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Decentralized Democracy

House Hansard - 262

44th Parl. 1st Sess.
December 5, 2023 10:00AM
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Madam Speaker, furthermore, if the government's response to Questions Nos. 1804 to 1807, 1809 to 1813, 1821, 1822, 1824 to 1827, 1830, 1831, 1836, 1837, 1839, 1841, 1846 and 1847 could be made orders for return, this return would be tabled immediately.
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Is that agreed? Some hon. members: Agreed.
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Question no 1804 —
Questioner: Peter Julian
En ce qui concerne le fonds de formation du Programme Combattre et gérer les feux de forêt dans un climat en changement, depuis le 1er octobre 2021: a) combien de pompiers communautaires ont réussi la formation du gouvernement fédéral, ventilé par (i) province ou territoire, (ii) année; b) dans quelles collectivités a-t-on fait appel aux pompiers communautaires formés en a) pour combattre et gérer des feux de forêt, ventilées par (i) province ou territoire, (ii) année?
Question no 1805 —
Questioner: Dan Albas
En ce qui concerne l’initiative Financement de la construction de logements locatifs: a) à combien s’élève le financement accordé dans le cadre de cette initiative depuis sa création; b) quels sont les détails de tous les projets approuvés jusqu’à maintenant, y compris, pour chacun, (i) le lieu, (ii) le nombre de logements, (iii) la valeur du projet, (iv) le montant du financement, (v) le type de financement, (vi) le bénéficiaire du financement, s’il est connu, (vii) la date de demande, (viii) la date d’approbation, (ix) la date de versement du financement; c) parmi les projets en b), combien de logements étaient achevés en date d'octobre 2023?
Question no 1806 —
Questioner: Dan Albas
En ce qui concerne l’Office des transports du Canada (OTC): a) quel est l’arriéré actuel des plaintes relatives au transport aérien, y compris le nombre de plaintes et la durée d’attente avant qu’une décision ne soit rendue pour les nouvelles plaintes; b) quel est le plan du gouvernement pour réduire l’arriéré; c) le gouvernement prévoit-il une date pour ramener la durée d’attente pour l’arriéré à moins de six mois et, le cas échéant, quelle est cette date prévue; d) si le gouvernement n’a pas de date prévue en c), pourquoi pas; e) quelles mesures, le cas échéant, ont été prises pour diminuer le nombre de cas exigeant une décision de l’OTC?
Question no 1807 —
Questioner: Dan Albas
En ce qui concerne les dépenses gouvernementales liées au déplacement du premier ministre à New York en septembre 2023 pour assister à l’Assemblée générale des Nations Unies: a) quelles dépenses le gouvernement a-t-il effectuées à ce jour pour ce déplacement, au total et ventilé par type de dépense; b) combien de personnes ont fait partie de la délégation canadienne; c) quels sont les noms et les titres des membres de la délégation; d) quel a été le montant total dépensé par le gouvernement en hébergement dans la région de la ville de New York pour la durée de la visite, y compris le (i) montant total dépensé, (ii) nom de l’hôtel, (iii) nombre de chambres louées chaque nuitée, (iv) tarif payé ainsi que le nombre de chambres pour chaque tarif?
Question no 1809 —
Questioner: Stephen Ellis
En ce qui concerne le Programme gouvernemental sur l’usage et les dépendances aux substances, ventilé annuellement pour chacune des cinq dernières années: a) combien de fonds le Programme a-t-il fournis; b) comment les fonds ont-ils été dépensés, ventilés par type de dépenses; c) quels sont les détails des bénéficiaires des fonds, y compris (i) quelles entités ont reçu des fonds par l’entremise du Programme, y compris le nom et l’emplacement de chaque entité, (ii) combien de fonds chaque entité a-t-elle reçus, (iii) à quoi devaient servir les fonds; d) quelle est la ventilation des fonds par province ou territoire et par région municipale, si leur chiffre est connu; e) quelle est la ventilation des fonds par type de substance?
Question no 1810 —
Questioner: Jenny Kwan
En ce qui concerne Anciens combattants Canada, à ce jour: a) combien d’unités de logement accessibles et abordables ont été construites ou obtenues depuis le 1er novembre 2019 à l’intention des vétérans sans abri des Forces armées canadiennes et de la Gendarmerie royale du Canada, ventilé par année et par province ou territoire; b) quels sont les loyers médians des unités de logement en a), ventilés par année et par municipalité; c) combien de vétérans sans abri ont eu accès à une des unités de logement en a), ventilé par année et par province ou territoire; d) comment les fonds fédéraux ont-ils été alloués à la construction de logements abordables destinés aux vétérans sans abri du Canada; e) le gouvernement sait-il combien de vétérans sont actuellement sans abri au Canada, et, le cas échéant, quel est le chiffre le plus à jour?
