44th Parl. 1st Sess.
October 26, 2023 10:00AM
- Oct/26/23 2:18:46 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order. You made a point last week of giving us direction on how to conduct ourselves in this place. During the last S. O. 31, we had members, including the hon. member for Thunder Bay—Superior North, heckling.
If we are not supposed to speak up at all during question period, we certainly should not be speaking up when members are trying to make a statement.
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Mr. Speaker, our government tabled Bill C-49 to unlock massive green energy investments in places like my riding of Cape Breton—Canso. The private sector is positioned to invest $1 trillion in offshore wind and green hydrogen and, yes, that is trillion with a “t”.
Our government believes that Atlantic Canadians deserve their fair share, so why are the Conservatives voting against the Atlantic accord amendments when $1 trillion is on the line?
We should all be working together, working together here with industry leaders, with fishers and with indigenous communities like Membertou, to start our green energy future now.
Instead, the opposition is voting against a generation's worth of economic opportunities for Nova Scotia, all because a win for the Atlantic does not go well in their campaign strategy.
The Conservatives are trying to score a political hit but, with our future at stake, Canadians are the ones who are taking the punch.
This is another example of how they are risky and absolutely reckless.
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- Oct/26/23 2:22:04 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, after eight years, the spending spree of taxpayers’ money continues. Liberal insiders are getting rich quick while inflation and interest rates spiral out of control, housing prices double and more than two million Canadians are using food banks in a single month. We now know that the public safety minister’s own department paid $17 million last year to the same companies that did no actual work and made millions off the arrive scam app even after concerns of corruption were flagged.
I have a simple question for the minister. Why do shady, well-connected firms deserve $17 million of taxpayers' money?
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- Oct/26/23 2:22:50 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, misconduct of any kind in a procurement process is never acceptable. We are aware of the RCMP's ongoing investigation into those very serious allegations.
To protect the integrity of that investigation and the work the RCMP does, we will not be able to provide any further comment.
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- Oct/26/23 2:23:14 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I will answer the minister’s question for him if he will not bother to do so.
Under no circumstances do these companies deserve any taxpayer money, let alone $17 million. They are being investigated by the RCMP. They did no work for the government, and nobody seems to be able to explain how they got the contract. It is $17 million for these guys but food banks for two million Canadians. That is what we get after eight years of these guys.
How does anyone over there defend this scandal?
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- Oct/26/23 2:23:54 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, what is being raised by the member opposite is being addressed by the RCMP. As I have said before in the House, we trust our law enforcement professionals to do their work and to do it independently. We will not be participating in, or commenting on, their investigation. We know that it has been referred to them. Our professionals in our law enforcement system will do the work necessary to come to a conclusion.
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- Oct/26/23 2:24:18 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, they are certainly keeping law enforcement busy in this country. With $17 million to insiders, Canadians are still going hungry. Almost two million people went to a food bank in a single month. That is the highest number ever recorded but, instead, Liberals are worried about helping their well-connected friends. They are not worth the cost, and they are certainly not worth the corruption.
When will the Liberals and their NDP enablers stop helping insiders get rich and start helping Canadians put food on their tables and keep roofs over their heads?
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- Oct/26/23 2:24:55 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, while I am impressed that the Conservatives are finally talking about supporting some of Canada's most vulnerable, it is unfortunate that their record does not stand up to the scrutiny.
I was in Kelowna yesterday to announce $31.5 million to build more homes in that community. The Conservatives plan to cut the fund that is actually putting that money into Kelowna.
During the pandemic, we continued to invest so that families could keep food on the table while their leader called them “big, fat government programs”. Canadians would be forgiven if they asked what the Conservatives are going to cut in order to achieve their goals. Is it going to be money for housing? Is it going to be money for low-income families?
We will make the investments necessary to support Canadians in need.
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- Oct/26/23 2:25:39 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the media is reporting that one in 10 Quebeckers are using food banks each month. That is more than 870,000 people. It is 2023. That is the situation after eight years of Liberal governance and inflationary spending. It is like the ArriveCAN app, which cost $54 million and is currently under investigation by the RCMP.
Who is going to stand up for Quebeckers who are struggling to put food on the table? It is certainly not the Bloc Québécois, which wants to drastically increase the tax on gas and groceries.
Will the Prime Minister give up his inflationary spending so that Quebeckers can put food on the table?
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- Oct/26/23 2:26:21 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for his question. As I pointed out earlier this afternoon, such conduct is unacceptable in a procurement process.
