SoVote

Context: House Hansard - 291 - Mar/19/24

Hon. Sean Fraser (Minister of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities, Lib.)

Mar/19/24 2:32:32 p.m.
Watch

Mr. Speaker, what the hon. member is actually suggesting is false. We have real-world data to demonstrate that in provinces where the system actually applies, families receive hundreds of dollars more each year than they pay in fuel charges. The Conservatives pretend to care about affordability, yet they oppose measures to put more money in the pockets of families. They pretend to care about affordability, but they oppose measures that protect seniors' pensions. They pretend to care about affordability, but they vote against measures to remove the interest on Canada student loans. We will do everything we can to make life more affordable, including putting more money in the pockets of families while we fight climate change at the same time.

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Context: House Hansard - 291 - Mar/19/24

Hon. Sean Fraser (Minister of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities, Lib.)

Mar/19/24 2:33:59 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, if the hon. member has qualms about the member for Kings—Hants, I can reassure him that he is a champion for his community. He launched a petition recently to stand up to the Conservative Government of Nova Scotia for changes to the agricultural sector in his community. Every time the Conservatives ask a question about the environment, it is to find out ways they can do less. The member for Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke has suggested that flooding in the Ottawa River was a result of regulations that were not in place. The member for Cariboo—Prince George has suggested that climate change is not a result of industrial pollution but of more body heat from a growing population. The member for Red Deer—Lacombe visited school kids to say carbon dioxide was plant food. This—

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Context: House Hansard - 291 - Mar/19/24

Hon. Sean Fraser (Minister of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities, Lib.)

Mar/19/24 2:35:47 p.m.
Watch

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives want to peddle false information to trick Canadians into voting for them. The reality proven not by projections, but by real-world data, is that people who live in my province receive more money every year from the rebates that they receive than the fuel charge that they pay. Everything the Conservatives do— Some hon. members: Oh, oh!

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Context: House Hansard - 291 - Mar/19/24

Hon. Sean Fraser

Mar/19/24 2:36:18 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, every instance the Conservatives have an opportunity to speak in the House, they advocate one of two things: to do less on the environment or to take money from families in my community. I will support neither. We will do whatever we can to put more money in the pockets of families and do the right thing for future generations.

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Context: House Hansard - 291 - Mar/19/24

Hon. Sean Fraser (Minister of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities, Lib.)

Mar/19/24 2:53:30 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. member for his advocacy. I had the opportunity to be in Edmonton recently to meet with the mayor and the provincial minister in Alberta, as well as with my colleague, the member for Edmonton Centre. We are working hard to advance additional funding to support community-based organizations that support Canadians who are living without a roof over their head. We also very recently had the opportunity to share an agreement with $175 million behind it that will build thousands of homes in Edmonton, including more rentals, which will help reduce the cost of rent and continue to support people who are looking to find a place to live. There is no silver bullet for the housing crisis, but we will pull every lever at our disposal to help solve it by working together with Edmonton and Alberta.

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Context: House Hansard - 291 - Mar/19/24

Hon. Sean Fraser (Minister of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities, Lib.)

Mar/19/24 3:10:14 p.m.
Watch

Mr. Speaker, over the past year and a half in our home province of Nova Scotia, we have felt the impacts of climate change more than any other part of the country, with wildfires, hurricane Fiona and floods in the hon. member's riding. He has been a staunch advocate for rural communities and for the agricultural sector every step of the way. Because of his advocacy, we have doubled the rural rebate that households in Nova Scotia receive. Because of his advocacy, we are offering to cover the cost of heat pumps to save people between $1,500 and $4,700 a year, and because of his advocacy, the provincial government is retreating on a policy that would impact the wine growers in his region. I am proud to stand alongside him today and will be for years—

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Context: House Hansard - 291 - Mar/19/24

Hon. Sean Fraser (Minister of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities, Lib.)

