Parliamentary Speeches
680 speeches by Claude DeBellefeuille — Page 1 of 14
Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, this government is subverting democracy by shutting down the debate on Bill C-22. Even though it has a majority, integrity demands proper scrutiny before we pass a bill that allows the surveillance of all citizens, the seizure of data without authorization and the tracking of phones. To add insult to injury, the closure motion also imposes a retroactive deadline for the submission of …
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Mr. Speaker, I always listen carefully to my colleague from Winnipeg North, and I do not know why he feels the need to shout like that. When I have my earpiece in, I find it hard to hear the interpretation. I know he is a passionate person, but still, I struggle to sit through his entire speech. I disagree with him on some things. He can attack the Conservatives all he wants, but he forgot to ment…
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Mr. Speaker, as we know, Bill C-25 includes changes to the names of electoral districts. The new name of my electoral district will be “Vallée-du-Haut-Saint-Laurent”. It will be easier to pronounce, but it will be less melodious for those who take pleasure in saying my riding's name. I am pleased to rise to speak to Government Business No. 13. I have a lot to say, but please allow me to digress br…
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Mr. Speaker, I congratulate you for your rigour and thank you for rising to call for a little more order. I was saying that it is a great privilege for me, and I will likely never experience this again in my career, to work on a bill that will profoundly change the way we approach public safety and privacy. Basically, Bill C-22 will change investigative practices and give police better tools, but …
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Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my colleague. I appreciate her thoroughness a great deal. I spoke about that earlier. I ended my speech by saying that I would really have liked him to come back. I think that would have been a good thing for everyone, including members of the government. From the start, however, I sensed that the dice were loaded and that we were basically marking time, because there …
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his very wise question. Like every country, we are facing cyber-attacks from foreign entities, particularly India and China. We need to ensure that we have robust tools, and Internet providers must do the same. The bill provides some protections and imposes cybersecurity protection requirements on telecommunications service providers. That is what we did with …
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Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for her kind words. I think she is brave, because she came during the clause-by-clause study, like my NDP colleague did. They did not have the right to speak, but they were there, hard-working and rigorous, and they proposed amendments. I have a lot of respect for these two members. I think that the reason for the haste is pressure from the United States. That i…
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Madam Speaker, I would like to return the compliment to my colleague from Vancouver East. It has truly been a pleasure. Yes, that is true. Together, often alongside the Conservatives, we tabled the same amendments, particularly regarding the threshold for obtaining information. We both believe that “reasonable grounds to suspect” is not a high enough threshold. Our political parties, along with th…
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It certainly did, Madam Speaker. I think even the Privacy Commissioner was disappointed that we did not have his brief or his amendment recommendations before us when he testified before the committee. Having that information would have allowed us to make better use of his presence right then and there by asking him more specific questions so that he could defend his amendments. Madam Speaker, I t…
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Mr. Speaker, shutting down debate on Bill C-22 is an abuse of power. Everyone agrees that an overhaul is needed of this bill, which makes it easier to spy on people intrudes on their privacy. It forces companies to collect data on citizens and hand it over to the police. It forces telecommunications companies to track people at all times, without their consent. Basically, the federal government wa…
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Mr. Speaker, I want to respond to the point of order raised earlier by the member for York—Durham. What we have before us today is not just a programming motion, it is a dangerous precedent, an abuse of the procedural power of the majority. Government Business No. 13 introduces a retroactive deadline for amendments to be tabled in committee, which is, to my knowledge, unprecedented and highly inco…
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Mr. Speaker, this government is showing a lack of empathy for seniors and community organizations with its hasty reform of the New Horizons for Seniors program. Its attitude is jeopardizing hundreds of projects that break seniors' isolation and encourage them to have an active social life. The federal government should be thanking the volunteers who dedicate their time and effort to these projects…
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Mr. Speaker, I am wondering if the minister was concerned that the House might adjourn on Friday, June 19 without having passed Bill C-14. There are still five sitting days left next week, and I was really under the impression that Bill C-14 would pass following the normal process by June 19. I am having a hard time understanding this time allocation motion.
