44th Parl. 1st Sess.
April 18, 2024 10:00AM
Madam Speaker, the member certainly could consider supporting the government's online harms bill, which I think is a major piece of legislation that certainly will help to protect minors and children when they are interacting online.
I appreciate this opportunity to speak about the ongoing threat of extortion in Canada. The Government of Canada is deeply concerned about Canadians who are victimized by acts of extortion and related violence. The Government of Canada is aware of growing concerns related to extortion across the country and, indeed, the government has heard directly from the mayors of Surrey, British Columbia; Edmonton, Alberta; and Brampton, Ontario, about how this is impacting their communities.
The recent increase in the number and severity of extortion attempts, particularly targeting members of Canada's South Asian community are alarming. The Government of Canada and the RCMP encourage anyone experiencing or witnessing extortion to report it to their local police of jurisdiction and discourage anyone from complying with demands for money.
Rest assured, the Government of Canada is committed to protecting the safety of Canadians and Canadian interests against these threats. We are taking concrete action to protect all affected communities across Canada.
As Canada's national police force, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police is mandated to prevent, detect and investigate serious organized crime, in order to protect Canadians and Canadian interests. In doing so, the RCMP works closely with domestic and international law enforcement partners to share information and target shared threats. The RCMP and its law enforcement partners across the country have observed an increase in the number of extortion crimes taking place and are working collaboratively to investigate these incidents.
While the RCMP cannot comment on specific investigations, I can confirm that significant coordination is under way across the country to address similar types of extortion attempts directed at the South Asian communities in British Columbia, Alberta and Ontario. While many investigations remain ongoing, a number of arrests have been made, and information sharing across agencies, I would say, is imperative, as coordinated efforts are under way to identify cases that may be related to one another.
To this end, the RCMP is actively sharing information with local law enforcement to support their ongoing efforts.
Rest assured, law enforcement agencies across the country are utilizing the required tools and resources to combat these serious incidents in order to keep Canadians safe.
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- Apr/18/24 6:38:17 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, as I have said, the Government of Canada is committed to taking a collaborative approach to address the ongoing threat of extortion in Canada.
Nationwide collaboration is under way to address similar types of extortion attempts directed at South Asian communities and others across the country. Investigators have access to the resources, tools and supports necessary to advance these investigations and hold those responsible accountable. We know that the Conservatives have voted against $80 million in support of the work of the RCMP, which is truly tragic when one considers what the member is asking for, which is greater enforcement of the law.
Clearly the RCMP now have the resources as a result of our government's work, and the collaborative efforts they are making are having a positive impact.
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- Apr/18/24 6:43:07 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I thank the member opposite for the very entertaining diatribe she went on. The member opposite claims that she is not being partisan, but every part of her comments today seemed like a partisan attack. I know she specializes in conspiracy theories on her nightly news show, but I will endeavour to answer her question. Before I do, I will just clarify something on the defence spending. Obviously the member has not taken the time to read the document yet, but budget 2024 includes considerable increases to defence spending.
I appreciate the opportunity to speak about the work our government is doing to address affordability issues in Canada, while continuing to manage our country's finances responsibly. First of all, I would like to remind my hon. colleague that Canada has the lowest deficit and net debt-to-GDP ratios in the G7, which is recognized in our AAA credit rating. Canadians know how important it is to manage a budget responsibly in the face of rising costs, and that is exactly what we are doing. As noted by the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance when she tabled the budget earlier this week, we are maintaining our fiscal anchor. Our federal debt-to-GDP ratio will continue to decline over the medium term.
In budget 2024, our government is moving forward with measures that foster the kind of economic growth that will enable every generation of Canadians to reach their full potential. For example, budget 2024 includes many ambitious measures to address the housing crisis. We want to ensure that people, especially young people, are better able to pay their rent or mortgage. To do this, we are investing in building more rental apartments and more affordable housing from coast to coast to coast. We are topping up the housing accelerator fund and making it easier for Canadian homeowners to add a basement suite or a laneway house so middle-class Canadians can be part of the housing solution too.
For first-time home buyers, we will be extending the maximum amortization period of a mortgage to 30 years on new builds, including condos. We are also making changes to ensure that renters who pay on time can have the rent payment count toward their credit history when it comes time to get a mortgage. This means lower monthly payments and greater opportunity for young people to buy their first home.
