44th Parl. 1st Sess.
April 25, 2022 11:00AM
- Apr/25/22 2:25:55 p.m.
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Where is Justin? Come out with your hands up.
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- Apr/25/22 2:25:55 p.m.
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I am going to put people on notice at this point. Let us keep it down so we can get the great questions and great answers.
The hon. member for Selkirk—Interlake—Eastman.
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- Apr/25/22 2:26:40 p.m.
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Are we ready for the answer?
The hon. government House leader.
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- Apr/25/22 2:26:46 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, at a time when we are seeing in Canada incredible economic progress, in fact 110% beyond where we were at prepandemic levels; when we see our GDP exceeding where we were at prepandemic levels; and when we see the challenges that are faced by Canadians here in Canada and around the world, I would expect that in question period we would—
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- Apr/25/22 2:27:09 p.m.
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Order. We are on question number five. Do we want to continue? I would really like to get on with the next few questions.
I am sure the Bloc Québécois will also want to ask some questions in a few minutes.
The hon. government House leader may finish his answer.
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- Apr/25/22 2:27:36 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, as I say, there are pressing and important matters that face this country and the world. If the members opposite wish to play partisan politics and relitigate something from five years ago, when the Prime Minister has acted appropriately and there was an Ethics Commissioner report, that is a choice they can make, but I would suggest that there are things more worthy of the time in this House.
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- Apr/25/22 2:28:06 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister has been chastised by the courts for appointing a unilingual anglophone lieutenant governor in New Brunswick. Not only is that unconstitutional, but it also shows a serious lack of judgment. There is only one bilingual province in Canada, and the PM finds a way to appoint a unilingual anglophone.
We are reminded that he also appointed a governor general who did not speak French in an officially bilingual Canada.
When will the Prime Minister stop treating proficiency in French as a second-rate skill and francophones as second-class citizens?
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- Apr/25/22 2:28:43 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my colleague for his question.
Protecting and promoting French is a top priority for this government. It is important that our leaders set an example, which is why Ms. Murphy is taking French classes. She recognizes the importance of being able to communicate and converse with New Brunswickers.
Once again, with our bill to modernize the Official Languages Act, we will do our part to ensure that this work continues.
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- Apr/25/22 2:29:18 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, it is quite funny. That is the pot calling the kettle black.
Last week, the Prime Minister was up in arms about CN appointing a unilingual anglophone board of directors.
He said he was flabbergasted and frustrated, but he himself personally appointed a unilingual anglophone lieutenant governor in New Brunswick and a Governor General of Canada who does not speak French.
How can the Prime Minister of Canada be surprised that CN is thumbing its nose at French when he personally is sending the message that French is not important?
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- Apr/25/22 2:29:57 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we must protect our official languages. This situation is unacceptable.
CN Rail is well aware that we find the situation unacceptable and has assured us that the matter will be resolved in the coming months, during the next round of board appointments.
We are working on strengthening the Official Languages Act.
We expect CN's leaders, including its board of directors, to lead by example.
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- Apr/25/22 2:30:30 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the government admitted its mistake with the GIS clawback and paid seniors back, but the one-time payment had a date restriction. Now, hundreds of seniors across this country are left out in the cold.
I wrote to the minister last week about this urgent concern. The Liberals must fix this. It is leaving seniors poor in our country. When will the current government stand up for seniors and start treating them all with dignity and respect?
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- Apr/25/22 2:31:02 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we know just how challenging this pandemic has been for seniors. That is why, from the very beginning, we have been there to support them. On April 19, we delivered a one-time payment for those affected seniors.
We also passed Bill C-12, which ensures that seniors, particularly working and low-income seniors, are never again impacted by any pandemic benefits they take.
We will continue to ensure that we support and deliver for seniors every step of the way.
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- Apr/25/22 2:31:33 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we just learned the Liberals are backing down on drug price reforms that would make life-saving medications more affordable and save us billions. This means Canadians will keep paying excessive costs for prescription drugs, which are among the highest in the world. Meanwhile, the Liberals choose to protect the profits of large pharmaceutical companies.
The Liberals say no one should go without the medicine they need, but this policy choice makes that happen. Will the government get moving on public universal pharmacare so every Canadian can get the medicine they need and deserve?
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- Apr/25/22 2:32:12 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, our government is committed to improving access to quality medicines for all Canadians. Canada has among some of the highest patent medicine prices in the world, and these prices have negatively affected the ability of patients to access new medicines.
On April 14, we announced new amendments to the patented medicines regulations that will give the PMPRB new tools to improve access to quality medicines while generating significant savings over the coming years for Canadians. These changes will also ensure the sustainability of our health care while supporting innovation and investment in the pharmaceutical sector.
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- Apr/25/22 2:32:49 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the Emergencies Act is one of the most powerful laws in the land, with an extremely high threshold needed to invoke it. That is a good thing, otherwise charter rights could be easily abused by governments.
That threshold is whether there is a national threat to public safety so serious that it cannot be addressed by any other law, yet we well know that there are many existing laws that can address illegal blockades of critical infrastructure, obviously. Maybe that is why the Liberals are hiding behind cabinet confidence and refusing to release documents justifying their decision to use these powers. It is because they know the threshold has not been met.
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- Apr/25/22 2:33:28 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, when this country was faced with very real threats to critical infrastructure, our vital supply lines and the incredible disruption that was taking place right out here in the streets of Ottawa, our government did what was necessary and required to deal with that situation through the invocation of the act.
I want to advise this House that today the government is fulfilling its statutory requirements in appointing Justice Paul Rouleau as the commissioner of the public inquiry into the circumstances of using this act. We will do what is required, and we will do it in the right way.
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- Apr/25/22 2:34:09 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, that inquiry will be useless unless the Liberals waive cabinet confidence and allow Canadians to know the whole story. Really, the stakes could not be higher for Canadians, given that their charter rights are at risk with this unprecedented invocation of the Emergencies Act.
To be clear for Canadians at home, the emergency powers allow the government to freeze their bank accounts, seize their assets and suspend their charter rights, all without due process. That is why there is an extraordinarily high threshold needed to invoke it.
The Minister of Public Safety said today that he will be up front and transparent with Canadians. If that is the case, why would the Liberals not waive cabinet confidence? Are they hiding something?
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- Apr/25/22 2:34:53 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to respond to the member's question because I can assure her that, under the Public Inquiries Act, the commissioner of this inquiry will have very broad authorities, like the ability to compel witnesses and the production of documents, subject, as always, to the lawful privileges of evidence that may exist. He will have the ability to call the evidence required, and we have great confidence in Justice Rouleau and this inquiry to get the information and the facts that this House and Canadians require.
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- Apr/25/22 2:35:25 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, when it comes to the Emergencies Act, the government is still falling short on its duty to be transparent. Let us not forget that, in 2015, the government campaigned on being a global example of transparency. It is quite the opposite.
As required by the legislation, the government called an inquiry today, but it waited until the last minute to do so. What Canadians and especially we as parliamentarians want is to have access to the documents containing objective and factual information.
What is the government trying to hide by not presenting the inquiry documents to the House?
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- Apr/25/22 2:36:01 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, as the member would probably be aware, section 63 of the Emergencies Act actually requires the government to call a public inquiry within 60 days. We have fulfilled that requirement of the act. We have also moved to fulfill the requirement by directing the public inquiry to conclude with a report back to the House by February 20, 2023.
Under the Inquiries Act, we have provided the commissioner with all the authorities he requires to compel witnesses and compel the delivery of documents to enable him to do his work. He will have access to the documents he requires, even classified documents, subject to appropriate limits on privilege that may exist.
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