- Member of Parliament
- Member of Parliament
- Conservative
- Cumberland—Colchester
- Nova Scotia
- Voting Attendance: 67%
- Expenses Last Quarter: $134,737.37
- Government Page
- May/28/24 2:55:31 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, the member opposite is avoiding the question, and the answer shows us just how much we need a significant change in government.
The CBC reported last week that seniors in Louisbourg, Nova Scotia, have been going days and even weeks without a proper meal, and that some children are not attending school because they do not have any food to take for lunch.
Canadians are hurting, and their government just does not seem to care. Again, when will the Prime Minister axe the tax so Canadians can afford to feed themselves?
93 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Apr/18/24 2:08:12 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, Joy Bond, Peter Bond, Gina Goulet, Elizabeth Joanne Thomas, John Joseph Zahl, Corrie Ellison, Dawn Madsen, Frank Gulenchyn, Aaron Tuck, Emily Tuck, Jolene Oliver, Sean McLeod, Alanna Jenkins, Tom Bagley, Lisa McCully, Constable Heidi Stevenson, Heather O'Brien, Kristen Beaton, baby Beaton, Greg Blair, Jamie Blair, Joey Webber and Lillian Campbell Hyslop are the names of the 23 Canadians who were savagely murdered on April 18 and 19, 2020.
Four years have passed today, and the wounds that were inflicted on Colchester county, all of Nova Scotia and, indeed, Canada have yet to fully heal. We should remember these names. They were our friends, our co-workers, our loved ones and our neighbours.
May they rest in peace, and may they never be forgotten.
126 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Apr/16/24 3:07:28 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, the costly NDP-Liberal coalition has announced another poorly conceived federal idea. Its dental care debacle is failing Canadians.
I have one simple question. How many dentists in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and P.E.I. have signed up for the dental care debacle?
46 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Apr/16/24 11:46:23 a.m.
- Watch
Madam Speaker, I am not sure in what fantasyland the member was listening to the fantastic speech I gave. There was no mention of anything that he said in his question, so I am not sure where that came from.
That being said, what we do know is that a new day, a new dawn and a new sense of hope is out there with Canadians because of the hope that we, as the next Conservative government, are able to give Canadians. We know of the damage the policies of the NDP-Liberal coalition have caused for Canadians. As I said, the numbers speak for themselves. There are 6.5 million Canadians who do not have access to primary care.
As far as the great people of Cumberland—Colchester go, Nova Scotia, much like my colleague's riding in the great province of Quebec, has a program for pharmacare that already enables all Nova Scotians to access a pharmacare program, which, indeed, covers even more medications than the one put forward by the inept NDP-Liberal coalition government with the anemic formularies that it has so far put forward.
The great people of Cumberland—Colchester have access to wonderful programs and those are the things that a Conservative government should be supporting in the future.
217 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Mar/22/24 12:13:55 p.m.
- Watch
Madam Speaker, I rise on a point of order.
“Unfair and misguided” is what the Premier of Nova Scotia called this carbon tax hike. I would like to seek unanimous consent to table this document, in which the premier has—
Some hon. members: No.
47 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Mar/19/24 2:15:54 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, April 1 is usually a day of lighthearted fun for Canadians during which we amuse one another with practical jokes.
This is not so for the uncaring NDP-Liberal Prime Minister, who will play a cruel joke on Canadians by increasing his carbon tax once again, this time by 23%, on everything. Seventy per cent of Canadians oppose this tax, and all Atlantic Canadian premiers, including the Liberal premier of Newfoundland and Labrador, have joined common sense Conservatives in demanding that the government axe the tax.
An astonishing two million Canadians need to visit a food bank every month, and now we see charities running out of resources and money to help Canadians. A wise Nova Scotian once commented that no one would believe that one could pay money to the government and it would give more back. This simply is not true. Today, in the Nova Scotia Legislature, all political parties voted unanimously, calling on all Nova Scotia MPs to scrap the carbon tax hike and axe the tax.
