SoVote

Context: House Hansard - 292 - Mar/20/24

Ms. Heather McPherson (Edmonton Strathcona, NDP)

Mar/20/24 9:33:37 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, one thing we know Ukraine will need going forward is the ability to rebuild its country. We know the damage that has been caused by the Russian Federation, by Vladimir Putin, in this illegal invasion of Ukraine. The current Liberal government has cut official development assistance by 15% and has indicated that in the next budget, it will cut that by even more. However, the leader of the Conservatives has said that he would also cut it. In fact, there are members of the Conservative Party who have said they do not think we belong in the United Nations anymore. As we try to build a rules-based international order that involves engaging with other countries, being part of multilateral institutions and playing a role on the world stage, how does the member think Ukrainians should see the Conservatives' stance that they would cut foreign aid and step back from the multilateral institutions that are so important to us?

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Mrs. Laila Goodridge

Mar/20/24 9:34:45 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I am not going to take any lessons from NDP members, who speak out of both sides of their mouths when it comes to this issue and so many others. Frankly, if Canada delivered on the promises it has made to Ukraine and gave it the missiles we have sitting in Saskatchewan that are not being used, which Ukraine has asked for, that would go a long way in helping Ukraine deliver on a victory. These are the important pieces that we truly need to keep in mind. Ukraine, right now, is asking for missiles and support so that it can continue fighting this war. We, as partners, have to continue to put the needs of Ukraine first. I am going to stand up and continue standing up, along with all of my Conservative colleagues, to ask that the missiles we have sitting in Saskatchewan, which the Ukrainian embassy has asked for, get delivered so Ukraine can fight and win the war.

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Mr. Kevin Lamoureux (Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons, Lib.)

Mar/20/24 9:35:48 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, the Government of Canada has been working very closely with not only Ukraine but allied countries that are supporting Ukraine and providing the type of support that Ukraine has been asking for. A good example of that is the ammunition request, a $40-million commitment, that has us working with the Czech Republic along with other allied forces. It has been encouraging that we have seen a high sense of co-operation among all political parties since the Maidan, I would argue, at the end of 2014 going into 2015. However, there was a great deal of surprise when the Conservative Party abandoned that consensus when it voted against the Canada-Ukraine free trade agreement. How does the member justify her vote or the vote of the Conservative Party not to support the Canada-Ukraine free trade agreement when the President of Ukraine came to Canada during a time of war and asked for this support?

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Mrs. Laila Goodridge

Mar/20/24 9:36:57 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I have been very clear that I do not support the carbon tax and that is a very simple thing. I have been very proud to share my Ukrainian heritage and support of Ukraine. I am very proud to have been one of the first members of Parliament to stand in this chamber before the war broke asking and demanding that the Government of Canada act so we could bring Ukrainians here, because it was very clear that the war was starting out, but the government sat on its hands and did nothing. I am not going to take any lessons from members on that side, who are sitting here trying to claim some moral victory when they did not act before the war started when they could have acted and saved the lives of innocent Ukrainians.

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Mr. Martin Champoux (Drummond, BQ)

Mar/20/24 9:37:48 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I was listening to my colleague's speech. One of the points she focused on was children, and I agree 100%. We tend to forget that the Russians have taken Ukrainian children away from their families. I get the impression that this has somehow been forgotten. No one talks about it anymore, yet it should be a priority for every country in the world to ensure that these children find their way back to their families. We are not doing enough in terms of military aid. We are not doing enough in terms of humanitarian aid. As my colleague said earlier, there are children who have been torn away from their families amid general indifference. We also have to think about rebuilding Ukraine. Post-war reconstruction has to start before the war ends. It has to start now. How do we encourage Canada and other countries in the world to invest so that companies have the confidence to go and do business in Ukraine, to ensure that the economy does not fall completely flat at a time when it needs to be strong enough for post-war reconstruction?

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Mrs. Laila Goodridge

Mar/20/24 9:39:00 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, under the leadership of Prime Minister Stephen Harper, we signed the first free trade agreement with Ukraine. The goal was to work together to promote trade with Ukraine. Ukraine has economic strengths, and we need to do a lot more to make sure that Canadian businesses invest in Ukraine and that Ukrainian businesses invest here. I will continue to work to support free trade between the two countries.

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Mr. Kevin Lamoureux (Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons, Lib.)

Mar/20/24 9:45:03 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I am sure the member is aware that Canada has made a commitment, working with allied forces, of what I believe is at least $30 million to go toward artillery and ammunition. We are working with the Czech Republic to ensure that Ukraine can get different artillery on the front lines, which I think is a very positive thing given the member's comments. The question I have for the member is similar to what I asked his colleague. How does the member justify voting against a free trade agreement? How would he best explain the reason he and the Conservative Party voted against it?

