- Member of Parliament
- Member of Parliament
- Liberal
- Halifax West
- Nova Scotia
- Voting Attendance: 68%
- Expenses Last Quarter: $116,563.05
- Government Page
Mr. Speaker, I have the same passion that my colleague from Sackville—Preston—Chezzetcook has, except I also have my own Lebanese and Arabic kind, which I am not going to go through here.
I believe the environment and the economy work together, and I believe this is a good piece of legislation for Nova Scotians and for Newfoundland and Labrador. It is one that has been built on. When it is passed, both provinces will still have to pass their own provincial laws. I know that both provinces are waiting for this to happen. I urge parliamentarians to take it seriously, as I know they all do, and pass it along to committee, because this is good for the provinces and the country.
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Mr. Speaker, that is a good question.
Before this bill was introduced, we worked for months with Nova Scotia, with Newfoundland and Labrador and with other stakeholders. I am confident that we will be able to work together to improve the bill in committee.
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Mr. Speaker, this is what I know. When the bill was announced, I was in the foyer and partook in the announcement. I also know that the minister from Nova Scotia was at the announcement and represented Nova Scotia's interests. I know Nova Scotia is on board with this. I have also had the opportunity to speak to chiefs from my province from the indigenous communities, and they are on board with this. I know the petroleum board itself is on board with this.
This is a partnership between the federal government, the province, indigenous people, Nova Scotians and Newfoundland and Labradorians. This is a good thing. If there are issues with it, let us get them worked out at committee and move this along.
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Mr. Speaker, it is a privilege to rise in the House to say a few words on behalf of the people in my riding, Halifax West.
Bill C-49 would modernizes the mandates of the offshore boards, including Nova Scotia's, to unlock the full potential of offshore renewable energy.
Just two years ago, the Nova Scotia government announced its intention to stop using coal to generate electricity by the year 2030, shortening its deadline by a decade. It also set an ambitious target of having 80% of its electricity sourced from renewable energy in the same timeframe. It recently amended Nova Scotia's electricity act so that the province could issue requests for proposals and contracts for things like large-scale batteries and renewable energy storage solutions.
Offshore wind and hydrogen have been identified as a priority for Nova Scotia. The province's government has indicated to the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources that it wants Bill C-49 passed without delay.
The province has already officially said that it wants to launch a competition in 2025 for offshore land leases, with the intent of getting enough turbines in place to produce five gigawatts of power. That is enough energy for roughly 1.5 million homes.
The provinces joined the Regional Energy and Resource Tables, which will help them identify funding and financing opportunities in low-carbon energy sectors and optimize their policies and regulatory approaches.
With a greener future, less severe weather and job creation as their north star, Nova Scotians have already begun unlocking the economic opportunities that come with expanding Canada's renewable energy sector.
That is why I support making amendments to the Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and Labrador accord, so we can facilitate the launch of wind energy projects off our shores, a whole new renewable energy industry for Canada.
I am going to focus on why these amendments make so much sense for the province of Nova Scotia. As a former minister in Nova Scotia, I know how important it is for our levels of government to work together to achieve great things, such as capitalizing on Nova Scotia's incredible potential.
In Nova Scotia, we have some of the best and most consistent wind speeds in the world that provide world-class conditions for offshore wind projects. Of course, Nova Scotians are already very familiar with technology used to harness wind power.
Almost 15% of our province's power comes from our 300-plus wind turbines, making Atlantic Canada a provincial leader in wind power generation. It is truly inspiring.
The initial work is already happening. This March, Nova Scotia's provincial government teamed up with the federal government to launch a regional assessment of offshore wind development off the coast of Nova Scotia. The assessment seeks input from indigenous groups and a range of stakeholders. Independent committee members have a year and a half to report back to governments on their work, which will include analyzing future development opportunities and the potential socio-economic, health and environmental impacts of offshore wind development.
The proposed amendments to the Canada-Nova Scotia Offshore Petroleum Resources Accord Implementation Act are about ensuring that future offshore wind projects are subject to the highest possible environmental and safety standards, under the guidance of an independent expert regulator.
The act was put in place in the 1980s and provided a solid base for today's offshore regime. The act set up the Canada-Nova Scotia Offshore Petroleum Board and it made Nova Scotia an equal partner with Canada, allowing it to jointly govern offshore oil and gas-related activity while sending proceeds back to the province.
