SoVote

Mr. Andy Fillmore (Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry, Lib.)

Jan/31/22 11:05:34 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, it is indeed a privilege to address the House today from my hometown of Halifax. I will be splitting my time today with the member for Vancouver Granville. As this is the first opportunity I have had to offer extended remarks in the 44th Parliament, I wish to extend my most sincere thanks to the many who supported me in returning to this place. All members in this chamber know that, while it is our names on the lawn signs, brochures and ballots, it is in fact a team of dedicated volunteers who share in and are behind our victories. This extraordinary honour is in thanks to them. I certainly would not be here were it not for the hundreds of volunteers who poured countless hours into my campaign, knocking on doors, making phone calls, putting up lawn signs, stuffing envelopes, making a contribution in support of a better Canada. I believe political progress is made not behind a keyboard or through an avatar but on the doorstep through meaningful conversations between neighbours. It is an act of courage to climb the steps of a stranger's home, as my many volunteers did, and to engage them in our democracy at a time when, frankly, the heat of our national discourse has risen steadily. These millions of person-to-person interactions across the country are a welcome reminder that our disagreements do not need to divide us. Rather these connections reveal just how much we have in common: first and foremost, an earnest desire to make life better for ourselves, our loved ones and our communities. I also want to thank my family and, most importantly, my daughter Daisy. Our loved ones make tremendous sacrifices so that we can serve our communities, and it is never easy to share one's parent or spouse with some 100,000 constituents. The best we can hope to do is to make them proud. Of course, I must thank the people of Halifax who have now placed their trust in me for a third consecutive term. In my first campaign, I ran on a promise of being a champion for Halifax, to stand up for my city and help us reach the potential we always knew was possible. That is as true today as it was when I began. It is a promise kept. It is an astonishing privilege to represent this riding, and I know that privilege was also felt by my predecessors. I want to recognize one member in particular, the late Alexa McDonough who held this seat from 1997 to 2008. News of her passing earlier this month brought forward thousands of moving tributes from across the nation and across the political spectrum, a testament to her remarkable life and career. Alexa broke through barriers and led a generation of women into politics. She will be remembered forever for her fearless and compassionate leadership. I invite all members to join me in extending our sincere condolences to her family, her loved ones and the millions that she inspired. When I sat down to write my remarks for today, I took a moment to review my January 2016 maiden speech in this place in reply to the Speech from the Throne at the outset of the 42nd Parliament. I was pleased to see that, for many of the priorities I listed at that time, we have since made remarkable progress. I came to the House as the first city planner elected to Parliament, following a decades-long career in the public, private and academic sectors. I made the jump into politics because I believed the federal government had left our cities behind. Years of chronic underinvestment eroded our municipal infrastructure. On housing, transit and climate, our cities were in desperate need of investment. My on-the-ground experience in community showed me the opportunity before us, the potential of our cities to power Canada's growth and prosperity, if only we could find the confidence to invest in our own future. That is exactly what we have done. Our infrastructure plan, the banner policy of our 2015 platform, has invested $100 billion into 75,000 projects in communities across Canada. Personally, I am very proud of the recent launch of Canada's first-ever national active transportation strategy and fund, the creation of which I had the honour of leading during my time as parliamentary secretary to the minister of infrastructure. This $400 million fund launched on Friday will provide support for planning and capital for bike lanes, pathways and other active transportation infrastructure. This is the latest indication that our national urban agenda, the focus on my maiden speech and indeed my life in politics, is well under way. I am pleased to see it continue with the Speech from the Throne at the outset of this 44th Parliament. This is an urban agenda to build a connected Canada with world-class local and regional public transit systems and bikeways that get us not just to work and back on time but dependably across the province. It offers an inclusive Canada with secure and affordable housing options for middle- and low-income Canadians, with quick and direct access to the places where we live, work and play; a resilient and sustainable Canada that is well prepared for the challenges that come with a changing climate and rising sea levels; cities that are cleaner and less reliant on sources of energy that pollute our air and water and harm our health; and cities that are less resource- and energy-intensive, doing more with less. It offers a vibrant and inclusive Canada strengthened by cities and communities that feel like home to everyone, supporting our happiness and prosperity with community centres, libraries, museums, theatres and parks. The Speech from the Throne underscores the government’s priorities in these areas, reflecting the plan our party put forward in the 2021 election. The plan includes bold action on housing, providing 1.4 million new homes and introducing a suite of new measures, including a rent-to-own program, a new tax-free first home savings account, a more flexible first-time homebuyer incentive and a homebuyers’ bill of rights, among many others. This builds on our national housing strategy, our 10-year, $70-billion plan to build affordable housing across Canada. That plan is rolling out right now. Homelessness is an urgent issue in Canada. In 2017, we pledged to reduce chronic homelessness by 50%. We launched over 12,000 projects and helped a million people find a place to call home. In 2020, we increased our commitment: to end and entirely eliminate homelessness in our country. It is a bold promise, backed by the necessary investment to get the job done. Here in Halifax, the rapid housing initiative is supporting hundreds of new units in partnership with our partners, including the Mi'kmaw Native Friendship Centre, Adsum house, Souls Harbour Rescue Mission, the North End Community Health Centre and others. Our government will continue our work to provide smart, urgent and lasting solutions for Canadians in housing need. As the moment requires, the Speech from the Throne also focuses heavily on the climate crisis. There is no question that our time is running short. We must go further and faster in the fight against climate change. Included in the throne speech are measures to cap and cut oil and gas sector emissions, increase the price on pollution, mandate the sale of zero-emission vehicles, develop and implement Canada’s first-ever national adaptation strategy, and continue to protect our lands and oceans in greater quantity. Here in Halifax, I am working to protect the Northwest Arm from infilling that would have a dire environmental and ecological impact. Climate floods in B.C. and Atlantic Canada show us this is no time to be taking risks with key waterways like the Northwest Arm. Of course, the throne speech also commits to finishing the fight against COVID-19, which continues to disrupt our way of life and challenge our economy. The government made a simple promise at the outset of the pandemic: to be there for Canadians as long as necessary. We have kept that promise, providing income support to workers, financial aid to small businesses and transfers to provinces to ensure our public health response is robust. We have shown ourselves to be flexible to the needs of Canadians and the small businesses they work at and rely upon. As I speak to the House today, I know there are groups just outside its walls who protest the necessary public health measures we have enacted to keep Canadians safe. They have come to Ottawa with demands that the government lift all pandemic restrictions or resign. As members of Parliament, we must all condemn the hate groups that have attached themselves to the convoy and whose actions over the weekend have been deeply disturbing. Their contemptible behaviour and symbols of hate will not deter the government from protecting Canadians. We know Canadians are exhausted by this pandemic, and no one more than our essential workers such as health care workers, grocery store clerks and, yes, truckers. However, I believe there is a light at the end of this tunnel. Science and compassion will lead the way. When we come out the other side, I choose to believe we will be stronger and more united, knowing that our freedom comes from our commitment to democracy and from our commitment to each other.

