Government Orders
Madam Speaker, we need a tax system that is fair and equitable. The system should be progressive, with the wealthy contributing more to support public services. Obviously, that should apply to corporate profits too. To achieve a fair and equitable tax system, I urge parliamentarians to do much more to fight tax evasion and tax avoidance. Tax havens are becoming increasingly popular because of lax …
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Madam Speaker, I completely agree with my colleague that this has to change. We just need the government to show some political will. The problem is that the power keeps bouncing back and forth between two parties that have no interest in doing anything about it, so it remains legal. The kind of scheme my colleague described would simply be illegal in many other countries, and possibly even punish…
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Madam Speaker, first, I would like to thank the hon. member for Victoria for making such a concerted effort to ask her question in French. We have all had the experience in the House where we hear the interpretation while we are asking our question. To hear your question being translated, especially in your mother tongue, is quite disconcerting, so I salute her effort. The Bloc Québécois is a prog…
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Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague and friend for the question, although when he mentioned the second CEGEP, I realized he was talking about UQAM. That is a serious mistake. I would have him know that the economics department at UQAM does good work. Keynes' work certainly contributed to the establishment and creation of the first central banks and highlighted their importance. The other thing tha…
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Mr. Speaker, I appreciated my colleague's speech, in which she talked about the difficult situation that seniors are experiencing because of inflation and price increases. She talked about increasing old age security to better support them. The problem we have with that increase is that only seniors aged 75 and over will benefit. The government is leaving out people aged 65 to 75. In the fight aga…
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague from Châteauguay—Lacolle for her speech, which was certainly very interesting. She spoke at length about the measures her government is putting in place to deal with inflation, including dental insurance and rent assistance. However, when we read the bill, it is clear that it is not compatible with what exists in Quebec. Quebec has its own rent assistance program,…
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Madam Speaker, thank you for keeping decorum in the House. As I was saying, we cannot take these huge price increases and the hardship they cause lightly, especially when it comes to the price of food, electricity and housing. My thoughts are with the millions of seniors who were already struggling to make ends meet before prices started going up. They are now facing an impossible task, making cho…
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Madam Speaker, the current inflationary crisis is affecting everyone and putting millions of households in hopeless situations. Families must make agonizing choices to be able to continue making rent or mortgage payments. Many low-income people are cutting back on food and going hungry. The same is true for many middle-class households that are heavily in debt. Such a huge increase in prices, espe…
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Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for his question. I have a few things to say to him in response. First, I would love to analyze and study the impact of the Liberal government's carbon tax. This tax will increase gradually, and it is set to triple by 2030, not right now when we are in the middle of an inflationary crisis. What will be the actual, concrete impact on the price of food and the cos…
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Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for his question, even though it was not asked in French. Perhaps he will try next time. The trickle-down theory, which refers to the notion of creating wealth before distributing it, was popular in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s. I would say that it was possible to continue embracing the theory up until the 1990s. It was an ideological vision. Since the 1990s, howe…
Read full speech →Statements By Members
Mr. Speaker, it was two years ago today. It has been two years since the heartbreaking death of Joyce Echaquan; two years since her shocking, yet preventable death; two years since she recorded and streamed racism in its most tragic manifestation. On behalf of the Bloc Québécois, I want to tell Joyce Echaquan's husband, Carol Dubé, her seven children and her loved ones that we stand with them as t…
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Mr. Speaker, I wish to say hello to the parliamentary secretary and thank her for her speech. Her speech focused on inflation. In fact, Bill C-30 is a response to inflation. How will her government support developing countries that are dealing with serious inflation problems? They are facing a food shortage and an energy crisis. International institutions encouraged these countries to take on mass…
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to know if he agrees that the government took a really boneheaded approach to writing Bill C‑31. We agree with the principles, but it is written all wrong. Allow me to provide some examples. Rent relief will be provided via the Canada housing benefit, but no one in Quebec receives that. Quebec has its own program with the right to opt out with compensation. There is not a…
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Madam Speaker, I would ask for the consent of the House to share my time with my esteemed colleague, the member for Trois-Rivières.