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Mr. Garnett Genuis

Mar/20/24 9:45:49 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-57

Mr. Chair, the member knows the answer to the question. I have repeated it and explained it ad nauseam in this House. I want to ask why Liberals opposed the amendments that I brought forward to Bill C-57 at committee. Those amendments were specific things that the arms manufacturing industry in Canada had proposed would be helpful. It asked the Government of Canada to establish a clear plan and send clear signals about its commitments to, over the longer term, acquire the munitions required for Canada's own needs and to support Ukraine. The government has taken no action to send the right signals and provide the necessary support to ramp up our own domestic production of munitions. I believe this is an opportunity for Canada, and it is an urgent issue for supporting Ukraine. Personally, I put forward six different amendments to this bill at committee that would have strengthened the export of munitions to Ukraine. The Liberals blocked those amendments at every turn. Actually, the Liberals and the NDP members were working together. They presented us from passing a motion in the House to allow those amendments to move forward, and they blocked those amendments at committee. It is really shameful for the Liberals to, on the one hand, try to virtue-signal on this issue while continuously blocking efforts to get weapons to move forward. They make announcements but fail to follow through on them. It is not enough to talk about victory at some distant point in the future. We need urgent victory through the urgent delivery of required munitions. The government likes to wrap itself in blue and yellow, but it fails to deliver when it really counts.

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Mr. Mario Beaulieu (La Pointe-de-l'Île, BQ)

Mar/20/24 9:47:36 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, my colleague from Montarville was wondering earlier about the government's strategy. The government is fearmongering and constantly hinting at the possibility of a Russian invasion. It has also removed all non-essential staff from its embassy in Ukraine, while the majority of European countries have maintained their staff on site as a sign of solidarity with Ukraine. I would like to hear my colleague's thoughts on that.

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Mr. Garnett Genuis

Mar/20/24 9:48:11 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I am not sure precisely what comments the member is referring to in terms of the timelines. If I understand the question, he is talking about the period in the lead-up to the initial further invasion. I know there was controversy around some of the decisions allegedly made by Canada in the context of embassy personnel. This is something we did ask questions about at the time at the foreign affairs committee, trying to get some responses from the minister on it.

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Mrs. Laila Goodridge (Fort McMurray—Cold Lake, CPC)

Mar/20/24 9:48:48 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I wonder if the member can share some of the concerns he raised at the foreign affairs committee regarding what the Government of Canada did with gas turbines, which were allowed to go back to Russia. I know he had some very strong feelings, and I was very proud to stand behind him and stand up with him as he was bringing that forward. I am wondering if he could describe that here tonight.

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Mr. Garnett Genuis

Mar/20/24 9:49:23 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, Canada has a unique opportunity and responsibility among democratic nations. Many of our democratic partners are geographically small, densely populated nations endowed with few natural resources. Canada is blessed with an abundance of natural resources, which we could use to support our allies by improving their energy security. Instead of developing Canadian resources and playing the role we need to play in the world in the midst of this intensifying global struggle, the Liberals chose to grant a sanctions waiver to export turbines to facilitate the export of Russian gas. They were facilitating the export of Russian gas when Canada should have instead been working to export our gas. We should have been providing an alternative to Russia. Instead, the Liberals were helping the Russians fund their war by exporting turbines.

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Mr. Kevin Lamoureux (Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons, Lib.)

Mar/20/24 9:50:21 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, it has been very clear from the very beginning that the government has been working with Ukraine and the allied countries in all different ways, even pre-war when we had Canadian forces, through Operation Unifier, helping with training tens of thousands of soldiers. Throughout this whole campaign we have been there in every way, working with allied countries. In fact, for a good portion of that time, we actually had the support of all political parties in regard to the types of actions we were taking collectively as a House of Commons. Yesterday, we actually had the Canada-Ukraine trade agreement given royal assent. It could have been done a whole lot easier, had the Conservatives here in the House of Commons and the Conservatives in the Senate been more agreeable to its passage, but the Conservatives, time and time again, put up roadblocks. The member opposite just finished saying that he moved amendments. He cannot change the agreement. The member knew that. All he was doing was adding to filibuster and confusion. The President of Ukraine came to Canada—

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The Chair

Mar/20/24 9:51:55 p.m.
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The hon. member for Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan is rising on a point of order.

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Mr. Garnett Genuis

Mar/20/24 9:51:57 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I hope if you seek it, you will find unanimous consent for me to table the motion I moved at the end of session in December that would have allowed us to move this trade agreement to a vote right away in December. It was a unanimous consent motion that was blocked by the Liberals. It would have actually allowed us to move to a vote faster. I wonder if there would be unanimous consent to table that unanimous consent motion I tried to move at that time but was blocked by the Liberals.

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Table

The Chair

Mar/20/24 9:52:26 p.m.
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The hon. member should know that during a take-note debate we cannot ask for unanimous consent for anything, so unfortunately we cannot do that. I would love to, but I cannot. The hon. member for Winnipeg North has the floor, and no time has been taken from the member.