172 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Feb/1/24 2:56:05 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, 40% of Nova Scotians are struggling to pay their electricity bills. Rates have jumped 14% in the last two years and Nova Scotians have to choose between heating and eating. After eight long years, this Prime Minister is just not worth the cost.
This NDP-Liberal government is going to make things worse on April 1, when its next tax hike comes into effect, when it quadruples the carbon tax.
Will this costly coalition show some common decency and cancel the tax hike, so Nova Scotians can feed themselves, keep a roof over their heads and keep the heat on?
102 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Jan/31/24 2:13:01 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, 40% of Nova Scotia households are struggling to pay their electricity bills, making Nova Scotians choose between eating and heating. We all know, sadly, that two million Canadians visit a food bank every month.
The NDP-Liberal coalition policies have also failed to provide affordable housing in Canada. In December, rents were at their highest level ever, skyrocketing to $2,178. This has doubled under the Prime Minister.
Let us talk crime. Since this Prime Minister was first elected, car thefts across Canada have increased dramatically. They have doubled in Montreal and tripled in Toronto.
Canadians will have a very simple choice in the next election. On the one hand they will have the costly coalition of the New Democrats and Liberals, who will take their money, tax their food, punish their work, double their housing costs and unleash crime and chaos in their community, or they can have the common-sense Conservatives who would axe the tax, build the homes, fix the budget and stop the crime. That is the choice.
174 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Dec/5/23 12:05:58 p.m.
- Watch
Madam Speaker, I just want to highlight a project that happened in Nova Scotia in my riding of Cumberland—Colchester. Military veterans, with great input from those who served in Afghanistan, were able to construct a memorial that is very befitting to honour those 158 Canadians who died in service to our great country. It was constructed in one year, at a cost of over $37,000. There are three Silver Cross families in my riding: the Mellish family, the Reid family and the Tedford family. We see them often. It is incredible that their loved ones are honoured on this memorial.
I would also like to highlight, very sadly, that during the unveiling of this monument, there were no members from the Liberal Party there at all. This is an affront to veterans. That the current Liberal government messed up the process is also an affront to veterans, but projects such as this can get done with the will of great veterans who served this country.
168 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Nov/23/23 2:12:02 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, today, I wish to honour a Canadian hero. Lloyd Coady was born in Sheet Harbour, Nova Scotia, and he came from a family of eight children. In 1942, at the age of 18, he was finally able to enlist for World War II, having been sent home previously for being too young.
He did his basic training in Peterborough and Petawawa and arrived in Halifax shortly thereafter. Next, he was sent to Windsor, Nova Scotia, and was trained as a medical orderly.
He served aboard the Queen Mary, the Aquitania and the Samaria, bringing wounded soldiers home from the front. He also served at the Cogswell hospital in Halifax and the Debert hospital. He moved to Truro in 1951 after studying entomology and forestry. He spent the next 35 years chasing bugs throughout the forests of Nova Scotia.
Lloyd was married to Kay for 57 years. He was very active in the community for many service organizations, and he continues to be fit and agile. Many years ago, he actually challenged me to a running race and a push-up contest. I politely declined.
Today, let us all wish Lloyd a happy 99th birthday.
196 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
Madam Speaker, it is always a pleasure to rise in the House on behalf of the folks from Cumberland—Colchester, especially when it is to speak to a bill that would negatively affect potential development in Nova Scotia. We have heard from many people in the House, Atlantic members of Parliament specifically, wanting to now portray themselves as the saviours of Nova Scotia. They are going on, touting how many people really want to be a part of the bill, which we know is utter hogwash.
We know that Bill C-49 would create uncertainty and control. By that, I mean it would create uncertainty and control related to the cabinet members of the NDP-Liberal coalition government. The difficulty we see there is that they are the ones who would assume the ultimate decision-making process when looking at the development of the offshore industries in Nova Scotia. We know very clearly that they would want to stop projects in the ocean to have ultimate control of their fiefdom, as they have had on land now for many years, and to effectively kill the oil and gas industry in Nova Scotia. It is really quite shocking.