Question no 1811 —
Questioner: Jenny Kwan
En ce qui concerne l’assurance prêt hypothécaire de la Société canadienne d’hypothèques et de logement (SCHL) pour les fournisseurs de logements sans but lucratif, à ce jour: a) combien de projets de logements sans but lucratif assortis de garanties hypothécaires de la SCHL sont en défaut de paiement, ventilé par année et par province ou territoire; b) pour chaque projet en défaut de paiement en a), quelle est la raison du défaut de paiement; c) combien et quel pourcentage des projets de logements sans but lucratif en défaut de paiement ont finalement été saisis; d) combien et quel pourcentage des projets étaient également garantis par les gouvernements provinciaux ou territoriaux; e) à combien s’élèvent, en moyenne, les frais administratifs facturés par la SCHL aux organismes sans but lucratif qui veulent faire assurer leur prêt hypothécaire par la SCHL pour leur projet de logements; f) quel est le montant total des frais administratifs facturés par la SCHL aux organismes sans but lucratif, ventilé par province ou territoire?
Question no 1812 —
Questioner: Jenny Kwan
En ce qui concerne l’Initiative gouvernementale pour la création rapide de logements (ICRL), à ce jour: a) combien de demandes, par l’entremise du volet des projets, la Société canadienne d’hypothèques et de logement (SCHL) (i) a-t-elle reçues, ventilé par municipalité et par année, (ii) a-t-elle rejetées, ventilé par municipalité, par année et par nombre de logements par demande, (iii) a-t-elle approuvées, ventilées par municipalité et par année, (iv) a-t-elle acceptées et financées entièrement, ventilé par municipalité, par année et par nombre de logements par demande; b) combien de demandes, par l’entremise du volet des villes, la SCHL (i) a-t-elle reçues, ventilé par municipalité et par année, (ii) a-t-elle rejetées, ventilé par municipalité, par année et par nombre de logements par demande, (iii) a-t-elle approuvées, ventilé par municipalité et par année, (iv) a-t-elle acceptées et financées entièrement, ventilé par municipalité, par année et par nombre de logements par demande; c) parmi les projets rejetés, combien bénéficiaient de ressources municipales, provinciales ou territoriales (i) pour le volet des projets, (ii) pour le volet des villes; d) combien d’argent le gouvernement fédéral a-t-il fourni au programme; e) quels sont les délais de traitement médians pour les demandes de l’ICRL, ventilés par municipalité et par année; f) quels sont les loyers médians des logements réalisés par l’ICRL, ventilés par municipalité et par année?
Question no 1813 —
Questioner: Jenny Kwan
En ce qui concerne les inspections de conformité effectuées par Emploi et Développement social Canada (ESDC) dans le cadre du Programme des travailleurs étrangers temporaires et les conclusions des ses inspections: a) sur les quelque 2 100 inspections effectuées par ESDC au cours du dernier exercise, combien et quel pourcentage ont été menées (i) en personne, (ii) à distance, ventilé par année et par province; b) en ce qui a trait aux inspections effectuées en personne en a), (i) combien d’employeurs ont été informés officiellement ou officieusement de la date de l’inspection, (ii) combien et quel pourcentage d’entre eux ont été trouvés coupables de ne pas avoir respecté les normes de conformité, (iii) quelles étaient les raisons invoquées pour la non-conformité (classées par ordre de fréquence) et le pourcentage pour chaque raison distincte par rapport à toutes les infractions constatées, (iv) dans quel délai l’employeur a-t-il remédié à ces infractions; c) en ce qui a trait aux inspections effectuées à distance en a), (i) combien et quel pourcentage d’employeurs ont été trouvés coupables de ne pas avoir respecté les normes de conformité, (ii) quelles étaient les raisons invoquées pour la non-conformité (classées par ordre de fréquence) et le pourcentage pour chaque raison distincte par rapport à toutes les infractions constatées; d) certains des employeurs étaient-ils des récidivistes et, le cas échéant, combien ont été trouvés coupables de ne pas avoir respecté les normes de conformité plus d’une fois et à quelle fréquence ces employeurs ont-ils enfreint les normes de conformité; e) combien et quel pourcentage d’employeurs trouvés coupables de ne pas avoir respecté les normes de conformité ont