Since the act was passed in the 1980s, we took the opportunity to make some much-needed changes to ensure that we are keeping up with modern technology and international best practices.
For example, we are updating the offshore petroleum board's land tenure regime. We are limiting the term of a significant discovery license to 25 years. This will ensure that these licences cannot be held forever, which is currently the case.
To make the regulation of future offshore wind projects as efficient as possible, we are proposing that the Canada-Nova Scotia Offshore Petroleum Board's responsibilities be broadened to include renewable energy, such as offshore wind.
It makes sense that a board that is already so familiar with the offshore, its legislation and its management be given this job. It gives these projects more stability and makes them more desirable to the companies that are considering investing in offshore wind and other renewable energy sources.
The board understands the challenges of operating in a difficult offshore environment, and it has decades of experience in safety and environmental standards, oversight and review procedures.
The renamed Canada-Nova Scotia offshore energy regulator will undergo a significant transition as its duties expand. It will regulate the entire life cycle of offshore wind and other renewable energy projects from site assessment to decommissioning.
The board already ensures that offshore projects are operating safely and protecting the environment. Specifically, the boards are in charge of land tenure, including licensing, providing offshore authorization and approval, monitoring compliance with the accord and carrying out enforcement activities.
With these amendments in place, the board will administer the governance framework jointly created by both federal and provincial governments and ensure the best practices in land rights management are being employed, specifically in the areas of how the land will be used, project bidding procedures, determining how to evaluate bids and granting licences for commercial projects.
A regional assessment of the suitability of the offshore wind around Newfoundland and Labrador and Nova Scotia has officially begun. These regional assessments are getting input from indigenous people, the fishing industry, experts on environmental issues and others. They will also inform the project-specific assessments carried out by the Impact Assessment Agency of Canada.
It is clear that developers are interested in making offshore wind a reality. Some have expressed interest in developing offshore wind projects. Others want to get in on related facilities like on-land turbine staging sites and plants for producing hydrogen and ammonia.
For example, the enterprise Brezo Energy is developing a technology for a floating offshore wind project, and it says Nova Scotia is a perfect fit for them.
Another company called Novaporte has promised that shovels will be in the ground this year for an offshore wind marshalling yard in Sydney, where turbines will be stored and assembled.
Nova Scotia has already approved two large-scale green hydrogen electrolysis and ammonia production plants along the Strait of Canso. This aligns well with the proposed Atlantic loop that will provide the backbone for an interconnected Atlantic power grid. The loop will make it easier for neighbouring provinces to trade clean electricity and enable critical load balancing.
Last, with these amendments, we will be making marine conservation tools stronger, and we are improving the alignment of the accord acts and the impact assessment act.
This bill is a great move. It makes sense. We cannot fail to attract Canada's share of the forecasted $1 trillion in global investment in offshore wind by 2040, and it requires regulatory certainty. It would make Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and Labrador global leaders in hydrogen exports, a source of secure energy that we know Europe needs. It would create well-paying jobs for Canada's highly skilled energy workers.
These amendments are an essential part of our broader climate plan, and they will help bring our emissions down, making Canada more competitive, and stop feeding into the climate-linked natural disasters that my constituents have been experiencing this year.
Nova Scotia knows that this is the time to act. We know that this is good for Nova Scotia, this is good for Newfoundland and Labrador, this is good for Atlantic Canada and this is good for Canada. Let us get this moving and get this to committee so we can work together and get this going.
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- Dec/1/22 3:02:53 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, as Nova Scotians continue to rebuild their lives after hurricane Fiona, they have been helped by the fact that this government has been there for them. Thanks to the hurricane Fiona recovery fund, businesses across my region have been able to begin the process of rebuilding in the aftermath of this horrible storm.
Can the Minister responsible for the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency tell the House and all Atlantic Canadians how this government will continue to help our communities rebuild?
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Madam Speaker, it is always an honour to rise on behalf of my constituents in Halifax West.
Today, I do so to speak to the fall economic statement, the so-called mini-budget, which updates Canadians on the state of our economy and announces new measures to drive growth and make life more affordable.
