SoVote

Context: House Hansard - 249 - Nov/8/23

Mr. Bryan May (Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Small Business and to the Minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario, Lib.)

Nov/8/23 7:07:40 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I am happy to respond to the comments made by the hon. member for Kitchener Centre regarding supports for small businesses and the Canada emergency business account payment deadline and loan forgiveness. Since the beginning of the COVID–19 pandemic, the government has been there to provide unprecedented support to Canada's small businesses across the country. That is why, at the onset of the pandemic, we launched the Canada emergency business account program. This is in addition to critical and much-needed supports like the rent and wage subsidies, which were put in place to assist small businesses. CEBA provided $49 billion in support to nearly 900,000 businesses across the country. The program offered interest-free partial forgivable loans up to $60,000 to eligible small businesses. It kept their lights on and helped workers remain employed. Early last year, to help business owners as they continue to recover from the pandemic, the government announced that the CEBA repayment deadline for partial forgiveness would be extended by one year. The government understands that the current global economic environment is having a major impact on entrepreneurs and Canadians. We recently announced several changes to the CEBA program aimed at supporting economic recovery. Recognizing the challenges that small businesses continue to face in the current economic context, we have yet again extended the deadline for partial forgiveness to January 2024 and have extended the CEBA term loans by one year, to December 31, 2026, to offer businesses more time for their loan repayments. Small businesses asked for more flexibility and the government listened. It is also supporting small businesses by cutting credit card transaction fees and reducing the small business tax rate from 11% to 9%. We have enhanced the Canada small business financing program by increasing annual financing to small businesses by an estimated $560 million annually through the introduction of a working line of capital to help businesses access liquidity for start-up costs and intangible assets. For businesses looking to bring their offerings to the digital marketplace, the Canada digital adoption program has supported enterprises of all sizes to digitize and reach more markets. Moreover, we are ensuring that all entrepreneurs have the opportunities they deserve. That is why we launched the historic women entrepreneurship strategy, the Black entrepreneurship program, the 2SLGBTQI+ entrepreneurship program and targeted supports for indigenous entrepreneurs. The government is focusing on growing our economy and building a stronger, more resilient Canada for everyone. We will continue to support Canadian businesses throughout this recovery process, because, quite frankly, that is common sense.

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Mr. Mike Morrice

Nov/8/23 7:11:14 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, the parliamentary secretary and I agree on one very relevant aspect of his comments, which is that the CEBA loan program was critical and small businesses are deeply grateful for it. However, the reality is that today over half of these same small businesses are trying to tell the government that if it does not step up, they might not make it at all. They are trying to tell the government that 18 days is not going to cut it. My question to the parliamentary secretary is this. Does he understand what small businesses are trying to convey? If he does, is he advocating for a proper extension to December 31, 2024, to be in the fall economic statement, which we are expecting in a matter of weeks?

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Mr. Bryan May

Nov/8/23 7:12:02 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, the government has heard loud and clear that small businesses needed additional flexibility and options in these difficult times and we are taking action. This includes an extension of the CEBA loan repayment deadline, more flexibility on refinancing and more time to access loan forgiveness. Through these measures, we are giving small businesses additional breathing room. The government will continue to support small businesses across the country while we grow our economy, fight climate change and create an economy that works for all Canadians.

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Ms. Laurel Collins (Victoria, NDP)

