44th Parl. 1st Sess.
April 11, 2024 10:00AM
- Apr/11/24 11:01:37 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, I rise on a point of order. I am hesitant to interrupt you, as I was the Speaker. I have had my hand up for quite a while, but I did not want to interrupt. I am looking for unanimous consent to see my vote as yes.
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- Apr/11/24 2:13:27 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, as members know, I am a proud Labradorian and Canadian. This year marks a significant milestone as we pay tribute to the Labrador flag and its 50-year legacy, a testament to our shared identity and resilience as Labradorians.
It is with deep appreciation that we commend Michael and Patricia Martin of Cartwright, Labrador, who, 50 years ago, had the innovation and foresight to create the enduring symbol of Labrador pride. Since its inception, the Labrador flag has transcended boundaries, embodying unity, remembrance and celebration of Labradorians across the globe. Its iconic design and vibrant colours serve as a constant reminder of our collective heritage and the unwavering spirit of Labradorians.
Today, we rejoice in 50 years of the Labrador flag. Labradorians join me in thanking Pat and Mike Martin for this wonderful gift and to say: fly the Labrador flag with pride.
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- Apr/11/24 3:43:12 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, Bill C-50 would really open up the potential of Canada's clean energy agenda. Those who cannot see that are stifling progress in this country. That is what I heard in the speech by the hon. member. Maybe she will agree with the president of the Alberta Federation of Labour or with the president of the Business Council of Alberta, who said that in order to “shape our future and create jobs by providing the resources that the world needs”, we need to have the sustainable jobs act.
People in her province are supporting this proposed act. Many companies are already transitioning. They are giving their workers the skills they need, and I ask the member—
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- Apr/11/24 3:44:46 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, just for the record, I would like to quote the president of the Business Council of Alberta and ask the member for Fort McMurray—Cold Lake if she supports the work they are doing when they say, “The Sustainable Jobs Act represents an important opportunity for Canada: to shape our future and create jobs by providing the resources that the world needs”. Everyone in this world sees that there is an opportunity with the clean energy agenda, except the Conservatives, and they offer no alternatives, as the member has just indicated.
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- Apr/11/24 3:49:39 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, it is a pleasure to finally rise in the House of Commons to speak to Bill C-50, after eight months of dealing with the bill in committee. I can tell the House that I have never seen such antics being played out by any opposition party on any legislation in my entire life as I have with the Conservatives on the sustainable jobs act, a bill that would do so much to help transition workers in this country at a time when they need it.
One would think that the Conservatives want no Canadians to have opportunities, nor for this country to be a leader in clean energy at home and around the world. We have potential here that very few countries have, which is to be able to develop a clean energy transition and a country that is allowing itself to provide for sustainable jobs today and into the future.
The member opposite talked about the cod moratorium. I lived through the cod moratorium; in fact, I was an employment counsellor who worked with people displaced in the fishing industry. One of the major setbacks was that there was no transition in jobs at that time. There was no plan by the Government of Canada, Progressive Conservative government, to help the thousands of people, including the 20,000 families in my own province, who were affected by the moratorium. They were left to their own devices. They were left to figure out where the next job was going to come from, where the next field of training was going to come from, their next career, and how they were going to feed their families.
Is that what the Conservatives are saying, that we should just let it happen in Canada, let everyone just figure this out and fend for themselves? I do not support that concept, because I have lived through it already once in my life. Let me tell the House this: In the absence of a transition plan for employment opportunities for workers in this country, many will fall through the cracks.
As for every labour union that came before the committee over the course of those months, as the member for Timmins—James Bay said best today, there were representatives of at least six unions who sat before us in the committee, where Conservative members did not allow them to present or speak, nor for the committee to question them.
Conservative members used every possible tactic they could, including bringing in 20,000 amendments to the bill, an 11-page bill, most of it containing standard clauses. The 20,000 amendments were generated not by the intelligence of Canadians but by AI, from a robotic system. That will tell us how connected they are to Canadians who are asking for the legislation and the transition to sustainable jobs.
The Conservatives know it well. They did not even take the time to actually do the research themselves to come up with amendments that would help strengthen the legislation, the opportunity for Canadians and the opportunities for workers. No, they pushed a few buttons on a computer and generated 20,000 amendments so they could stall the bill altogether at the committee stage. That will give us the level of intellect, interest and responsibility that they take—
An hon member: Oh, oh!
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- Apr/11/24 3:53:50 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, my apologies, but it is really hard to explain why any political party of the House of Commons today that is elected to represent people would choose to go to a robotic system to generate amendments to important legislation that would govern hundreds of thousands of people in this country, rather than actually do the heavy lifting themselves to meet with people, to actually sit down in a thoughtful way to write amendments that would strengthen the legislation and ensure that Canadians have jobs into the future.
