44th Parl. 1st Sess.
February 28, 2024 02:00PM
- Feb/28/24 2:19:50 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, a year ago, right here in the House, I proclaimed the riding of Mirabel as “Maple Capital of the World”.
I call it the capital because quality reigns supreme and pride courses through our veins like sap. To the naysayers I say that a change of capital is nothing short of a revolution. I salute all the maple metropolises across Quebec.
On February 21, I, alongside Mirabel mayor Patrick Charbonneau, Tourisme Mirabel president Stéphane Michaud and several maple producers, kicked off the season by awarding the prize for Mirabel's biggest maple to the Vermette family of Saint-Augustin. It is a beautiful sight to behold, over 15 feet in circumference and over 200 years old. Now that is a maple. It would not surprise me if it is the biggest in Quebec, and maybe even the biggest in the world.
Our maple syrup producers are fully prepared to welcome people properly, with all the know-how they have.
I welcome my colleagues to the maple capital of the world and wish them a happy maple syrup season.
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- Feb/28/24 2:21:08 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the NDP-Liberal Prime Minister is not worth the cost, crime or corruption after eight years, especially with revelations related to arrive scam. While common-sense Conservatives will axe the tax, build the homes, fix the budget and stop the crime, the Prime Minister wasted at least $60 million on his ineffectual app.
After fighting for weeks to get witnesses to committee, we have new information that GC Strategies' contract resulted in an expense for $19 million to a company that does not do IT work, for an app that sent more than 10,000 Canadians forcibly into quarantine with no justification. Today's motion, which Conservatives brought forward, is essential, as it calls out the lack of transparency from the Liberals and will require accountability for this injustice inflicted upon taxpayers.
While Liberals use every trick in the book to stop the truth from coming to light, Conservatives will bring accountability back to this country.
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- Feb/28/24 2:23:47 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, this past weekend I joined thousands of people across Canada taking part in the Coldest Night of the Year, a family-friendly walk organized to raise funds supporting those experiencing homelessness and fleeing violence and abuse, families experiencing hunger, and the most vulnerable in our communities. Whether it was a two-kilometre or five-kilometre walk, our communities stepped up and out into the cold to really support our neighbours who are struggling.
I want to recognize Eden Food for Change, an awesome not-for-profit community kitchen in my riding, and Armagh House, a transitional housing shelter for women, whose teams organized their own family-friendly walks and raised thousands of dollars for our communities this year. I thank all participants and the hosts of this year's Coldest Night of the Year walk for the critical work they do in keeping our communities safe.
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- Feb/28/24 2:24:48 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, while common-sense Conservatives fight to axe the tax, build the homes, fix the budget and stop the crime, this Prime Minister is not worth the cost or corruption.
We have just learned that the RCMP is investigating arrive scam. The RCMP commissioner revealed that the Prime Minister blocked them from obtaining documents in the SNC-Lavalin affair.
Will he lift PMO confidentiality so the RCMP can get all the facts in this criminal investigation?
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- Feb/28/24 2:25:29 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the ArriveCAN situation is obviously unacceptable. That is why authorities are reviewing its procurement process.
Anyone who took advantage of our COVID‑19 response to save Canadian lives should face the consequences if they abused the system. It will be automatic. That is why there will be consequences, based on what the authorities find.
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- Feb/28/24 2:25:56 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, that non-answer proves once again that this Prime Minister is not worth the cost or the corruption.
The question was whether he would let the RCMP see cabinet documents. We know that in another criminal investigation into this Prime Minister's scandals, the SNC-Lavalin scandal, he blocked the police from seeing all the documents.
Once again, if he has nothing to hide, will he hand over all the documents, including PMO documents, to the police?
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- Feb/28/24 2:26:37 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, once again, the Conservative leader's desperation and penchant for personal attacks are on full display as he brings up problems that were completely resolved four years ago.
The truth of the matter is that we take the ArriveCAN matter extremely seriously. That is why authorities are responsibly following up on it. Anyone who took advantage of a situation where everyone was there to help Canadians in a global pandemic crisis will face the consequences.
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- Feb/28/24 2:27:08 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, while common-sense Conservatives fight to axe the tax, build the homes, fix the budget and stop the crime, the Prime Minister is not worth the cost or corruption.
We found yesterday that his government is under RCMP investigation again, this time for arrive scam. The commissioner of the RCMP revealed, however, that the last time they were investigating him for criminal activity, in the SNC-Lavalin affair, he blocked them from getting cabinet documents.
Will he lift cabinet confidentiality and hand over all the documents to the police so they can investigate any of his potential crimes?
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- Feb/28/24 2:27:49 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the situation around ArriveCAN is obviously unacceptable, which is why authorities are looking into this procurement process. Anyone who took advantage of everything we were doing to try to keep people safe during COVID to get rich will face consequences. That is the way our system works.