We know that representatives from Germany came to specifically Nova Scotia in Canada and said that they would like to have our natural gas. The Prime Minister said that there is no case for natural gas. He asked who would need natural gas and why anyone would want natural gas. We also know that the NDP-Liberal government has killed 17 natural gas projects in this country, which obviously shows its true colours. Those members not only want to control it, but also to control the destiny of people in Atlantic Canada.
We know that the bill is rife with difficulties, red tape, long delays, stifling unproductivity and an unfriendly business environment. That part of this really hearkens to the words of a friend whom I had an opportunity to see during the break week, who said that, for people who build houses, the red tape, delays, bureaucracy and cost that the NDP-Liberal coalition has created really make it absolutely unpleasant, unpalatable, unfair and unpredictable for someone to even want to build simple housing in this country. Going forward, why would Canadians want to continue to have the voice of the NDP-Liberal coalition, and cabinet members in particular, making those decisions?
We know that, as my colleague spoke to before, at the discretion of a cabinet member, it could possibly create marine protected areas for anything that could possibly, at any time in the future, be examined or have difficulties. With any of the ambiguous language put forward, they would create marine protected areas that, of course, would stymie development.
We also know that the track record of the government, when it comes to offshore projects, is absolutely atrocious. We know that Sustainable Marine's tidal energy project, offshore in Nova Scotia, partly in my riding of Cumberland—Colchester, was effectively stopped by the government. We know that Sustainable Marine simply asked for direction going forward from the Department of Fisheries and Oceans, and it got absolutely nothing from the department.
This was the first time a project in the development of tidal energy had put energy back into the grid, and it was measurable. It also had significant abilities to monitor for fish strikes. Even the government arm of monitoring, called FORCE, on the tidal energy project, readily admitted, when I met with those folks and Sustainable Marine energy, that there were no worrisome signals or fish strikes. There was one fish that swam through one of the turbines, but other than that, no fish were harmed in this process.
The scope of Sustainable Marine's tidal energy project is really related to the fact that, if it were able to harness a significant amount of the energy off the Bay of Fundy, which has the highest tides in the world, there would be potential there to power all of Atlantic Canada in perpetuity with minimal cost. When we look at that kind of a project, which the Liberal government has absolutely no ability to support or go forward with, then I ask again why Canadians would want to say that we should allow the cabinet minister to have the opportunity to decide when projects should or should not go forward.
The difficulty, and my colleague, the member for Coast of Bays—Central—Notre Dame mentioned this, is that there are many sections of overlap from Bill C-69 embedded in Bill C-49. We know that the Supreme Court of Canada has very clearly declared Bill C-69 unconstitutional.
Just a few things, if I may. Clauses 61, 62, 169 and 170 of Bill C-49 invoke section 64 of Bill C-69, the Impact Assessment Act, where the minister finds that a given project's adverse effects within federal jurisdiction and its adverse direct or incidental effects are in public interest, section 64 allows, and in fact requires, the minister to create any conditions which they deem appropriate in relation to those effects and with which the project proponent must comply.
In Bill C-69, the Liberals forced all offshore drilling to be subject to a review panel, increasing the timeline from 300 to 600-plus days for offshore reviews. Conservatives raised this as a major point of concern with Bill C-69. The impact assessment by the agency can take 1,605 days, which, sadly, is four and a half years, if all aspects of the process are followed.
This bill specifies section 64 of IAA, which allows the minister to create any condition they wish, based on an impact assessment report, which could add another 330 days to the process, if it was stated in clause 62 of Bill C-49, required by the regulator or prescribed.
What we are talking about is a country where people cannot afford to feed themselves, to put a roof over their heads and to generally look after their families. When we understand that the NDP-Liberal coalition continues to want to put up red tape, barriers and concerns, then we know what is on the mind of Atlantic Canadians.
Those of us who went back to our ridings last week talked to people, and they talked about the carbon tax and the cost of living. We know that the Atlantic Liberals over on that side of the House have voted 24 times in favour of a carbon tax, over and over again.