fait l’objet d’une inspection de suivi après la première inspection, et combien et quel pourcentage d'inspections de suivi ont permis de constater que l'employeur (i) se conformait aux normes, (ii) ne se conformait toujours pas aux normes; f) parmi les employeurs trouvés coupables de ne pas avoir respecté les normes de conformité du Programme des travailleurs étrangers temporaires, combien et quel pourcentage (i) étaient tenus de fournir des logements convenables aux travailleurs migrants, (ii) n'ont pas satisfait aux exigences de leur fournir des logements convenables, (iii) ont employé des ressortissants étrangers titulaires d'un permis de travail fermé; g) dans les cas où il a été déterminé que les employeurs n’ont pas fourni aux ressortissants étrangers les salaires appropriés et convenus, ne leur ont pas fourni une assurance maladie, leur ont facturé des frais excessifs, ne leur ont pas fourni de logement convenable, n’ont pas maintenu un lieu de travail exempt d’abus ou de représailles, n’ont pas répondu aux attentes figurant dans l’offre d’emploi ou ne leur ont pas fourni d’informations sur leurs droits au Canada, quelles mesures, le cas échéant, ont été prises pour les indemniser?
Question no 1821 —
Questioner: Jamie Schmale
En ce qui concerne toutes les notes de service et notes d’information et tout autre document envoyés ou reçus par le Bureau du Conseil privé concernant ou mentionnant d'une façon ou d'une autre la visite du président américain Joe Biden au Parlement le 24 mars 2023: quels sont les détails de chaque document, y compris (i) la date, (ii) l’expéditeur, (iii) le destinataire, (iv) le type de document, (v) le titre, (vi) le résumé du contenu, (vii) le numéro de dossier?
Question no 1822 —
Questioner: Jamie Schmale
En ce qui concerne toutes les notes de service et notes d’information et tout autre document envoyés ou reçus par Affaires mondiales Canada concernant ou mentionnant d'une façon ou d'une autre la visite du président américain Joe Biden au Parlement le 24 mars 2023: quels sont les détails de chaque document, y compris (i) la date, (ii) l’expéditeur, (iii) le destinataire, (iv) le type de document, (v) le titre, (vi) le résumé du contenu, (vii) le numéro de dossier?
Question no 1824 —
Questioner: Stephen Ellis
En ce qui concerne les dépenses engagées par le gouvernement pour les services de déglaçage sur la voie maritime du Saint-Laurent: quel était le total des dépenses, ventilé par année et par mois, pour chacune des cinq dernières années?
Question no 1825 —
Questioner: Chris Warkentin
En ce qui concerne la taxe carbone ou le prix sur le carbone, au cours de l’exercice 2022-2023: a) quels ont été les coûts annuels pour administrer le (i) recouvrement de la taxe carbone, (ii) programme de remise; b) combien d’employés ou d’équivalents temps plein ont été affectés au (i) recouvrement de la taxe carbone, (ii) programme de remise?
Question no 1826 —
Questioner: John Nater
En ce qui concerne le réseau national de prestation de services en personne de Service Canada, ventilé par chaque Centre Service Canada: a) combien d’employés à temps plein (ETP) étaient présents le 1er janvier 2020; b) combien d’ETP étaient présents le 17 octobre 2023; c) quels bureaux ont changé leurs heures d’ouverture depuis le 1er janvier 2020; d) pour chaque bureau qui a changé ses heures d’ouverture, (i) quelles étaient les heures précédentes, (ii) quelles sont les nouvelles heures?
Question no 1827 —
Questioner: Alistair MacGregor
En ce qui concerne la crise du prix des aliments: a) à quelle date la politique nationale en matière d’alimentation dans les écoles que propose le gouvernement sera-t-elle mise en œuvre; b) quels programmes le gouvernement mettra-t-il sur pied pour donner suite à l’engagement qu’il a pris de consacrer 1 milliard de dollars sur cinq ans à ce dossier; c) que compte faire le gouvernement pour que le Guide alimentaire canadien serve de principe directeur à la stratégie en matière de saine alimentation; d) quelles communications, via des rencontres en personne, des rencontres virtuelles, des courriels ou des lettres, a-t-on reçues des gouvernements provinciaux confirmant leur intérêt à collaborer avec le gouvernement fédéral dans le but d’instaurer une politique nationale en matière d’alimentation dans les écoles, ventilées par (i) province, (ii) année?
