Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, let me remind my colleague, once again, that at the end of 2022, the federal government and the Government of Quebec signed a joint letter stating that Quebec would submit a caribou recovery plan by June 2023. Here it is October 1, 2024, and we are still waiting for that plan. All we are asking is for Quebec live up to its commitments. We are ready to work with Quebec on finding solut…
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Mr. Speaker, experts, environmentalists, forestry workers and first nations all agree that the future of forestry in Quebec and elsewhere in the country depends on the health of the forest and on the health of the caribou. We cannot have one without the other. The only people who do not understand that here are the members of the Conservative Party of Canada.
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Mr. Speaker, perhaps the member opposite does not remember that he himself asked Premier Higgs to go with the federal system so more people in New Brunswick would get more money back than they pay in carbon pricing. Perhaps he forgot he made that request to his premier.
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Mr. Speaker, I will give the Conservatives a number: 69 million cars in avoided pollution. That is our number on this side of the House. If we listened to the Conservatives, we would do nothing to fight climate change, pollution would be even worse and emissions would be 41% higher than with what we have been doing. We are working to fight climate change. We are working to support Canadians to cre…
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Mr. Speaker, it seems Conservatives are now starting to listen to economists, and they quoted Trevor Tombe. Let us hear what Trevor Tombe has to say about carbon pricing and the price of food: “While concern around affordability is clearly warranted, climate policies are not a significant driver of the rising cost of living. Nor will removing policies such as carbon pricing materially improve the …
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Mr. Speaker, perhaps the member opposite can remind some of the members of his own bench that they asked Premier Higgs to go with the federal system because people get more money back, and that is exactly what the premier did. The Premier of New Brunswick decided to go with the federal system because more people in New Brunswick get more money back than what they pay in carbon pricing.
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to remind my colleague that we have come to the table with half a billion dollars in potential investments in Quebec, in the regions, in the forestry sector, for forestry workers and for indigenous communities. We are just waiting for the Quebec government to come to the table with us to talk. We want to find a solution. The Conservatives have nothing to offer, whether fo…
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Mr. Speaker, the member should be ashamed of himself. Conservatives have deliberately taken out of context emails between Parks Canada officials who were debating which measures to use to fight fires, as opposed to not fighting fires at all. One of those Parks Canada employees has received death threats since the Conservatives put this online. They should be ashamed of themselves.
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Mr. Speaker, I know that the Conservatives are not huge fans of science, researchers or knowledge, but I would still like to quote Martin-Hugues St-Laurent, a professor at the Université du Québec à Rimouski, who recently said, “The emergency order is amply justified. The federal government is simply implementing the legislation given the absence of a provincial strategy deemed effective enough to…
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Mr. Speaker, as an MP for the amazing Montreal area, I am proud of the people I represent. Perhaps the member opposite does not feel the same way. I would like to suggest that he talk to forestry workers in Quebec. As they told me and several public commissions, the future of the forest and the future of their jobs depends on the health of the forest. The Conservative Party of Canada does not seem…
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to read an extract from a report that came out today from the Insurance Bureau of Canada. It states, “Summer of 2024...ranks as the most-destructive season in Canadian history for insured losses due to severe weather. In only two months, July and August, this summer eclipsed the worst year on record and has pushed the 2024 year-to-date tally to over $7.7 billion” in sever…
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Mr. Speaker, the reality is that the Conservative Party and its leader are not there to protect Canadians. They are there to protect the interests of their friends, like oil executives who attended a special event for the Leader of the Opposition. I can assure everyone that oil executives do not come to my fundraiser. However, what the Conservatives want to do is take away something. In his riding…
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Mr. Speaker, no plan for the environment, no plan for air quality, no plan for clean air, no plan for the economy, no plan for health care, that is what the Conservatives have to offer Quebeckers. We are working with everyone to try to find solutions to problems that can be quite complex. We just made an offer to the Government of Quebec worth nearly half a billion dollars. We will work together t…
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Mr. Speaker, I think tomorrow's vote in the House will actually reveal that the House does not have confidence in the Leader of the Opposition. He has nothing to offer the people of Quebec, whether in terms of the environment, the economy or jobs. He has nothing to offer—zero, niet.
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to remind my colleagues that three elections have taken place in Canada since 2015, and the environment was central to discussions and debates across the country each time. We won all three elections. They may not be pleased about that. What we are going to see in the House tomorrow is that the House has no confidence in the Leader of the Opposition. The House does not tr…
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Mr. Speaker, I have a great deal of respect for my colleague opposite, but unfortunately, almost everything he said is untrue. Greenhouse gas emissions are the lowest they have been in 25 years. This is the first time in the history of the country that emissions have dropped while the economy is firing on all cylinders. The last time emissions were this low, O.J. Simpson was before the courts and …
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to read a quote from the member for Victoria: “The carbon tax is a crucial piece of a climate plan”. I would like to read another quote from the member for Victoria: “the PBO has put out a number of reports that confirm...that 80% of Canadians get more money back than they pay.” This is a fact that the Conservatives continue to ignore. I think there are a lot of people ou…
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Mr. Speaker, as usual, all that the Conservatives have to offer are empty slogans. That is why we presented a $468‑million offer the Government of Quebec so that we could work together on reaching an agreement. I wanted us to negotiate an agreement with the Government of Quebec from the start. Unfortunately, the Conservative Party has nothing to offer anyone on this issue.