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Madam Speaker, I want to remind my hon. colleague that bills are introduced by the government. That is why I chided the government and not the NDP. Bill C-30 is well written. It is a few pages long and everything is clear. We support that bill. The Bloc Québécois was already asking the government last fall to increase the GST/HST credit to fight inflation, so we are very happy to see that. Bill C-…
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Madam Speaker, I thank the minister for his speech. Bill C‑30 talks about increasing the GST rebate. That is a good measure that could have been brought in sooner. This measure was announced at the same time as the measures in Bill C‑31 concerning a dental plan and rent assistance. However, if we look closely at the bill, the rent assistance is provided through the Canada housing benefit. This ben…
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Madam Speaker, I thank the parliamentary secretary for his speech. As I said to his colleague, the minister, we are in favour of increasing the GST credit as set out in Bill C‑30. That is actually something we have been calling for, and we think it should have been done long ago to help the less fortunate fight inflation. The measures in Bill C‑30 were proposed at the same time as those in Bill C‑…
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Mr. Speaker, I thank the parliamentary secretary for his speech. The government has introduced three measures to combat inflation. The Bloc Québécois is in favour of increasing the GST/HST credit as set out in Bill C‑30. Bill C‑31 contains two more measures: dental insurance for children 11 and under and housing assistance. With respect to housing, the Bloc Québécois is concerned that the people o…
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Madam Speaker, I would like to acknowledge my colleague from Saanich—Gulf Islands, who has been a very active member of the Standing Committee on Finance since the beginning of the parliamentary session. We find the idea of a universal guaranteed livable income interesting, because everyone would have the right to it. That said, we have to determine how it can be applied, particularly in the conte…
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Madam Speaker, I want to commend my colleague on his speech. I am fortunate to serve with him on the Standing Committee on Finance. The government has announced three measures to fight inflation: the payment of GST refunds under Bill C-30, and dental benefits and rental assistance under Bill C-31. My colleague was with me for the briefing on Bill C-30, and it went well. However, members of the Hou…
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Madam Speaker, to address inflation, Bill C-30 proposes an additional GST rebate for the less fortunate. It is a good measure. We have been asking for this for quite some time, and we will be voting for it. It is good, but it is long overdue. This measure was announced at the same time as the measures introduced in Bill C-31, namely rent relief and dental insurance. We support those measures in pr…
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Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague from Guelph for his comments and his question. I quite agree with the issues he raised. The global economic outlook is uncertain, especially considering the central banks' fight against inflation and the entire context that I referred to. Most economists expect there will be a recession in Europe, especially with the war in Ukraine, which is having serious conse…
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Madam Speaker, I thank the leader of the official opposition for his speech. I would like to hear his thoughts on the leader of the government's comments about the Quebec nation, which I felt were condescending. This evening is when we would normally be celebrating Quebec's national holiday in Montreal, Quebec City and elsewhere. We leave June 23 on the calendar for any emergencies we have to deal…
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague, but I do not share his opinion. I think that, despite his verve and bombastic style, the member for Kingston and the Islands has a lot to offer to this House. We are in favour of having debates in the House, but perhaps not on the eve of Quebec's national holiday, when everyone in our ridings is celebrating.
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Mr. Speaker, yes, we would have preferred to be in our ridings to celebrate our national holiday, but as elected representatives, obviously we have a duty to be here in Parliament to debate. We would have preferred that this debate on extending the hybrid model take place at another time. There was no need to rush this motion through. We could have had this debate in the fall, especially since the…
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Mr. Speaker, he says that while standing up, taking the time to ask a question and prolonging the debate. Then he calls us hypocrites. It is unbelievable. That is it, cut the debate short. There is nothing else to say.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for her remarks, but I do not agree with her assertion. The Bloc Québécois believes the hybrid Parliament is for when people have COVID‑19 or are in contact with people who have it and could be contagious. We can use the hybrid model until the pandemic is over. We see no urgent need to adopt this motion today, June 23, when everyone in Quebec is celebrating our na…
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Mr. Speaker, today, June 23, and tomorrow, Quebeckers will gather to celebrate. I invite everyone to proudly celebrate our national holiday. The large celebrations in Quebec City and Montreal will be held tonight. In my riding, we will be celebrating this evening in Joliette, Saint-Charles-Borromée, Notre-Dame-des-Prairies, Rawdon, Crabtree, Saint-Michel-des-Saints and Sainte-Marcelline. After two…
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That is a point of debate, in my opinion. The hon. member for Leeds—Grenville—Thousand Islands and Rideau Lakes.