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Context: House Hansard - 20 - Jan/31/22

Mr. Andy Fillmore

Jan/31/22 11:15:13 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, as our government has stated from the outset of the pandemic, we will be there for Canadians for whatever they need, for as long as they need. Included in that is the necessity of transfers to the provinces. Health care transfers have increased to provide PPE and other services. That is just the tip of the iceberg. The transfers go into other things like supporting municipalities. The list is long, and we will be at it until we do not need to be anymore.

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Context: House Hansard - 20 - Jan/31/22

Mr. Andy Fillmore

Jan/31/22 11:16:17 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for Parry Sound—Muskoka for his passion around the issue. I share that passion with him. Unfortunately, the strain that he is feeling in his riding is shared in my riding and across the country. This national housing strategy that we began some years ago is building momentum monthly. As I mentioned in my speech, we are hundreds of units ahead just in the past year in my riding of Halifax alone, but the additional supports that the minister and cabinet are providing will be rolling out new homes at a very quick pace to support Canadians in need.

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Context: House Hansard - 20 - Jan/31/22

Mr. Andy Fillmore

Jan/31/22 11:18:12 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for his kind words and remembrance of Alexa McDonough. She truly was a pioneer and remarkable leader in Canada. It is tragedy whenever anybody gets sick, temporary foreign workers included. Temporary foreign workers are an important part of our seasonal economy and although I do not know the specifics of the case that the member is talking about, I do know that the ministers involved with this file are working hard to make sure that temporary foreign workers continue to be a healthy and important part of our economy.

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Context: House Hansard - 20 - Jan/31/22

Mr. Andy Fillmore

Jan/31/22 11:19:03 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I always love an opportunity to talk about building communities and making them stronger, including parks. Blue Mountain-Birch Cove Lakes is the future national urban park in Halifax. We look forward to working with the government and the community to get it right. This is an urban lung that is going to make sure our city remains healthy as the population grows and our remarkable urban renaissance continues.

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