Question no 1830 —
Questioner: Michelle Ferreri
En ce qui concerne les dépenses engagées par tout ministère, organisme, société d’État ou autre entité gouvernementale ayant à faire avec ONWARD ou Maryam Monsef depuis le 1er janvier 2022: quels sont les détails de toutes ces dépenses, y compris, pour chacune, (i) la date, (ii) le montant, (iii) une description des biens ou des services fournis, (iv) s’il s’agit d’une offre concurrentielle ou à fournisseur unique?
Question no 1831 —
Questioner: Luc Berthold
En ce qui concerne les événements organisés à Rideau Hall depuis le 1er janvier 2018: quels sont les détails de chaque événement, y compris (i) la date, (ii) le but et la description de l’événement, (iii) le nombre de participants, (iv) le coût total ou les dépenses totales, (v) la ventilation des coûts ou des dépenses?
Question no 1836 —
Questioner: Peter Julian
En ce qui concerne les services fournis sur les bases des Forces armées canadiennes depuis le 1er décembre 2015: a) combien de postes réservés aux employés civils du ministère de la Défense nationale ont été éliminés, ventilé par (i) province ou territoire, (ii) année; b) combien de postes réservés aux employés civils du ministère de la Défense nationale restent à pourvoir, ventilé par (i) province ou territoire, (ii) année; c) combien de contrats financés par des fonds fédéraux, y compris les contrats renouvelés, ont été conclus avec des entreprises privées sans passer par un processus d’appel d’offres ouvert, ventilé par (i) province ou territoire, (ii) année?
Question no 1837 —
Questioner: Marilyn Gladu
En ce qui concerne le Fonds pour accélérer la construction de logements du gouvernement, qui est venu à échéance le 18 août 2023: quels sont les détails de ce Fonds de 4 milliards de dollars, y compris (i) les circonscriptions qui ont reçu des fonds, (ii) le montant des fonds que chaque circonscription a reçu?
Question no 1839 —
Questioner: Marilyn Gladu
En ce qui concerne les postes frontaliers terrestres internationaux du Canada: quel était le temps d’attente moyen aux ponts frontaliers du Canada pour 2019 et 2023, ventilé par (i) pont, (ii) semaine?
Question no 1841 —
Questioner: John Nater
En ce qui concerne la Prestation dentaire canadienne, pour chacune des cinq prochaines années: a) quelles sont les allocations de fonds et les prévisions de financement du programme, ventilées par ministère ou organisme recevant des fonds pour sa gestion; b) quelle est la somme que l'on prévoit être nécessaire pour gérer le programme compte tenu du montant des prestations qui seront accordées; c) quels sont les taux prévus de couverture dans le cadre du programme?
Question no 1846 —
Questioner: John Brassard
En ce qui concerne les conférences internationales auxquelles a participé le gouvernement, ventilées par ministère, agence, société d’État ou autre entité gouvernementale, depuis le 1er janvier 2019: quels sont les détails de toutes les conférences auxquelles a participé le gouvernement, y compris, pour chacune, (i) la date, (ii) le lieu, (iii) le nom de la conférence, (iv) le nombre de représentants du gouvernement, (v) le montant dépensé pour les frais ou les billets liés à la conférence, (vi) le montant dépensé en frais de déplacement liés à la conférence?
Question no 1847 —
Questioner: John Brassard
En ce qui concerne les conférences internationales parrainées par le gouvernement, ventilées par ministère, agence, société d’État ou autre entité gouvernementale, depuis le 1er janvier 2019: quels sont les détails de toutes les conférences parrainées par le gouvernement, y compris, pour chacune, (i) la date, (ii) le lieu, (iii) le nom de la conférence, (iv) le montant dépensé pour parrainer?
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Madam Speaker, finally, I would ask that all remaining questions be allowed to stand at this time.
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Is that agreed? Some hon. members: Agreed.
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  • Dec/5/23 12:15:32 p.m.
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  • Re: Bill C-56 
There are three motions in amendment standing on the Notice Paper for report stage of Bill C-56. Motions Nos. 1 to 3 will be grouped for debate and voted upon according to the voting pattern available at the table. I will now put Motions Nos. 1 to 3 to the House.
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moved: That Bill C-56 be amended by deleting Clause 1.
