Government Orders
Madam Speaker, I thank our colleague for Calgary Shepard for his thoughtful presentation. I agree with much of what he said, particularly around the importance of effective representation. Also, regarding people participating in the electoral boundary redistribution process by making presentations, and community groups and municipal leaders taking advantage of public participation with the commiss…
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moved that Bill C-14, An Act to amend the Constitution Act, 1867 (electoral representation), be read the second time and referred to a committee. Madam Speaker, obviously, I would have liked to have been in the House today in person, but, like many Canadians, I am recovering from a COVID infection, so I am participating virtually from New Brunswick. I am pleased to speak in the House today to begi…
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Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague from Thérèse‑De Blainville for her question. I believe that Quebec's political weight is guaranteed by this bill in that we have changed a clause to guarantee the provinces the same number of seats they had in 2021 during the next electoral redistribution. We have heard several of our colleagues from the Quebec Liberal caucus in the House talk about the importan…
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Mr. Speaker, if we were looking to bicker, we would ask the Bloc Québécois for some pointers. They are the experts on bickering. I understand the Bloc Québécois's frustration. We were elected to Parliament to work together and advance the interests of all Canadians on very important matters such as public health care and housing. That is exactly what we will do, while, of course, respecting provin…
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Mr. Speaker, it is a little rich to hear the Conservatives talk about disrespecting Parliament. They wrote the book on how to trash House of Commons committees when they were in government. We have been very clear. Canadians elected a minority Parliament, which means that members of Parliament are going to work together. I know that offends Conservatives, but that is exactly what we are doing, for…
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Mr. Speaker, since our government took office, we have been working with the provinces on important issues like health care, as well as on how to protect Canadians during a pandemic, and how to build and continue to invest in a public health care system that is the envy of the world. These are exactly the constructive conversations we are having with all the provinces, including the Government of …
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Mr. Speaker, I believe that my colleague spoke about the Parliamentary Budget Officer in his previous question. It is interesting to note that this same Parliamentary Budget Officer established that the Conservative Party, in its last election platform, was going to spend more money than we will invest to support Canadians. I know that our Conservative friends are frustrated that the parliamentary…
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Mr. Speaker, I thank our colleague from Madawaska—Restigouche for his question. Investing in green infrastructure in our communities will ensure residents have a safe, reliable source of drinking water. That is why our government is investing over $2.2 million to upgrade the water supply infrastructure in two rural New Brunswick communities, Saint Hilaire in Madawaska and Tide Head. I think that a…
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Mr. Speaker, my colleague asked when the government would start following the advice of doctors and scientists. The answer is that we have done exactly that from the start. I know that it is frustrating for the Conservatives opposite, who believe that the hundreds of people hurling insults on the Hill are a clinical trial, but it is not true. We will follow the advice of doctors, and the member sh…
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Mr. Speaker, as I explained, we did urgently invest in the public health care system across Canada. We have been there throughout the pandemic to support Canadians, Canadian businesses, and our health care system, which is essential to all Canadians. We also said that once the pandemic is behind us, we are prepared to sit down with provincial premiers, as we have been doing for months now, to disc…
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Mr. Speaker, as my colleague is well aware, the Prime Minister has called more than 35 meetings with the premiers and territorial leaders over the past two years or so. Time and time again, we have worked together to discuss what can be done to support the public health care system that Canadians want, and rightly so. As I have said to my colleague, we are in ongoing discussions with our provincia…
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Mr. Speaker, my colleague is well aware that our government has been there for Canadians and the whole country's public health care system ever since the pandemic hit. In the last two years alone, we have invested over $64 billion to support the health care system. The Prime Minister has made it very clear that we will always be there to work with our provincial and territorial partners to support…
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Mr. Speaker, for several years now, we have been engaged in an ongoing, constructive dialogue with our partners, the provinces and territories, about the best way to support the health care system that is so important to Canadians. Last week, I spoke with the chair of the Council of the Federation, Premier Horgan, to discuss how exactly the federal government can continue to support the public hea…
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Mr. Speaker, our government is very proud of the changes we made to make the Senate less partisan and more effective. I think members would agree with me that it is somewhat ironic, coming from the party of Stephen Harper, to be lectured—
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Mr. Speaker, the pleasure is mine. I think members will agree with me that it is somewhat ironic for our government to be lectured by the party of Stephen Harper for the quality of the women and men we have appointed to Canada's Senate. We strive to appoint outstanding people, while respecting the diversity of the country. We are very proud of the appointments we have made from the province of Alb…
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Mr. Speaker, quite the contrary, the last thing we would do is point a finger at municipal or provincial partners with whom we have worked collaboratively to make historic investments in public transit. It is good for the quality of life for people who live in our cities. It is obviously good for our collective fight against climate change. I had an excellent meeting with the board of directors of…
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