44th Parl. 1st Sess.
March 20, 2024 02:00PM
- Mar/20/24 2:07:13 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Helen Keller once said, “Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.” In that spirit, today I am going to pay tribute to two organizations making a fantastic impact across Canada.
First, March is Easter Seals Month and a great time to recognize the wonderful work that Easter Seals Canada has done for over 100 years in Canada. Easter Seals' vision is to “fully [enhance] the quality of life, well-being and independence of Canadians living with disabilities”, and they are consistently a leading and reliable partner in efforts to do just that.
Also in this Marvel-like universe of inclusion champions is Special Olympics Canada, which hosted its 2024 Winter Games in Calgary at the end of February. It was incredible to see thousands of athletes, volunteers and families descend on our province of Alberta for a week of intense competition, joyful celebration and powerful community engagement.
To all of the superheroes at Easter Seals and Special Olympics, I say thanks for the life-changing work they do every single day. They are truly unstoppable.
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- Mar/20/24 2:40:55 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the Parliamentary Budget Officer did not include the cost of climate change because the carbon tax does not address the cost of climate change. He made it clear the carbon tax will do nothing to change the cost of climate change, and that is why the tax costs more for every family in every province.
Let us go to Alberta, where two of the NDP leadership candidates have come out against the carbon tax. The Prime Minister's only friend in the province, Naheed Nenshi, has gone totally silent. Albertans will pay $2,900 in carbon tax per family. What will the rebate be for them?
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- Mar/20/24 2:42:20 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister found his cue card and finally talked about the rebate. He said the average family in Alberta will get $1,800 while it is paying $2,943. In other words, next year alone, after this forthcoming hike, the average Alberta family will pay $1,100 more in carbon taxes than he gives back in his phony cheques.
Will the Prime Minister tell us if he understands that $2,900 is bigger than $1,800?
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- Mar/20/24 2:42:56 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, how about a different stat, a stat the finance ministry analyzed? It turns out that for an average income quintile group with an average household of 2.5 Canadians, the average net benefit per household in Alberta is $723 a year. That is $723 in the pockets of the average Albertan family because we put a price on pollution that puts more money back in the pockets of eight out of 10 Canadian families.
That is what we are doing. That is how we fight climate change.
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- Mar/20/24 3:09:29 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Calgary and my home province of Alberta are home to tens of thousands of proud Ukrainian Canadians. Since Russia's illegal war on Ukraine, Canada's commitment towards Ukraine has never been stronger. That is why our government introduced a modernized Canada-Ukraine Free Trade Agreement, which President Zelenskyy asked for, to be there to help Ukraine rebuild after it defeats Russia. Shamefully, the Conservative Party did not want to accept Ukraine's reasonable request for assistance. Can the Prime Minister update the House on this crucial trade agreement?
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- Mar/20/24 7:44:02 p.m.
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Madam Chair, the member is right to note that Alberta has always been a proud part of our federation and home to millions of Ukrainian Canadians. In fact the deputy prime minister under Brian Mulroney, Don Mazankowski, whom I got to know a little bit, was a proud Ukrainian Canadian. I think many Ukrainians across the country burst with pride when he took on that role in the government of the late prime minister.
With respect to our opposition to the free trade agreement, we indicated it was on a very narrow basis that had to do with the carbon pricing provisions in the agreement. We indicated at the time, in December 2023 when it was in front of the House, that while we were opposed to the agreement, we were not going to obstruct its passage through either the House or the Senate, and I think we have been true to our word. The bill has become law in Canada, so that is also evidence of our constructive approach to Ukraine.
We in the House all support Ukraine, but that does not mean there is going to be unanimity on every single aspect of the government's policy with respect to Ukraine. However, I cannot think of many other areas in foreign policy where there has been such multipartisan support as there has been for Ukraine.
With respect to the path forward, I think the immediate need is a military need. It is clear that Ukraine's offensive stalled. It is clear that the Russian offensive is counterattacking and that territory is being lost as we speak, which is why I think that, even more than humanitarian need, there is a need for military kit and equipment right now for Ukraine. If the U.S. Congress is mired in legislative gridlock on these sorts of issues, then other NATO members should be stepping up to the plate to provide the funds and the equipment that Ukraine needs.
As I said earlier, there are four easy things we think the government could transfer immediately, and actually some of them are surplus in the Canadian Armed Forces. One is surplus Light Armoured Vehicles that Ukraine has indicated it could use. Another is the surplus 83,000 rockets that are to be decommissioned. The NASAMS air defence system that the government announced support for about a year ago is another thing that we believe could be provided to Ukraine. The fourth item is the excess Role 3 mobile hospitals that the Canadian Forces acquired, I believe, in response to the pandemic. These are things we could transfer right now that could provide additional support for Ukraine.
Finally, in addition to all of those things, we really feel the need for the government to step up procurement and production of munitions here in Canada, which not only Ukraine needs but the western alliance also needs to recapitalize its stocks.
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Madam Chair, it is an honour to take part in tonight's debate on the relationship between Canada and Ukraine.
Before I continue with my speech, I want to take a moment to recognize in the chamber former prime minister Brian Mulroney and to extend my condolences to his family and to all those who knew him. Prime Minister Mulroney was, of course, a steadfast supporter of Ukraine, and his leadership continues to positively impact the Canada-Ukraine relationship today. When Prime Minister Mulroney was prime minister in 1991, Canada became the first western country to recognize Ukraine's independence.