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Madam Speaker, “We who live in free market societies believe that growth, prosperity and, ultimately, human fulfilment, are created from the bottom up, not the government down.” That is a quote by the great Ronald Reagan. After eight years of the Liberal-NDP government, it is abundantly clear that it is not worth the cost. Its economic mismanagement, malpractice and neglect on the economy has led to some of the most miserable outcomes for Canadians today. We have a Prime Minister who says that budgets will balance themselves and who does not think about monetary policy and the misery of Canadians. However, that same monetary policy has a cause and effect relationship to the misery of Canadians. It truly shows that the government has absolutely no idea what it is doing today. As a result of the cause and effect, Canadians today are more reliant on the government. Whether or not that is the intention of the NDP-Liberal government, at the end of the day, it is the pain and misery that Canadians are facing that is making what we used to think of as the Canadian dream fade away. Whether someone's family has been here for generations or someone is working hard to become a Canadian citizen, more and more, it is clear that the same Canadian dream is gone. We see that the government has spent more than every government before it, combined, did, which has led to 40-year highs in inflation and the most rapid interest rate hikes ever seen in Canadian history, while putting Canadians most at risk in the G7 of a mortgage default crisis. The Canadian dream is gone. Everything is up in this country: rents, mortgages, food prices, the debt and taxes. It is sad that the only thing that is truly down right now is the economy. That goes back to the cause and effect of the Liberal-NDP government, which does not think about monetary policy but is the cause of that monetary policy. Everything feels like it is broken. Canadians who open their fridges and look at their bank accounts are seeing that the government is not only taking more but also leaving them with less and with worse outcomes than ever before. The misery is real. We travel across this country and hear that pain from everybody. When the government is taking more, it means it is taking more from somebody, from Canadians. Their paycheques are shrinking. Throw a job-killing carbon tax scam on top of that. It is not only making food prices go up; it is also taking more away from Canadians, with higher utility bills and higher costs when they fill up their gas tanks and just take care of everyday basic necessities. After eight years of the Liberal-NDP government, the most basic things have become a luxury: heating one's home, filling up with gas and even buying groceries these days. People are cutting back after eight years of the government. There is a phenomenon that has begun in the middle class. A middle-class family with two income earners is now going to the food bank because they cannot afford to eat, to heat their home and to house themselves. That is the cause and effect of a Prime Minister who does not think about monetary policy. Housing has doubled; there is double trouble everywhere. The government has doubled the cost of rent and mortgages because of all of its deficit spending and the debt of more than half a trillion dollars, which led to the interest rate hikes to tackle the inflation that was caused by the government. The other side of the equation is housing supply, which has also been affected by mismanagement and all of the government spending. Not only are people not able to get into homes because of low supply, but because of the high interest rates caused by the spending, homebuyers also cannot get into new homes they would like to buy. As well, builders are affected by not being able to build because of the high interest rates. That is why it is double trouble by the double-trouble Liberal-NDP government. The cost of everything is up; it has exploded. The issue of housing is not being tackled. We are seeing a lot of photo ops. There is a huge fund that the government has put aside for photo ops, but there is nothing concrete to get things built. In fact, the CMHC warns that Canada will see a decline in the number of new homes being built this year. At a time when the government says we have a housing accelerator, it is too bad that everything it is doing is decelerating homes being built in this country. It is decelerating the economy as well. America's productivity, its GDP per capita and its economy itself, is booming. It grew 5.2%. Canada's contracted, and it will stay that way for a very long time. That means investment will not come in to help get homes built. Investment will not come in to create good jobs and more powerful paycheques for our Canadian people. It means that less and less productivity will be happening, which ultimately means that Canadians are getting poorer as the government is getting richer by taxing them more and more. Anyone renewing their mortgage today knows the pain. It was just a few years ago that the Prime Minister and the finance minister said that Canadians should go out and borrow as much they want because rates would stay low for a very long time. That could have been true, but what people did not expect was for the Liberal-NDP government to dump billions and billions of dollars of fuel on the inflationary fire that the government started, which made interest rates go up because it increased inflation. All that inflationary spending is the misery that mortgage borrowers are seeing today. Rates are up, and now when they go to renew their mortgages, they are renewing at a minimum of double, and sometimes triple, the rate. There is a huge crisis looming if the government does not get its act together and balance the budget. The dream of home ownership is dead. Nine