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Context: House Hansard - 157 - Feb/9/23

Nov/8/23 3:44:46 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Conservatives agree to apply the vote, with Conservatives voting nay.

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Hon. Kerry-Lynne Findlay (South Surrey—White Rock, CPC)

Feb/9/23 2:54:01 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we supported businesses staying open. We did not support large dividends for their large corporate friends. The minister refuses to do her job, after eight years in her portfolio and 10,000 more tax collectors. It is her duty to go after fraud of any taxpayer money. She protects wealthy shareholders and executives, her government drives up interest rates and inflation, and life becomes unaffordable for working Canadians. Even the Parliamentary Budget Officer is sounding the alarm on this incompetence. Why does it feel like everything is broken? Because the Prime Minister will not do his job, so will he get out of the way and let Conservatives—

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Context: House Hansard - 157 - Feb/9/23

Hon. Kerry-Lynne Findlay (South Surrey—White Rock, CPC)

Feb/9/23 2:52:37 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, after eight years of the Liberal Prime Minister, we have an economy that punishes the middle class and those struggling to stay in it, but Liberal friends are doing great. Thirty-seven corporations took the Liberal wage subsidy and then spent $173 billion on dividends, share buybacks and takeovers. The Liberals are refusing to make them pay back the money, so Canadian workers foot the bill when they can barely afford mortgages, rent and groceries. When will the Liberals force their corporate friends to pay back that money?

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Context: House Hansard - 143 - Dec/7/22

Hon. Kerry-Lynne Findlay (South Surrey—White Rock, CPC)

Dec/7/22 2:38:06 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we do not get to pick and choose out of the report. The Auditor General found waste in the billions, and the minister then said that she changed her numbers under pressure from the opposition. Yes, she called the Auditor General's integrity into question. It is shameful. Meals on Wheels in my community had to close because of high food costs and rising gas prices. Volunteers cannot afford to deliver meals. The $32 billion in government waste is an insult to those who have been stretching dimes into dollars. Why should the Auditor General, seniors, workers and the vulnerable pay the price for Liberal waste?

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Context: House Hansard - 143 - Dec/7/22

Hon. Kerry-Lynne Findlay (South Surrey—White Rock, CPC)

Dec/7/22 2:36:44 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, yesterday the Auditor General tabled a damning report, finding $32 billion of waste. The Liberals borrowed and printed cash so they could give CERB cheques to prisoners, non-residents and paid civil servants. The minister tried to cover up her incompetence by then bludgeoning the Auditor General on her integrity. The Conservatives believe in hope. With the huge increase today in interest rate hikes, when will the Prime Minister stop hurting Canadians and attacking those who tell the truth about the waste?

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Context: House Hansard - 132 - Nov/22/22

Context: House Hansard - 91 - Jun/17/22

Nov/22/22 5:44:02 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-20

Madam Speaker, I have faith in your pronouncements, not in the heckling from the other side. I will be unequivocal. Our justice system is broken and the blame rests with the Prime Minister. He changed the system to cater to the sensibilities of left-wing activists who want to defund the police, rather than support communities who want safe streets for their children and grandchildren. The new justice system puts criminals first and the victims last. It took the justice minister almost a year to appoint a new victims ombudsperson. It puts the wants of one offender ahead of the needs of a whole community. It frees the felon while tying the hands of law enforcement. Despite these challenges, the RCMP in White Rock and Surrey do yeoman's work to serve and protect the residents of my riding, as do the CBSA agents who work at the Peace Arch and Pacific Highway border crossings, which includes dealing with migrants illegally crossing into Canada daily, not at points of entry. They are the first line of defence for my community against human trafficking and the illegal importation of guns and drugs. The Liberals threw CBSA a curve ball last year when they implemented the costly and ineffective ArriveCAN app. Their $54-million boondoggle frustrated travelling seniors, hampered our tourism sector and put border agents in the untenable position of enforcing the mandatory use of the app. As always, CBSA agents conducted themselves with professionalism. With that said, the public should always have a right to question the decisions and actions of any law enforcement agency, including the RCMP and CBSA. We lean into and support these agencies, but also believe in transparency and accountability. That is why Conservatives will support Bill C-20. This legislation requires the RCMP and CBSA to share information related to public complaints with a new body, the public complaints and review commission. The commission would make recommendations for potential disciplinary action to the relevant law enforcement agency with legislated timelines to respond. The bill would require both the RCMP and CBSA to report on actions taken in response to the commission's recommendations. The legislation would also require the commission to report disaggregated race-based data to Parliament. While I will vote for the bill, I am taking this opportunity to raise a word of caution. We cannot allow our public safety institutions to erode any further. Come the next election, whenever that may be, voters in the Lower Mainland and on Vancouver Island can count on Conservatives to clean up the mess made of our cities and of our borders. We will restore safe streets and protect the rights of victims. I have been talking about Bill C-20 throughout.