We are also moving forward with measures to make life in Canada cost less. Inflation is now way down, and in fact, it now has been back within the Bank of Canada's target range for three months in a row. We said we would continue to invest in Canadians, reasonably manage our finances and control inflation, and that is exactly what we are doing.
We understand that many Canadians, especially younger people, need support. That is why we are making transformational enhancements to Canada's social safety net. That social safety net is being increased through $10-a-day child care, the Canadian dental care plan, a national drug insurance plan and, now, a national school food program, which I am very proud to see in the federal budget.
These are just a few of the measures we are putting forward to help Canadians.
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- Apr/18/24 6:47:46 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, our government has a plan to drive the kind of economic growth that will ensure every generation of Canadians can reach their full potential. It is a plan to ensure that everyone gets a fair chance to build a good, middle-class life in Canada.
The government believes in investing in Canadians and in creating economic growth, not in cuts and austerity as the Conservatives do. We are building a modern economy with jobs for the future and are investing today so the generations of tomorrow can have a fair shot at success.
Canadians can count on our government to make life more affordable, while continuing to manage our public finances responsibly, and that is what we are proposing in budget 2024. It is about fairness for every generation and an economy that works for all Canadians.
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- Apr/18/24 6:51:58 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, that is quite rich of the NDP member. Even though I align with her in terms of our commitment on fighting climate change and doing what is best for our economy and environment, I think it is a bit rich for her to say that we are misleading Canadians when the NDP is flip-flopping on the most effective market-based mechanism for reducing carbon emissions, which is carbon pricing. Their leader seems to have recently supported the Conservatives and others around the country who are making that an issue and trying to back off from carbon pricing.
At the committee that I have been on in the past, the NDP members have supported giving a free pass to farmers to burn fossil fuels on farms, so it is a bit rich for the member opposite to—
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- Apr/18/24 6:53:09 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, the government is not breaking any promises. On the contrary, Canada is playing a strong leadership role in phasing out thermal coal, both domestically and internationally.
The science is very clear about coal; it is one of the largest contributors to climate change. We know that we need to go further and make coal history for good if we want to give the world a fighting chance to hold global warming to 1.5°C.
I am proud that Canada was among the first movers on this issue. At COP26 in 2021, Canada was the first country in the world to commit to banning the export of thermal coal by no later than 2030, and we will make that happen.
Right now, the government is considering a range of possible options to implement the ban. There are several factors to take into consideration, from socio-economic impacts to environmental and trade impacts, and we must make sure the ban aligns with other federal, provincial and territorial policies. However, alas, we will get there. Moving away from exporting thermal coal is a must, and it makes good economic sense over the long term, too, as more affordable, clean energy options are becoming available in many countries around the world.
Meanwhile, we are already seeing significant progress in the retirement of coal in Canada. Our government has already put in place regulations to accelerate the phase-out of coal-fired electricity in Canada by 2030, and we are on track to meet our goal, with the four remaining coal-burning provinces all making excellent progress in their transition to cleaner electricity.
We are also providing economic support of $185 million for coal workers and their communities. We have put a price on carbon pollution. We have committed to greater support for clean technology. We have committed to emissions reduction across the economy from all traditional sectors, and we are developing a plan to phase-out public financing for the fossil fuel sector by fall 2024, which is this year.
Supporting the switch to clean energy is a priority for this government. It is something that I have spent my career and my life advocating for, and I am very happy to see us making strides in that direction. We want to make sure the coal phase-out translates into new jobs and economic opportunities for Canadian families as we respond to the ever-urgent climate crisis.
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- Apr/18/24 6:56:56 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, obviously the member and I will respectfully have to disagree.
However, I have yet to speak about Canada's leadership in driving the coal phase-out around the world, which is crucial.
Since 2017, Canada has rallied almost one-third of the world's governments to take action through its co-leadership of the Powering Past Coal Alliance with the United Kingdom, and the world has made progress. Over 75% of the coal power capacity in member countries of the OECD has been retired or is scheduled to close by 2030, which is real progress. More than seven out of 10 proposed new coal projects have been cancelled globally.
However, more needs to be done; there is no doubt. That includes supporting developing countries to transition from coal to clean power. To that end, Canada has invested $1 billion in the climate investment fund's accelerated coal transition program. At COP28, Canada called on countries to recognize the need to accelerate a coal phase-out and not just a phase-down, and to scale up support for clean energy. Our future depends on it.
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