44th Parl. 1st Sess.
June 8, 2022 02:00PM
Madam Speaker, I am very pleased that someone has finally found a riding where that technology works, because we have been searching for one from the start.
In any case, we do not believe in that. The best carbon capture facility is a tree. There was a strategy for that. The government was supposed to plant billions of trees, but it has yet to plant a single one. I myself have planted more than that.
Let us say that this is a carbon capture strategy that has shown that this technology has not worked so far and that it would cost a fortune. It would be pretty sneaky to make taxpayers foot the bill.
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Madam Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague for his speech. I am a bit concerned by his comments about the amount of money paid to the provinces and territories for health care.
I think the bill gives the provinces and territories $2 billion to help reduce wait times for certain surgeries. The Government of Canada obviously worked very hard with all of the provinces and territories during the pandemic.
Why is my colleague opposed to the government's initiatives to collaborate with his province, Quebec?
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Madam Speaker, the amount that the member is referring to had already been announced. It was then put into the bill, so it is nothing new. It was not specific to this bill.
It also falls well short of expectations, given inflation and skyrocketing costs. I remind members that this amount is far from what was promised in the Canada Health Act.
We could ask the provinces what they think about working with Ottawa. They all say that Ottawa is not doing enough. The Government of Quebec is unanimous on this.
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Madam Speaker, I rise this evening to share my thoughts on Bill C-19. Like many members in the House, we have carefully examined the many clauses included in this piece of legislation, which implements many of the changes announced by the government in its budget.
The devil is in the details, and I would like to thank my Bloc Québécois colleagues for their vigilance, because the amendments were important, and the organizations that contacted us wanted to be heard loud and clear. I particularly want to congratulate my colleague from Joliette and my colleague from Thérèse-De Blainville.
There are times when our actions really matter. Small industries, especially our SMEs, often bear the brunt of measures that are not adapted to their reality, and we must be vigilant. I can assure the House that we have put a great deal of effort and resources into reviewing the proposed changes and doing the necessary checks. The Bloc Québécois believes that it is possible to be prudent, rigorous and innovative at the same time. While our goal is to get everything for Quebec when the current crises are over, the Bloc Québécois is determined to secure as much as possible for Quebeckers.
The Bloc Québécois carefully went through every clause of the bill, as it always does. It voted in favour of the parts that are good for Quebec and voted against the parts that are not good for Quebec, and it tried to improve the parts that could become good for Quebec, in particular for charities.
Last week I spoke about some of the challenges that charities told us about during recent consultations. I am very happy that we were able to build on a solid foundation to make it easier for charities to sign co-operation agreements with organizations not recognized as charities. This will ensure that charities are not needlessly overburdened and can concentrate on their missions.
With Bill C‑19, the version amended by the Bloc Québécois, we join other countries that have taken similar measures to support charities better. The original version of Bill C‑19 introduced by the Liberal government did not adequately respond to what charities had asked for.
I now want to talk about mead and cider. I want to acknowledge David Ouellet, from Miellerie de la Grande Ourse in Saint‑Marc‑de‑Figuery, and the folks at Verger des Tourterelles in Duhamel‑Ouest.
I would like to clearly explain the importance of the amendments made by the Bloc Québécois to Bill C‑19, especially in response to the request by mead and cider producers to exempt these products from the excise tax. Many members here in the House urged the government to help the restaurant and tourism industries, as well as our honey producers, maple syrup producers, berry farmers and many other sectors of our economy.
This is a fine example of a Bloc Québécois amendment that provided desperately needed breathing room. I am certain that we managed to stave off the closure of many businesses across Quebec. Peripheral sectors and businesses such as apple farmers, bee farms, the tourism industry and the restaurant sector will be the better for it.
I have a word of caution for fly-in, fly-out workers. One of the measures I am worried about is the labour mobility deduction for tradespeople who temporarily relocate to a job site. This measure would let people who temporarily work away from their home deduct a portion of their travel and accommodation expenses. It will reduce the pressure that the labour shortage is putting on several sectors in Abitibi-Témiscamingue in the mining industry and construction.