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Hon. Kerry-Lynne Findlay (South Surrey—White Rock, CPC)

Jun/17/22 11:55:34 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, after stridently defending it, the government has suspended the vaccine requirements to travel domestically or outbound internationally. Provinces have acted to lift COVID-related mandates, citing high vaccine rates, reduced hospitalizations and lower COVID case counts. Even Liberal caucus members want all federal pandemic restrictions lifted. The Prime Minister's Office is acting alone, and using these mandates as political weapon of choice. When will the Prime Minister put an end to divisive mandates that do not follow the science?

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May/19/22 12:57:50 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, there have been many suggestions made by people with knowledge. Rachel Bertone from the Greater Toronto Airports Authority, for instance, emphasized that international arriving passengers are being delayed by public health requirements. Others are saying that they need more hiring; they need to get more staff, and they need to pay attention to this. It is not only one thing. It is many things that need to come together in a prudent and rational approach to travel and to the recovery of our tourism economy.

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May/19/22 12:56:20 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I am a big believer in paying people for the work they do, and border security and security at our airports are very important jobs. However, the fact is that the staffing shortages, and I think in my speech I alluded to their being at least 1,000 lower than they were, are just not acceptable. I am not intimately knowledgeable about the union issues with CATSA right now, but I would say this: If there are union issues, then it needs to deal with them and it needs to care about the experiences of the travelling Canadian public, whether it is within our own country or going to another country. People want to get back to seeing relatives; they want to get back to being able to travel, and they do not understand why there are more restrictions in an airport and on an airplane than anywhere else where they spend their time.

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May/19/22 12:54:49 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I have to applaud my friend for bringing the issue of prayer into airports. If I understand the question correctly, he is asking if this is based in policy, and we are saying it is absolutely based in policy. Every provincial health authority in every province has lifted vaccine passports and mask mandates. We see our own Prime Minister travelling abroad in countries with low vaccination rates and he is unmasked, with groups of people, anywhere from bars to restaurants to formal meetings. We walk out of this place, out of Parliament, take our mask off, and we can go to any restaurant and to any place we want to shop without a mask. It is simply unreasonable, and the Liberals refuse to tell us what the science is that they claim they are relying on.

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May/19/22 12:53:27 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, it is hard for me to really understand that question, to be honest. I do not believe I said anything like that in my speech. We are not suggesting at all that security measures be lost. What we are saying is that they should be reasonable, logical, rational and based in science. If, as the Liberal government says, it has science to back up these ongoing restrictions that other countries are abandoning, then it should tell us what it is. It should tell us who it is listening to. It refuses to answer those questions.

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Hon. Kerry-Lynne Findlay (South Surrey—White Rock, CPC)