I think it is important that my constituents and Canadians hear some of the key points, and I want to talk a bit more about some of the measures set out in the statement that I think are particularly welcome.
Let me start with the broader economic context.
After one of the most significant economic disruptions of our lifetime, we have come roaring back. We have experienced stronger economic growth in 2022 than the rest of the G7 countries. In October, our unemployment rate was 5.2%, close to the record lows we observed earlier this year.
There are 400,000 more Canadians working today than before the pandemic.
We are now forecasting a deficit of $36 billion this year, down 30% from what was projected in budget 2022. Among the provinces, Nova Scotia has has had the third-highest change in employment relative to prepandemic levels.
However, high global inflation and rising interest rates are making life more expensive. We only need to look at the prices at the grocery stores or when filling our cars with gas. Believe me, I have done both, so I know.
Our challenge now is to provide relief to Canadians without adding fuel to the inflationary fire. That is why our government is taking prudent, targeted action to grow the economy, support those who need it most and ensure that Canada has room to respond to a potential global economic slowdown. If the forecasts are to be believed, we need to protect our fiscal capacity.
That is the path we are taking.
In this year's fall economic statement, the following measures spoke to me.
We are launching the Canada growth fund to make key strategic investments in our economy that will attract substantial private sector investment and accelerate our net-zero transition and the adoption of clean technologies.
We are automatically issuing advance payments of the enhanced Canada workers benefit, which puts up to $1,200 back into the pockets of Canada's lowest-paid workers each year.
We are providing up to $1 billion through the disaster financial assistance arrangements to support the recovery from hurricane Fiona in my region.
We are making it easier to enter the housing market by creating the new tax-free first home savings account, doubling the first-time homebuyers' tax credit, introducing a new multi-generational home renovation tax credit and fully taxing the profits from flipping properties that are held less than 12 months, with some exceptions.
We are creating a competitive clean technology tax credit to empower our companies to compete internationally, create jobs and reduce their emissions.
We are putting $250 million toward the training and upskilling of Canadian workers to equip them for sustainable, good-paying jobs in the lower-carbon economy we are building.
These important measures are on top of the affordability plan we have already introduced, the GST credit payment we just delivered to some 33,000 recipients in Halifax West and the dental and rental benefits that are working their way through the Senate.
I want to zero in on a few issues I have heard about most in my riding.
The first is our move to permanently eliminate interest on Canada student loans and Canada apprenticeship loans, including on those that are currently being repaid. This is significant support for our students and will put money back into their pockets. Through the repayment assistance plan, borrowers can now pause their repayments until they make at least $40,000 a year.
It was so encouraging for me to hear the response from my community when this measure was unveiled. In fact, after the fall economic statement came out, I went back to my riding and attended the installation ceremony of Dr. Joël Dickinson as president and vice-chancellor of Mount Saint Vincent University. She was so excited by the change and what it will mean for students that she mentioned it in her speech. She also talked about her personal experience as a student.
Just the other day, my assistant pulled me aside to share a message he received from a friend whose partner was thrilled to hear about the measure. I will quote him: “He literally did a happy dance...and once I qualify for loans again it might make it less scary for me to consider going back to school.”
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- Oct/7/22 11:03:03 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, I rise to wish my constituents in Halifax West and all Canadians a blessed and safe Thanksgiving weekend.
My wish for all is that they are able spend quality time with their loved ones. Let us please keep in our minds and hearts families that are in pain and suffering, including Nova Scotians and people across Atlantic Canada and Quebec, whose Thanksgiving will not be easy with the devastation of hurricane Fiona.
We are especially grateful to everyone who stepped up to help before, during and after the storm, including members of our local joint emergency management team, like Karen Saulnier, Dave Aalders and Amani Saleh, the Fairview Resource Centre, the Bedford Lions Club, the Canada Games Centre staff, the Canadian Red Cross, the Disaster Animal Response Team of Nova Scotia and so many more. We thank them.
I wish all Canadians across the country a happy Thanksgiving, and I hope everyone has a chance to rest and to reconnect with family and friends.
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- Sep/26/22 10:38:14 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I really want to thank the parliamentary secretary for health and sport. Yes, he was in Halifax West this summer and he did visit the Canada Games Centre, which now, unfortunately, is the home of the shelter.
