44th Parl. 1st Sess.
December 13, 2023 02:00PM
- Dec/13/23 2:19:41 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker,
'Twas the night before Christmas, and all through the nation,Liberal numbers were tanking, to the PM's frustration.The Speaker was restless, with nightmares in bed,While partisan videos danced through his head.As secular snowflakes made their Grinch-like dissent,The Bloc says that Christmas is not a religious event.While the two Greens tried hard to make themselves heard,If co-leaders don't work, maybe try a third.When, what to my wondering eyes should appear,The Conservative leader bringing burgers, no beer.With his little red apple, who votes through the nights,I knew in a moment, this guy really bites.More rapid than reindeer, his chops he laid bare,Revealing his taxpayer-funded oral health care.Public dental for all is the NPD's dream.We'd have pharmacare too if the Grits weren't so mean.And one final wish for this season of light:Happy holidays to all, and to all a good bite.
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- Dec/13/23 2:21:09 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Acadian Remembrance Day reminds us that, in December 1758, three ships crowded with Acadian deportees sank, causing the deaths of 850 of them. It was the deadliest chapter of what was called the Great Upheaval, which led the Acadian population to spread across North America.
For a long time in our history, and until fairly recently, the Acadian distinctiveness was intolerable to the eyes of English colonialists. They did everything in their power to try to keep Acadians in the minority or even assimilate them, but that did not work. The Acadian identity survived to restore itself into a dynamic diaspora that continues to grow and thrive. However, the traumatic experience of those who survived those deportees lost at sea, the victims of a vile, unquestionable attempt to eradicate Acadians, will always be a painful wound.
Today, Acadia remembers, and so does Quebec.
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Mr. Speaker, after eight years of this Liberal-NDP government, Canadians are financially spent. Instead of common-sense tax cuts to help struggling families, in his fall economic statement, the Prime Minister doubled down on his massive increase to the carbon tax, which is driving up the cost of groceries, heating and gas.
When the wallets of Canadian families were raided bare by this government's carbon tax, it was the Conservatives who heard the calls for help. It was the Conservatives who introduced Bill C-234 to deliver carbon relief on farmers and the people they feed.
The legislation was duly passed in the House with the support of every party except the government. Then, right before Christmas, the Prime Minister called in favours from his functionaries in the other place and lobbied his Liberal-appointed and anointed senators to cut the legislation.
Now that it is back in the House, our Prime Minister needs to put his zeal for carbon tax aside; listen to Canadians who feel troubled, broken and betrayed this Christmas season; rein in his ideologues in cabinet; and pass Bill C-234.
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- Dec/13/23 2:23:35 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker,
'Twas the week before Christmas and I must admit,Thirty hours was a long time to sit.But Liberals prevailed on behalf of the masses,While Tories stepped back and sat on their hands.On the other side we witness a continuing saga.Diefenbaker's party looks much more like MAGA.I know they have been challenged by a leader's swinging door,But they think they have struck gold with leader number four.They gave him a makeover with etiquette classes,Pumped up his chest and took off his glasses,But no matter the issue they put on the docket,We still persevere with the Dippers in our pocket.This marriage of convenience might seem like a rental,But because of this deal, Canadians got dental.In that glorious moment, I looked up and sawNot a lick of support from the Bloc Québécois.But now it is time to return to our ridingsAnd share with our friends the best Christmas tidings.Mr. Speaker, I know you will hate to see us go.If you think of us over Christmas, please do not send us a video.
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- Dec/13/23 2:25:04 p.m.
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That is very good advice.
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- Dec/13/23 2:25:27 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, after eight years, this Prime Minister is not worth the cost of the debt for Canadian families. He said that the government was going to go into debt so that Canadians would not have to. However, today, we learned that Canadian families are now spending more on interest on their own debt than ever before in the history of the country. They are spending more than what American families were during the 2008 financial crisis.
Will the Prime Minister finally reverse the inflationary policies and taxes that are driving families into debt and forcing them to give more to bankers and spend less on groceries?
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- Dec/13/23 2:26:09 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the Conservative leader continues to rise in the House to talk about austerity.
Last week, we saw the true nature of the Conservative Party's austerity. The Conservatives voted against help for dairy, egg and poultry farmers in Quebec. They voted against funding for the Plains of Abraham. They voted against help for people in the Magdalen Islands following hurricane Fiona. What is worse, the member for Mégantic—L'Érable voted against funding for the rail bypass in Lac-Mégantic. That is truly shameful, and Quebeckers will never forget it.
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- Dec/13/23 2:26:48 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, that is yet another example. The Prime Minister has had eight years to build that bypass, but has not even begun to do so. That is so typical of this Prime Minister, who makes announcements and spends loads of money but produces zero results. The same goes for affordability. He spent $87 billion on housing affordability, but that just doubled the cost. According to the Bank of Canada, the cost of housing is the worst it has been in 41 years.
Will the Prime Minister finally reverse his inflationary policies, which have doubled the cost of housing for Canadians?
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- Dec/13/23 2:27:28 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, while the Conservative leader was out partying last week, all Canadians got was an order of cold McNuggets. The only thing his 30-hour, $2-million tantrum achieved was show Canadians the true colours of the Conservative Party of Canada. When it was time to support our veterans, how did the Conservatives vote? They voted against it. When it was time to support our farmers, how did they vote? They voted against it. When it was time to ensure services to first nations, how did they vote? They voted against it.