That was not the only thing. The Conservatives also used every opportunity they possible could to stall debate with amendments they were bringing forward. The amendments were not substantial in any way but were to do only thing: hold up the real debate of legislation and disallow many unionized organizations in this country from having the opportunity to sit before committee and give their testimony, answer questions and give their insight into what the legislation would mean.
When workers are transitioning in any industry, whether it is the fishery, oil and gas, manufacturing or technology industry, there has to be a focus for how that transition would work for it to be successful. There have to be real people, not robots, at the table, who would determine what that looks like going forward: how people would be trained, whether programs are available, and how they could find and secure new job opportunities that would pay them well and sustain their family.
We did not see any of that at our committee from the Conservatives, by the way. In fact, all we saw from them were the attempts to bring in robot-generated amendments to bill. To me, that is not a responsible way to deal with the lives of Canadians. I am sorry, but I just do not see how it would do anything to help people in Alberta, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Ontario, Saskatchewan, British Columbia or any of the territories.
It is like phantom policy; that is what they were doing. They were bringing in phantom policies and trying to say they were doing something substantial. All we hear about is what they are going to cut or, the word they like to use, “axe”. They talk about axing taxes. They do not like to talk publicly about the other things they would like to axe, but we see it as they stand to vote against policies in the House of Commons every single day. Policies designed to serve Canadians in times of financial needs, programs like the Canada child benefit, dental, pharmacy and disability benefits and raises for the Canadian Armed Forces members, are all things the Conservatives have voted against. It is no wonder that the Conservatives are not supportive of workers' transitioning in the energy sector in Canada.
When technology came in, when we got computers, we did not get rid of every secretary in every office. They learned how to use the technology. They learned how to grow into the modern-day expectations of the workforce. It is also like when we launch drones in cyberwarfare. The soldiers being trained to use the drones are not the same soldiers being trained for on-the-ground combat. There is a level of transition in every single sector, every single career opportunity that arises, whether it is in the mining sector, the oil and gas sector or the technology sector. There will always be advancements and changes.
Why would someone be against working with Canadian workers to ensure that they have secure employment into the future? It makes absolutely zero sense and has zero logic to me. In fact, all I have seen from the Conservatives on the bill before us has been the fact that they are looking at phantom policies that would do absolutely nothing for workers, and they have been voting down all of the important concepts that would protect workers in the energy sector in Canada.
I live in Newfoundland and Labrador, which is one of the largest areas of oil production and mining production in this country. I can tell the House that producers are transitioning already, with more energy-efficient equipment, by changing out different technologies within their operations, by training workers to use the new technology they are installing to able to become experts in it so they can transfer their skills across a multitude of industry and resource development sectors. Of course Conservatives do not see any of this as being important for Canadians, and that is wrong.
The bill before us would show real accountability and engagement to support Canadians in a low-carbon economy and to seize the opportunities they have available to them. That is the important piece in the legislation. If members support workers in this country, support the unions that represent them and support the resource development sectors, then they will support the legislation.
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- Apr/11/24 4:01:13 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, what I do know is that Canadian jobs are going to transition whether we bring in the legislation or not, because that is the way the world is. Bringing forward the legislation would allow more stability and security for the workers. That is what the member is missing.
If we go back to the cod moratorium, the Conservative government of the day did not bring in a transition plan, and thousands of families were left without a way to put food on the table or a job to go to. We are not going to gamble on this in the oil and gas industry; we are going to have a firm energy transition so workers will have those jobs and the skills they need to do the work.
What I can tell the member is that the new transition to a greener economy, whether it is transitioning in mining, oil and gas, or whatever sector, would be creating new, high-paying jobs, and the member knows that.
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- Apr/11/24 4:03:11 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I am very proud of the government's record and what we have done. I am very proud of the fact that we have done more to reduce carbon in this country than anyone else. We have invested more in a clean energy transition. We are looking out for workers while we do that. We have invested more in infrastructure to support clean energy in Canada, and we will continue to do that.
For the record, I want to say to the member opposite that many companies, industries and communities have signed on to the environmental plan and are looking for continued investments to ensure that we have a cleaner environment, a greener economy and more opportunity for Canada in the future.
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- Apr/11/24 4:05:04 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I want to remind the member that, before we came into government, there was not even a line item in terms of investment in clean tech. We created that as a government. It is the focus of our economy.
We can see companies such as Braya fuels converting their refinery to renewable diesel, while companies in Nova Scotia and Quebec are doing so much work around clean energy and transitioning to produce other renewables. In Ontario, we can see massive investments in the entirety of the electric vehicle value chain. We are seeing investments in—
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- Apr/11/24 6:04:24 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, this morning there was a motion on the floor and I had technical difficulties with my app. I asked for leave of the House so I could vote, and I was denied by the opposition. I ask if they would now grant me that leave so my vote may count and I will vote yes.
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