There is one person on that side of the House, a Liberal, who has suddenly found religion, or perhaps he has found the Conservative common sense. I cannot exactly explain why, but we do know that he was on TV and was quoted multiple times. I think it is germane to read into the record one of the great quotes:
I believe we have to change the way we're approaching the climate change incentive, whatever you want to call it. I think what we're using right now, at this point in time, is putting a bigger burden on people who are now struggling with an affordability crisis.
A gentleman on the opposite side said that. When we go back to our ridings in Atlantic Canada and hear of the difficulties, we understand very clearly that the Atlantic Liberals continue, over and over, to vote for a punishing carbon tax. What do they want to do now? They want to create further problems for Atlantic Canadians by stopping projects in the ocean.
We already know that they continue to do this on land with the statistics that I quoted previously, the delays of four and a half years on projects. Again, I will tie that to the builders we hear from to understand very clearly that they are giving up on their dreams of building houses and projects for Atlantic Canadians because it is an untenable position.
It is intolerable. It is unacceptable. It is unexplainable why the NDP-Liberal coalition wants to continue to stymie development in Atlantic Canada. That is something, on this side of the House, that we will not stand for.
1373 words
All Topics
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
Mr. Speaker, I would like to highlight some Nova Scotians who might be affected by Bill C-49, even though the member for Windsor West really did not.
My friend and former physician colleague Beau Blois and his family have been named provincial Woodland Owner of the Year. They have a round barn. They have Angus beef, and they are renowned in the region for what they do. I thank Beau and Laura for what they do.
Next, I would like to highlight Jeremy Dobson and Justin McKay, who have created the first significant Afghanistan memorial in my riding.
Finally, I offer heartfelt condolences to my assistant Holly Miller, whose father, sadly, has passed. Her father, Gary, would have been significantly affected by Bill C-49.
I am thankful for the opportunity to highlight those folks.
136 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Oct/6/23 10:11:34 a.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, the former and now fired minister of immigration and failing Minister of Housing has finally found his new job, after he was defeated, as the minister of meteorology.
I really hope he can answer two questions. One, why has his government allowed tidal energy to fail in Nova Scotia? Is it because of their lack of direction? Two, could he please explain quotes from the member for Avalon? He said:
I think [the carbon tax is] hurting them a fair bit. Everywhere I go people come up to me and say, “We're losing faith in the Liberal Party.”
I've had people tell me they can’t afford to buy groceries. They can’t afford to heat their homes and that’s hard to hear from especially seniors who live alone and tell me that they go around their house in the spring and winter time with a blanket wrapped around them because they can't afford home heating fuel and they can't afford to buy beef or chicken.
Can the minister explain that?
183 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
Mr. Speaker, I find it fascinating that the member for Kings—Hants talks about moving quickly after eight years of the NDP-Liberal coalition's sitting on its hands. It is really strange that, after his door knocking and his fear of losing his seat, now he has to lambast everybody he can in trying to become a champion of Nova Scotia. He is talking out of both sides of his mouth. He talked about the gun registry he said he would oppose, and when the vote came, what did he do? He abstained. Wow, what a great supporter this guy is.
The other thing that is very clear is that when we begin to understand the tidal project in the great riding of Cumberland—Colchester, we start to understand there is a business there called Sustainable Marine Energy. I really wonder whether the member for Kings—Hants went and talked to the leadership of Sustainable Marine, because what Sustainable Marine said was that it is the first project out there putting electricity back into the grid. It had no fish kills, no hits and no threatening markers at all, and what did the Liberal-NDP government do? Absolutely nothing. It gave no direction and allowed a project that is clean and green to actually be demolished. It is sad.
223 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Sep/18/23 2:18:44 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, this summer, all members of the House have been inundated by messages from Canadians: Atlantic Canadians, Nova Scotians and, to me, most particularly, residents of the counties of Cumberland—Colchester in Nova Scotia who are in dire straits because of the punishing carbon tax. After eight years of the NDP-Liberal government, it is clear that Canadians can no longer afford to feed themselves, house themselves and, if they are lucky enough to have a dwelling, to heat it.
