Parliamentary Speeches
1,397 speeches by François-Philippe Champagne — Page 4 of 28
Government Orders
Mr. Chair, I would be pleased to quote something that I know my colleague would like: “Canada Leads the G7 in Direct Investment Inflows Per Capita”. We are way ahead of the United States, and the investments we are making are going to attract even more investment.
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Mr. Chair, I would be happy to quote this again: “Canada Leads the G7 in Direct Investment Inflows Per Capita”. In fact, it is nearly double that of the United States on a per capita basis. Investors, like my colleague, understand that Canada is the place to invest. That is why we have seen record investment in 2025, and that is why we are seeing more and more firms looking to invest in Canada. Th…
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Mr. Chair, I am trying to understand the line of questioning of my colleague. I think she should be celebrating the fact that Canada received record levels of foreign direct investment in 2025 and that we are leading the G7 on per capita FDI. It is good news, and we are going to continue to work with colleagues to attract investment in this country.
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Mr. Chair, a good Conservative, which I know my colleague is, would celebrate an open economy. Canada has an open economy where we welcome investment in our country. We have seen these investments that have grown the GDP in this country. They have created jobs. Let us think about Volkswagen if they want to talk about the auto sector. It is the largest gigafactory outside of Europe. European manufa…
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Mr. Chair, I know that my colleague will be happy to learn that Canada has the second-fastest growth in the G7. We are growing twice as fast as countries such as Germany and the United Kingdom, and even three times faster than Italy. We are growing twice as fast as Japan. Tonight, we should celebrate the workers, the industry and the small and medium-sized businesses. These numbers speak for thems…
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Mr. Chair, Canadians have a choice to listen to the opposition or to the International Monetary Fund, which does not need a clip or to grandstand. The IMF forecast for 2026 real GDP growth in the G7 is as follows: Italy, 0.5%; Japan, 0.7%; Germany, 0.8%; United Kingdom, 0.8%; France, 0.9%; and Canada, 1.5%. These numbers speak for themselves.
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Mr. Chair, I would like to take a moment to thank my colleague because I know how proud the young people of Moncton—Dieppe are tonight to have a strong voice in Ottawa. She is a colleague I can applaud. She is a strong voice for the region and for New Brunswick. When my colleague speaks, Ottawa listens. The proof is that my colleague was one of the architects of many of the measures found in the b…
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Mr. Chair, it is good to have amazing colleagues like the minister who come and have very pointed questions. In fact, I know my Conservative colleagues understand as well that Canada offers unparalleled stability, predictability and the rule of law. Like many of my colleagues, I studied law. I remember that I had this professor who said, “Find me a place in the world that does not have the pillar …
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Mr. Chair, I am happy to see that my colleague is talking about the Canada Strong fund. As she mentioned, Nordic countries have already created, in their way, something quite similar. I think it was about time that Canada created one of these pillars of investments to be able to create—
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Mr. Chair, my colleague is very knowledgeable, as she was in finance for most of her career before being in politics. We have been extremely clear about its governance, that it is going to be at arm's length from the government and it will make its own independent decisions. What we have said is that the fund will invest in projects of national interest and also invest in Canadian companies. A man…
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Mr. Chair, my colleague is very learned in finance. There is a difference between the mandate, which we have said is very clear, and the governance, which we say is going to be independent. It will have its own separate board and will be independent from government. We know this is very important. When creating a sovereign wealth fund, governance is very important. The hon. member can be assured t…
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Mr. Chair, as I have said time and time again, and we have been very clear, the fund will be independent from the government. We know this is a very important feature of this fund. It is going to be at arm's length from the government. It will make its investment decisions in accordance with the—
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Mr. Chair, I have enormous respect for my colleague, but I think it is irresponsible of her to speak in these terms about something that will create wealth for Canadians. We have consulted widely with funds around the world about best practices, and her view is very much outside of what we have heard from all commentators internationally who speak about Canada creating its fund. They know this is …
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Mr. Chair, the voice of my colleague is very different from the voices we hear from international investors. If she reads the international press, she will see that Canada has been heralded as creating its own national sovereign wealth fund in a very Canadian way, allowing individual investors to be able to share—
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Mr. Chair, there is something to question. Everyone in the House has a role. I understand the role of the opposition is to ask questions, but I do not understand why talking down an instrument that is going to create collective wealth for Canadians is the right thing to do. In this House, we should all work together to create structure, to create more wealth for Canadians and—
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Mr. Chair, in fact, we have consulted with sovereign wealth funds around the world. We even said we would be consulting. We have already established the parameters of the fund. We are going to make sure that we have best practices, but at the same time, we in this House should be happy to see that individual investors will be able to share the growth that we are going to be creating in this countr…
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Mr. Chair, it is difficult to follow the member tonight in her line of questioning. On the one hand, she said sovereign wealth funds are a good thing, and now she wants to criticize us for creating one. It is very difficult to follow. I would ask her, is it a good thing or a bad thing? We have seen examples in Nordic countries and abroad that show creating a sovereign wealth fund is a good thing f…
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Mr. Chair, I refer the member to table A1.9 on page 125 of the spring economic statement in English. She will find the information. It is all there.