May/19/22 12:44:04 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, almost every week, I have the privilege of travelling across this great country, from Vancouver to Ottawa and back. With a three-hour time zone difference, it is basically a day in travel each way. It can be a tiring part of a cross-country commute job, as it would be for any Canadian, but now it is gruelling. I am witnessing first-hand the Liberal government's outdated COVID-19 protocols at airports. They are causing extreme delays, lineups, bottlenecks and missed connections. Travellers are frustrated and unhappy. They can watch a hockey game with thousands in an arena without a mask, but must wear that mask on a flight in between Canadian destinations, and in and out of Canada, with sometimes well over 150 other people. It is not rational or even logical. The European Union and the United States have both dropped their mask mandates for passengers on flights and in airports. Meanwhile, travellers arriving in Canada are still being subjected to random COVID-19 testing and must answer personal, private health questions on the ArriveCAN app. Why is Canada's science different from the science followed by many of our international allies? These unnecessary protocols are causing severe delays at Canadian airports. Customs has become so backed up that there is not enough physical space to hold the lineups, leaving passengers stuck on planes for over 75 minutes. I recently had the experience, on my Washington trip with the Minister of National Defence, of having to deal with the ArriveCAN app. Imagine seniors like me dealing with the issues on this app when trying to come home. Every airport and airline is complaining that it is severely understaffed in all aspects. At YVR on Sunday, there is now a sign at the screening entrance stating, “Limited capacity due to staff shortages”. Bags are not making the transfers between flights if a person has a layover in Toronto, despite long layovers. Security lines are ridiculously long. They do not have enough staff to open all the scanner lines, despite having the traveller traffic to warrant that level of operation. Meanwhile, airlines are ramping up their schedules very slowly, because they simply do not have the staff to service that many flights. I was told by one airport employee that Toronto's Pearson alone is 600 staff short. This means that if a person checks a bag and it gets on the flight, but the person does not make it because they are stuck in security, they may not see that bag for a long time. It may be days. Then, when the person misses that flight because security lines are so long, they cannot get another flight for several hours or they get one with a long, multi-hour layover. Vancouver, like most international airports, has standard and express security lines, but even the express line was taking over one and a half hours last weekend, with people lined up way down to the international check-in areas. That means, for domestic flights, which usually recommend being at the airport 90 minutes in advance, we now need to allow for arriving two hours or more in advance to get our bags checked and through security on time. Staff at the airports are so overworked and confused, with scarce resources and so many flights, that they are sometimes giving travellers false information about flights being held for them when they are not. Not only do we have the frustration of waiting, but then we have the surprise of no flight at the end of the security check-in process. I cannot even imagine travelling with young kids and dealing with these major hurdles. At YVR on the weekend, I saw a very pregnant woman with three kids racing through the airport, because the screening had taken so long, and no one was helping her. It will come as no surprise to anyone in this place that the Canadian Air Transport Security Authority, or CATSA, is a federal Crown corporation responsible for all passenger security screening, and it is experiencing ongoing staffing shortages. CATSA said that it has been actively supporting its contractors to recruit and develop new staff. Screening resources are scheduled according to airline traffic. Prior to the pandemic, resources could be utilized across the board between domestic and international checkpoints due to staggered passenger peaks, but as air travel has recovered we are observing simultaneous peaks with passengers flooding more than one security checkpoint at a time. Because of uncertainty about baggage handling, passengers are also travelling with more carry-on bags, resulting in additional time required to process them at screening and creating storage issues on board. A CBC News article stated: Mike McNaney, chief external affairs officer at the Vancouver International Airport, said an ongoing staffing shortage at the Canadian Air Transport Security Authority (CATSA) is contributing to the long lines and lengthy delays in processing passengers through security at the airport. He went on to say these were “delays that we have not seen here before and were worse than anything that we have previously experienced throughout the pandemic.” Anyone travelling even domestically knows this to be true. The article continued: He said the airport has been welcoming about 45,000 passengers per day and they expect that number to increase with the busy upcoming summer travel season. He added there are “serious concerns about the summer schedule, when the demand will increase”, and whether CATSA even has a management plan, short and long-term, to address the challenges. The aviation and tourism industry in Canada has been hit hard. We need to be supporting economic recovery in Canada instead of needlessly restricting travel. Airports are facing major staffing issues that the government is refusing to remedy. CATSA itself said that at the beginning of the pandemic it employed 7,400 screening agents. Today, there are only 6,500, despite travel increasing. Our global reputation as a top travel location is at risk. Recently, at the Standing Committee on Transport, Infrastructure and Communities, Mr. Robin Guy, who is a senior director with the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, testified that the Canadian aviation and tourism industries were particularly hard hit by the COVID-19 pandemic. We know this. He said: The myriad of public measures taken to dramatically stem the transmission of the virus has resulted in a decline in travel by...95% of 2019 levels. The protracted pandemic will result in Canada's airports losing more than $4.6 billion in revenue in 2020-21, and adding $3 billion in debt to stay open and maintain safe and secure operations.... Prior to the pandemic, he said, Canada's airports contributed to major economic development. In 2016, those airports directly contributed $48 billion in economic output, $19 billion to GDP, almost 200,000 jobs and $13 billion in wages. The government must work with industry to address the challenges the sector faces as it rebuilds itself post pandemic. First, the government must review all regulations introduced during the pandemic. With high vaccination rates and an easing of most public health measures, these pandemic regulations are now outdated and no longer required. There are massive delays in processing passports and NEXUS that are being felt across the transportation system. Should a Canadian citizen renewing a passport really have to arrive in the middle of the night to wait and then still be told they did not make the top 10 list for processing? Second, we need to invest in our airports' infrastructure, technology and innovation. Low-traffic volumes over the past two years have meant airports delayed much-needed capital projects. We must recognize that air travel delivers a spectacular double-line benefit to the economy. Air travel is key to the travel and tourism industry, and that part of our national economy. Industry experts from a large variety of disciplines are calling on the government to abandon the travel restriction that causes numerous negative repercussions on our economy and international reputation. The Liberal government needs to ensure that passengers have a seamless experience from couch to cabin and check-in to arrival at Canada's airports. It is time for us to get with the times instead of selective and secretive Liberal science that is hampering Canadians' lives and their ability to see loved ones and their families.