What we do not want, however, is for our region to become a fly-in, fly-out destination. We need to ensure that people settle in our area, that they live there and become proud and strong Témiscamingue people. The wages paid must be spent in local businesses. That is how we develop our territory, how we live in it and how we help small and medium-sized businesses become large corporations.
I already explained all the effects of this kind of measure when we studied another member's bill in the House. I would remind everyone that there is a serious housing shortage in Quebec and that these kinds of measures can put additional pressure on the rental market.
If we make it easier for these temporary workers to come to our regions, they will surely want to stay after getting a taste of what we have to offer. I can assure the House that that is definitely the case in Abitibi—Témiscamingue, where people want to stay and build their dreams with their feet on the ground. There they can live it up in Sainte-Germaine-Boulé, attend a secret show in an alley in Rouyn-Noranda at the Festival de musique émergente, enjoy the view of the majestic Lac Témiscamingue in Ville-Marie or taste the incredible quality of the agri-food products of the Amos region.
Another thing I would like to talk about is division 15 of Bill C‑19, which is about the Competition Act. On May 20, after I moved a motion in this regard, the Standing Committee on Industry and Technology studied this section and heard from numerous witnesses. I think reluctance on the part of those who just spoke has to do with the fact that there were no real public discussions about the measures the government is imposing in this budget bill. As a matter of fact, all the witnesses were surprised to see this section in a budget bill instead of in a bill of its own.
As for the public debate, some people simply want to maintain the status quo in terms of competition. Others say that it is high time changes were made. I think my colleagues know where the Bloc stands. The message needs to be tailored and crystal clear. There must be strict rules that allow for real competition. We are in favour of meaningful reform of the Competition Act as long as it is a comprehensive, transparent process.
Where are things going in the realm of competition? Here are some thought from the Commissioner of the Competition Bureau:
An important conversation is taking shape about the role of competition in the Canadian economy. It's occurring against a backdrop of increasing concerns about the rise of corporate titans and the changing nature of our digital marketplace. New thinkers have engaged in the debate.
As MPs who are members of this committee, we noted the deep concern of some people who testified. We did not change the coming into force date of this section of the bill, in order to give the Competition Bureau the opportunity to include all the elements required to implement these changes. Everyone expects a firm commitment and swift action from Commissioner Boswell, and everyone agrees that it is urgent that the Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry introduce a new bill on competition.
Significant amendments were proposed as a first step. They would enhance the Competition Bureau's investigative powers, criminalize wage-fixing and no-poach agreements, and increase maximum fines and administrative monetary penalties. They would clarify that incomplete price disclosure is a false or misleading representation. The amendments also would expand the definition of anti-competitive conduct, allow private access to the Competition Tribunal to remedy an abuse of dominance and improve the effectiveness of the merger notification requirements.
In conclusion, it is getting late, so I would like to sum up my thoughts on this bill. I wish I could say that all these measures will achieve the results that our constituents are hoping for. With the time I was given, I discussed only a few of the measures set out in the 400 pages of this bill. In this case, we tried to improve it as much as possible in the limited time we had, due to closure. We will have to be twice as vigilant and listen even more to the people in our communities.
Fortunately for the people in my riding, the Bloc Québécois is able to promote its recommendations. Again, the government was caught off guard. It tried to bury measures in a 400‑page tome. I can guarantee that, especially under the watchful eye of my colleague from Joliette, anything we missed this time will get picked up during the next round of legislative amendments.
I want to mention that introducing elements in a massive bill instead of having substantive, transparent debates in parliamentary groups always has dangerous consequences. Many people came to the Standing Committee on Industry and Technology to tell us that.
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Madam Speaker, one of the issues I have always comes up when members opposite stand in their place and share some thoughts. The member who spoke before this one indicated that the federal government has not planted any trees, for example, but we know for a fact that tens of millions of trees have been planted.