People can donate to the Canadian Red Cross. I say that truly, honestly and without a doubt. If anybody wants to help across the country or internationally, right now I would say the best thing for citizens to do is donate through the Canadian Red Cross.
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- Sep/26/22 10:35:13 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for Victoria very much. I really love her part of our country. It has lots of similarities, I find, to Halifax.
First, I am going to thank her for acknowledging us. I feel that as Atlantic Canadians, we are a special part of the country, and we really, truly deeply care for each other. We are welcoming and generally generous and good people.
Second, to her question, the Prime Minister has made a clear commitment to Atlantic Canada and to continuing to ensure that the government is there to do whatever is needed right now on the ground to assist not only in the short term but in the longer term, because these hurricanes are going to happen. They are going to happen more frequently and they are going to be more severe. I have witnessed a number of them so far that have hit our province over the last two decades, and they are getting worse, more frequent and, quite frankly, more scary.
Even as I stand here now, none of my children, in their respective homes in Halifax, have power. I just saw a picture right now of one of my children, who has three little ones, with candles all over the place. They are all sitting and having fun. It is wonderful for me to see that, and it is nice to say that our government is there to assist and collaborate with the province and with the municipalities, which are really working hard on the ground to get everybody back to where they were.
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- Sep/26/22 10:24:15 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, let me start off by saying I will be sharing my time with the member for Charlottetown.
Let me begin by acknowledging how difficult the past few days have been for the people of Halifax West, for Nova Scotians, for Atlantic Canadians and for eastern Quebec. My thanks go out to all my colleagues for sharing their messages of support this last weekend and this evening.
I wish we did not have to stand here to have this debate this evening. However here we are. What we know as of now is that two families in my region are mourning today. On Prince Edward Island, Fiona claimed the life of one Islander. In Newfoundland, we learned of the tragedy in Port aux Basques that claimed a 73-year-old woman's life. In my home province, we are worried for 81-year-old Larry Smith of Lower Prospect, who has not been seen since Friday evening and it appears he may have been swept out to sea.
My heart breaks for these families. It is hard to find a comforting word in this moment, but I want them to know they are in my prayers, and I did attend mass yesterday. Before I share my own experiences with the storm, many thanks are in order.
First, I want to express my heartfelt gratitude to our Prime Minister and the ministers of Emergency Preparedness and National Defence.
We had a number of calls throughout the whole weekend. They have reassured us, and we were in turn able to reassure our constituents.
Our federal government and armed forces were prepared in advance and acted quickly. For that, I wish to say on behalf of my own community that we are deeply grateful.
In Nova Scotia at the moment, crews from across the country and New England, and even Hydro Ottawa's team, are helping to get us reconnected and get debris and trees off our streets. I am told there are more than 1,000 people in the field working on our recovery effort, and I am grateful to each and every one of them.
In Halifax West, I surveyed a great deal of the damage over the weekend and today before I took a flight this evening and came here. What I can tell my colleagues is that most, if not all, side streets in my area have multiple trees down and sidewalks ripped up. Countless streets were impassable, with trees blocking the way. In many instances, residents took it upon themselves to help in the cleanup.
One in particular I want to mention today, because I saw it on Facebook but I also know the people, was a whole crew of families who live on Kelvin Grove who came with saws, axes, shears and chainsaws in hand, making short work of the downed trees blocking their street together. They all came out to help a young woman who lives in a house where trees were blocking her driveway and access right beside her car.
What I am thankful for is that Nova Scotians largely heeded the call to stay home, allowing our paramedics, first responders and power crews to continue doing their jobs without additional impediments or delays. If anyone has seen any photos of the grocery store shelves in my riding, it is not hard to imagine that most people were home with their families and their storm chips. As I walked through my community, checking in with folks who needed checking in on, and probably some who did not, asking them what they needed in the moment, I was relieved to hear that most were okay, even though most had no power.
However, not everyone was able to withstand the storm so easily.
This was a serious storm. On Sunday morning I stopped by the Canada Games Centre, which was turned into an evacuation centre for folks who had lost their homes in the storm. What was previously a busy recreation centre is now being run by the Salvation Army and Red Cross to shelter dozens of people from two apartment buildings that had sustained extensive damage. One building had its roof torn off, and on another building the chimney fell off and punched a hole right through every floor of the building. Miraculously, thankfully, no one was hurt, but all of these people are now looking for housing.