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Hon. Kerry-Lynne Findlay (South Surrey—White Rock, CPC)

Feb/17/22 2:26:09 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, this morning the Prime Minister contradicted two of his ministers who had stated that the application of the Emergencies Act would be geographically limited. The PM said it would apply to all of Canada. All the border crossings in B.C., Alberta, Manitoba and Ontario have been cleared. The majority of premiers are clearly saying that Liberal government overreach is interfering in their jurisdictions. When will the Prime Minister revoke this reckless decision and begin rebuilding the trust of Canadians?

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Hon. Kerry-Lynne Findlay (South Surrey—White Rock, CPC)

Feb/17/22 2:24:48 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister and the emergency preparedness minister have repeatedly stated that foreign extremist financing is behind Canadian protests. At public safety committee last week, deputy director of intelligence for FINTRAC, Barry MacKillop, stated that there is no evidence to back up these claims. In fact, he stated that they “have not seen a spike in suspicious transaction...related to [the protests].” Why is the Prime Minister offside with Canada's national security experts?

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Feb/17/22 1:59:11 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for the question. It would be really refreshing to actually have real evidence connecting these dots. The Minister of Emergency Preparedness, at a press conference in the last couple of days, asserted that what happened at Coutts, the arrests at Coutts, were directly related to the leadership here in Ottawa, and under questioning by the media, backed down, backed down further, backed down further again, and basically said, “Well, I'm just sort of figuring that out myself.” That is not real evidence, that is not a real connection and that is not a national security threat.

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Feb/17/22 1:57:32 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, with all due respect, the police and law enforcement authorities in this country deal with threats and deal with violence every single day. They deal with it effectively, they deal with it forcefully, and they deal with it definitively. Our Crown prosecutors make sure that those people come to justice. The expression that is coming to my mind is, “Oh ye of little faith”. Why do you have such little faith in the people who are tasked with keeping us safe? We do not need these extraordinary measures.

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Feb/17/22 1:55:54 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I thank my friend opposite. I also have great respect for his intellect and abilities. Yes, I apologize to all Canadians: We are both lawyers. That said, we are now members of Parliament as well. With great respect, I do not think it should have ever come to this. I believe the Prime Minister and the government should have engaged in respectful dialogue, should have at least signalled an understanding that we can have differences of opinion in a free country and that those differences are being listened to. If the government had acted on our opposition motion to table a plan of action, all of this would have calmed down immeasurably.

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Hon. Kerry-Lynne Findlay (South Surrey—White Rock, CPC)

