44th Parl. 1st Sess.
February 13, 2023 11:00AM
- Feb/13/23 2:56:31 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, it is clear that, when the government awards contracts, the process is independent. Decisions are made by the public service. This is done to the highest standards in the world every time. That is how it is now and how it will continue to be.
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- Feb/13/23 2:56:57 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, after eight years of the Liberal Prime Minister, Canadians are struggling, but their Liberal friends at McKinsey have never had it so good.
McKinsey worked for ICE in the United States, where it advised the Trump administration to cut food and medical supplies for immigrant detainees. These are the same people that the Liberals then turned to for advice on immigration, even when the public service said that it could do the work itself.
Will the Prime Minister take responsibility for bringing McKinsey into our immigration system, or will he step aside so we can fix what he broke?
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- Feb/13/23 2:57:29 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the member across is an hon. member, and he has been in the House for some period of time. He would know that the contracts engaged in by the public service are not to have political interference, and his suggestion just a moment ago that his government would influence the decision of that contract is extremely concerning.
The reality is that, as has been clearly identified at committee, this process is independent. The contracts are used to expand the ability of the public service to do its job so that it does not permanently increase staffing, which allows flexibility in the system.
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- Feb/13/23 2:58:10 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, after eight years of the Liberal government, it has spent over $100 million on McKinsey & Company, and that includes $24.5 million from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada to create policy, which public servants should have created. Civil servants have even said that McKinsey & Company created the immigration targets.
Why does the minister not just take responsibility for the mess that he created and stop giving pricey contracts to McKinsey & Company?
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- Feb/13/23 2:58:39 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, as I already indicated, the contracts that are engaged in are done so at arm's length. They are conducted by the federal public service. I am sure the opposition is not inferring that, if it were in government, it would politically interfere, because that would be entirely inappropriate.
What we can say is the contracts are engaged by the federal public service to expand its ability to give services to Canadians.
Conservatives have tried many times to raise nefarious conspiracies at committee. I am sorry to say they have not been successful. They will not be successful there, and they will not be successful here.
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- Feb/13/23 2:59:21 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, artificial intelligence plays a key role in the future of manufacturing, agriculture and business. Can the Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry inform the House of the measures that have been taken by our government to finance important projects and support the AI ecosystem in Canada?
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- Feb/13/23 2:59:42 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the member for Alfred-Pellan for his excellent work and especially for his leadership. As per this morning's important announcement, we are going to invest $40 million in artificial intelligence projects that will generate 117 million projects across the country.
Canada's global leadership is behind AI. That will help to create high quality jobs, set up more resilient supply chains and improve efficiency and productivity.
Canada is a world leader in the field of artificial intelligence and we will continue to be with investments like the one announced this morning.
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- Feb/13/23 3:00:29 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, after eight years of the Liberal government, everything is broken. Canadian veterans need help. Wait times are skyrocketing. Veterans are homeless. Funds for veterans in need are being withheld.
Veterans took an oath to serve their country. They were ready to die for their country. Veterans with PTSD need help from their country. They are not ready to be eliminated by the government.
Will the Prime Minister take responsibility for failing our heroes, or just get out of the way so we can fix what he broke?
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- Feb/13/23 3:01:11 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I appreciate my hon. colleague's question, but when his party was in power, it fired a thousand employees and cut investments to Veterans Affairs. We have invested over $340 million to make sure we address the backlog. We have made sure and will continue to make sure that veterans receive appropriate remuneration for the great service they provide to this country.
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- Feb/13/23 3:01:39 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, after eight years of the Liberal Prime Minister, legal firearms owners want the government to stop harassing them and target the criminals who are the real problem. Crime is up 32%, and violent gang murders are up 92% after eight years of Liberal government. The Liberal Prime Minister is responsible for the Criminal Code and for securing the very borders that illegal guns are smuggled through.
Will the Prime Minister fix what he broke, reinforce border security and keep the smuggled guns out of the hands of criminals?
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- Feb/13/23 3:02:11 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, my hon. colleague will have seen that we are consulting with legal firearms owners. In fact, that is precisely what we have been doing throughout the course of Bill C-21 and will continue to do so, because we know that hunters, trappers and first nations are part of the Canadian social fabric.