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, after more than 30 years at the helm of Le Pont du Suroît, Marc André Bédard is taking a well-deserved retirement. He leaves behind an exceptional legacy of commitment, compassion and professionalism. He devoted his career to supporting people living with a loved one affected by mental illness, offering a listening ear, clinical support and hope to many families. Thanks to his inclusi…
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Madam Speaker, I want to congratulate my colleague on his speech. I know he recently celebrated his first year as an MP, and I imagine he has not yet had the opportunity to work closely on specific projects with the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, or CMHC. I have been an MP for several years now, and I can say that CMHC was a fairly important body for vetting business plans, as well as fo…
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Madam Speaker, it is always interesting to listen to my colleague, the Bloc Québécois whip. I would like my colleague to talk to us about the diversity of social housing in Quebec. There are housing co-operatives and non-profit organizations that manage social housing buildings for people with disabilities or seniors. There is also social housing or low-income housing for seniors. I understand tha…
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Mr. Speaker, I want to congratulate my colleague from Shefford, who really knows her stuff, as members can see. She always speaks so eloquently and focuses on the common good. She is well versed in this issue. I would like to learn more about the amendments the Bloc Québécois would have liked to see adopted to further improve the situation. Can she explain to me why, in her view, the government re…
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moved that Bill C-261, An Act to amend the Old Age Security Act (amount of full pension), be read the second time and referred to a committee. Mr. Speaker, it is always very moving to have the privilege of introducing a bill that one cares about. I will be reading my speech because I want to share my message in full and I do not want to run out of time. For a society to live in peace, its citizens…
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Mr. Speaker, I am truly offended by such arguments. It makes no sense. I do not know if all seniors 65 and older in his riding are rolling in money, but in Quebec, 1,869,000 people are 65 or older, and nearly half of them receive the GIS. Honestly, I cannot imagine repeating what I just heard to these people who are struggling to make ends meet. I understand that the Harper government may have bee…
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Mr. Speaker, that warms my heart. I was wondering whether all the Conservatives were going to vote against the bill after hearing her colleague speak before her. I sincerely thank her from the bottom of my heart. I believe that the bill increases the exemption amount to $6,500. That gives seniors who are 65 and older some flexibility if they wish to work, so that they are not penalized as much if …
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Mr. Speaker, I expect the Liberals to show some compassion, realize they made a mistake and seize this opportunity to fix it. There is no reason to vote against this bill, which will improve the quality of life for our seniors. The evidence is clear. Old age security is about $750 a month. No one would think of that as a fortune. We are not begging for anything. We are not asking for anything othe…
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Mr. Speaker, I congratulate my colleague on his speech. I know that for many years he was the Bloc Québécois agriculture critic and I know that he cares about local craft producers of berry-based alcoholic beverages. The Bloc Québécois is proposing a modest measure that would not cost the government much, but that would make a difference for local producers of alcoholic beverages made from berries…
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Mr. Speaker, I want to ask my colleague to talk about what SMEs in Quebec really need. We know that the Bloc Québécois is very close to businesses in our communities, which have a different approach than the rest of Canada. What we are hearing from these business people is that the measures currently in place are not adapted to their reality. Businesses are closing and the regions are in a precari…
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Mr. Speaker, the speech by my colleague, whom I hold in high regard, has given us a glimpse into the beauty of his riding, and it has made me want to spend my summer holidays in that part of the country. I do not know if Tatamagouche is in his riding, but I had the pleasure of taking a short trip to that area. I know that his riding includes cities as well as rural areas, and I am guessing there a…
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Mr. Speaker, this week marks a turning point, with the Prime Minister's climate betrayal and the Liberals' election deceit on environmental issues. The green banker they sold us on is green only in his thirst for wads of cash derived from black gold. He is also dragging down all the Liberals who ran on a platform that mentioned the words “climate change” 28 times, but never once mentioned the word…