As colleagues may know, Bill C-57 received royal assent yesterday, leading us one step closer to bringing into force the modernized Canada-Ukraine free trade agreement. This modernized trade agreement represents a historic milestone for the Canada-Ukraine commercial relationship and for Ukraine's economic security, which I will be focusing my remarks on tonight.
The Canada-Ukraine free trade agreement, also known as CUFTA, is just one of the tools Canada is using to support our ally Ukraine, which continues to face the violent consequences of Russia's illegal and unjustified invasion. Indeed, since the beginning of the conflict in 2022, Canada has committed over $13.3 billion in multi-faceted support covering military, financial, humanitarian, development, security and cultural assistance for Ukraine.
The modernized free trade agreement is another form of support that will provide the framework for bilateral trade and investment. It will strengthen the foundation on which Canadian and Ukrainian businesses can work together, not only now but also during Ukraine's recovery and economic reconstruction over years to come, when it will win this war against Russia's illegal invasion.
Furthermore, our bilateral relations are strengthened through our warm people-to-people ties that are rooted in Ukrainian Canadians in our country. They represent roughly 1.3 million people and have shared values. Many of these values are reflected in CUFTA.
In January of this year, I had the opportunity to spend some time across western and central Canada, from Alberta to Saskatchewan and Manitoba, and of course here in Ontario. I have spoken with many Ukrainian Canadians, businesses and stakeholders about what was before our Parliament, which was the modernized CUFTA. There was a lot of interest from Ukrainian Canadians, certainly from the Canadian private sector, to support Ukraine as it continues to keep not only its economy going, but also its reconstruction activities.
The modernized CUFTA is going to do just that. Canadian companies would not only trade in goods, and that was the agreement we just modernized. It has been modernized with provisions that allow for services, trade and investments. The new trade agreement has nine new dedicated chapters that cover things such as cross-border trade in services, investments, financial services, telecommunications and good regulatory practices. As well, it includes dedicated chapters on inclusive trade, trade that will yield benefits to all in our economies, such as small and medium-sized businesses, which has a chapter. There is the first-ever trade and indigenous peoples chapter to be in a concluded FTA, as well as a chapter on trade and gender, so that the benefits of trade will be shared widely.
Ultimately, the outcome of this agreement is a modern, ambitious and fully comprehensive free trade agreement that will fortify the Canadian-Ukrainian bilateral commercial relationship for years to come and will support Ukraine's long-term recovery and trade interests. It is also good for Canada. There are many Canadian companies that have a lot to offer that will benefit from trade and investment in Ukraine.
I look forward to leading a business mission to Ukraine. Many businesses I talk to are interested in having the trade minister lead a mission that will open up some of those doors and create the opportunity, and that would just build on the momentum of the new CUFTA.
Let me conclude by thanking the negotiators, not only in Canada but also in Ukraine. They were negotiating this in the midst of a war, with sirens blaring and bombs going off around them. I want to thank them for their courage. Let us rebuild Ukraine together.
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- Mar/20/24 9:28:50 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I will be sharing my time with the member for Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan.
On the Prairies, Ukrainian culture is so completely intertwined with Prairie culture that it was hard for someone like me, who grew up in a Ukrainian household in rural Alberta, to not know that was not what all of Canada looked like. As a child, I thought that must have been what everyone else grew up with. The co-operation and the relationship Canada and Ukraine have had for as long as the Prairies have existed is an important piece because our relationship has existed for well over 100 years. That relationship is as important, if not more important, today than it was 100 years ago, when we were welcoming Ukrainian settlers, who helped us develop the agricultural strength that we now have on the Prairies and right across Canada.
One does not have to look very far in most of rural Alberta, Saskatchewan or Manitoba to see a beautiful onion-domed church. There is also the proud Ukrainian dance heritage, which is a part of our cultural fabric. It is worth noting that former prime minister Brian Mulroney was the first leader to recognize an independent Ukraine back in 1991, and I am very confident that he did that as a direct result of the fact that he had Don Mazankowski as his deputy prime minister, who was from Alberta and represented a very Ukrainian riding. While Mr. Mazankowski was a Polish individual, he was married to a Ukrainian, so I am sure that played a role in that pivotal space. I highlight that to signal how important the relationship is, and always has been, between Canada and Ukraine and between Conservatives and Ukrainians because, frankly, there is no other space or option in this.
I want to highlight one of the pieces that I think is really important in this agreement on security and co-operation between Canada and Ukraine, which we are here to debate and have a conversation about tonight. That piece is to continue to engage with the international coalition for the return of Ukrainian children. This is key. As a mom of two little boys, I cannot imagine what it would be like to have my children stolen, yet that is what so many Ukrainians are dealing with today. They have had their children stolen by an evil dictator, Vladimir Putin, and his regime.
We need to continue working as a country, as a western space, to highlight the fact that atrocious activities have been undertaken. We have to do everything in our power to make sure we are continuing to fight to bring those children home. Frankly, they deserve it, and Ukraine needs to have people here in Canada and all across the world talking about the fact that those children have been stolen from their parents, from their communities and from their nation.
I want to highlight that this is something that I am very proud to see in this, and I hope we will continue to talk about those poor, innocent children, who have been stolen from their families, their communities and their nation. We need to bring them back to Ukraine so they can live in peace and harmony under a free Ukraine. Frankly, we owe it to our partners. We owe it to this strong relationship that we have had for well over a century to make sure that Canada and Ukraine stay in friendship and partnership now and as we go forward.
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