out of 10 young people are saying the dream is gone and they will never be able to afford a home. Unless someone's parents are rich, or they owned a home, it is impossible for anyone else to own a home today, all because of the government's economic mismanagement. Rents are up, and more people are relying on renting, not being able to afford homes. The rental market is booming but also suffering. Anyone who is renting today has seen their rent doubled. That is after just eight years of the Prime Minister. It took just eight years for all of this misery to come to fruition. What are the Liberals doing on housing? They have created billions of dollars of photo op funds that they keep re-announcing and recycling, and that is all they have. What they are not doing is taking any meaningful action on it. They have put billions of dollars toward programs, some that have 13 projects. It seems that there are members on the Liberal benches who have probably flipped more homes than they what they have gotten built under some of these programs. It is time for a common-sense Conservative government. I encourage everyone watching today, and members on the other side, to watch our common-sense leader's common-sense documentary on the housing hell that Canadians are seeing today, and actual solutions for how to get it fixed. There is a common-sense Conservative bill tabled in the House, under our leader, called the “Building homes not bureaucracy” bill. On top of that, I would encourage everyone to take a look at our common-sense Conservative plan that would bring home more powerful paycheques by lowering costs by axing the tax on gas, groceries and home heating. We are going to bring home more powerful paycheques by balancing the budget so we can bring down inflation. That would bring down interest rates and let people stay in their homes. We are going to bring more homes people can afford. Again, I would encourage everyone to watch the documentary. It deserves awards, and it might even get some. Maybe the Liberals could actually learn something and take something away from it. We are going to bring home safer streets by making sure we focus on jail and not bail for repeat offenders. Instead of taking guns away from lawful gun owners such as hunters, sport shooters and our indigenous communities, we are going to use that money at the border to stop the flow of drugs, illegal guns and crime that are coming in. Most importantly, we are going to bring home freedom once again. Many people who came to this country, like myself, might have left countries where there was not much in the way of freedom of speech and freedom of expression. When they come here, they are asking why they left the country they came from. Under our common-sense Conservative leader, we are going to bring home freedom and make sure we bring home powerful paycheques.
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moved: That Bill C-56 be amended by adding after line 16 on page 8 the following: Coordinating Amendment 12.1 If Bill C-59, introduced in the 1st session of the 44th Parliament and entitled the Fall Economic Statement Implementation Act, 2023, receives royal assent, then on the first day on which both subsection 247(2) of that Act and section 7.2 of this Act are in force, subsection 79(4.1) of the Competition Act is replaced by the following: (4.1) If, as the result of an application by a person granted leave under section 103.1, the Tribunal finds that a person has engaged in or is engaging in a practice of anti-competitive acts that amounts to conduct that has had or is having the effect of preventing or lessening competition substantially in a market in which the person has a plausible competitive interest and it makes an order under subsection (1) or (2) against the person, it may also order the person against whom the order is made to pay an amount, not exceeding the value of the benefit derived from the conduct that is the subject of the order, to be distributed among the applicant and any other person affected by the conduct, in any manner that the Tribunal considers appropriate.
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moved: That Bill C-56, in Clause 3, be amended (a) by replacing lines 26 and 27 on page 3 with the following: “10.1 (1) The Commissioner may conduct an inquiry into the state of competition” (b) by replacing line 30 on page 3 to line 6 on page 4 with the following: “(3) The Com-”
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Madam Speaker, bringing home freedom is something I have heard a lot about from Donald Trump. If we look at the Conservative Party today, and what is taking place in its leadership office, I think of MAGA politics. Here we have the Conservative right, which has consumed the leader's office, and one of their key words is “freedom”. Can the member explain what it means when the members of the Conservative Party talk about freedom? Can he contrast that to the war that is taking place in Ukraine today?
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  • Dec/5/23 12:29:15 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, the question shows how completely out of touch that Liberal member and all of his party are when they are telling me, an immigrant to this country, that I am a far right just because I am a Conservative. We will bring freedom back from the grip that the Liberal government has put people under, where they are not able to afford the cost of groceries, or the cost of rent or mortgages, and where every single malpractice they have had on the economy has caused the misery and pain that we see in Canada today. Of course, we are going to release those Canadian people who are working hard just to stay afloat and give them the freedom to make their own decisions and keep more in their pockets.
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  • Dec/5/23 12:29:57 p.m.