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- Feb/28/24 2:28:10 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, that is not the way the system has worked since he took office eight years ago.
According to the RCMP commissioner, not only did he refuse to be questioned in the SNC-Lavalin criminal investigation and in the Aga Khan billionaire island investigation, but he blocked key cabinet documents from being included in those investigations.
We now know that an app that was supposed to cost $80,000 went up to $60 million after the NDP helpfully voted for those extra funds. We do not know who criminally benefited from that, so once again, will the Prime Minister waive cabinet confidentiality and turn over all the documents, yes or no?
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- Feb/28/24 2:28:52 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the Leader of the Opposition is digging into the past to try to bring up things that were settled many years ago.
If he really wants to talk about the past, he should talk about the fact that the Conservative leader was at Transport Canada, working hand in hand with the minister, as the founders of the company involved in ArriveCAN were getting millions of dollars in contracts from the department he was working for.
We are taking seriously any concerns around procurement. The authorities are looking into it. There will be consequences for anyone who took advantage of our COVID protection efforts to get rich.
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- Feb/28/24 2:29:33 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, that answer proves again that he is not worth the cost or the corruption.
We know that after eight years of the Prime Minister, the cost of everything has gone up, in part because he has given away money for nothing.
Arrive scam, an app that was supposed to cost $80,000, was actually $60 million at least, and counting, because the Auditor General said she does not have the documentation to do the full calculation today.
We have a common-sense Conservative motion that requires the Prime Minister to release the full cost of the app and recover the money for Canadians within the next hundred days. Will he vote for that common-sense motion, yes or no?
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- Feb/28/24 2:30:14 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the Leader of the Opposition is choosing to fling mud at a question that I have said is unacceptable. The authorities are looking into it.
He does not want to talk about the housing investments that we are making across the country. He does not want to talk about the fact that he voted against dental care that seniors are going to be benefiting from as of May. He does not want to talk about child care. He does not want to talk about Ukraine. He does not want to talk about all the things where Conservatives are out of line with Canadians.
We are going to continue focusing on the things that matter to Canadians, every single day.
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- Feb/28/24 2:30:54 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the government and the NDP want to bring in a pharmacare plan that does absolutely nothing for Quebec, since we already have such a plan, which was actually the inspiration for their program. I have no problem with this, as long as Quebec has the right to opt out with full financial compensation and no strings attached.
The member for Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie, a member of that alliance, says that Quebec can opt out. The minister says it is not all that clear-cut.
The Prime Minister must know the answer. Which is it?
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- Feb/28/24 2:31:30 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the reality is that too many Canadians across the country are still being forced to make impossible choices between paying for groceries or paying for the medication they need.
We are here to make sure that people everywhere can pay for their medication. We will work with the provinces, including Quebec, to make sure that Canadians have the coverage they need.
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- Feb/28/24 2:31:58 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I agree that there are likely many Canadians who do not have this service, but Quebeckers do. That is why Quebeckers are talking about the right to opt out with compensation.
Should the NDP and the Liberals not have made sure that they were on the same page? Before deciding whether to go into a tango or a nice slow dance, maybe partners should renew their vows by being clear with each other.
Can the Prime Minister, in one of his oh-so-clear answers, tell me whether Quebec has a right to opt out, yes or no, as my friend from Richmond—Arthabaska would say?
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- Feb/28/24 2:32:35 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, across the country, including in Quebec, people are dealing with inadequate prescription drug coverage. That is why we are there to work hand in hand with the provinces and ensure that people can pay for their drugs from coast to coast to coast.
We are always there to work constructively with the provinces to ensure that there is support and coverage for all Canadians.
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- Feb/28/24 2:33:09 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, New Democrats have long said that corporate greed is driving up the cost of living. It is also hurting our health care system.
Galen Weston's Shoppers Drug Mart, which the corporate-controlled Conservatives love, is now ripping off our health care system. That means more money in the pockets of Galen Weston and less money for frontline health care workers.
Why does the Prime Minister continue to let Galen Weston get richer while Canadians cannot get the health care that they need?
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- Feb/28/24 2:33:41 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I will let the Leader of the Opposition answer why he has a high-profile lobbyist for Galen Weston sitting in his caucus meetings.
We are focused on creating more competition for lower prices, more choice, and more innovative products and services for Canadians. Our government recently passed new legislation that empowers the Competition Bureau to hold grocers accountable and prioritize consumers' interests.
The fall economic statement would also crack down on predatory pricing, and I urge all parties to vote in favour.
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- Feb/28/24 2:34:16 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Canadians do not have to choose between parties that are both controlled by corporations.
The Prime Minister allocated over $4 billion to the Northvolt plant, a project that poses serious environmental risks and that will not generate any economic spinoffs until 2037.
Before he committed to spending so much money, did the Prime Minister conduct environmental assessments or did he just listen to the CEOs?
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