An hon. member: After how long?
Mr. Kevin Lamoureux: Madam Speaker, a tree starts from a seed, and it takes time to get it into the ground. The point is that the Bloc, much like the Conservatives do time and time again, tried to give a false impression.
I am wondering if my friend across the way would recognize that maybe the Bloc is wrong and we have planted literally millions of trees.
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Madam Speaker, the program to plan two billion trees is a perfect example of a flawed federal program. The vision may be good in theory, but it is terrifying for residents in the regions.
Abitibi—Témiscamingue is a forestry and mining region, but it is also an agricultural one. Where are the two billion trees going to be planted? They will not all be planted in the city. If the government wants to meet its target, it will have to plant trees in the regions, and half of the trees that the federal government plans to plant in Quebec are in Abitibi—Témiscamingue. These trees will be planted on land that is not being farmed. Our ancestors, my grandparents, removed tree stumps from that land. Now the government is going to replant trees there? The people who cleared out these stumps are still alive. Could the government show a little respect and come up with a well-thought-out plan? Why not just develop an equivalent program to bring more land back into production? That would be a long-term solution.
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Madam Speaker, it does appear that the parliamentary secretary was barking up the wrong tree here. The problem for the Prime Minister is that he appears to think that trees will plant themselves. The parliamentary secretary knows that trees can plant themselves under certain circumstances, so they are unlike budgets, which cannot balance themselves, as we have demonstrated.
I know that other members, such as myself, would have liked to speak to this bill at greater length. We will not be able to because we are under a very draconian programming effort by the government to limit debate on this bill.
I wonder if the member can comment on the overall fiscal framework of the government. Its spending is out of control, with more debt run up under the Prime Minister than all previous prime ministers in the country's history up until now. There is great concern. Members of the government think this is funny. It is not funny. My children are going to have to pay off the debt being run up today by the NDP-Liberal government. Can the member comment on the lack of any targets for any balanced budget at any point in time?
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Madam Speaker, planting trees is not all bad. I would like to applaud the initiatives of Ramo and of Francis Allard, who are providing solutions in Abitibi—Témiscamingue to ensure that mining and other sites are reclaimed. This is an example of how sustainable development can be achieved by planting trees. There is some good happening.
Looking ahead, yes, I have concerns as well. If we look at the consequences of inflation, I am concerned about the government's lack of engagement. I am concerned about the government withdrawing from areas of intervention under its responsibility. Health care is the main one.
At least 50% of health expenditures should be covered by the federal government. What we have seen over the past 50 years is that this is no longer the case. Now the federal government is paying only 22 cents per dollar. That has consequences. Every problem in our health care system can be traced back to federal underfunding. That is one example of why I am so concerned about how much this government is spending.
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Madam Speaker, in any case, one could argue that my colleague from Abitibi—Témiscamingue can bury the government better than the government can plant trees. I salute him for that.
My colleague spoke at length about competition. There is a basic rule: The more competitors, small suppliers and small businesses there are, the better the prices. He talked a bit about solutions to create more competition.
I have the impression, however, that the Investment Canada Act favours monopolies, not to mention takeovers by foreign companies, which lead to price increases and often push businesses to relocate their head offices.
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Madam Speaker, one need not be as clever as the member for Saint-Hyacinthe—Bagot to see that we need solutions. The Competition Act, like the Investment Canada Act, clearly needs to be reformed.
I think this is a perfect opportunity to figure out how, and I am willing to work on it with the minister, as he knows.
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Madam Speaker, it gives me great pride to rise in the House of Commons to talk about the budget and how it would strengthen communities like mine in Windsor—Tecumseh.
Budget 2022 is first and foremost a jobs budget and a workers budget, and it is a budget that would make life more affordable for millions of Canadians.
This spring, I was proud to stand on stage with the Prime Minister and the Minister of Innovation to announce two once-in-a-generation investments in my community. The first was a $5-billion investment by Stellantis and LG to create a battery plant that would create 3,200 good-paying auto jobs. The second announcement was a $3.7-billion investment at the Windsor assembly plant that would bring back the third shift and create another 2,000-plus auto jobs.