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  • Re: Bill C-56 
Madam Speaker, one of the principle things Bill C-56 would do is that it would remove the GST off purpose-built rentals. That is a policy that is very much designed to incent the building of more market-based rental units. One of the ways the government could incent the building of more units with affordability conditions would be to release land and tie affordability conditions to released land to ensure that, if there is going to be new units built, that a specific percentage, whether it is 15%, 20%, 30%, 40% or whatever it happens to be, of the new units built on that government land are either affordable or social housing. In the Leader of the Opposition's bill on housing, he has not attached any affordability conditions to the release of public land. I wonder why that is. We have a measure here that is meant to incent the building of market rentals by removing the GST. We need accompanying measures for affordable and social housing, and it seems to me attaching conditions to land release is one of the best ways to do it.
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  • Dec/5/23 12:31:07 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I would argue that every plan that our common-sense Conservative leader has come out for was about affordability. Our plan to build more homes and not bureaucracy not only tackles and gives a goal of 15% of increased permits, but also includes the other side of the equation. Liberal and NDP members have yet to meet their promise. Until they balance the budget, even if land is sold, builders cannot build because one of the biggest drawbacks they have is the high interest rates, which were caused by the Liberal-NDP member's non-stop deficits. They have made inflation and interest rates go up. Until the budget gets balanced and we start having lower inflation and interest rates, builders will not build and people will not get into new homes. The Liberals need to get out of the way to do that for Canadians.
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  • Dec/5/23 12:32:03 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, the critic for finance has painted a really great picture. He has this lived experience, and he shares it wholesomely, as an immigrant who came to Canada for a better life. There still seems to be some misunderstanding, especially from the Liberal-NDP side. They do not understand that, if one spends more than they make, one creates more debt. We actually have the lowest GDP growth per capita since the Great Depression, which means Canadians are getting poorer. What is the basic thing happening on the Liberals' side showing how they are mismanaging Canadian taxpayers' money, which is causing this misery?
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  • Dec/5/23 12:32:49 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, my colleague from Peterborough—Kawartha is a great advocate. Everything the government touches breaks. We have seen that in Canada. I would like to highlight the great people of Calgary Forest Lawn. I have one of the most diverse ridings. There are 108 languages spoken in my riding. In fact, there is a strip of land called International Avenue. It should literally be the Canadian dream where anyone who wanted to would be able to open a business on that strip of land. However, today, after eight years of the Liberal-NDP government, it has become an absolute nightmare for newcomers in my riding because of high interest rates caused by those deficits, this job-killing carbon tax, and all the other spending the government has done to make life more expensive and unlivable for them. We need to get this country back on track.
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  • Dec/5/23 12:33:45 p.m.
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  • Re: Bill C-56 
Madam Speaker, it is always interesting listening to Conservative members talk about Canada's economy. It is as though there is a dark cloud covering the chamber when a Conservative wants to talk about the Canadian economy. Ultimately, they love using the word “broken” and saying that everything is broken. I am here to say that there is a great deal of light, opportunities and hope for Canada, especially if we do a comparison with other countries in the world, those in the G7 or G20, on the major indicators. Whether it is interest rates, inflation rates or employment rates, we will find that Canada is always around the top three or four in those categories most of the time, including today. However, this does not mean that we sit back and not do anything because Canada, in comparison to many of those G20 countries, is doing well. We have seen a Prime Minister and a government that has made a commitment to continue to work at building Canada's middle class and those aspiring to be a part of it. We want an economy that works for all Canadians from coast to coast to coast, which is why we brought forward Bill C-56, the affordable housing and groceries legislation. We know that it is important, as a government, to be there in tangible ways for Canadians, and we have demonstrated that from day one. I have often made reference to one of the very first actions we took to support Canada's middle class, which was a tax break a number of years ago. That was the first real, substantial piece of legislation that we had brought forward. We took it from there, going through the pandemic and the many supports that we put into place to have the backs of Canadians, to get out of the pandemic and tom build our economy. Because of the supports that we put in place during the pandemic, we have rebounded, in good part, out of the recovery. I would suggest that we are second to no other country in the world when we take a look at the million-plus jobs that have been created based on a population base of 40 million people. When the Conservatives criss-cross the country, and their leader criss-crosses the country saying that Canada is broken, they are misleading Canadians. Yes, there are areas of concern, which is why we bring forward legislation like this. It is legislation that ultimately the Conservative Party does not even want to see passed and that they will filibuster, yet it is there to support Canadians in real and tangible ways. Bill C-56 deals with the Competition Bureau by