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Mr. Kevin Lamoureux

Mar/20/24 9:52:41 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I am splitting my time, by the way, with the member for Davenport. I can tell members that the Conservative Party, in a very real and tangible way, had the opportunity, not once or twice but on several occasions, to clearly demonstrate that it is still on side with the Government of Canada and members of the Bloc and the NDP, by doing several actions. One of those actions was to support budget initiatives. The Conservative Party actually voted against issues like training Ukrainian soldiers through the Operation Unifier program. They voted against that. They also voted against Ukrainian immigrant settlement packages. My biggest concern, as I started to talk about, was the issue of the Canada-Ukraine trade agreement. That is a significant thing. All one needs to do is take a look at history. What was happening in 2014 and 2015, when the people of Ukraine were wanting to see expanded trade with the European Union? Trade matters, and the President of Ukraine came to Canada at a time of war, signed an agreement and asked members of the House on both sides to get behind the Canada-Ukraine trade agreement, and the Conservatives chose not to. They first started to say that it was because of the carbon tax, but then they found out that Ukraine already had a price on pollution. They knew that, or at least they found that out. The real truth of the matter is that, as we have seen in budget votes and in their actual vote on the trade agreement, the MAGA right is creeping into the Conservative Party with its hesitation in terms of fully supporting Ukraine. That had more to do with it than their red herring of the carbon tax, because Ukraine already has a price on pollution. They wanted to be a part of what was taking place in the European Union, where there is a price on pollution. At the end of this evening, it would be wonderful to see some of the Conservatives stand in their places, actually be straightforward with Canadians and clearly indicate that voting against the trade agreement was a mistake and that they are actually behind and will stand as one chamber and continue to support Ukraine, as we have been doing in a wide variety of areas. Those billions of dollars in investments have ultimately led to military support and support for those who are being displaced. This is getting behind the 1.3 million people and more of Ukrainian heritage who call Canada home and those who are well beyond that heritage. It is the right thing to do, and that is why I would appeal to Conservatives. It is never too late to say they made a mistake and get behind the Canada-Ukraine trade agreement.

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Initiatives

Mr. Garnett Genuis (Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, CPC)

Mar/20/24 9:56:20 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, tonight, we were actually supposed to have a take-note debate on the agreement on security co-operation between Canada and Ukraine, something that I think we all agree on. This member is intent on sowing division and being hyperpartisan, so let me point something out to the member. He pointed out that President Zelenskyy may have disagreed with the position we took on a particular trade deal. Let us talk about a disagreement between President Zelenskyy and the current government. Early on in the conflict, the Canadian ambassador to Ukraine was actually summoned by the Government of Ukraine, an extraordinary step. The ambassador was summoned as a sign of the Ukrainian government's displeasure with the Liberal government's action. What was that action? It was the Liberal government's decision to grant a waiver of sanctions regarding those Siemens turbines. It was the Liberal government trying to facilitate the export of Russian gas that was fuelling Russia's economy and Russia's invasion. The Government of Ukraine was deeply concerned that Canada was undermining global sanctions unity and was pushing toward a reality of Swiss-cheese sanctions that would be ineffective. The government should be ashamed of what it did, and it was only the Conservatives pushing back that led to the change. Will the member apologize for his shameful role in allowing that exemption in the sanctions?

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Mr. Kevin Lamoureux

Mar/20/24 9:57:53 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, the member is trying to change the channel here. Canada has worked very closely with all our allied countries. Let me remind the member. Yesterday, we were talking about Brian Mulroney. Even members in the chamber today were talking about Brian Mulroney and the trade agreement of 1988. People could reflect on some of wonderful things that Brian Mulroney did. He opened the chamber to the idea of free trade being a good thing. He also opened the idea that acid rain and the environment were also something very important. I believe that Brian Mulroney would have looked at the behaviour of the Conservative Party on Ukraine, and Brian Mulroney supported Ukraine, and he would have been somewhat disappointed with the way the Conservative Party of today voted on the Canada-Ukraine free trade agreement, when we should have had solidarity. That would have sent a very powerful message to the world that we collectively support Ukraine, today and well into the future.

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Mr. Martin Champoux (Drummond, BQ)

Mar/20/24 9:59:03 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, if I was the member for Winnipeg North, I would be careful not to make too many assumptions about Mr. Mulroney's thoughts on what goes on in the House or in the Conservative Party. I am not sure he would be much prouder of the Liberals for the way they have managed Canada for the past while. That said, tonight we are having a take-note debate to discuss the relationship between Canada and Ukraine and the new strategic security partnership. That is the theme of tonight's take-note debate. However, all that I have heard from the Liberals are questions for the Conservatives about why they voted against the free trade agreement because of a provision that mentioned the carbon tax. My colleague from Montarville clearly stated in his speech earlier this evening that 58% of the aid that Canada promised to Ukraine has still not reached Ukraine. I want to know why. That is very significant. It changes things on the ground there. It affects Ukraine's ability to repel the Russian enemy. When will that 58% arrive? Why can we not do more? That is what I want to know tonight.

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