Nov/8/23 7:12:45 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, the climate crisis is here. Thousands of Canadians were evacuated from their homes in the worst wildfire season on record. Hundreds died in heat domes. Extreme weather is only getting more frequent and more severe. If we want to have any hope of meeting our climate targets, we must implement a strong emissions cap on the oil and gas industry. In Canada, despite accounting for just 5% of Canada's economy, oil and gas is responsible for over a quarter of Canada's emissions, more than any other sector. Despite the greenwashing that we hear from industry lobbyists, from their friends in the Liberal Party and from corporate-controlled Conservatives, oil and gas emissions are increasing year after year. The oil and gas sector's expansion has gone unchecked in Canada, and there have been no limits on how much pollution they are allowed to create. A strong cap on emissions would be that limit. The Liberals promised to deliver a cap on emissions but, instead, they continue to delay and disappoint. It is time to hold the oil and gas sector accountable for the fact that they are fuelling the climate crisis. It is not like they cannot afford it. Oil executives are raking in record profits, while everyday Canadians are struggling to make ends meet. If the Liberals wanted to stop pretending to be a climate leader and instead take real climate action, they would stop listening to oil and gas CEOs and implement a hard cap on emissions, one without the loopholes and delays that the oil and gas lobbyists are pushing for. A hard cap would be aligned with the Paris Agreement of keeping global warming below 1.5 degrees Celsius. It needs to be enforceable, and a hard cap on absolute levels of emissions; no loopholes and relief valves that let companies off the hook. This means emissions reductions would need to happen within the sector, not through purchasing offsets for reductions elsewhere. Companies should only receive credit for proven reductions, not hypothetical reductions based on speculative technologies. A strong emissions cap needs to include strong enforcement measures. Penalties and fines have to be significant enough that they actually deter or change behaviour rather than simply allowing companies to internalize small fines as the cost of doing business and continuing with business as usual. We need to look at compliance mechanisms that are not financial, things like mandated production cuts or the use of the criminal powers under CEPA. It also must uphold indigenous rights. We need to ensure that the rights affirmed in the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples continue to be upheld within the emissions cap, including securing indigenous peoples' free, prior and informed consent for energy development in their territory. The Liberal government needs to get serious about prioritizing our health and our future over the profits of rich CEOs. We cannot afford a weak emissions cap that does not hold the oil and gas industry accountable. My question to the member is this. When will the government stop delaying and start keeping some of its climate promises? When will we see a cap on emissions?

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Mr. Kevin Lamoureux (Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons, Lib.)

Nov/8/23 7:16:31 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, when it comes to the environment, we have a government that has clearly demonstrated, since coming to office in 2015, a genuine and sincere commitment to Canada's environment. In fact, the total greenhouse emissions that have been taken away are somewhere in the neighbourhood of 53 million tonnes since 2015. That is the equivalent of 11 million gas vehicles. Looking at it from a world perspective, of all the G20 countries, Canada is the only one that has actually eliminated fossil fuel subsidies. We even did that in advance of the dates by which we said we would do it. We have a government that has made the commitment to put a cap on emissions from the oil and gas sector. If we contrast the messaging that I hear tonight from the member across the aisle to the way in which she actually voted the other day on the Conservative opposition motion, there are a number of progressive people who are who are looking at the NDP and are getting a confused message. Part of what we talk about is how people can actually convert from oil heating to heat pumps, and I think the NDP might have been manipulated into supporting the Conservative motion in regard to the policy that the government put into place. That policy is to get people throughout Canada to take advantage of conversion from oil heating to heat pumps, which are much better for the environment and more affordable for Canadians. Games were played. In the House, the majority of the political entities, including the Greens, the Bloc members and obviously the Liberals, saw what the Conservatives were doing. The NDP, on the other hand, voted with the Conservatives. It sends a very mixed message when the member stands up and talks about emissions and then votes for a motion that goes against a price on pollution, remembering that with the price on pollution there are also the rebates that complement it. It also goes against the idea of sound policy that would ensure that more people convert to heat pumps from oil heating. I would suggest that is a good thing, and the government has a good track record already on that. The greener homes program, again, is about tens of thousands of homes, in all regions of the country combined, that have actually made a conversion and are now using heat pumps, recognizing that heat pumps are far better for our environment. This is a program, as an example, which the government has brought forward. Whether it is budgetary measures or legislative measures, we have been found to be a very progressive government in dealing with the environment and emissions.

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Ms. Laurel Collins

Nov/8/23 7:20:26 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, if the member wants an example of saying one thing but doing another, he just needs to look in the mirror, because today the NDP put forward a motion with respect to heat pumps, and the Liberals voted with the Conservatives. The motion included an excess profit tax on oil and gas companies. It is a measure that would hold rich CEOs accountable. Unfortunately, the current Liberal government does not have the courage to stand up to oil and gas lobbies. In fact, the Liberals invited them into crafting their climate policies. I am concerned that the member does not understand the urgency of the crisis we are facing and the urgency of ensuring that the oil and gas sector reduce its emissions. We needed an emissions cap years ago. I did not hear a date. When will the government get serious about holding the oil and gas giants accountable, and implement a cap on emissions?