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Mr. Speaker, when it comes to the fight against climate change, which the Conservatives refuse to talk about, or the issue of air quality, water quality or conservation, the Conservatives are pretty much the only ones who do not get it. Workers, unions, businesses, regional governments and experts all understand that there can be no future in forestry if we do not protect our forest ecosystem prop…
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Mr. Speaker, interest rates are down. Inflation is down. Gas prices are down, and pollution is down. Pollution levels are at their lowest in 25 years. What we have achieved is the equivalent of removing 69 million cars from our roads, which means less pollution for Canadians and for our kids, all across the country. We are fighting for climate change. We are fighting for Canadians. We are fighting…
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to remind my colleague that, in 2013, the Harper government used the same emergency order to protect a species. It was not radical then, but suddenly it is radical now because we are the ones using it. It is hogwash. I met the workers too. They came to the Standing Committee on Environment and Sustainable Development. Experts, environmentalists, the first nations and work…
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Mr. Speaker, we held consultations with hundreds of people over the summer: workers, people from the regions, experts, industry representatives, environmental groups and first nations. The order is being developed, and there is a very simple way for us not to have to impose our order. The Quebec government must, as it has promised, present a plan for protecting caribou habitat. It is quite simple.…
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Madam Speaker, there have been discussions among the parties and, if you seek it, I think you will find unanimous consent to adopt the following motion: That, notwithstanding any standing order, special order or usual practice of the House, (a) on the day the House begins the debate on the second reading motion of Bill C-76, An Act to amend the Canada National Parks Act, one member of each recogni…
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Mr. Speaker, setting aside the fact that both the Parliamentary Budget Officer and 300 economists have said that eight out of 10 Canadians get more money than they pay in carbon pricing, we have a report today from the independent organization, the Climate Institute, which shows that emissions were down again in Canada in 2023. The report also shows that, without our plan, emissions would be 41% h…
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to quote the member for Edmonton Strathcona. In June 2024, she said, “economists, journalists and members of Parliament have made it very clear that the carbon tax is not what is responsible for the cost of food increasing so much.” I can also quote the member for Victoria, who said, “the PBO has put out a number of reports that confirm...that 80% of Canadians get more mo…
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moved for leave to introduce Bill C‑76, An Act to amend the Canada National Parks Act. (Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)
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Mr. Speaker, the Government of Canada has a collaborative relationship with the Parliamentary Budget Officer, or PBO. We always have and always will cooperate fully with the PBO’s requests, including by providing all the specific documents and information that respond to the parameters of his requests. Environment and Climate Change Canada, or ECCC, like all departments in the government, routinel…
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Mr. Speaker, information on the GDP, or gross domestic product, impact estimates of the clean fuel regulations for 2030 is included in the regulatory impact analysis statement, published along with the regulations in 2022 at https://www.gazette.gc.ca/rp-pr/p2/2022/2022-07-06/html/sor-dors140-eng.html. To evaluate the direct impact of the regulations, as well as the effect of relative price changes…
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Mr. Speaker, in 2021, Environment and Climate Change Canada, ECCC, and nine indigenous communities established the Crown-indigenous working group for potential oil sands mining effluent regulations, CIWG. The CIWG is exploring options to manage the buildup of oil sands mine water in tailings ponds located in the Athabasca oil sands region. One of the options under consideration is regulations that…
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Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to be back with you for the new session. That said, might I remind my colleague from the Conservative Party that the Government of Quebec has committed since 2016 to presenting a woodland caribou recovery plan in Quebec. We are now in 2024, soon to be 2025, and we have been waiting eight years for the plan. In 2022, the Government of Quebec signed a joint letter with…
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Mr. Speaker, if only you knew how many times I met with Quebeckers this summer. They think it is completely ridiculous to talk about a coalition between the Liberal Party of Canada and the Bloc Québécois, even though we are capable of working together. Quebeckers find the idea of such a coalition completely ridiculous. However, we should not be surprised at comments like that coming from the Conse…
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Mr. Speaker, I have a news flash. We had a carbon tax election in 2021, and the Conservative Party had a platform that said that they would put in place carbon pricing in this country. Maybe they just have to go to look back at their own platform. Again this morning, the Parliamentary Budget Officer was in committee saying that eight out of 10 Canadian families, where carbon pricing applies, get m…
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague from Saanich—Gulf Islands for the question. The Impact Assessment Agency of Canada has indeed received a request for an assessment of the project. That assessment, as is usually the case, is ongoing and the agency will make a recommendation to me in the weeks to come. However, I would like to share something with the House. The leader of the Green Party and I, as …
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Mr. Speaker, in response to parts (i), (ii), (iii), (iv) and (v), with respect to the protected areas addressed in Bill S-14, an act to amend the Canada National Parks Act, the Canada National Marine Conservation Areas Act, the Rouge National Urban Park Act, and the national parks of Canada fishing regulations, extensive consultation and engagement on the intent to expand or complete the establish…
