Parliamentary Speeches
1,397 speeches by François-Philippe Champagne — Page 13 of 28
Government Orders
Madam Chair, I think it is important for the Minister of Finance to know many things when preparing a very ambitious budget that is going to build Canada strong.
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Chair, I am not in the job of guessing. I will let the member guess in front of Canadian viewers tonight if he wants to make projections.
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Chair, what we are doing is fighting against the tariffs. The best thing for Canadian workers and industry is to have no tariffs. That is what we are fighting for.
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Chair, every member of the House knows that the tariffs are hurting our workers across the nation and our industry. That is why the Prime Minister and my colleagues are seized with fighting against the tariffs.
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Chair, we have rebuilt the auto sector in many parts of the country, and we are going to continue to work with the leadership and the union—
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Chair, I can say that the member would see that Canada has been ranked top in class when in comes—
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Chair, I am fighting every single day for forestry workers, for steel workers and for auto workers, and they know I have their back. We will keep fighting for them.
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Chair, as I said, what folks watching at home want is to have a government that has their back. That—
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Chair, the member is an experienced member. He would have seen in “The Fiscal Monitor” that the deficit in the budget from April 2024 to March 2025 is at $43.2 billion.
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Chair, I am happy to confirm what the member can read in “The Fiscal Monitor”. The number in “The Fiscal Monitor”, from April 2024 to March 2025, in terms of a budget deficit, is $43.2 billion.
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Chair, the member would know that we are very fiscally prudent, and with our team, we are managing the finances of Canada in the way that we are bringing—
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Chair, my colleague would be pleased, because I know he is a man who likes the numbers, to see that we have the lowest debt-to-GDP ratio in the G7, a great position—
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Chair, again, the member will be very pleased to know that there are only two countries in the G7 that have a AAA credit rating and that Canada is one of them. He should be very proud of that.
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Chair, my colleague will be happy to learn that the public debt chart is a percentage of nominal GDP. If he looks at the last few years, more than a decade, he will see it is always around 1.5%. This is going to be—
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Chair, the member would be pleased to see that in 2023-24, the percentage of the public debt chart, as a percentage of nominal GDP, was 1.8%. This is a great position to be in as a country—
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Chair, I hope that the member will have seen that this is a new government with a new Prime Minister: a government with ambition, a government that wants to build a Canada strong and a government that is going to build the infrastructure that is going to be needed to be resilient in the economy—
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Chair, the member should take comfort in the fact that Canada has the lowest debt-to-GDP ratio in the G7 and has a AAA credit rating. Only Germany and Canada, of the G7 countries, have that rating, so it is a great position to be in.
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Chair, my colleague will be pleased to see that in the estimates that we published, the Canada health transfer will increase by $2.6 billion. That is going to be important to support—
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Chair, my colleague will be happy to learn that in fiscal equalization, we will have an increase of $916 million, so they are going to be transferred to support—
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, it is a pleasure to see you. What a great speech that was. In such an eloquent way, the member went over every aspect of what we have offered to Canadians. I even saw Conservative members listening with a lot of intent and attention. They appreciate our colleague. He always has very important questions. What is in Bill C-4 for Canadians? Everything in Bill C-4 is about Canadians. The …
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, like the member, I served in the army cadets. Those were some of the best years of my life. I learned about discipline. I learned about respect. I learned about service, in a way. I was very young, and it taught me a lot. I want to thank all members of the armed forces for their commitment and dedication. They always put the country first. The member is right. Yesterday was a great da…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, the contrast could not be stronger. On this side of the House, we think a vibrant democracy needs a vibrant media. I am happy my colleague, the member, asked this very important question. On this side of the House, we said we would support CBC/Radio-Canada. This is because we believe in democracy. We believe in Canadian values. We believe in a strong Canada. We believe in being proud …
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, what really matters is that we will always be there to defend Canadian industry and Canadian workers. Not only will we look at what our American colleagues may put on the table, but Canada is always going to be there to support our industry and support our workers. This is sometimes the best—
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I see there are even more Conservative members joining. It must be fascinating at this time of the evening to listen to the great things we have been doing for the automobile sector in this country. Whether it is Windsor or Brampton, the workers there know we have their backs and we are going to continue to attract investments. I see more Conservatives cheering now.
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, not only I was aware, there was a press release with my name on it. I was more than aware. I would say I am happy the members read the press releases from the Government of Canada, because it is important for them to be informed about the important issues that are being raised and that—
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Chair, allow me to read this: “Canada announces new support for Canadian businesses affected by U.S. tariffs”. This press release is dated April 15, 2025. To my knowledge, there is nothing more public than a Government of Canada press release. It is a way of informing Canadians. I am proud to see that my colleague has read this press release in both official languages.