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Mr. Speaker, if the Prime Minister's environmental track record had been acceptable, the former minister of the environment, the member for Laurier—Sainte-Marie, would not have stepped down. Nor would his predecessor, the member for North Vancouver—Capilano, have announced his departure too. His predecessor, Catherine McKenna, would not have said that we live in a petrostate where rich oil and gas…
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Mr. Speaker, I must say that I am quite moved to speak today on the bill introduced by my colleague from Burnaby North—Seymour in British Columbia. It is moving because this is a bill that will achieve consensus with financial support from the government and will truly change the lives of people who are experiencing immense suffering. Today, I am moved. I am happy for my colleague. I am happy for …
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Mr. Speaker, I have a very important question for my colleague about the government's amendments to the Excise Tax Act under Bill C-31. We have noticed that none of those amendments address the inequity and injustice between producers of mead and producers of blueberry spirits. A few years ago, the Bloc Québécois persuaded the government to exempt small local and regional producers from the excise…
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for her speech. I know she is very passionate about this issue. She is standing up for women who have been victims of sexual misconduct while serving in the military. Bill C‑11 addresses many of the recommendations in Louise Arbour's report. Honestly, what surprises me is that some victims appeared before the committee during its study, and the victims themselves …
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Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister confirmed yesterday that he is going to relax the regulations governing pipeline approvals as early as this week. At the same time, in his economic update, he announced a sovereign wealth fund that he is going to create using $25 billion in public money to pay for energy projects. Everyone can put two and two together. Is the Prime Minister going to make Quebeckers …
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Mr. Speaker, before I begin my speech, I would like to add my voice to those of all women and the entire population of Quebec who, this week, have experienced yet another tragedy: the 10th femicide of the year in Quebec in just four months. It is incredibly sad. It is unacceptable. As we speak, 10 women have been murdered by someone close to them simply for being women. At the beginning of the yea…
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Mr. Speaker, I appreciate my colleague's commentary. I think he realizes that the Bloc Québécois truly cares about helping to improve bills. We always say that if a thing is good for Quebec and good for Canada, so much the better. We always approach bills this way, and we take our work on parliamentary committees seriously. As we have said, we are going to support this bill, but what we had propos…
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Mr. Speaker, I believe the official opposition is using the tools at its disposal to make the government realize that it has taken the wrong path by outright rejecting all the amendments that had been adopted by Conservative, Bloc Québécois and Liberal MPs, too; it is worth pointing that out. I hope that the government, through this permissible parliamentary strategy, will realize that it made the…
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Mr. Speaker, I am no longer a member of my professional association of social workers, so I cannot use that title anymore. However, I had a very rewarding career as a social worker that helped me to realize that when we are helping or supporting a victim, their consent is important. It is also important to understand how the victim wants to approach the process, how they want to go about it, so th…
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Mr. Speaker, I want to congratulate the member for Kildonan—St. Paul on introducing this bill. I commend her for raising awareness about the fact that seniors, especially those living with dementia, need the support of their community and all members of society to help them safely navigate this difficult stage of life. I am curious to know why Manitoba does not have a silver alert system in place.…
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Mr. Speaker, this being Multiple Sclerosis Awareness Month, my thoughts go out to my friend Marie-Andrée, who is courageously battling this disease despite the difficulties she faces. I always think of my friend Marie-Andrée when we recognize Multiple Sclerosis Awareness Month, because we obviously need more donations and grants to advance the research, so I want her to know I am thinking of her. …
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Madam Speaker, it is always fascinating to listen to my colleague opposite talk about all of the bills tabled by the government in the House. I have to admit that he is a great public speaker. That said, what surprised me about his speech is that he talked about how hard-working the Bloc Québécois is and about how the Bloc takes its work seriously. Over the past six years, we have said that the Bl…
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Mr. Speaker, I enjoyed my colleague's clear and precise remarks. He takes care to explain things well using concrete examples. This government has a tendency to define terms in regulations. That is what happened with Bill C‑2. It happened with Bill C‑22. Now it is happening with Bill C‑28. It tends to nail down definitions in regulations instead of bills. Can my colleague explain what reasons the …
