SoVote

Context: House Hansard - 301 - Apr/17/24

Apr/17/24 2:16:14 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, it was deeply disheartening earlier this month to witness the Premier of Ontario resorting to personal attacks instead of addressing the pressing need for a Whitby hospital. My constituents have shared distressing tales of loved ones enduring agonizing waits for essential care. These stories paint a dark picture of the dire state of our health care system in Durham Region, and the promise of funding a Whitby hospital was made. However, we have been waiting well over two years for a planning grant to move forward. The failure of the province to allocate necessary resources for this vital health care project comes on the heels of our government investing over $80 billion in Ontario's health care system. The need for a fully equipped hospital in Whitby is not going away; in fact, it is getting more pressing and urgent every day. I will always advocate for families in my riding so our loved ones can get the health care they deserve.

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Context: House Hansard - 301 - Apr/17/24

Mr. Blake Desjarlais (Edmonton Griesbach, NDP)

Apr/17/24 4:55:38 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I think Canadians across the country and members of Parliament are disappointed, not just in the dramatic failure of the procurement system in our country to address the real issues of value for money, but in that this sheds light on what has been a terrible instance of reporting missing information and lost invoicing. We do not even know the total amount to date. This is a serious and grave matter facing our country, one that stems back decades now. We heard testimony at the public accounts committee, of which I am a member, several times. Other contractors spoke to us about the tremendous vulnerability that exists in Canada's procurement system and also exists in the lack of investment in our public sector. According to The Globe and Mail, for instance, since 2017, GC Strategies has received $46 million in federal funding. The flow of tax dollars to GC Strategies has increased steadily each year, growing from $32.6 million in the 2016-17 fiscal year to $80.3 million in the 2021-22 fiscal year. According to the Auditor General, GC Strategies' ArriveCAN app cost Canadians almost $60 million. The total is still undetermined due to the lack of documentation and of a paper trail, a serious and grave error in and of itself. On top of that, we have noticed that this vulnerability of our public service and procurement process has created a system in which insiders are able to profit in extreme amounts because of a system that does not have the proper accountability and does not have the proper follow through, albeit, in this particular instance, that there is a lack of proper procurement. Canadians are rightly disappointed. Not only that, but they are angry at the very real fact that they wake up every single day, go to work, pay their taxes and do everything right, and then are told that the tax dollars they have worked so hard for have not gone to close in the gaps in social or economic outcomes, or for material benefits for Canadians, but have been going towards a dramatic outsourcing of jobs that Canadians in our public service could do. I recognize that not all IT services, of course, can be dealt with here at the House of Commons or in our public service, but a great deal of them could. When did Mr. Firth first start doing contracts and business with the Government of Canada?

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Context: House Hansard - 301 - Apr/17/24

Ms. Iqra Khalid (Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of National Revenue, Lib.)

Apr/17/24 7:31:12 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for his brilliant advocacy and for his question on behalf of persons with disabilities. The member knows, as does everyone in this place, that protecting and helping the most vulnerable in our society is a fundamental Canadian principle, and it is a fundamental principle of our government. When it comes to people with disabilities, we have invested more money in the last eight years than ever before. I take the point: Is it enough? Absolutely not. Do we need to do more? Absolutely we do, but we have made progress. In comparison, the previous Conservative government promised and failed to deliver a national disability act. Our Liberal government made the Accessible Canada Act a reality, but there is still a lot more to do. That said, we are moving as quickly as possible on the Canada disability benefit. Of course, we understand that the disability community is anxious to see extra dollars in their bank accounts, but we must get it right to make the delivery of the benefit as smooth, as targeted and as effective as possible. Budget 2024 proposes funding of $6.1 billion over six years, beginning in this fiscal year, 2024-25, and $1.4 billion per year ongoing, for the first-ever federal Canada disability benefit. This represents an important next step in the journey for this. I cannot talk about the journey of the Canada disability benefit without talking about the years of relentless advocacy from the community. I want to thank all of those who have been relentless in their advocacy as they championed the needs and priorities of persons with disabilities. I encourage them to continue to engage with our government as we move forward in the next chapter. The lived experiences of persons with disabilities has been a key part of the consultation process. In the true spirit of “nothing without us”, we engaged with persons with disabilities, stakeholders and all Canadians on key issues. In the coming months, once we have published the draft regulations in part I of the Canada Gazette, Canadians will again be invited to provide feedback. As the hon. member knows, the act requires that regulations be in place by June 2025, with money flowing into bank accounts by July 2025. Let me assure all members in the House and all Canadians that we are on track to meet this timeline. This is the first federal government step-up in support of persons with disabilities by creating a new and specific benefit just for them. The budget 2024 announcement unlocks the ability to proceed with the extensive and intense behind-the-scenes work needed to deliver the CDB. We need the time not just to be focused on the developing regulations, but to build the internal infrastructure and support systems necessary to deliver the program and to allow the provinces and territories to adjust their policies to ensure that there are no unintended clawbacks. This is a crucial time as we carefully balance the need to strengthen our social security net while making sure government spending is able to help with the everyday costs of living. We are committed to creating a better, fairer country for generations to come, but, as I said, there is more work to do. It is the next stop in the journey of building a barrier-free Canada. I thank the member for Kitchener Centre for his ongoing excellent advocacy on this.

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