Taken together, this almost $9-billion investment represents the largest auto investment in the history of Canada, and it represents the largest-ever investment in the history of Windsor—Tecumseh. Those two investments would create over 5,500 jobs in my community, cement Windsor-Essex as the automobile capital of Canada, and secure the prosperity of Windsor-Essex for generations. That was made possible, first and foremost, because we have the best and most skilled workforce that builds things better than anyone else in the world, and second, because our federal government has made historic investments in fighting climate change, well over $100 billion, and that includes investments in the transition to a zero-emission future.
This budget continues those historic investments, which are transforming Windsor—Tecumseh into a leader in the green transition. That includes a $15-billion Canada growth fund to leverage private sector investment in the clean-tech sector. We could ask our friends at WEtech Alliance and Invest WindsorEssex how important capital is to growing and attracting good, clean-tech jobs and businesses. It also includes $1.7 billion in incentives for the zero-emission vehicles program, because we want to encourage Canadians to buy electric vehicles built by Canadians in communities like mine.
More than just electric vehicles, our community has an opportunity to be a leader in the protection of Canada's lakes, rivers and oceans, including the Great Lakes. There is an awesome opportunity for Windsor—Tecumseh in Canada's blue economy. The Great Lakes Institute for Environmental Research at the University of Windsor is Canada's leader in Great Lakes and clean water research. It will have a key role to play in the newly established Canada water agency, which would be up and running in 2022, thanks to this budget. The potential to build a modern research and innovation hub for clean water technology in Windsor—Tecumseh is enormous. This budget opens that door through the clean water agency and the creation of a Canadian innovation and investment agency.
Speaking of water, I had the opportunity recently to tour the docking, fuelling and warehousing facilities of companies operating along the Detroit River at the port of Windsor, companies like Morterm and Sterling Fuels. Through this budget, and the last, we are investing $2.4 billion in the national trade corridors fund that has the potential to supercharge ports like Port Windsor into a true multimodal transportation hub in the North American supply chain. That means more jobs and more investments back home.
As we create thousands of jobs locally and generate billions of dollars of investment across Windsor-Essex, we will have to turn our attention to two growing challenges. The first is affordable housing. Like many communities across Canada, Windsor—Tecumseh has a housing crisis. One important piece of the puzzle is to build and renovate more affordable housing. In just the last two years, I was proud to announce over $200 million for affordable housing in Windsor-Essex. That is a record for affordable housing in Windsor-Essex. We know that more needs to be done, and more needs to be done faster. This budget launches a new $4-billion housing accelerator fund to help municipalities like ours build more homes faster. To help more people purchase their first home, we introduced the tax-free first-home savings account and a homebuyers' bill of rights.
The second challenge we will face, especially as our local economy ramps up, is the need for skilled workers. We are seeing labour shortages across Canada. We will need more apprentices and more skilled workers to construct homes and build electric vehicles, batteries, charging stations and other infrastructure. I was proud last week when our government announced the $247-million investment to establish a new apprenticeship service that would create over 20,000 new apprenticeships by providing small and medium-sized businesses with up to $10,000 to hire a new apprentice. At the same time, in this budget, we are doubling the union training and innovation fund, because we know that unions like the IBEW, LiUNA, UNIFOR, and the United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners know how to train skilled workers for today and tomorrow.
Since my election, I have been pushing hard to put more money into the pockets of skilled workers, including those who have to travel out of town to a job site. I am pleased to see a labour mobility deduction in this year's budget that will allow skilled workers and apprentices to deduct $4,000 of travel and temporary relocation expenses.
Of course, what is going to make life more affordable for so many families and allow so many moms and dads to go to work or go back to school to gain the skills they need is our federal government's historic $10-a-day child care plan.