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Mr. Speaker, I am in awe of our leader's oratorical skills. She always finds the right words and has a very clear way of explaining the issues to us. Once again, her speech was constructive, with proposals and arguments explaining why the government's current proposal regarding the makeup of committees is unacceptable. This is not the first time the Liberal government has broken custom and traditi…
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Mr. Speaker, I would like my colleague to talk to us about a few things in a little more detail. The Prime Minister sweet-talked us about collaboration, openness, and partnership. He put up a nice facade, wore a nice suit, gave a nice performance. However, behind the scenes, on the floor of the House of Commons, the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons is doing the exact opposite of wh…
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Mr. Speaker, I really appreciated the speech by the chief opposition whip. Having served as a whip myself, I know that it is a very demanding role that also requires a thorough understanding of parliamentary procedures. I have a question for my colleague. As we speak, there are two or three committees that are at a standstill, including the Standing Committee on Transport, Infrastructure and Commu…
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Mr. Speaker, the Valleyfield Rotary Club is proudly celebrating 80 years of service to the community. For eight decades, this club, which is made up of dedicated business people, has embodied the values of solidarity, generosity and leadership. Through their involvement, members make a real contribution to improving quality of life in the region. Under the leadership of the current president, Jean…
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to tell my colleague that it is a good thing the government did not have a majority when it introduced Bill C‑2 because that bill was a disaster. Everyone agreed on this. People from all kinds of industries agreed that privacy protection was an issue. Now, as far as Bill C‑22 is concerned, yes, we see an improvement and, yes, the government has finally held consultations.…
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Mr. Speaker, I listened carefully to my colleague's speech and I would like to ask her the following question: In Bill C‑22, the government decided to choose the lowest threshold for obtaining information, that is to say it chose a threshold of reasonable suspicion rather than reasonable belief. The lower standard chosen by the government is raising a lot of questions among experts in Quebec and C…
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Mr. Speaker, I really enjoyed my colleague's speech. The government has announced that it will be tabling an economic statement in late April. I believe it will be on April 28. I am asking this question because, under Bill C-22, the intelligence commissioner will have a greater role. Law enforcement agencies will consult him frequently. So far, there has been no mention of increasing his budget. A…
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Mr. Speaker, I enjoyed my colleague's speech. He delivered it in both official languages and I thank him for that. I have a little question for him, precisely because he is a Quebec member. Quebec has adopted robust legislation to protect privacy, Bill 25. Certain large Quebec institutions have asked me what is going to happen with Bill 25. They have adapted their practices and systems to meet the…
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Mr. Speaker, I see that my colleague enjoys holding forth, and I think we share the same concerns about Bill C‑22. It is a much-needed bill, but there are a lot of passages, especially in part 2, that require amendments to improve the bill, particularly when it comes to the whole issue of definitions. In Bill C‑22, the government gives itself a great deal of leeway to define certain fundamental pr…
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Mr. Speaker, I would like my colleague to tell me about the threshold that the government has set for obtaining information, which is the lowest possible threshold. Does my colleague agree with that or does he think that we should be more stringent and raise the threshold for obtaining information?
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Mr. Speaker, I listened carefully to my colleague's speech and I wanted to ask him whether he is at all concerned about the fact that Bill C-22 does not give the National Security and Intelligence Review Agency a very big role to play compared to its Australian counterpart. The Australian Security Intelligence Organisation is informed the moment the order is issued, not one year after the fact. Do…
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Mr. Speaker, I really enjoyed my colleague's speech. She always explains her opinions in such a calm manner. I have a question. I am wondering why the government chose the lowest possible threshold for obtaining information, that of reasonable grounds to suspect, rather than the more stringent threshold of reasonable grounds to believe. Can my colleague explain why the government chose to go that …
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