Feb/17/22 1:44:21 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, it is a sombre time to be speaking in this House. It is a seminal time in Canadian history, in my view. It is apparent to me that we seem to be living in two Canadas. There is the Canada of fear and division promoted by the current Prime Minister and the leader of the NDP, confirmed by their caucuses, but there is another Canada out there, a united and proud nation that has sacrificed and done without and suffered economically, physically and in their mental health condition. This is a Canada that is a bit worn out, plainly speaking, but still firmly patriotic and ready to take on whatever the future brings. These Canadians do not share the Prime Minister's post-national narrative. They embrace the essence of Canada that they see themselves a part of, as the true north strong and free. In our national anthem, we call out to God and we pray that he keep our land glorious and free. The truth is that Canada can only be glorious if it is free, meaning its people are free—free from tyranny, free from government abusing its awesome powers, with the government mindful of the responsibility and trust given to it in a representative democracy. Because the Prime Minister wants to dwell in the extreme, in the fringe and false narratives of what is happening during peaceful protests, I am choosing to address those other Canadians. I remember the historical term “the two solitudes” in reference to impasses between anglophone and francophone people in Canada. Its meaning was meant to refer to a perceived lack of communication and, moreover, a lack of will to communicate. Here today we see history repeating itself with a lack of communication, but, more significantly, a lack of will to communicate between the present federal government and anglophone and francophone citizens alike. The Emergencies Act is extraordinary legislation. “Extraordinary” means remarkable, exceptional, unusual and uncommon. The measures in this act are to be entered into reservedly, advisedly and with extreme caution. Through all the trials and tribulations of a newly created and burgeoning nation trying to unite coast to coast to coast, through other public health emergencies and through other civil unrest, the federal government saw fit to invoke the Emergencies Act and its precursor, the War Measures Act, only four times in our history. These extraordinary measures were used in World War I, in World War II, by a previous prime minister in the 1970s and by the current Prime Minister. It was not invoked during the fears and protests around the Spanish flu. It was not invoked during the workers' strikes in the 1930s; during the crises in Oka, Ipperwash or Caledonia; during the aftermath of 9/11; during crippling national strikes affecting our supply chains or during the rail blockades or pipeline protests that negatively affected the Canadian economy. The list is long. The point is that when other methods and authorities exist to deal with serious disagreement, governments should use those methods and authorities. Government should not subjugate free people to abusive, wide-ranging, freedom-altering overreach. A Liberal member earlier in this debate asked the Leader of the Opposition how she would feel if this happened in her neighbourhood, in her riding. Well, it did happen in my neighbourhood and in my riding. It happened at one of the border crossings in South Surrey—White Rock. I received many reports on the ground about the activities there. I did get three complaints through social media calling the people involved the same outrageous, inflammatory names that the Liberal Party and the Prime Minister have been using. There were no complaints to my office. On the other side, I have had overwhelming outpourings of support from my constituents because the supporting protests were meaningful to those in attendance, and even joyful in the hope for change. What kind of change? It was not necessarily a change in government, although that might happen in the next federal election, but most definitely a change in the federal government's approach. In support of the right to protest the government's policies, actions and inactions, on two previous weekends vehicle after vehicle drove in a rolling loop around those border crossings and highways in South Surrey, with not hundreds but thousands of Canadians cheering them on from the sides of the roads and on highway overpasses. Those involved were vocal but peaceful, holding Canadian flags high, singing the national anthem, saying prayers and greeting others cheerfully, including the police. The result is that the border has been cleared, goods are flowing and police officers, using tools already at their disposal, were able to both show respect for the protesters and clear any impasses. Why is the Emergencies Act needed now in my riding? It is not. The only distress being expressed right now from my riding is that the Prime Minister and his cabinet, having inflamed the situation, are showing disdain, are not even attempting to engage in dialogue and feel the only tool in their tool box is to take more power unto themselves. I have heard from many civil enforcement officers, civil liberties scholars and lawyers on this subject. Collectively, they want me to remind the House that a public order event is not necessarily an emergency. We are down to a protest in a few blocks of downtown Ottawa. That is all. With some proper policing, the situation in Ottawa can be brought to a conclusion, as it has been elsewhere. Unlike some of the other events, in downtown Ottawa, our nation's capital, we are not at a U.S. border, so the protest does not affect imports and exports. I am not sure who the leader of the NDP was referring to when he said, “Don't let your anger turn into hatred.” The Prime Minister has literally turned his back on a large segment of Canadian citizens, showing them nothing but derision and disdain, which only escalates and never de-escalates tension and disagreement. I had occasion, early in my career, to attend advanced negotiation classes at Harvard Law School under the supervision of Professor Roger Fisher, the author of the acclaimed book Getting to Yes. There are necessary steps that should be taken in any conflict resolution, such as some form of engagement, de-escalation, respectful dialogue and looking to best alternatives to resolve the conflict. The only one the PM has employed has been described as the “nuclear option”. I agree that we should never have arrived at this moment of looking like a failed nation state. We are looking this way due to weak and ineffective leadership. It is that simple. Why invoke this act now when it was not invoked all those times before? The federal government should be talking to and engaging with citizens to resolve this conflict by introducing a plan to get back to normal. Instead, we have seen the federal government demonize and insult our fellow Canadians. The Prime Minister must remember that they are all Canadians out there on Wellington Street, and a Canadian is a Canadian is a Canadian. I am pretty sure I heard that somewhere before. Instead of creating a plan, engaging in dialogue and looking for a peaceful solution, the Prime Minister is looking to invoke and stoke more fear and division. Countries around the world, and Canadians themselves at home, are looking at this situation and wondering if this is the Canada they have believed in patriotically, firmly and with a full heart for so long. The truth is that the Prime Minister and the government initiated these protests by Canadians by calling them down in the first place and then not dealing with the situation as it unfolded. I think back to a former leader of the Progressive Conservative Party who went along with a former prime minister who invoked the War Measures Act for just the third time in Canadian history, and not during wartime. He voted for that War Measures Act. His name was Robert Stanfield. He later said that it was the greatest regret of his life that he voted with the government that day. Edmund Burke is often quoted as saying that “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” Well, I stand against this measure with every fibre of my being. I will vote no. This is a free country. Its people should be free to protest and free to exercise their human rights, and we need to respect and engage them.

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Context: House Hansard - 4 - Nov/25/21

Context: House Hansard - 4 - Nov/25/21

Nov/25/21 12:37:31 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, one of the greatest travesties in this pandemic is the government's call-out to companies to manufacture PPE here in Canada, and then to ignore the many companies that started up with perfectly compliant PPE and go, instead, to big conglomerates. Of course I support self-reliance, and I support PPE made in Canada.

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