giving it more power. I would think that members would want to see that. For example, when we talk about grocery prices, what Canada needs more than anything else is competition. One of the biggest arguments against buyouts of large corporations is the efficiency rule where a corporation will say that, for efficiency purposes, it wants to consume another business, which shrinks the competition. A tangible example of this is when Loblaw bought up Shoppers, which was back when Stephen Harper was the then prime minister. The leader of the Conservative Party today sat in cabinet when Shoppers was acquired by Loblaws. What did they do back then? They did absolutely nothing. That has had more of an impact on the price of groceries than anything the Conservative leader has actually said in the last year-plus to try to bring down prices. I suggest that his actions back in the day when he was a cabinet minister speak louder on the policies that concern grocery prices than his actions now as leader of the official opposition. Maybe that is one of the reasons the Conservatives are filibustering. This legislation helps deal with that. We realize that when Loblaw acquired Shoppers, it was not necessarily to the advantage of consumers. It is one of the reasons I take a great sense of pride when grocery stores open in my riding, in particular smaller stores. There is a diversity of grocery stores, whether they are of Punjabi heritage, which provide wonderful foods and a wide variety of products, or the Water Plant stores in the Filipino community in Winnipeg North, and they provide competition. We can see how the bigger chains start selling some of those products. Why is that? It is because of competition. That is why the minister called upon the big five grocery chains to come to Ottawa to justify their prices. That is why the standing committee pushes the issue. We recognize that housing is an important issue. This legislation would help deal with housing. Prior to the Prime Minister and government, the federal government's role in the last 30 years has been negligible on housing. The housing strategy that was adopted by the government is historic. We would have to go back 50 or 60-plus years to see the kind of investment this government has put in housing. We finally have a government, under the Prime Minister's leadership, that is taking a proactive approach to deal with housing in Canada. Never before have we seen a government as proactive, but it takes more than just the Government of Canada. We need provinces, municipalities and other stakeholders to also get on board and work together. The Conservative leader says we need to beat them over the head with a stick. We say we need to work with municipalities and the different levels of government to increase housing supply in the non-profit sector. Whether it is legislation or budgetary measures, over the years we have consistently seen a government that is committed to developing, promoting and encouraging supports for housing. We saw in the fall economic statement, for example, that the Deputy Prime Minister brought forward a proposal to expand non-profit housing co-ops, a true alternative to condominiums, single detached homes, duplexes or townhouses. It is an alternative to being a tenant, and it is highly successful. The government understands the importance of jobs. Show me a government that has done more to create new jobs, on a per capita basis, than the Government of Canada has provided, in working with Canadians, since the pandemic. If we want to talk prepandemic, over a million jobs were created between 2016 and the pandemic getting under way. This government understands that we have to build infrastructure, support Canadians and create jobs. By doing that, we are supporting Canada's middle class and those aspiring to be part of it and providing the programs that are so critically important to support those in need. We also increase affordability, where we can, by bringing in programs such as child care for $10 a day and programs for people with disabilities, significantly increasing OAS for seniors over 75 years of age, investing in things such as CPP years ago so that, when people retire, they will have more money in their retirement. This is a government and a Prime Minister that care about the lives of Canadians from coast to coast to coast, and our budgetary and legislative actions clearly demonstrate that.
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  • Dec/5/23 12:43:54 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, let us talk about affordability. It is unbelievable. My riding of York—Simcoe is now classified as Toronto. There has been a second carve-out on the carbon tax. They have actually rolled the census data back to 2016 to help other ridings. My riding of York—Simcoe, which is home to first nations and farmers, is clearly rural, and it is not going to get the doubling of the rural top-up for the carbon tax. It takes an hour and 45 minutes for someone from the Chippewas of Georgina Island to get to the hospital in my rural riding, and this government now looks at us as Toronto of all things. I wonder if the member for Winnipeg North could comment on that.
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  • Dec/5/23 12:44:41 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, within the legislation, what we have been talking a great deal about is the purpose-built rental housing, which takes away the GST in order to get more homes built. It is such a good idea that the Province of Ontario, the member's own province, and Premier Doug Ford, who, by the way, is not a Liberal, are on board with it. He is doing the same thing now. It is only the Conservatives who have this preoccupation. There was a time, before they were taken over by the far-right, when they understood the benefits of a price on pollution. Now they are fixated on wanting to get rid of the price on pollution at all costs. There will be a substantial cost for that reckless policy that is coming out from the leader of the Conservative Party, in dealing with getting rid of the price on pollution. Shame on them for being so—
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  • Dec/5/23 12:45:33 p.m.
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The hon. member for Abitibi—Témiscamingue.
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