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Mr. Kevin Lamoureux

Nov/8/23 7:21:29 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, the member makes reference to a vote that took place today on, again, a bad NDP policy. Let us think about it. What the New Democrats want to do is to completely get rid of the GST on fossil fuels, whether that is natural gas or oil. The GST provides a very significant rebate. That is what makes it progressive. The people who would benefit the most by the policy that the NDP was advocating are Canada's 1% wealthiest people. Those are the ones who actually would benefit the most because there is a rebate section to the GST. That is not to mention the many other inequities in that particular policy. That is why I suggest that the New Democrats need to think through their policies in regard to what is coming to the floor related to the price on pollution or to the GST, because the New Democrats' actions do not support a healthier environment.

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Ms. Lindsay Mathyssen (London—Fanshawe, NDP)

Nov/8/23 7:22:34 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I rise today to follow up on a question that I asked on Monday regarding the horrors we are witnessing in Gaza and to demand that the Canadian government call for a ceasefire, which is something this government continues to actively fight against. Even today in the House, Liberals refused to support our motion calling for a ceasefire. Many in my community of London—Fanshawe are in an incredible amount of pain. There are Canadians across this country who are in an incredible amount of pain. They are grieving for their families, their friends, their loved ones and for what they are seeing unfolding in Palestine and Israel. This past month has devastated many of us, and my constituents are as alarmed as I am by the increase in hate, including anti-Palestinian racism, Islamophobia and anti-Semitism. I have spoken with many Londoners who are still reeling from the horrific murder of members of our London family. Many Londoners do not feel safe sending their children to school, and some are scared to wear their Stars of David or their yarmulkes. I know of sons who have been so scared that they have asked their mothers not to wear their hijabs for fear of harassment and potential violence. Hundreds of Canadians and their families are still unable to leave Gaza, including some of my constituents. They are surviving the worst conditions and are under constant threat of bombardment, and they do not know when they might find safety. Global Affairs Canada has had no answers for them. I have been working with family members who are desperate. They fear every phone call that comes in. Their bodies can no longer handle the stress and they are being hospitalized for fear of what they will be told about those family members. They have cried in meetings with me and asked why they are seen as second-class citizens. Since October 11, the NDP has been asking the Liberals to stand on the right side of history and demand a ceasefire. Yesterday, polling by Mainstreet Research showed that over 71% of Canadians support the call for a ceasefire. Canadian aid agencies, including CARE, Development and Peace, Islamic Relief, Oxfam, Médecins du Monde and Save the Children are urging the Government of Canada to take a strong and resolute stance and demand a ceasefire in order to prevent further loss of civilian life. Eighteen leading global agencies, including UNICEF, the World Health Organization, the World Food Programme and the Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs are urging a ceasefire, saying that enough is enough. Many of the families of the hostages are calling for a ceasefire, saying that the bombardment puts their loved ones at risk. This is the worst humanitarian crisis we have seen in our lifetimes, and Gaza children are starving to death. Pregnant women are miscarrying from stress or having C-sections without anaesthetic in hospital rooms that are damaged from bombing and infested with insects. There is no water. There is no medicine. There is no safe place. The United Nations Secretary-General has said that “Gaza is becoming a graveyard for children.” However, what we do not hear from the government is what we need to hear. Why is Canada refusing to support international investigations into war crimes? Why is it that Canada cannot condemn those violations of international humanitarian law? In other conflicts, the government does that, but it does not do that in this one. This is an outrageous failure of leadership by the Prime Minister and the government. Canadians want a ceasefire. They want to see the hostages released. They want their fellow Canadians home. They want their family members home. However, the Liberals are failing at this moment. It is time to find their courage. I beg them to find their courage and call for a ceasefire before more Palestinian children are killed in this horrendous war.

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Ms. Pam Damoff (Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs (Consular Affairs), Lib.)