At the Canada Games Centre, I met members of the Disaster Animal Response Team of Nova Scotia. They told me they are the first and only one in the country that does animal response. They were sheltering 13 pets that had been displaced in the storm by people who were evacuated and had no homes.
Later on, I visited the LeBrun Recreation Centre in Bedford, where volunteers from Halifax's joint emergency management team were providing tea, coffee, snacks and a place to charge phones to anyone who did not have power. Volunteers Dave Aalders, Karen Saulnier and Amani Saleh were incredibly welcoming to anyone who needed help. In fact, I remembered meeting Karen back in 2018 when she was taking the first steps to set up a JEM team for mainland south. I am thankful to all those who in normal times, when events like these are generally far from our minds, take the time and put in the work to prepare for the “what ifs”, although especially with climate change, these are more like “when ifs”.
While I was there, I called into CBC to talk about the resources available in our community. Within five minutes, a woman walked in and said to me, “Oh, you're Lena.” I said yes and she said, “I just heard you on CBC Radio and learned that there is a comfort centre here. I just came in to get some Wi-Fi, because we have no power.” It all works.
This shows me the value of all of us, public personalities and community leaders, doing what we can to amplify existing resources in our networks.
On the other side of my riding, the Fairview Resource Centre team was doing much the same work. I stopped by to thank Hayley Nelson this morning, a volunteer with the provincial EMO, and the centre's staff and volunteers for providing a safe place for those who did not have power.
I saw Nova Scotians of all ages and many across Atlantic Canada all mobilizing to help their neighbours. From the Haliburton Hills subdivision to Lucasville to Bedford to Fairview and everywhere in between, people were asking themselves what they could do to be of assistance. That is very much what we do in our part of the country, which we have heard quite a bit tonight.
Facebook groups are full of neighbours reaching out to help those who do not have power. People are offering their help, their showers, their freezer space, their generators and cups of tea. In one truly inspiring example, Square Roots, a group that delivers produce packs to residents in need every week, made sure that a hurricane did not get in the way of their deliveries. As soon as they were able to get volunteers, they did it.
I give a special thanks to Mount Saint Vincent University and its president in my riding for making sure that students on campus were safe, warm, fed and well cared for.
The storm was terrible. Many people in our communities experienced and are still experiencing pain and hardship, but when people needed support, families, friends and neighbours were there to help. I was able to assure them, after a phone call with the Prime Minister, my cabinet colleagues and MPs, that the government is there to help. I am proud to say that support from the military is on the ground, with significant financial support as well. There is an appeal to match Red Cross donations, which is also being offered.
I especially want to say that my heart and mind are with Cape Breton, P.E.I. and Newfoundland. Anybody who is able to donate, please do so. Again, we look forward to all the work we have to continue to do, and I want to thank everybody who is working hard in our communities to bring them back to safety and normality. Please stay safe, everyone.
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- May/16/22 2:02:55 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, last week I joined the 2022 top 50 CEO awards hosted by Atlantic Business Magazine, where my son-in-law Justin was recognized for the third consecutive time as one of Atlantic Canada's top 50 CEOs. I am so proud of his success, including in leading Yellow Cab to transition its fleet to hybrid and electric vehicles and installing charging places in a number of properties to reduce the ecological footprint.
I was also thrilled to see Terry Paul, chief of Membertou First Nation and CEO of Membertou Development Corporation, win the CEO of the year award. Chief Paul and his community are both models to emulate and trailblazers. Thanks to his leadership, Membertou is one of the largest employers on Cape Breton Island. Having worked with him on the provincial level, and now in my capacity as a member of Parliament, I know how big an impact he has had.
I ask all members to join me in congratulating this year's award winners.
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- Mar/21/22 2:48:42 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the past two years have been hard on main streets across Atlantic Canada. Due to COVID, our community hubs have been forced to close or to be open for reduced hours. These closures have been especially hard on businesses in the arts and tourism sectors.
Could the minister responsible for ACOA tell this House what the government is doing for Atlantic Canada's main streets as pandemic restrictions start to ease?
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