We are well aware that the RCMP is currently investigating those allegations, and we will not comment any further to protect the integrity of the investigation.
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- Oct/26/23 2:26:55 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, here is another major problem. According to a Nanos survey, 28% of mortgagees in Quebec will have to renew their contracts within a year and a half, and 79% say they are worried about their upcoming renewal. More than one-third of Quebeckers cite rising interest rates as the main reason for their financial concerns. After eight years under this Prime Minister, Quebeckers are worried about ending up on the street.
Will the Prime Minister finally stop wasting taxpayers' money and start curbing inflation and rising interest rates?
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- Oct/26/23 2:27:30 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, what Quebeckers are afraid of is Conservatives. Conservatives go to bed thinking about cuts and wake up thinking about austerity. What Quebeckers are afraid of is cuts to housing, services for seniors, services for families and child care. There is nothing scarier than a Conservative government.
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- Oct/26/23 2:27:57 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, CBC tells us that the federal government is considering the possibility of reviewing its immigration levels in 2026 because of the housing crisis. Finally, the Liberals have come to understand that there is a limit to welcoming families when they cannot be housed. The housing crisis is not in 2026, it is now. The Liberals are going to raise levels in 2024 and 2025.
Will the government actually be responsible and review its immigration levels as early as 2024?
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- Oct/26/23 2:28:29 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, it is possible to welcome newcomers and build housing at the same time.
I have good news for my colleagues: We have reached an agreement with Quebec to build housing in Quebec.
It is essential that we continue to embrace newcomers, as they are key to our economic growth. They are key to our health care system. We can build homes for Canadians at the same time, and that is precisely what we will do. I hope my colleague will join me in this effort.
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- Oct/26/23 2:28:59 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the government must review its levels as early as 2024 and, above all, it must review them in co‑operation with Quebec and the provinces. It is currently working behind closed doors. It is right to be concerned about housing capacity. However, when it comes to health care, education, francization and transportation infrastructure, that is the job of the provinces and Quebec.
Are we going to ask them what their capacity is and set the levels accordingly?
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- Oct/26/23 2:29:36 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, as a Quebecker, I have my opinions on immigration. I am in favour of immigration. There will be plenty of time to talk about this on November 1. It is important for members to remember one thing: We need immigrants here in Canada. We need to build houses and we need 100,000 construction workers. They will not all necessarily come from here, so we need immigration.
If the Bloc Québécois is against immigration, then they should say so.
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- Oct/26/23 2:30:11 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, people need affordable homes now.
Canadians are exhausted with Conservative and Liberal governments making big announcements while families cannot afford homes. Tens of thousands are on waiting lists. They are sleeping in their cars, in tents and in sleeping bags on the streets in Edmonton, and it is snowing and freezing today.
The Conservative plan is to help their rich developers, and the Liberals are missing in action. How many more years will Edmontonians have to wait to get homes they can afford?
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- Oct/26/23 2:30:50 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. member for her concern for some of Canada's most vulnerable.
I am happy to inform her that we have been working for a number of years to build more homes to support them. In fact, we have doubled funding to the Reaching Home program to support some of Canada's most vulnerable.
We recently removed the GST on new apartments. We have seen thousands of new homes come online as a result.
I was recently in western Canada to make an announcement to change the way cities are going to build homes. We are going to pull every lever at our disposal to build more homes faster for Canadians, including to provide supports to some of the country's most vulnerable people.
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- Oct/26/23 2:31:28 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the minister keeps talking about solutions that are not going to happen for this winter.
As my colleague from Edmonton said, people are already sleeping out on the streets. Students are sleeping in tents, couch surfing or living in overcrowded conditions because they cannot find affordable housing. It is beyond unacceptable. The lack of affordable rental options for students in B.C. is leaving them vulnerable to exploitation and homelessness today.
However, the Liberals and the Conservatives are too busy blaming each other and other levels of government instead of getting to work. When will the Liberal government invest in affordable and safe student housing for today?
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- Oct/26/23 2:32:14 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to share with the hon. member that as a result of the measures we put in place directly to support some of Canada's most vulnerable, we have prevented more than 120,000 Canadians from becoming homeless, and we have found permanent housing for almost 70,000 more who were experiencing homelessness.
We know there is more to do. That is why we continue to make investments through the national housing strategy, which has now created or retrofitted half a million homes for Canadians. We will do everything we can to build more homes. I am glad the NDP is alongside us. I invite the Conservatives to get on board.
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