Nov/8/23 7:26:52 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I want to thank the hon. member for bringing this issue back to the House this evening. As she knows, I grew up in London, Ontario. I appreciate her efforts in bringing the concerns of her constituents to the House. We know that communities are grieving, and we are all concerned by the rise of Islamophobia and anti-Semitism in our communities right across Canada. I join the hon. member in calling for us to condemn hate in all its forms. The horrific attacks by Hamas against Israel shocked us all. Canada unequivocally condemns these brutal attacks against innocent civilians. The victims and all of those impacted are at the front of our minds. Hamas must unconditionally and immediately release all hostages, regardless of nationality, who were kidnapped during its attacks. We must also immediately and unequivocally call for unimpeded humanitarian aid, including food, fuel, water and medicine, to be allowed into Gaza. Every measure must be taken to protect civilians in Gaza. This means that Canadians, permanent residents and their immediate families must be able to leave. That is why we continue to call for humanitarian pauses. What is unfolding in Gaza is a human tragedy. As the Prime Minister has said, “the price of justice cannot be the continued suffering of all Palestinian civilians.” Canada's long-standing position is that civilians must be protected in all conflicts always. I repeat that everything must be done to protect all civilians, and international law must be respected. I want to reassure all Canadians that we are in regular and close contact with our allies and partners in the region. The Prime Minister and the Minister of Foreign Affairs continue to speak with their counterparts in Israel, Gaza and Qatar. The Minister of Foreign Affairs has been to the region twice. She has just arrived back from the G7. We continue to work hard to support Canadians and get them to safety. We are actively working to get Canadian citizens, permanent residents and their family members to safety. I want to take this time to thank our missions in the region, in Israel, Ramallah, Egypt and Jordan, and those in Canada at Global Affairs Canada. Today, I visited the emergency watch and response centre and saw first-hand the staff's dedication. I heard about the good work they are doing. They have been working non-stop to help Canadians, and their tremendous efforts continue as they work around the clock to ensure that Canadians are brought to safety. The first Canadians have now departed Gaza through the Rafah border crossing. Canadian officials are on the Egyptian side of the border ready to help with the support and care they need and to get them to Cairo. We remain in contact with those still in Gaza and will continue to work every day to bring them home. Canada was the first G7 country to announce additional humanitarian assistance to address the crisis. To date, Canada's contribution stands at $60 million to respond to the alarming conditions of those affected by the crisis. Our funding will help provide food, water, emergency medical assistance and protection services in Gaza. It is essential that humanitarian access can reach those in need. We will continue to call for the immediate release of all hostages and demand that they be treated in accordance with international law. We will keep working with our diplomatic channels. We have also sent a team of experts to the region. Canada is committed to a just and lasting peace in the Middle East. This means the creation of a Palestinian state living side by side in peace and security with Israel. All Israelis and Palestinians have the right to live in peace and security. It is essential that this conflict not spread. Canada continues to engage with our partners in the region and around the world to reinforce the need to avoid further escalations.

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Ms. Lindsay Mathyssen

Nov/8/23 7:30:55 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, once again, I am deeply disappointed that the hon. member could not even talk about the word “ceasefire”. She did mention a humanitarian pause, but the scale of the current humanitarian catastrophe cannot be reversed with temporary and localized influxes of aid. This is about starvation. This is about dehydration. This is about mass killings. Four thousand Palestinian children are dead. People are living in fear. More than 120,000 Canadians have written to MPs demanding a ceasefire. I am heartbroken that the Liberals do not have the courage to do what is right and call for the release of the hostages, call for international justice and call for a ceasefire.

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Ms. Pam Damoff

Nov/8/23 7:31:47 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, all Canadians are worried about what is happening in Gaza. Communities across the country are hurting, and we need to continue to work to ensure that all civilians are protected. International law, including humanitarian and human rights laws, must be respected, and civilians, journalists, humanitarian workers and medical personnel must be protected. The loss of civilian life is deeply disturbing, and our heartfelt condolences are with all those whose families and communities have been affected. Canadians and people around the world must be steadfast in our support for the protection of all civilians. Humanitarian assistance must get into Gaza. Canadians and all foreign nationals must get out of Gaza. All hostages must be released. We will continue to support diplomatic discussions on humanitarian pauses. We remain committed to a two-state solution, with a Palestinian state living side by side in peace and security with Israel. Canada stands firmly with the Israeli and Palestinian peoples in their right to live in peace, in security, with dignity and without fear.

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The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Alexandra Mendès)

Nov/8/23 7:32:51 p.m.
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The motion to adjourn the House is now deemed to have been adopted. Accordingly, the House stands adjourned until tomorrow at 10 a.m. pursuant to Standing Order 24(1). (The House adjourned at 7:33 p.m.)

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