Mar/19/24 6:44:54 p.m.
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Madam Chair, it is hard to know where to begin to properly honour the extraordinary legacy of the Right Hon. Brian Mulroney. He was the member of Parliament for Central Nova, the community that I now represent, when I was born, having filled in during a by-election after he became leader, before ascending to the Prime Minister's Office. We both attended StFX University, something that he remained very proud of up until the very end. There is no shortage of accomplishments during Mr. Mulroney's tenure as Prime Minister of Canada, and they have been well canvassed over the past number of days. He was never one to shy away from celebrating them himself, having said, “You cannot name a Canadian prime minister who has done as many significant things as I did, because there are none.” When one canvasses the many accomplishments, it is hard to argue with the extraordinary record. Of course, his leadership on the environment is well known and simply of another time, when great things never seemed to escape his ability to get them done. I think about the work that he did to literally save the ozone layer, the negotiations to finalize the acid rain treaty and, of course, taking a principled stand against the racism and discrimination against the majority population of South Africa, having helped advance the end of the apartheid regime and free Nelson Mandela from Robben Island. Of course, he is well known to have helped secure a growing economy, with the free trade agreement—

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Context: House Hansard - 291 - Mar/19/24

Hon. Sean Fraser

Mar/19/24 6:46:51 p.m.
Watch

Madam Chair, of course, as an Atlantic Canadian and a Nova Scotian, his contributions to our region cannot be understated. He helped found the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency, the regional development agency for Atlantic Canada. I happened to be present during the Atlantic Economic Forum, which we helped co-found at our shared alma mater of StFX, where the current Prime Minister actually presented the constating documents for the organization to Mr. Mulroney, who immediately agreed they should be stored in the desk that he had in his office, which is now safely secured at the replica of the Prime Minister's Office in Centre Block, on campus at St. Francis Xavier University. My experience with him over the last number of years created an opportunity to watch the man work, and the advice he provided to me is something that will last a lifetime. We initially met over our shared work to advance the creation of the Institute of Government in his name at StFX University, but over the years we became closer as we worked to develop the Atlantic Economic Forum. I never came to understand why he showed an interest in a Liberal MP from Nova Scotia, but he seemed to take some interest in the shared priority of advancing the well-being of Atlantic Canada. We were able to pull off this extraordinary event, and he continues to leave a lasting mark through the work that they have done on campus in the institute that bears his name. What is fascinating to me is not just his lack of reticence but his open embrace of working with people from different partisan persuasions to serve the interest of Canadians, whether it was his help to negotiate the more recent version of NAFTA, whether it was the work we were able to do in our community, or whether it is the countless stories we have heard from members on different sides of the aisle of taking those phone calls and providing that friendly advice. However, in addition to the professional accomplishments and attitude he took towards his work, the personal experience when one got to know the man was simply a privilege to experience. The many phone calls I would make, he would answer, and the many phone calls he would make to me just to check in were most appreciated. He seemed to take an interest not just in my career trajectory or the policies but in my well-being, having gotten to know my family, my sisters, my parents and my children. Every time we would speak, he would ask how the kids were doing, making sure they were healthy. He kept an interest to see how my family and my wife were dealing with the challenges of being in political life, because he knew the impact all too well. After the Atlantic Economic Forum, he actually took the time to visit my family at my parents' house in Merigomish, Nova Scotia, just to say “thank you” for the opportunities they created to have a family of young people who want to give back. This is the kind of person he was. The personal touch is something I will remember forever. However, when I think about the impact he has had, as extraordinary as it has been, the impact he is going to continue to have through his inspiration of future generations is nothing to sneeze at. The generations of young people who are gaining an education at StFX University through the Institute of Government are going to continue to have an impact for years to come. They are going to fill senior roles in leadership, in government, in politics, as he did. He famously quipped, during a debate in this chamber, that a questioner from the opposing side was at a severe disadvantage, because at the time he was the only one of the foremost senior officers in Parliament, in both the House of Commons and the Senate, who was not educated at StFX. This attitude and affinity he had for our shared alma mater is something that is going to help inspire a generation of young people to fill those senior leadership roles in the days and years ahead. If there is one lesson that I take from the gracious generosity he showed me and my family, it is that we have to take a long view when we are understanding what to spend our time on. Time is the only currency that we have in politics, and we have to use it for public good and not to become popular. As he said, “If your only objective is to become popular, you're going to be popular, but you will be known at the Prime Minister who achieved nothing.” Instead, he reminded us, including at a speech as recently as last year in Nova Scotia, when he said, “History is only concerned with the big ticket items that have shaped the future of Canada.” This is a lesson that I hope to take to my work every day. We should all be inspired by his example to focus on those big-ticket items, that we are going to do service to our constituents, to our communities and to our country. To the Mulroney family, I want to say “thank you”. My community is better for his service and contribution to public life, and Canada will forever be in his debt. May he rest in peace.

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