More to the point, what we are targeting are those AR-15 style guns that have been used in some of the worst mass-shooting tragedies in this country's history. That is what we are after. We are also going to support the CBSA, which is stopping an increasing number of illegal firearms at our border. That is something that I hope my colleague would support. However, in order to do that, he actually has to vote for those appropriations, and the next time we do that, I hope he will.
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- Feb/13/23 3:02:54 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, after eight years of Liberal incompetence, Canadians are desperate to buy an affordable home. Housing prices are at an all-time high, forcing young Canadians to keep living with their parents.
When will the Liberal government make life affordable for the younger generation of Canadians, who have lost hope in our future because our country, Canada, is completely broken?
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- Feb/13/23 3:03:30 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, unlike the party opposite, we are focused on making sure that we provide supports to first-time homebuyers, encouraging the dream of Canadian home ownership: $40,000 in a first-time homebuyer tax-free savings account; doubling of the first-time homebuyer tax credit; introducing a $200-million rent-to-own program; and banning foreign ownership of Canadian residential real estate. Those are real, tangible measures to help first-time homebuyers. Those are not fear and gimmicks.
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- Feb/13/23 3:04:05 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, this morning, our government made a significant announcement regarding our commitment to investing in rural communities across southern Ontario, including in my riding of Kitchener—Conestoga. Our government announced an investment of $39.6 million for the Community Futures Development Corporation across southern Ontario through the community futures program.
Can the minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario please inform the House about the important investments our government is making in small towns and rural communities?
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- Feb/13/23 3:04:33 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the member for Kitchener—Conestoga for his tireless advocacy. Rural businesses, organizations and communities contribute significantly to strengthening the Canadian economy. Community Futures Development Corporations offer on-the-ground support that enables rural businesses to thrive. Our government is investing nearly $40 million, as the member has acknowledged, in Community Futures Development Corporations to enable them to provide the support necessary to grow regional economies. Our government is going to continue to make investments in people, which leads to strong economic growth and creates an economy that works for all Canadians.
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- Feb/13/23 3:05:17 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Veterans Affairs gave $560 million to a company owned by Loblaws to deliver services for veterans. Now the contract rollout is paused for the second time. Why? It is because the company was not ready. Veterans who gave everything to this country see their treatments on hold, their services delayed and providers confused.
Will the minister admit that outsourcing to a greedy for-profit company is not working for veterans and their families, and cancel the contract?
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- Feb/13/23 3:05:50 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague for her concern, but this new contract will provide 14,000 veterans with over 9,000 health professionals in 600 places across this country. Absolutely no veteran will fall through the cracks. It will be completely seamless for veterans. I can assure my colleague that the case managers, veterans and everyone involved are completely informed all the way along on these contracts. They are a great asset to veterans, and the government will continue to support veterans.
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- Feb/13/23 3:06:26 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, in his state of the union address, President Joe Biden called out big oil for its excess profits, which he called “outrageous”, and he pledged to quadruple the tax on corporate stock buybacks. Frankly, that is not enough. The Secretary-General of the United Nations has called such profits “immoral”. In Canada, the 10 biggest oil and gas companies amassed more than $66 billion in profits in one year, and that is more than double what they had in the previous decade.
Can the hon. minister tell us when Canada will tax back the excess profits of these war profiteers?
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- Feb/13/23 3:07:05 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, it is always a pleasure to work with the member for Saanich—Gulf Islands. I am very glad to hear her talking about President Biden's comments on the share buyback tax and his view that he would like to see that tax, which is currently at 1% in the United States, quadrupled. The fact is that in Canada we introduced that tax at 2%, which is double the current U.S. level, because we absolutely believe it is appropriate for our tax system to encourage Canadian companies to invest in workers and to invest in the economy.
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- Feb/13/23 3:07:48 p.m.
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It being 3:07, pursuant to the order made on Thursday, June 23, 2022, the House will now proceed to the taking of the deferred recorded division on the motion of the member for Beloeil—Chambly relating to the business of supply.
Call in the members.
During the taking of the vote:
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