Communities like mine in Windsor—Tecumseh are entering a golden age of prosperity. No doubt there are many challenges ahead, but we are a community that pulls together, neighbour looking after neighbour. With historic investments and leadership by this federal government, we are ready to meet those challenges and take full advantage of the opportunities. That is why I suggest we support Bill C-19.
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- Jun/8/22 11:45:13 p.m.
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It being 11:45 p.m., pursuant to order made on Monday, June 6, it is my duty to interrupt the proceedings and put forthwith every question necessary to dispose of the third reading stage of the bill now before the House.
The question is on the amendment to the amendment.
If a member of a recognized party present in the House wishes to request a recorded division or that the subamendment be adopted on division, I would invite them to rise and indicate it to the chair.
The hon. member for Longueuil—Charles-LeMoyne.
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- Jun/8/22 11:47:06 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I request a recorded division.
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- Jun/8/22 11:47:09 p.m.
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Pursuant to order made on Thursday, November 25, 2021, the recorded division stands deferred until Thursday, June 9, at the expiry of the time provided for Oral Questions.
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- Jun/8/22 11:47:32 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I suspect if you were to canvass the House, you would find unanimous consent to call it 12 o'clock so we could begin the late show.
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- Jun/8/22 11:47:38 p.m.
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Does the hon. member have the unanimous consent of the House?
Some hon. members: Agreed.
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- Jun/8/22 11:48:06 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, the Minister of International Development assumed his role after significant concerns were raised about the approach he took while he was defence minister to respond to sexual harassment and assault allegations within Canada's military. It is important that he be willing to take a different approach in his new portfolio and raise the bar in calling international organizations to account for instances of sexual violence that occur within them.
International development can involve situations of significant power imbalance, so measures to prevent exploitation and to hold perpetrators accountable are crucial. We have seen too many instances of failures in this regard.
Earlier I asked the minister about serious allegations of exploitation and violence at the World Health Organization in Congo and also at UNWRA. He noted in response that he had raised those concerns with the WHO, saying, “they assured me that they are working on this.” I would suggest that a serious response to sexual violence requires more than taking the WHO at its word.
It is important to review the context. During an ebola outbreak in the DRC between 2018 and 2020, over 150 women came forward to report facing sexual exploitation by those involved in the WHO response, and 150-plus victims going on record suggests a deep and wide systematic failure of the WHO. The WHO's own report found at least 21 alleged perpetrators who were directly employed by them, including international and local staff.
Various countries have pushed the WHO to improve its procedures, and the EU responded by halting funds to the WHO in the DRC. This shows how serious our allies and partners are taking this matter, and rightly so.
Despite this scandal, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus was reelected as the head of the WHO earlier this year. Now, Ghebreyesus has not exactly had an auspicious time as WHO head. In 2017, he announced, and then rescinded, an offer to make Robert Mugabe a WHO goodwill ambassador. It is hard to argue that someone is interested in taking a firm line against corruption and exploitation when they want to make Robert Mugabe a goodwill ambassador for their organization. So much for setting an example to employees. Notwithstanding all of the things that have happened since, such as cozying up to the Chinese government and launching baseless attacks against Taiwan, this issue of Robert Mugabe revealed enough.
International development should be about empowering everyday people who are victims of violence and oppression to take control of their lives and not about cozying up to dictators who claim that building their profile will somehow make the world a better place. The WHO needs to change, but does not seem to have the capacity or the leadership to turn itself around, and our response has not been as strong as our allies.
I would like the government to clarify how it plans to hold the WHO, leaders at the WHO and individual perpetrators of violence to account. It is not good enough for the minister to say that the man who wanted to make Robert Mugabe a goodwill ambassador has assured him of his personal goodwill towards victims.
My original question also mentioned allegations of sexual misconduct at UNWRA. These allegations were the subject of an investigation by the UN Office of Internal Oversight Services, which provided an internal review. The report concluded that there was no evidence of sexual misconduct, contrary to the allegations, however the report remains confidential and internal to the UN.