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Again, Mr. Chair, I know the member would want to refer to the document. It is all there on page 125. It is in table A1.9. She will see the numbers.
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Mr. Chair, like I said, this is an important structure we are going to be creating to create collective wealth in the country. With respect to the numbers that my colleague has been asking for, she will find them in the spring economic update. She will be able to find the numbers for herself. As she said, and as I think we should all celebrate, it is a good thing for Canada to have its own soverei…
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Mr. Chair, I would like to see my colleague have a bit more ambition for this country. This is about creating an instrument to provide collective wealth for Canadians. If it is good for the Nordic countries, as my colleague said, why would it not be good for Canada? I am asking the question to my colleague. Why would it not be good for Canada to have its own sovereign wealth fund? I think it is a …
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Mr. Chair, I would invite my colleague to look at a number of sovereign funds. There are different models around the world. Like I said, this is going to be an instrument that is going to create wealth for Canadians. I do not understand why the member would talk down the fact that we are creating collective wealth for Canadians. I hope that my colleague—
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Mr. Chair, it is a great thing that the fund would be investing in Canadian projects of national interest. We want to build this country. We want to build at a speed and scale that we have not seen in generations. This is our own Canadian model, and I would say it is very consistent with what we see in other sovereign wealth funds around the world.
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Mr. Chair, I reject the premise of the question. I would say to Canadians who are watching at home that I hope they see what is being talked about here. Canada is creating an instrument to create collective wealth and for Canadians to be able to invest and be part of that creation. I just hope that our Conservative colleagues would show more—
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Mr. Chair, I have been doing this for hours tonight. I will repeat what I have said. We understand very clearly that governance is key when setting up a sovereign wealth fund, and it is going to be at arm's length from the Government of Canada. We said that very clearly from the get-go. We are going to be consulting to incorporate best practices that we see around the world.
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Mr. Chair, before I answer, I want to commend my colleague from Compton—Stanstead for her extraordinary work. The people of Compton—Stanstead are watching us tonight on television. The Habs are not playing this evening, so I am sure they are all watching what is happening in the House. I want to tell everyone in the region how my colleague has been a strong voice, not only as an MP but also as the…
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Mr. Chair, I have to congratulate my colleague once again. She has been on top of this issue. We have seen in newsrooms across Quebec and Canada how important journalists are for our democracy and how important it is to support their work. That is why we launched consultations, for example, on the Canadian journalism labour tax credit. That is because we know how vital it is to support newsrooms a…
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Mr. Chair, I thank my colleague for his concern for my health. I would say that I am not doing too bad, health-wise. I ran three kilometres this morning. I am in fairly good shape for a man who will soon turn 56. I am quite willing to continue. I thank the member for starting slow. He is an honourable man and he said that I have been answering questions for three hours. I know that the Conservativ…
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Mr. Chair, I think it is a wonderful experience, because grocery shopping is an opportunity for me to meet my constituents and talk to people from one aisle to the next. It is a great opportunity to interact with constituents.
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Mr. Chair, my colleague is right to say that I do my own grocery shopping. I can tell him that a pound of butter weighing in at 454 grams currently costs exactly $5.50.
