44th Parl. 1st Sess.
December 7, 2021 10:00AM
- Dec/7/21 6:36:24 p.m.
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Madam Chair, I think all members in the House will agree on the importance of Canada making good on its commitment to resettle 40,000 Afghan refugees. I am pleased to share that by the end of this week, 500 more Afghan refugees will be arriving, including, for the first time, sponsored refugees from Afghanistan in Nova Scotia.
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- Dec/7/21 6:37:25 p.m.
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Madam Chair, the Government of Canada is working in close collaboration with trusted international and Canadian partners to implement a second humanitarian stream that is focused on resettling the most vulnerable Afghan nationals. We are going to continue to work with our partners to ensure that we can resettle the objective of 40,000 Afghans.
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- Dec/7/21 6:38:06 p.m.
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Madam Chair, I would like to inform my hon. colleague that we are taking all the necessary measures to bring these Afghans home to Canada. We will continue to ensure that we communicate with them and we will continue to inform the House on how we are doing.
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- Dec/7/21 6:38:51 p.m.
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Madam Chair, we know it is very important that we focus on the Afghans who we are trying to resettle here. The LGBTQ individuals are also very important. We will continue to work with our partners on the ground and in Canada to ensure we resettle them in Canada.
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- Dec/7/21 6:39:37 p.m.
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Madam Chair, as the hon. colleague knows, IRCC has approved 9,800 people under the special immigration program. Of this number, more than 3,800 Afghan refugees have already arrived in Canada. We will continue to do that and take into consideration the difficulties that we hear are ongoing on the ground.
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- Dec/7/21 6:40:23 p.m.
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Madam Chair, I want to convey for my hon. colleague that we are focusing on the safety and security of the Afghan people. We will continue to work very hard to—
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- Dec/7/21 6:40:49 p.m.
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Madam Chair, if I understand the question, there are over 3,800 Afghans in Canada. We will continue to work on ensuring we get—
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- Dec/7/21 6:42:12 p.m.
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Madam Chair, as members know, we have brought over 300,000 refugees and immigrant newcomers to Canada. We will continue to get to our objective. I know this is a very important concern and we will provide our report very soon.
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- Dec/7/21 6:42:58 p.m.
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Madam Chair, we know, and my hon. colleague knows also, that the pandemic has brought new challenges to our immigration system and we have faced them head-on. We are acting quickly. We are moving from paper to digital, extending visas and adding resources where they are needed most. We have welcomed nearly 100,000 new Canadians—
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- Dec/7/21 6:43:30 p.m.
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Madam Chair, we are working very hard to get to that objective and all together we will be able to get there.
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- Dec/7/21 6:43:44 p.m.
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Madam Chair, today I am pleased to table the Supplementary Estimates (B), 2021-22.
The ability to exercise oversight is one of the most important roles parliamentarians can play on behalf of our citizens. In fact, accountability is predicated on parliamentarians knowing how public funds are being spent, so they can hold the government to account for its actions, which is why our government will continue to make every effort to ensure that parliamentarians have access to accurate, timely and understandable information about government spending.
The supplementary estimates are part of a wide array of reports that provide Canadians and parliamentarians with information about expenditure plans and results. Departmental plans, the financial review, the departmental results reports and the public accounts are just some of these reports.
This information is also found in GC InfoBase, an interactive tool that provides a lot of data in a visual form. This tool contains the estimates and other data pertaining to finances, people and federal government results. The publication of the estimates data set with digital tools is essential to providing parliamentarians and Canadians with more information about the allocation and investment of public funds.
I would now like to turn to the supplementary estimates in more detail. The supplementary estimates present information to Parliament on spending that was either not ready for inclusion in the main estimates or has since been refined to account for new developments in programs and services.
With the supplementary estimates (B) for 2021-22, the government is seeking Parliament's approval of funding to address matters of importance to Canadians. This includes the government's ongoing response to the COVID-19 pandemic as well as infrastructure and services to address the specific needs of indigenous communities.
The health, safety and well-being of all Canadians are of the utmost importance to the government, which is why approximately $1.2 billion of proposed bonus spending is for the government's ongoing response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Canadians care about each other and they also care about those less fortunate outside our borders. That is why budget 2021 announced funding to help some of the world's poorest countries access the tools they need to help contain the spread of COVID-19.
In these supplementary estimates, the government is requesting $375 million to follow through with the commitment to support developing countries' access to vaccines, treatments and diagnostic products.
I mentioned that these supplementary estimates seek Parliament's approval of funds to respond to the needs of indigenous communities. I would like to draw your attention to some of the main voted items.
The 2020-21 budget provided funds for the government to accelerate efforts to close the infrastructure gaps in indigenous communities, which will help create good jobs and build indigenous communities that will be healthier, safer and more prosperous in the long term.
These supplementary estimates fulfill that commitment with $725.2 million to support the construction, renovation, operation and maintenance of housing, schools, health care facilities, water and waste-water systems and other community infrastructure.
This funding will also support the transfer of infrastructure to indigenous-led organizations and will fund the operation and maintenance of indigenous-owned infrastructure. These estimates also seek $412.2 million for the specific claims settlement fund, which provides compensation to first nations in accordance with negotiated agreements, as well as $361.3 million to fund prevention and protection services to support the safety and well-being of first nations children and families living on reserve.