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, first, I would like to congratulate my colleague on his election and his very important role as parliamentary secretary to the Minister of Industry. I just listened to an eloquent speech. I think we can all agree that the member gave a very thoughtful speech, in which he raised a number of important issues. I am proud to have him as a colleague in caucus. We will learn a lot from him.…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, as we have said, these funds will be used to support our workers and our industry. This is already happening. We are here for the steel and aluminum workers in Quebec.
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, let me begin by congratulating my colleague. This is one of the first times I have heard him speak in the House. I want to welcome him. My colleague has already heard me answer this question. To date, we have collected $1.7 billion in countertariffs, and we will reinvest this money to support industry and our workers.
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, what I am about to say will interest my colleague. I know he is a numbers guy. I see he is taking notes, so he takes numbers seriously. The amount that has been received to date is $1.7 billion. He will be pleased because I know the people of Beauce, and they will be happy to know that these funds will be reinvested—
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, my colleague will be happy. I can see it in his eyes. He will be happy to learn that there are already programs in place to help businesses with cash flow. I recently talked about it with people from the steel industry, including people from Quebec. Since programs are already in place to support them, I suppose that he is going to be pleased tonight.
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, there are programs to support the industry and workers. We have talked about this before. These are important programs. My colleague may not be aware, but people in the industry are very familiar with the programs and are very aware of them.
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, it is simple. We have to fight these unjustified and illegal tariffs every day. I would like our Conservative colleagues to join us in this fight. I know that people in the industry support us.
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, we are not waiting; we have already taken action. We already have tools in the toolbox. My colleague is from Beauce, so he should be familiar with toolboxes. We have plenty of tools in our toolbox to help our people.
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, there is no inaction. We are taking action over here. Just talk to people in industry. They know what a tool box is and they know that in our Liberal tool box, there are tools to help them.
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I will provide an equally clear answer: It is to fight every day. The Prime Minister is fighting, the ministers are fighting, Canada is fighting against these tariffs. I invite my colleague to join us in this historic battle. He will be able to tell his grandchildren that he did something good for the country.
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, my colleague, the Minister of International Trade, and I are finding new markets for certain steel and aluminum products. It is important to diversify exports and we are working together with the industry.
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I would even invite my colleague to give my number to this Beauce business owner. I would very much like to speak with him. I recently hosted Beauce residents who thanked me for being there for them, for defending them and for providing liquidity to industry. These are tangible ways to help people in Beauce and across Quebec and Canada defend themselves against these unjustified, unfa…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I am very proud to answer questions from my colleague. Like I said, he comes from a great region, where my family is also. I have seen him in action. It is great to see that—
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I would first like to congratulate my colleague from Toronto—St. Paul's. She is an extraordinary colleague. I have had a chance to see her in action in so many ways. She held various senior posts in finance as well, and we could see that in her speech. I am sure the people of Toronto—St. Paul's have been watching tonight at home and listening to her and saying that this is someone who…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, that is a very important question. Like I said, when we had the G7 meeting, we had the opportunity to show the world that Canada and the other G7 finance colleagues were standing shoulder to shoulder with Ukraine. In fact, there is good news in the main estimates: There is an increase in the development and financial intermediary response for Ukraine of $200 million. What the Ukrainia…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, it will take me less than a minute to provide good news to Canadians. If we look at the increase for the Canada health transfer, we are talking about an increase of $2.6 billion. This is money that would go to support health care in Toronto—St. Paul's, in Shawinigan, in Brampton and everywhere across the country. This is really good news. We have a government that is standing up for C…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, first of all, I am happy to say hello to my colleague. He was my critic when I was a young man, when I started in this House. Now I see that, 10 years later, I still have the pleasure to have to answer his questions. He comes from a great region. My dad lives next to him—
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I am so glad to hear that my colleague is actually paying so much attention to what I do. I also travel to Shawinigan every weekend, and I would be glad to invite him there as well. He seems to be very interested in where I am going. It is great. I travel—
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, the member went from travel to tariffs; I guess that is because they both start with “T”. That must be in the order of questions. Colleagues would know that there is a great framework in place. My colleague is an experienced member—
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I would be pleased to speak to the member's constituents. I know a few of them, and they are great people. I can refer them to the April 15 press release. There is a lot of good information there. I know our Conservative colleagues would like to read the press releases of the Liberal government—
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I would be more than happy to refer my colleague to the press release of April 15. He will find a lot of good information there, and he can direct his constituents to apply—
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I always want to inform the member's constituents. We are going to fight. That is something Canadians understand; they know how to fight. That is why we said, “elbows up”. I think it has galvanized Canadians across the nation.
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, we always do what is appropriate to defend our industry and our workers. I would hope that our Conservative friends would join us in the fight. This is an existential fight for Canada, and I know that in their heart they would want to be part of this generational opportunity to fight along with us.
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, members are free to speak. This is the House of Commons. This is the House of the people. Everyone is free to speak their mind, and I would invite every member to do so. I have been here for a decade, and I have always spoken my mind.
Read full speech →