44th Parl. 1st Sess.
April 15, 2024 11:00AM
- Apr/15/24 12:25:10 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I would like to know why this bill does not comply with the Quebec-Ottawa agreement on labour and why it does not properly respect the collaboration with Quebec's partners.
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- Apr/15/24 12:25:28 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, we worked with the provinces and territories in the development of this legislation. We did collaborate with them.
I want to make it clear that this bill applies only to areas of federal jurisdiction and does not infringe on any provincial jurisdiction. This was done in consultation with Quebec and all the other provinces.
This bill is squarely within federal jurisdiction. We always respect the provinces and territories, which are our partners.
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- Apr/15/24 1:31:15 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I really enjoyed my colleague's speech, although I was a little surprised by the conclusion. He talked about a consensus within civil society. The current bill may not be ambitious enough and may not be perfect, but we think it is a step in the right direction. It is supported by the Canadian Labour Congress, Environmental Defence, Climate Action Network, 350 Canada, Equiterre, the Pembina Institute, Ecojustice, the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, the Council of Canadians and the David Suzuki Foundation. That is a lot of people, a lot of environmental groups. I know that some Quebec unions support it as well.
I have attended various COPs, and people from both the FTQ and the CSN have talked about wanting a just transition. I think we are heading in that direction, with room for the labour movement at the table. This was an essential demand from these groups, and Bill C-50 came through on that. I wonder if the Bloc Québécois might be open to reconsidering its position.
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- Apr/15/24 1:32:15 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, as for reconsidering our position, the answer is definitely no. As I told my colleague, we had numerous meetings with people from the environmental and labour communities. People from the environmental community have mixed feelings about the bill. For them, the fact that the notion of a just transition has been squeezed out is a defeat. Still, they would rather have legislation than nothing at all, and I do not blame them.
My goal was to improve the bill. As I was saying earlier, if the government had been open, we might have been able to improve the bill. The main reason we will be voting against this bill is that the government does not recognize the asymmetrical agreements it has with Quebec. I have spoken to all the unions about this, and they have even written letters to the minister, urging him to acknowledge the asymmetry that exists in workforce training. Unfortunately, that has not happened.
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- Apr/15/24 2:01:54 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, when I knocked on doors this past summer, there were many days that saw smoke-filled air that prevented kids from going outside, far above normal temperatures that posed life-threatening conditions for vulnerable seniors, droughts that caused cracks in home foundations and anxiety about the future as the realities of climate change confront us in new and undeniable ways.
Canadians want to do their part to fight climate change, but they also need to take care of their families' needs. That is the advantage of our climate plan. It lets them do both, by providing rebates that offset added costs for eight out of 10 Canadians while at the same time being proven to effectively reduce pollution.
The Canadian Climate Institute released a study recently that detailed that all of the government’s current policies will prevent the equivalent of Quebec and Ontario’s emissions combined by 2030.
The world is moving away from heavily polluting fuels. If Canada does not do its part, we will be on the outside looking in, with international trading partners and allies shutting us out of deals and taxing our imports. We are going to continue to advocate for environmental policies that protect our future.
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- Apr/15/24 2:03:01 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, they are there. We see them everywhere, but we do not take enough notice of them.
They are in our hospitals, schools, hockey rinks, libraries, parks, community kitchens and everywhere. They are there helping young people, seniors, people with disabilities and newcomers with everything that they need. I am talking about volunteers. They are there to run errands for a senior living at home alone, to teach French to a new immigrant who is discovering Quebec, to help a child with their homework and to serve a hot meal to people in need. We see them everywhere, but we do not take enough notice of them. However, God knows that they are remarkable people. Their outstanding contribution makes Quebec a great place to live.
I want to wish all volunteers a happy National Volunteer Week. This is a great opportunity to thank them for their time, their generosity and especially their kind hearts.
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- Apr/15/24 2:28:20 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I have an urgent message for anyone who still believes that we should ignore jurisdictions and let the federal government decide everything.
The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation has proven that when the federal government interferes in housing, an exclusive jurisdiction of Quebec, Quebeckers receive only 14% of the funding, although we make up 22% of the population. The situation is even worse when the federal government chooses its own projects, such as affordable housing. In that case, we get only 6% of the money, even though we represent 22% of the population.
When the feds interfere, Quebeckers do not get their fair share, starting with the less fortunate.
Who would agree to be ripped off like that?
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- Apr/15/24 2:29:22 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, that is nonsense.
When the federal government meddles in Quebec's jurisdictions, Quebeckers always get shortchanged. Housing is a perfect example. We represent 22% of the population, yet we got 14% of the funds and only 6% of affordable housing.
Not only do we never receive our fair share, but the last budget is going to add insult to injury. The feds are going to impose new conditions on the additional $6 billion of our money that they are promising for housing.
Why not simply hand over Quebeckers' fair share of the housing money, no conditions attached? Can he answer that question?
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- Apr/15/24 2:30:03 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we are working with Quebec to ensure that it receives its fair share of the housing funds.
For example, we have reached an agreement with Quebec on the housing accelerator program. We are providing $900 million in federal funds and Quebec is investing $900 million. That adds up to $1.8 billion and 8,000 affordable housing units.
We are moving forward with programs to ensure that Quebec receives support, like everywhere else in the country.