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Mr. Speaker, in response to part (a), figure 5.1 reports emissions from the national inventory report of greenhouse gas sources and sinks in Canada. Cropland emissions are determined using an internationally accepted method, which has been modified to reflect Canadian soils, climate, crops and management practices. It is further adapted based on empirical data collected from research studies acros…
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Mr. Speaker, with regard to (a), since 1996, only one company has reported undertaking weather modification activities in Canada, Weather Modification Inc., which operates a hail suppression program in Alberta. With regard to (b), annual operations happen between June 1 and September 15 each year. The objective of the cloud seeding operations is to reduce hail damage caused by thunderstorms in cen…
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Mr. Speaker, in response to part (a), figure 5.1 reports emissions from the national inventory report of greenhouse gas sources and sinks in Canada. Livestock emissions are determined using a standard Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, IPCC, methodology and consist primarily of methane emissions from livestock production and manure management. The method tracks enteric methane emissions fr…
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Mr. Speaker, the reality is that climate change has already cost Canadians $25 billion in the last 10 years alone. Not five years from now, not 10 years from now, it is already happening. If we do not do anything, it is going to be an extra $35 billion to Canadian taxpayers. What we are doing on this side of the House is we are helping Canadians fight climate change and we are helping Canadians wi…
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Mr. Speaker, first, I would like to remind my colleague that I was born and raised in the very beautiful town of La Tuque, just south of Lac‑Saint‑Jean, in the very beautiful riding of my friend, the Minister of Industry. Second, Quebec itself has been promising to present a caribou recovery plan since 2016. In a joint letter between the federal government and the Government of Quebec in 2022, the…
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Mr. Speaker, facts are facts. The facts are that eight out of 10 Canadian families get more money back from carbon pricing than they pay. It is a fact that climate change is going to cost Canadians $35 billion by 2030. In fact, right now, eastern Canada is seeing a second heat wave before the summer has even started. People are being evacuated in the Northwest Territories. What is the Conservative…
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Mr. Speaker, I again thank my colleague for her question. I would remind her that last year, for the first time in Canada's history, we adopted a national adaptation strategy. The provinces, territories, indigenous peoples and experts worked together to develop this strategy to help us prepare for the impacts of climate change. In fact, all the provincial, territorial and federal ministers are sch…
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague, who recognizes the importance of combatting climate change. However, I disagree with the premise of her question, since Canada is the only G20 country to have eliminated subsidies for fossil fuels. We did this two years sooner than any of our G20 partners. We even went further by committing to also eliminating public subsidies from Crown corporations for fos…
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Mr. Speaker, I said it earlier in English, but for the benefit of my colleague, I will say it in French. Canada just received the 2024 Climate Scorecard award for its performance in the fight against climate change. Between 2019 and now, we have been a top performer in the G7 when it comes to reducing greenhouse gas emissions. I completely agree with her that more needs to be done. That is why we …
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Mr. Speaker, it is sad to see the Conservative Party of Canada continue to display its complete ignorance on the issue of climate change. The member should just turn around and speak to the member behind him. She was part of a provincial government in Quebec that introduced a price on pollution long before the federal government did. As he knows full well, or should know by now, the federal price …
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Mr. Speaker, eight out of 10 Canadians do better where the federal system applies. The Conservative Party of Canada, after campaigning to put in place carbon pricing during the last election, has now turned its back on it, just as Conservatives have turned their backs on Canadians. Their only answer to climate change is to ignore it and to let the planet burn. This is immoral. We will not let that…
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Mr. Speaker, if anyone should resign in this House, it is the people who are misleading Canadians about the benefit of carbon pricing. There is 25 million tonnes less pollution in this country because of carbon pricing. We have a plan to work with Canadians to help them better prepare to face the impacts of climate change. The Conservatives have nothing: no plans for adaptation, no plan to reduce …
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Mr. Speaker, I would invite the member to update his speaking notes, which date back many months. We just received, in fact, the Climate Scorecard 2024 Government Climate Leadership Award for one of the best performances in terms of greenhouse gas emissions reduction since 2019 in all of the G7 countries, something that has never happened under a Conservative Government of Canada and will never ha…
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Mr. Speaker, if anyone in the House ought to resign, it is the member who just spoke. Back in 2021, he campaigned on a promise of putting a price on pollution and introducing a clean fuel standard. What are the Conservatives doing today? They have turned their backs on those promises. They are the ones flip-flopping. They have no plan for the economy. They have no plan for helping Canadians deal w…
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Madam Speaker, not only did we invest additional funding in the most recent budget to increase our capacity to deal with forest fires, but last year we also implemented the first climate change adaptation plan in the history of the country. We worked with all the provincial governments. We are working with municipalities. We are working with indigenous communities to implement measures to help our…
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Madam Speaker, yesterday, we took a major step toward launching Canada's 2030 nature strategy by introducing Bill C-73, the nature accountability act, in the House. Canada is the second country in the world to do so. The bill would hold our government and future governments accountable in making progress on our ambitious nature protection goals. The bill and the strategy provide a coordinated appr…
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