Although it is fair to acknowledge that not all allegations are borne out by a full investigation, I wonder if the government finds it acceptable that these allegations were dismissed on the basis of an internal investigation or that the resulting report was never made public. A full, unredacted version was never even shared with member states. Does this way of dealing with such allegations conform to what the government considers an appropriate standard for responding to allegations of sexual assault?
I hope that the minister or the parliamentary secretary will be able to provide a more detailed response about the position of the government and concrete action taken on these important matters.
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- Jun/8/22 11:51:47 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, Canada has zero tolerance for all forms of sexual misconduct and sexual violence, including sexual exploitation, abuse, sexual harassment and all forms of gender-based violence. We are deeply concerned with the power dynamics that allow for any form of sexual misconduct to occur, and we stand strong in our unwavering commitment to respond to these acts and continue working toward their prevention. Canada respects the courage of the survivors who come forward and speak out.
Global Affairs Canada has taken a number of steps in order to prevent sexual exploitation and abuse from happening in the first instance and when it does happen, to address it, end impunity and increase accountability. GAC pursues a coordinated approach across programming, analysis and advocacy, and expects its funding recipients not only to have measures in place to prevent and protect, but also to respond and investigate using a survivor-victim-centred approach.
Canada responds to complex international crises through an established international humanitarian response system comprised of United Nations agencies. This mainly involves providing financial assistance to help meet urgent needs on the ground. The flexibility provided by monetary assistance is essential in complex, fluid operational environments like the one we saw in the Democratic Republic of Congo and what we are seeing today in Ukraine, which is allowing humanitarian organizations to procure relief items and to deploy key equipment and trained personnel quickly and efficiently through established and coordinated humanitarian networks.
Canada has taken a number of steps to hold the World Health Organization accountable and to ensure that incidents of sexual misconduct by staff are prevented in the future. When the allegations surfaced in the media in late 2020, Canada called on the WHO to initiate an immediate thorough and detailed assessment of the institutional policies, operational processes, leadership culture and circumstances that allowed sexual misconduct to go unreported to leadership and member states.
Internal investigations of WHO staff are currently under way. Canada is monitoring this situation closely to ensure that staff are held accountable and face consequences for any sexual misconduct that may have occurred once investigations into allegations have been concluded. When sexual misconduct and violence occur, such as in the DRC, Canada's immediate priority is to take a victim-survivor-centred approach safely and securely in a manner responsive to the complex environment.
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- Jun/8/22 11:54:34 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, respectfully, the member shared general values but did not respond to important specific questions.
Our allies have taken stronger responses to ensure that the rubber meets the road here, for instance, by withdrawing funds to the WHO in the DRC. Expressing these aspirations and concerns is not lining up with the strong measures being taken by our allies.
I also asked the member a specific question following up on the issue of UNWRA. Does the government believe it is acceptable when there is an internal investigation where we are told the allegations are without merit, and yet there is no publication of that report and it is not even made available to member states?
The same question applies in the case of the WHO scandal. When there are scandals involving alleged sexual misconduct at UN agencies, they have internal reports done and the reports are not made public or even shared with member states. Is that really a victim-centred approach? Does the government think that is an acceptable approach?
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- Jun/8/22 11:55:42 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I do want to thank the member for coming here at close to midnight tonight. I begrudgingly say that the member has been finding a way to grow on me over the last seven, eight, nine, 10 months, which I thought several years ago would probably never be possible. I want to thank him for the work that he does. I do get a kick out of him every now and again. I have found in the most recent months that he has quite a good sense of humour.
Canada closely follows the WHO's work to strengthen its capacity to prevent and respond, and monitors WHO- and UN-led investigations, including those focused on the role that senior management played in preventing and addressing sexual misconduct during the Ebola crisis.
Canada remains committed to working together with donors to ensure that any culpable staff are held accountable and face consequences once investigations into allegations have been, as I said, concluded.
The UN Office of Internal Oversight Services, the OIOS, conducted an investigation into allegations of misconduct among several—
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