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- Apr/15/24 2:39:57 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, one, two, three, four, five, six affordable housing units. That is what the Conservative leader built when he was housing minister. Compare that to the 8,000 housing units that we are building with the partnership and leadership of the Government of Quebec and the municipalities.
In my colleague's riding of Mégantic—L'Érable, just one project in Thetford Mines will result in the construction of 24 affordable housing units. That is four times more units than his Conservative leader, his insulting leader, built during his entire term as housing minister.
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- Apr/15/24 2:41:56 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal spoke at the Quebec National Assembly on Thursday. A worthy representative of the land of the Enlightenment, he delivered a spirited defence of state secularism, which both the French and Quebeckers hold in high esteem.
France, like Quebec, prohibits government employees in positions of authority from wearing religious symbols. France's legislation goes even further than Quebec's Bill 21, which this Prime Minister wants to take to the Supreme Court on the pretext that it is discriminatory.
Did the Prime Minister tell France that he finds it discriminatory, or does he reserve his contempt for Quebeckers?
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- Apr/15/24 2:42:38 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Canada is a secular country. Quebec is a secular province. No one disputes that.
The Bloc Québécois is trying to stir the pot, to pit one government against another, saying that since we are proud Quebeckers, we should separate because we are different from others.
I say no. I can be a proud Quebecker and a proud Canadian at the same time. There is no need to choose between the two. The Bloc Québécois members only talk about referendums. While they are talking about referendums, we are talking about building a fairer, more open, more inclusive society. That is what a strong Quebec in a united Canada looks like.
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Mr. Speaker, after eight years, this Liberal-Bloc Prime Minister is not worth the cost of the carbon tax.
Quebec farmers are in revolt against the Prime Minister because they are facing mountains of paperwork, a blatant lack of financial support and the carbon tax, which is crushing the agricultural industry across Canada.
Axing this tax on farmers is the fastest way to make food more affordable and to keep our farmers in business. However, the Bloc Québécois wants to drastically increase the carbon tax.
Will the Prime Minister commit to passing Bill C-234 in its original, unamended form in tomorrow's budget?
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- Apr/15/24 2:57:18 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, first of all, if the Conservatives had even the slightest bit of intellectual integrity, then they would admit to Canadians that 97% of the fuels used on farms in backstop provinces are not taxed by the federal government.
Second, do members know what I have been doing over the past few weeks? I have been meeting with farmers from Quebec, Nova Scotia and Alberta and with cattle and grain farmers. They are not talking to me about the carbon tax. They are talking to me about how the impacts of climate change are costing the agricultural industry hundreds of millions of dollars across the country.
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- Apr/15/24 2:59:05 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I think it is a shame that my colleagues from Quebec still do not understand that the price on pollution does not apply the same way in Quebec. Quebec has had a carbon exchange since 2013, so it is not affected.
At the federal level, our approach is to offer incentives to improve practices, to develop and acquire more energy-efficient equipment.
We are there to support the farmers.
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- Apr/15/24 3:00:09 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we are indeed in the process of expediting the permits that will be granted to asylum seekers.
I have a question for the member for Lac-Saint-Jean. Does he agree with his party leader, in other words, the leader of the Parti Québécois, who wants to freeze immigration? Does he realize what that means in rural ridings like Lac-Saint-Jean? It means no more fishing, no more Quebec agriculture, nothing, not even wind turbines.
It takes responsible people in power. We need to have a responsible discussion about reducing the number of immigrants temporarily, but let us do it responsibly.
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- Apr/15/24 3:00:45 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I just told him to stick to his jurisdictions. He really does not get it.
He must ensure that work permits are granted. The federal government is facing a humanitarian crisis. It must do its duty. That also means distributing the intake of people who come to Canada among the provinces. It is not right that there are homeless asylum seekers in Quebec and Ontario, that these people cannot even eat at food banks as a last resort, when other provinces are doing absolutely nothing.
Will the government finally have the compassion to distribute the intake of asylum seekers among the provinces that are still able to provide services?
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- Apr/15/24 3:01:25 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we should not even try to understand. One minute he wants interference, the next he does not.
The member did not answer my question. I wonder if he stands with his party leader, the Bloc Québécois leader, who is irresponsibly calling for a freeze on temporary immigration to Quebec. That is totally irresponsible.
They should talk to the farmers and those who work in the fisheries in their own rural ridings. They will see what is really going on. They will hear what people really think, and they do not want a freeze on immigration to Quebec.
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- Apr/15/24 3:05:22 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, after eight years under this Liberal government, access to home ownership has become extremely difficult. With mortgage rates rising by 52% to 95.2% in some regions of Quebec, it has become almost impossible for young people to take out a mortgage.
This Prime Minister is far too costly and is definitely not worth the cost of mortgage payments.
Will the Prime Minister listen to the millions of Canadians who are struggling and rein in his inflationary policies once and for all?
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- Apr/15/24 3:08:32 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, taking care of Canadians is exactly what we need to do, on this side of the House, certainly, through proper management of procurement exercises with the types of things and measures that we have announced in the last few weeks and months but also looking after the needs of Canadians with important investments in housing that we have made. We may be making even more with announcements tomorrow: 8,000 affordable homes, just in the province of Quebec, and hundreds of thousands across Canada.
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