ensure the Pefferlaw River flows again. Built in the 1820s, the Pefferlaw Da…
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With regard to the agreements between the government and the companies providing the COVID-19 vaccine: (a) on what date did the government ask each of these companies to manufacture those vaccines in Canada, broken down by company; and (b) what was the response of each company, and the rationale provided?
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
With regard to the use of transport or passenger aircraft, either owned or chartered by the government, between November 1, 2020, and January 25, 2021: what are the details of all flight legs, including the (i) date, (ii) type of aircraft, (iii) origin, (iv) destination, (v) purpose of the trip, (vi) names of passengers, (vii) vendor and cost, if aircraft was chartered?
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With regard to expenditures on social media influencers, including any contracts which would use social media influencers as part of a public relations campaign, since October 23, 2020: (a) what are the details of all such expenditures, including the (i) vendor, (ii) amount, (iii) campaign description, (iv) date of the contract, (v) name or handle of the influencer; and (b) for each campaign that …
Read full speech →Statements By Members
Mr. Speaker, small businesses, families and seniors in York—Simcoe and across Canada have been feeling the strain after months of lockdowns and restrictions. These restrictions have separated families from loved ones, kept kids out of classrooms and threatened the livelihoods of millions. We have to get the vaccine rollout right in order to secure jobs and secure our future, but the Liberals' inab…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, Pefferlaw is small town with a big heart, and I rise again today to present a petition on behalf of the residents of Pefferlaw, Ontario, in my great riding of York—Simcoe. The petitioners are calling on the Government of Canada to rehabilitate the historic Pefferlaw dam and to ensure that the Pefferlaw River flows again. Built in the 1820s, the Pefferlaw Dam has cultural, historical, …
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, I rise today to present a petition on behalf of the residents of Pefferlaw, Ontario, in my riding of York—Simcoe. The petitioners are calling on the government of Canada to rehabilitate the historic Pefferlaw dam and ensure that the Pefferlaw River flows again. Built in the 1820s, the Pefferlaw dam has cultural, historical, environmental, economic and recreational significance to Peff…
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Mr. Speaker, the matter before us tonight is straightforward. Canada should not be exporting its plastic waste for other countries to deal with. That is why Bill C-204 would prohibit plastic waste intended for final disposal from being exported to foreign countries. The 44,000 tonnes of plastic waste our country is sending overseas each year is having a significant and detrimental impact on the en…
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