To ensure indigenous people can access high-quality health care, budget 2021 announced several measures, including one in these estimates of $332.4 million to ensure continued high-quality care through the non-insured health benefits program. This program supports first nations and Inuit people with medically necessary services that are not otherwise covered, such as mental health services, medical travel, medications and more.
Another budget initiative that is presented in these estimates is funding to help people on reserve, and status Indians in Yukon, transition from income assistance to employment and education. Specifically, $308.7 million is sought to assist eligible individuals and families with basic or special needs, case management and pre-employment measures designed to increase self-reliance, improve life skills and promote greater attachment to the workforce.
In Canada, we are lucky to have Canadian Forces personnel to defend Canada and its interests and to step in during times of crisis, be it the devastating floods in British Columbia or a pandemic.
The supplementary estimates request $327.7 million for a salary increase for Canadian Armed Forces personnel in accordance with the settlement of collective bargaining for the core public administration.
The funds will also support the restructuring of pay and allowances for certain occupations within the armed forces, as well as the extension of the allowance paid to personnel deployed to support Canadians during the COVID‑19 pandemic.
I would like to draw the attention of the House to the part of the supplementary estimates that relates to my department, although a very small amount of those funds are for the Treasury Board Secretariat itself.
As part of the compensation adjustments vote, we are asking Parliament to approve $1.5 billion. These funds will be used to compensate organizations affected by wage adjustments resulting from recently negotiated collective agreements and other changes to terms and conditions of employment. It will also compensate employees for damages related to the Phoenix payroll system and for delays in the extended implementation of collective agreements in the 2018 round of collective bargaining.
That concludes my presentation of some of the major voted items in these supplementary estimates, and I am pleased to report that parliamentarians have online access to even more detailed information than I have had time to present today. We will continue to make that information available because of our belief in Canadians' right to know where public funds are going and how they will be invested on their behalf.
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- Dec/7/21 6:53:29 p.m.
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Madam Chair, I want to start by thanking all the public servants who stepped up and got vaccinated to make sure we could continue to fight through this pandemic, and to make sure that the health and safety of Canadians was our first priority.
Over 95% of public servants have received both their vaccines, and over 98% have received their first dose. This is a great demonstration that we are moving forward with a policy that works for all Canadians.
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- Dec/7/21 6:54:48 p.m.
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Madam Chair, we all know women should receive equal pay for work of equal value, and proactive pay equity legislation will address the systemic undervaluing of work performed by women.
For the public service, we will work with bargaining agents and employee representatives to identify gaps between positions held mostly by women and ones held mostly by men that have work of equal value. Once pay equity plans are in place, we will systematically close any pay gaps. We are committed to creating a more inclusive federal public service.
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- Dec/7/21 6:58:36 p.m.
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Madam Chair, we recognize that the implementation of the Phoenix pay system has had an impact directly, or even indirectly, on many current and former employees, and damages agreements have been reached with all bargaining agents to compensate employees for general damages and severe impacts caused by the pay system. Claims processes are in place for most of these agreements, and we are working closely with the Public Service Alliance of Canada to implement the remaining element of that agreement by the end of this year. We will continue to work very hard on this file.
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- Dec/7/21 7:00:46 p.m.
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Madam Chair, I will make the necessary inquiries, with my colleague's permission. Things are happening right now, and I want to make sure I have the right answers. I should be able to get that answer to the Speaker of the House shortly.
I would just like to say that this evening is really important for us to be able to do our job as parliamentarians, because the Supplementary Estimates (B) are a very important part of our budget cycle. I will continue to answer questions throughout the evening.
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- Dec/7/21 7:05:34 p.m.
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Madam Chair, I would like to thank my hon. colleague for his question.
We recognize that the aeronautics and aerospace industry and its workers have been particularly affected by the pandemic. The Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry has been in continual contact with key stakeholders in the sector. We have always stood up for Canada's aerospace workers, and we will continue to do so. By working together, we will find solutions so that this sector can continue to grow in our country in the years ahead.
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- Dec/7/21 7:27:05 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, as I am the new President of the Treasury Board, I am currently working with the process that we have and I am always looking for possibilities for improvement. Maybe through a conversation with all of my colleagues we can make sure we have the best process for our government.
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- Dec/7/21 7:27:46 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, as we know, we just went through a very difficult pandemic. We need to look at how we will continue to support Canadians and how we are going to continue to bring our investments forward for Canadians. We will look at the process of our budget cycle as we go along.
At this time, as my hon. colleague probably knows, we have the fall economic statement next week, on December 14, and after that we will know what the next steps will be.
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- Dec/7/21 7:29:18 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, again I thank my hon. colleague for bringing forward an idea. We always want to improve our system and at this time we will have next week, on December 14, the economic outlook of our country. We will look at the next steps for investments for Canadians and our accountability and transparency as we continue to support them through the pandemic, which we are still in at this time.
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- Dec/7/21 9:44:00 p.m.
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Madam Chair, I thank my hon. colleague for asking this very important question.
Accessibility in the public service means ensuring that all employees have the tools they need to do their best at work and to succeed in their careers.
This involves identifying and eliminating barriers that prevent people from participating, as well as guaranteeing access to all devices, services, programs and information.
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