44th Parl. 1st Sess.
May 11, 2023 10:00AM
- May/11/23 10:38:08 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the same federal government has outsourced core government responsibilities to that same McKinsey, which is the intellectual soul behind the Century Initiative. The basic idea is to put things off until long after our kids have retired and imagine how wonderful it will be. In the meantime, starting tomorrow, we need to bring in plenty of cheap labour. It is very efficient.
For starters, the subcontracting is questionable. Consider the burden of proof. They say they did not take their numbers from the Century Initiative, but they used the same numbers. What a coincidence. The fact is, it is the same malarkey, and Quebeckers will know how to deal with it.
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Madam Speaker, I will share my time with the member for Glengarry—Prescott—Russell.
I am very pleased to rise today to discuss a topic of deep concern to my community and my constituency of Lac-Saint-Louis.
Canada is confronting demographic issues and a serious labour shortage. Every time I am on the ground meeting with business owners, whether they come from the tourism, restaurant, farming or manufacturing sectors, they all tell me about the daily effects and challenges they face because of the labour shortage. For SMEs, the consequences are painful. They mean excessive workloads for employees and delayed or lost contracts, not to mention the economic losses that result nationwide.
Canada's current unemployment rate stands at an all-time low of 5% nationally, and 4.1% in Quebec. Although Canada's economy regained 129% of the jobs lost during the pandemic, this excellent news comes with its own set of problems.
Fifty years ago, there were seven workers for every retiree. Today, there are three for every retiree, and in less than 15 years there will be two. These figures speak for themselves. Canada's economy is growing faster than the ability of some employers to fill positions, and this has been the case for several years.
As I was saying, whether in the fishery, agriculture, forestry, mining, tourism or processing industry, and in every other industry for that matter, there is a significant labour shortage in our country. It is a problem that our government takes very seriously and is tackling with a multi-pronged approach. One way to address the labour shortage is through immigration, because 100% of the increase in labour currently comes from immigration. That is a direct solution to the labour shortage in addition to being the historical foundation of our beautiful and great country. However, in recent days, misinformation has been circulating, and I believe it is important to clearly point that out.
The Century Initiative is not a government policy. I again want to be clear. The government does not subscribe to the findings of this independent group and does not have as an objective increasing Canada's population to 100 million.
In November 2022, our government announced our immigration targets for the next three years. These targets were set based on Canada's needs, recognizing that immigration is essential to help businesses find the workers they need and to continue to grow our economy. It is important to remember that before we announce our targets every year, we consult with the provinces. Last November's targets were a reflection of current labour shortages, regionalization of immigration and francophone immigration.
I want to reassure the House. Increasing francophone immigration to halt the decline of French is a priority for our government and is even included in Bill C-13, which we will vote on at report stage this afternoon. Last year, we met our target of 4.4% of francophone immigrants outside Quebec, which is obviously good news.
We will not stop there. More recently, we announced our new action plan for official languages, which is more ambitious than ever. One entire pillar of that plan focuses on francophone immigration with an investment of $137 million. This is a historic first. The plan includes seven new measures to support francophone immigration, including additional support for employers to recruit francophone foreign workers and for newcomers to learn French.
Through Bill C‑13, we are also developing a new francophone immigration policy with clear objectives, targets and indicators to guide our action.
These examples show the importance of pursuing ambitious targets while trying to tackle current challenges too. On this side of the House, we believe in taking responsible action to address these urgent needs, which is exactly what we are doing.
Immigration levels are reviewed and revised every three years based on Canada's needs and capacities.
In conclusion, I would say once again that the Century Initiative is not a government policy and that our immigration targets are not based on its targets. Furthermore, immigration is a tool that will help us address the labour shortage. For a member from a region like mine, immigration is an essential part of regional economic growth.
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- May/11/23 1:02:15 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for his outstanding speech.
To address the labour shortage, we need a responsible, professional, robust and ambitious immigration system.
Without such a system, how can we make Canada a prosperous country with a steadily growing economy to create jobs for Canadians? How can we make this beautiful country one of the great nations of the world?
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- May/11/23 1:40:52 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for her passionate remarks on Quebec's regions.
The Bloc Québécois will take no lessons from her on our regions. Nearly all of us in the Bloc come from rural regions. I myself am extremely concerned about the labour shortage in the regions, particularly in Charlevoix, which is a tourist area. I am also our party's critic for fisheries and oceans, where there are also labour issues.
Can my colleague, who is the Minister of National Revenue, explain how, with a really large influx of immigrants to the regions, we are supposed to provide housing for all these newcomers? What hospital can care for them? Where will they go for child care and where will their children go to school ?
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- May/11/23 2:41:26 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his intervention.
When I think about immigration, I think about the labour shortage. What we need to make clear to all Quebeckers watching today is that Quebec has the authority to select immigrants.
What we are hearing across Quebec and in the regions is that there is a need for workers. When we make investments, for example in the GM plant that will be built in Bécancour, the mayors and officials of the RCMs tell us that they need skilled people.
That is how we will build Quebec and Canada.
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The Chair would like to make a statement regarding the status of Bill C-243, an act respecting the elimination of the use of forced labour and child labour in supply chains, standing in the name of the member for Thunder Bay—Rainy River.
On June 6, 2022, the Chair advised the House of similarities between Bill C-243 and Bill S-211, an act to enact the fighting against forced labour and child labour in supply chains act and to amend the Customs Tariff.
Both bills have the same objective. They seek to require certain entities to report on measures they take to prevent, and reduce, the risk of using forced labour and child labour in the production of goods and in supply chains.
A long-standing practice prohibits the House from deciding the same question twice during a session. As a result, the Chair ordered that the status of Bill C-243 remain pending pursuant to Standing Order 94(1) and that it not be considered until proceedings on Bill S-211 have concluded.
Bill S-211 was adopted by this House on May 3, 2023. The bill subsequently received royal assent yesterday, May 10, 2023.
Accordingly, the Chair is ordering that Bill C-243 be dropped from the Order Paper.
I thank all members for their attention.
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- May/11/23 4:30:40 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, it is important to recognize the importance of the contributions that immigrants make to our communities. In Manitoba, if it were not for immigration, our population would have declined. If it were not for immigration, many of the industries we have would not be there.
If someone takes a walk through any of our hospitals or care facilities, they will find people of Punjabi heritage, Filipino heritage and others, who make up the bulk of the workforce today. Whether it is in health care, the trucking industry or the trades, we will see it is often the immigration community fuelling the labour supply and ultimately contributing to our economy.
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- May/11/23 5:31:53 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I always like to listen to the member because I know he speaks from the heart.
Throughout the day, I often heard speeches implying that the Bloc was against immigration, which is not the case at all. We are not against immigration at all, but we are for an immigration policy, that is for sure. I have heard a lot of arguments involving the labour shortage and economic considerations, but that was always in the short term. I also heard a lot about stirring up trouble.
I would like the member to clarify something for me: In his view, if a people want to avoid the annihilation set out in the Century Initiative, is that such a bad thing?
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- May/11/23 5:52:18 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, first things first.
The fact that there are so many newcomers whose status is irregular right now only proves that the immigration system does not work, and yet the Liberals want to put more people into it.
As for the regularization of undocumented workers, people who already contribute to the economy, I think that it is a path we must consider. To deal with the labour shortage, which is a multifactorial problem, we must have a multifactorial approach to finding a solution. That means, for example, that seniors should be able to work if given adequate tax incentives, that we should recognize newcomers' credentials, and that we should encourage people who have stopped working to return to the workforce. There are many solutions. We can consider automation—
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