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Decentralized Democracy

House Hansard - 298

44th Parl. 1st Sess.
April 11, 2024 10:00AM
  • Apr/11/24 12:24:32 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for the compliment. I appreciate it. There are times when people are provoked, and I think this is the part that one should be aware of. Not everybody hears all of the things that are said, and that can be a reason behind tempers getting hot. I prefer to make sure that we keep the temperature cooler, but I also think it is important that we speak to the strengths we have as a nation. I have always stood up for Quebeckers, for their energy sources and for that type of thing. I get frustrated when people say, “That is fine, but we are just going to shut someone down”. That is a bit of a problem I have; nevertheless, I think we have all of these strengths in every province. That is what we should be concentrating on.
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  • Apr/11/24 2:23:01 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, after eight years of this Prime Minister, we have a passport crisis on our hands, violent crime is on the rise, the cost of housing has doubled, millions of people are using food banks, and criminals are cozy at home. What a fabulous record. Quebeckers are suffering because of his mismanagement. What is more, he is interfering in provincial jurisdictions. Will he listen to the Premier of Quebec, who is asking him to mind his own business?
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  • Apr/11/24 2:24:14 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, to the already overly long list of this Liberal government's failures, we can add extravagant use of public funds and squandering of Quebeckers' dollars. This government spends Canadians' money like water. For the past eight years, it has had no budgetary discipline, causing the debt to double. It has not balanced a single budget, yet it wants to handle provincial issues. Quebec Premier François Legault has made it clear that this government needs to mind its own business. Will it listen, yes or no?
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  • Apr/11/24 2:24:52 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, let us talk about a former premier of Quebec, Mr. Charest, with whom this member served and voted in favour of a price on pollution. I think the hypocrisy coming from the other side of the House is quite striking, especially in a context where, today, we are talking about the 400,000 jobs that could be created in Canada thanks to green technologies and the new economy. This member is against these opportunities in battery plants in Quebec. Be that as it may, on our side of the House, we support opportunities for Quebeckers.
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  • Apr/11/24 2:25:34 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the housing issue proves that we must prevent the federal government from meddling in Quebec's areas of jurisdiction. When the federal level decides where the money goes, Quebeckers get ripped off, and the numbers from CMHC prove that without a doubt. Since the national housing strategy was created in 2019, what share of the funding has Quebec received when the federal government is choosing the projects? Do members know? The answer is 6.7%. That is not even a third of our fair share. Will the government stop shortchanging Quebeckers and transfer housing money to Quebec, no strings attached?
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  • Apr/11/24 2:26:54 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, although Quebeckers make up 22% of the population, we received 6.7% of federal housing investments when the projects were chosen by Ottawa. It does not take a math genius to realize that we are getting ripped off. Since 2019, the money has gone mostly to funding projects outside Quebec. We are in the midst of a full-on housing crisis and our tax dollars are being spent to house Ontarians, when we can no longer even pay rent here at home. Is it clear now why we need to keep Ottawa as far away as possible from our exclusive jurisdiction over housing?
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  • Apr/11/24 2:27:36 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I understand that the Bloc Québécois may not like the idea of co-operating with the Quebec government. However, a scant few weeks ago we signed an agreement to build 8,000 affordable housing units, which represents the largest investment in affordable housing ever seen in the history of Quebec. That is because the Quebec and federal governments are working together to invest two times $900 million to give Quebeckers and all other Canadians the affordable housing they need.
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  • Apr/11/24 2:28:13 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Montreal has experienced its largest rent increase in 30 years. This is a true crisis, and it is making it difficult for Montrealers to put a roof over their heads. What is the Liberal government’s solution? It is to set aside a mere 35% of the Wellington Basin project’s units for affordable public housing, meaning that two-thirds of the housing units built will be unaffordable. Here is a simple question: Why use public land to build housing units that Quebeckers cannot afford?
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  • Apr/11/24 2:37:40 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, after eight years of this government, let us examine its record. Housing costs have doubled. Immigration wait times are interminable. Over 800,000 Quebeckers are using food banks every month. Our streets are less and less safe. Violent crime is on the rise. The kicker is that the Prime Minister now wants to impose his incompetence on the provinces. That is like handing our front-door key to the crooks who just burgled our home. Will the Prime Minister admit that he is not even competent enough to manage his own government and that he should just mind his own business?
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  • Apr/11/24 2:39:27 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, what I agreed on with Minister Fréchette, when I met with her two weeks ago, was that we would exercise our full powers in our respective areas of jurisdiction under the Canada-Quebec agreement, in a reasonable and reasoned manner. This is what I intend to do with her in the months to come. Canadians and Quebeckers will be well served as a result.
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  • Apr/11/24 2:40:23 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, obviously, no country in the world would hand over all its powers to someone else. I agreed with Minister Fréchette that we would exercise our respective responsibilities in our areas of jurisdiction in order to serve Quebeckers effectively. That is what I intend to do. That is what the minister intends to do as well.
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  • Apr/11/24 2:49:39 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, after eight years of this Liberal government, life is more expensive and Quebeckers are paying the price. The cost of housing has doubled. The lineups at food banks are longer than ever. While Quebeckers struggle to put food on the table because of his incompetence, the Prime Minister insists on interfering in provincial jurisdictions. Clearly this government is not worth the cost. Will this Prime Minister steer clear of provincial jurisdictions and allow Quebec to repair the damage?
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  • Apr/11/24 2:50:55 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, eight years of this Liberal government have yielded a broken immigration system, an unsustainable cost of living, extremely high crime rates and millions of suffering Canadians. Not only is this Prime Minister causing problems in every aspect of Canadians' lives, he is increasingly encroaching on provincial jurisdictions too. Quebeckers understand that this Prime Minister is not worth the cost. Can the Prime Minister please stop spreading his incompetence around and just mind his own business?
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  • Apr/11/24 2:52:13 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, after eight long years, the Prime Minister is not worth the cost. Food banks can no longer keep up with demand. The cost of rent and mortgages has doubled. The dream of buying a first home is almost unattainable for young Canadians. After eight years of federal encroachment on provincial jurisdictions, Quebeckers' quality of life has declined. Can the Prime Minister please stop imposing his incompetence on the provinces and mind his own business?
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