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Mr. Chair, I want to thank my colleague. I think it is important to be very aware of realities. My colleague comes from a rural region too. As members who work in rural communities more specifically, we are keenly aware of our constituents' reality. What I can say is that affordability is one of the issues that concerns all Canadians. That is why we acted with diligence and care to help Canadians …
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Mr. Chair, I thank my colleague for raising the issue of housing costs. I should point out that rents have come down across the country. We saw the same trend with residential property prices. They are coming down. In Canada's big cities at least, we are seeing—
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Mr. Chair, my colleague is right that Build Canada Homes is making a difference in the construction of affordable housing. As far as the statistics are concerned, I would be happy to write to him and provide him with the data for Canada as a whole. He will see that I was right when I said that, across Canada, the average price of housing has come down. We are seeing the same trend with residential…
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Mr. Chair, I would like to add a few points. I would like to give him a precise answer. For 19 consecutive months, we have seen a decline in housing prices nationwide. Regarding the issue of space launches, I think my colleague needs to take a step back and consider the benefits of being able to launch spacecraft from Canada. This is a matter of national security. I can tell him that I would be ha…
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Mr. Chair, I want to help my colleague. I think so highly of him that I want to introduce him to the people at the Canadian Space Agency so that he understands how important it is for Canada to have space launch capabilities. It is a matter of security. It is important for Canada—
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Mr. Chair, our first instinct was to reduce the deficit. My colleague should celebrate the fact that our deficit is $11 billion lower than projected in 2025. He will realize that even the 2025-26 debt will be lower in 2026-27. What we are demonstrating to Canadians is that we are managing the public purse responsibly and soundly. I am sure that this is what his constituents want to see.
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Mr. Chair, I am so glad to hear such an excellent question from my colleague. He will be happy to hear that the deficit happens to be $11 billion lower than anticipated in budget 2025. We restored fiscal discipline in this country. I will even help the hon. member out, because he will need a clip for that. He can ask the IMF, which is independent. The IMF does not need a clip to explain that to hi…
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Mr. Chair, I am once again pleased that my colleague quoted the Parliamentary Budget Officer because he confirmed the following himself. I will quote him in English. The Parliamentary Budget Officer confirmed “that the government is on track to [meet] its two fiscal anchors”, a declining deficit-to-GDP ratio and balanced operating spending by 2028-29. The PBO assesses current fiscal policy as sust…
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Mr. Chair, I will once again reassure my colleague this evening. Canada has the lowest debt-to-GDP ratio in the G7, at 10.2%. By way of comparison, Germany's ratio is 47.2%, the U.K.'s ratio is 93.8%, the United States' ratio is 96.7%, and France's ratio is 108%. This shows how well we are managing our public finances. Our debt-to-GDP ratio is the lowest among all G7 countries.
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Mr. Chair, we have taken measures to have civil servants return to the office. I think these measures are in line with the best practices seen in the industry. We have done that in a compassionate and reasonable way to make sure that people—
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Mr. Chair, what we said in the spring economic update was that we would gather the relevant information from airport authorities so that we can do the proper due diligence and assess what is best for Canadians. I think Canadians understand that we need to modernize the way that we build, operate and maintain public infrastructure in this country.
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Mr. Chair, we are always making sure that every decision we make will be in the best interest of Canadians. We want to improve services to make sure that we, as a government and as Canadians, can invest in more infrastructure in this country. That is why we have made general—
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Mr. Chair, as I said to my hon. colleague, for whom I have enormous respect, I work with him very well. By the way, I want to thank him for his contribution over the years. We have done many things together. What he is going to find in this spring economic update is in fact that we are—
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Mr. Chair, Canadians know that they can always trust the government to protect programs that are key to Canadians. I think that, in terms of national affordability benefits for Canadians, we have always been there to support Canadians in times of need. We will continue to do so.
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Mr. Chair, we have made generational investments in housing. In fact, if we look at the cost of housing measures from 2026 through to 2030‑31, we are looking at about $56 billion in investments to make sure that we build the homes that Canadians need in this country.
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Mr. Chair, I think Canadians understand the world is changing and that we as Canadians need to ensure the sovereignty of our territory. We need to protect our north. We need to protect our communities. Canada as a NATO member is willing to do its part, and we have made record investments to protect our country.
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Mr. Chair, my colleague will remember that when we did the comprehensive expenditure review, we identified $60 billion in savings. We were very careful in doing that to protect a number of departments, including those that relate to indigenous services.
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Mr. Chair, the member will remember that when I was the industry minister we made historic investments to increase the resources and the enforcement capabilities of the Competition Bureau of Canada. I know that it will do its work to protect—
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Mr. Chair, my colleague is a very close colleague in the House, and I am delighted and honoured that she is staying so late to participate in this debate. I did, in fact, meet with Fatih Birol. I had dinner with him when he came here to receive a prize. In fact, what he said to us and also to the G7, and I will give members a preview, is that the world energy infrastructure is being redesigned and…
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Mr. Chair, I can hear, from my colleague's question, the depth of analysis that she has made. That is why it is always a pleasure to engage with her in this House. She is right on competition. We know that competition is key to providing more choices and better prices for consumers. That is why, when I was the industry minister, we put more tools in the tool box of the Competition Bureau. She will…
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