The number of calls, emails and letters with respect to the inability to afford to live is staggering. As a family physician for 26 years, I have never seen or heard of this amount of desperation in the lives of Canadians. The Liberal Prime Minister is asking more from Canadians than they can afford to pay. The Liberal Prime minister is not worth the cost. It is time to axe the carbon tax.
155 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Jun/20/23 3:03:48 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, the Nova Scotia forestry industry employs thousands. This is a traditional way of life and a major employer for rural communities. Atlantic Canadians have been affected by the carbon tax more than any other region in the country, and now the Liberals are implementing a second carbon tax.
Farmers and fishers are exempt from the carbon tax but not foresters, and they demand equal treatment. Atlantic Canadian premiers have spoken out against the 61¢-a-litre carbon tax.
Why is the Liberal government hell-bent on punishing Atlantic Canadians and the foresters with a $33-billion industry?
100 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Apr/27/23 2:11:44 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, I rise today to announce the death of a groundbreaking tidal energy project near Digby, Nova Scotia. It was operated by a world-leading company, Sustainable Marine Energy, which has been killed by the Liberal government.
A wonderful opportunity to make this country a leader in clean energy has been lost and thousands of hours of hard work have been wasted. This paints a picture of a government that is psycho-sclerotic, unintelligent, unimaginative and unwilling to experiment with new ideas to protect our environment, outside of taxing Canadians into submission at the fuel pump.
In the paraphrased words of the Premier of Nova Scotia, the federal government is shutting down a project that would change the economy of Nova Scotia and supply clean, green energy.
The federal Liberal government is happy to saddle us with a carbon tax, which will cost us more and do little to protect the environment.
Shame on the Liberal government.
158 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Apr/18/23 2:10:13 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, April 18 and 19, 2020, are the days ingrained in the memories of all Nova Scotians, and indeed all Canadians. Today marks three years since an inexplicable madman inserted himself into the lives of 22 Nova Scotians and an unborn baby.
The hurt and disbelief continue to be a part of everyday life. Events such as this do not happen in Canada, let alone in a small community such as Portapique, Nova Scotia. Words fail when we attempt to understand the gravity of the situation, when we attempt to grasp the ongoing rawness of emotions or attempt to understand how and why this happened.
Our thoughts, at times, are frozen as we attempt to process, to interpret and to explain the shock, the horror and the sadness experienced by all affected. Those of us left behind need to continue to honour their memory, ensure the terrible events are not forgotten, and hold accountable the systems and institutions that failed these Canadians in their time of greatest need.
I invite everyone in the House to keep all of those left behind, especially the families, in their thoughts and in their prayers.
192 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Mar/21/23 3:06:15 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, after eight years of the Liberal government, there are almost six million Canadians without access to primary care. In my province of Nova Scotia alone, almost 140,000 people do not have access. Two days ago, the Conservatives over here introduced a blue seal program under which there will be a common standard for doctors trained elsewhere to gain a licence here in Canada. Canadians are beyond frustrated knowing that the doctors who have immigrated to this country are only to be left out in the cold.
When will the Prime Minister admit his wrongdoings and take action on behalf of all Canadians?
105 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Feb/17/23 11:11:52 a.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to the African Nova Scotian community in Truro on the occasion of Black History Month and to highlight the vast contributions it has made to the growth and betterment of our country.
The community traces its origins back to the middle of the 19th century. Most community members are descendants of Black Loyalists. Some are descendants of the Black refugees who fled America to escape slavery. Tragically, like many other Black communities in Canada face, there was and continues to be racism.
Despite these menacing challenges, some of the defining characteristics of Truro's African Nova Scotian community are incredible resiliency, ingenuity and toughness. Many Canadian heroes are from this illustrious community, including William A. White, Rocky Jones, Art Dorrington, Portia White and Jeremiah Jones.
Last, but certainly not least, I wanted to highlight Angie Parker-Brown, who is a hero. Angie has ALS, and through great adversity, she has written a book called Writing with my eyes: staying alive while dying. Sadly, we found out today that Angie is in hospital and is quite unwell. I ask all members of this House to say prayers for Angie and her family.
199 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- menumenu
- notificationsnotifications
- home
- mailmail
- searchsearch
