44th Parl. 1st Sess.
November 1, 2022 10:00AM
- Nov/1/22 11:22:43 a.m.
- Watch
Madam Speaker, on many points I would disagree with the member opposite. I would suggest that Canada did exceptionally well when going through the pandemic. We had a team Canada approach and it made a difference in a very real way. If I was allowed another hour, I would be more than happy to amplify every one of those points.
With regard to the whole issue of awarding contracts, hundreds of millions of dollars went out. There is no doubt about that. Members try to give the false impression that Liberal businesses were the only beneficiaries, when we had literally thousands of contracts going out. I can assure the member that they were not only for Liberal entrepreneurs, Conservative entrepreneurs and New Democrat entrepreneurs. I would suggest that even some Bloc entrepreneurs might have received some of these grants. To paint with a broad brush puts a negative image on all politics, no matter what political party one belongs to.
160 words
All Topics
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Nov/1/22 11:24:24 a.m.
- Watch
Madam Speaker, I enjoyed the speech by the member for Terrebonne.
Naturally, she focused on the ethical dimension, including when she referred to the sponsorship scandal. I think she could have also referred to the WE Charity scandal, in which a billion-dollar contract was awarded to friends of the Prime Minister. There is also the famous respirator contract granted at the time to well-known Liberals without a call for tenders.
With ArriveCAN, we do not know who the contract was awarded to or how it was done. However, we know that the government will create a new program through Bill C‑31, which has just been passed. That program will give $600 cheques to people who receive dental care. However, it would seem that the government again needs private companies. Once again, they will need to contract out.
The government systematically contracts out to the private sector, but every time, it seems to benefit friends of the Liberal Party in particular. What does my colleague think about that?
171 words
All Topics
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Nov/1/22 11:26:34 a.m.
- Watch
Madam Speaker, I think the list is too long. I do not have enough time to list all the people who have benefited from contracts.
It is important to remember that we are here to talk about the awarding of a clearly questionable contract. We still agree on one thing, although we think the wording could have been a bit less populist.
We agree that it is important, for the credibility of all politicians, to remember that the government managed the crisis well, but particularly that none of its friends were able to benefit financially from those contracts.
98 words
All Topics
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Nov/1/22 12:36:44 p.m.
- Watch
Madam Speaker, here is how standards have fallen under the Liberal government.
Back when the Conservatives were in office, the chamber was seized with a glass of orange juice purchased in London that cost $16. Today, it is a hotel bill that cost $6,000, and the government will not even come clean about who stayed there. We know it was the Prime Minister, but that is how the government has lost its way. It will not even be honest with Canadians.
My question for the member is straightforward. If the contractors identified by the government were never paid, and this $1.2 million is one example but I am sure there are others, what companies had access to this data through the contracts they received? If the Liberals do not want to make it about money, let us talk about privacy. Which companies have access to the private information of Canadians through these contracts that the government is not willing to reveal to Canadians?
165 words
All Topics
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Nov/1/22 12:53:34 p.m.
- Watch
Madam Speaker, I would remind my colleague that, during the pandemic, eight dollars out of every $10 invested to support health care across the country came from the federal government. We made sure to provide the best support possible during the pandemic, from coast to coast to coast.
As for the awarding of contracts and how the public service works, I would like to reiterate what my colleague said earlier: We have faith in our process, our public servants and our departmental employees. Unlike other members of the House, we also believe in the independence of public servants. I hope my colleague believes in that too.
106 words
All Topics
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Nov/1/22 1:34:38 p.m.
- Watch
Madam Speaker, I want to preface my next question with a fact related to the treatment of the public service in Canada. It is no secret that over 2,500 grievances have been made against the government for outsourcing IT contracts and other contracts to the private sector.
Can the member explain why his government continues to outsource valuable work to the private sector that our public sector here in Canada can do?
73 words
All Topics
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Nov/1/22 1:44:29 p.m.
- Watch
Madam Speaker, I hope that you will pardon us if we are in disbelief regarding the member's comments. He talks about the scrutiny of the app. The Liberals cannot even scrutinize the contracts they have given. They do not know where $1.2 million of this $54 million went.
We have all had blood tests. In a blood test there is a small sample of what is going on in the entire body. This ArriveCAN is like a blood test and inside of it we see wastefulness. We see incompetency and perhaps corruption. We see dysfunctionality. We see all sorts of problems. Will the member for Kingston and the Islands agree with this?
114 words
All Topics
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Nov/1/22 1:48:10 p.m.
- Watch
Madam Speaker, I want to be very clear with Liberal members. The New Democratic Party is against giving Liberal-backed insiders all the money the government produces for a service that Canadians can barely use. When we are talking about contracts or privatization, we are talking about real public servants, which the government is trying to toss out the door right now. New Democrats are trying to protect those jobs.
When we are talking about actually protecting the public service, why does the member continue to outsource to and protect his big friends in the private sector?
97 words
All Topics
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Nov/1/22 4:01:40 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his speech.
I am surprised to hear him brag about the economy, when in the cases of ArriveCAN and Roxham Road there seem to be some questionable contracts to look at, to say the least. He talked about the economic statement. While the government is giving money to companies, the minister is already telling Canadians that they will have to tighten their belts. It is a double standard for businesses and individuals.
After the pandemic, there are systems where people need help. There is the issue of health transfers that we put in as a condition for the economic statement, help for seniors 65 to 74 who are once again being ignored by the government, as well as the whole issue of employment insurance. I think that despite the tough times that are coming, it is definitely not the time to be making cuts in these areas.
154 words
All Topics
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Nov/1/22 4:59:50 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, this whole ArriveCAN debacle has raised the issue of decisions about whether to outsource contracts to the private sector or have Canada's public service do the work itself, and there are some really strong concerns about the way in which that part of the procurement process is happening.
Does the member agree that there needs to be a much larger view of this problem, and does he support the work we are trying to do to get to the bottom of that process?
86 words
All Topics
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Nov/1/22 5:00:27 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, I am also more than willing for us to look more closely at how contracts are awarded. Some rather serious mistakes were made.
We are members of the Bloc Québécois. For awhile, in Quebec, we had what were called public-private partnerships under a Liberal government, and the results were rather scandalous in many respects. Of course, we can look at that and debate it. I have no problem with that.
77 words
All Topics
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- menumenu
- notificationsnotifications
- home
- mailmail
- searchsearch