Everyone can see who they really are.
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- Dec/13/23 2:28:10 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, for eight years, the Prime Minister and NDP-Liberal government have not been worth the cost. He said that he was taking on all this debt so that Canadians would not have to. Now we learn that Canadians are spending more on household debt interest than at any time in Canadian history, more than the American families were during the 2008 financial crisis, which almost brought down the global economy.
Will the Prime Minister reverse the inflationary, high-tax policies that have indebted Canadians and driven up their interest rates?
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- Dec/13/23 2:28:47 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the audacity of the Conservative leader knows no bounds. Just last week, he voted against a national school food program, and now he rises to talk about affordability. Let us be clear. The Conservative leader has no long-term vision for this country, with or without the glasses.
It takes more than a couple of bags of McDonald's to feed Canadians. That is why we are going to continue to step up and be there with investments for Canadians, while he talks about cuts and austerity, and then goes and votes for cuts and austerity.
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Mr. Speaker, Canadians cannot even afford to feed themselves a couple of bags of McDonald's after eight years of the Prime Minister taxing their food.
Speaking of food, do members know the only problem with his school food framework? It does not fund any food. It funds politicians to talk with bureaucrats who talk with lobbyists about establishing a conversation towards consulting. It funds bureaucracy and not families.
Speaking of one way he can make food more affordable for everyone, including our kids, will he pass Bill C-234, the common-sense Conservative bill to take the tax off?
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- Dec/13/23 2:30:08 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, once again, we have seen exactly why, whatever his justifications, they have chosen to vote against initiatives to help Canadians. Whether it was dental supports for the hundreds of thousands of kids that we have already brought in, or more supports for seniors, they chose to vote against them months ago. They are continuing to step up to vote against the programs that matter.
While they seem to not care about climate change, and want to sit back and watch the world burn, they are going to watch Canadians' food sources burn as well.
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- Dec/13/23 2:30:47 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, it is the Prime Minister who is burning a hole in the pockets of Canadians.
We voted against his plan to quadruple the carbon tax, a tax on heat, gas and groceries.
When I raised the issue of the cost of $100,000 for one farm in my riding, which will rise to $400,000, I asked the Prime Minister if he would call the family and tell them how they are going to pay the tax. He said he would reach out to them and have a conversation about how they are going to pay a $400,000 carbon tax bill.
Can the Prime Minister tell the House what he told that family about how they are going to come up with 400 grand in more taxes?
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- Dec/13/23 2:31:30 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we recognize that the price on pollution is a key part of actually making things more affordable for the long term for Canadians by pushing and encouraging innovation.
Indeed, our departments reached out to the farm family of the very successful large mushroom farm in the member opposite's riding to talk about the programs we have that can move them off their dependence on fossil fuels.
We know there is work to do and we know there are investments to make, but that is how we fight climate change and build a better future. We have a plan to fight climate change. Conservatives have no plan because they do not even recognize that climate change is real.
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- Dec/13/23 2:32:16 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, yesterday at the UN, Canada voted in favour of a ceasefire in Gaza. I wholeheartedly commend the Canadian government's wisdom in choosing to join a major international movement.
That said, an important nuance needs to be made. This is not a rejection of Israel's right to defend itself. This is not an endorsement of Hamas, but an indignant response to the loss of human life.
To foster peace here at home as well, can the Prime Minister ensure that legislation will be amended to criminalize hate speech and incitement to violence, even under the guise of religion?
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- Dec/13/23 2:33:01 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the impact of the crisis, the war and the violence in the Middle East is being felt around the world, particularly in Canada, a country whose strength lies in the diversity of its people from different backgrounds, who are now grappling with anguish, anger and fear, all at the same time.
That is why we are working so hard to fight anti-Semitism and Islamophobia. We are doing everything we can to bring people together during these difficult times, so that people remember who we are and our values as Canadians.
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- Dec/13/23 2:33:43 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, my call to the Prime Minister is this: Let us end 2023 with dignity.
If everyone here in the House were to unanimously vote for peace, including peace in our own streets, and if everyone were to eliminate hate speech under the guise of religion, then everyone would win. Our streets would be safer, and we would all have a clearer conscience.
Will the Prime Minister accept my suggestion?
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- Dec/13/23 2:34:16 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I commend and thank the leader of the Bloc Québécois for his approach and his desire to see less violence and division in our country. That is a desire that we all share and that we will continue to work on.
However, we recognize that this is a delicate and difficult situation, particularly when it raises issues of freedom of speech and freedom of conscience.
Unfortunately, there is no simple solution. The only thing we can do is to work hard and make an effort to bring people together. That is exactly what we are going to do.
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- Dec/13/23 2:35:01 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the number of forced evictions reported in Quebec continues to rise at an alarming rate. Where are these people going to live? Over two million affordable housing units have been lost because of the Liberals and the Conservatives.
Just last week, the Conservatives voted to scrap all funding for social and affordable housing. The government says it wants to draw inspiration from certain measures Canada took in wartime.
Where has this war effort to fight the housing crisis been over the past eight years?
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