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Is that agreed?
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Is that agreed?
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Madam Speaker, this Saturday will be our last opportunity to hear Joël Le Bigot's smooth voice on Radio-Canada's radio show Samedi et rien d'autre. He is retiring at the end of this season. Joël Le Bigot delighted listeners every weekday morning as host of CBF-Bonjour for nearly 20 years with his team of contributors. After taking a year off, our seafaring broadcaster headed back to land to become…
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Pursuant to order made on Monday, May 2, the Minister of Seniors' request to extend the said sitting is deemed adopted. I invite the member for Flamborough—Glanbrook to continue his speech.
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I have to interrupt the hon. member because the hon. Minister of Seniors is rising on a point of order.
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We will check. And the count having been taken: We do indeed have quorum, so the member for Kitchener—Conestoga may continue.
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We will check. And the count having been taken: We have quorum, and I therefore invite the hon. member for New Westminster—Burnaby to complete his question. He has a few seconds left.
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The hon. member for Leeds—Grenville—Thousand Islands and Rideau Lakes is rising on a point of order.
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All those opposed to the hon. member moving the motion will please say nay.
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I thank the hon. member for Leeds—Grenville—Thousand Islands and Rideau Lakes for his intervention. I want to remind all hon. members that when presenting petitions in the House, they must try to avoid giving their opinion on it. The hon. member for Carleton.
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Before giving the hon. member for New Westminster—Burnaby the floor, I see that the hon. member for Durham is rising on a point of order.
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The hon. member has 10 seconds to finish presenting his petition.
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Madam Speaker, yesterday, we were looking forward to hearing the Minister of Finance provide details on her plan to help citizens and businesses deal with inflation. What a letdown. There will be no increase in the GST tax credit for people with low incomes and no monthly payments. There will be nothing for industries affected by fuel prices, such as the trucking, agricultural and taxi industries.…
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Madam Speaker, it was the same old talking points. There is no one in this government to listen to Quebeckers. Ever since the Minister of Finance started covering for both the Prime Minister and the Minister of Foreign Affairs, there is no one we can talk to about making progress on the issues that matter to businesses and citizens. The minister's three jobs, coupled with her refusal to delegate t…
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Mr. Chair, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, or the FAO, said that the current global food shortage and the current risk of famine have two root causes: the war in Ukraine and climate change. We have a collective duty, here in the House as well, to go green as quickly as possible in order to limit upheaval and ensure greater stability over the seasons so that there are fewer cr…
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Mr. Chair, I thank my colleague for his question. Obviously, more needs to be done to protect our ecosystems. That includes the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence Seaway, which provide drinking water to many communities in both Ontario and Quebec. More needs to be done. Do we need to do a better job of protecting riparian buffers? We need to consult and listen to the experts. With respect to fertili…
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Madam Chair, I want to commend and congratulate my colleague on his speech. As my colleague said, the war in Ukraine means that there is less food globally, which is deplorable, hence the explosion that we can already see in food prices. We may be facing a worldwide shortage and famine. At the same time, we see that our farmers here need fertilizers, which are produced primarily in Russia on a glo…
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Mr. Speaker, on behalf of all of my Bloc Québécois colleagues, I, too, wish to salute Mr. Dufresne and congratulate him on his appointment. In the House, in committee and elsewhere, Mr. Dufresne was the epitome of diligence, honesty and integrity. Whenever we had a question or an interaction with him, we could be sure that he had done his homework, knew his files, and would tell the truth. I will …
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Madam Chair, I thank my friend from Saanich—Gulf Islands for her speech. As I have already told the House, I think it is deplorable that some members do not have as much speaking time as others just because they represent a party with fewer than 12 seats in the House. After all, the voice of the people they represent is just as legitimate and important. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the…
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Madam Chair, I am going to come back to the same issue again, because farmers in our ridings keep asking us about it. The fertilizers were purchased and paid for before the war broke out. They are now paying a 35% tariff that was imposed when the war started. However, the farmers had already paid for their orders. Now they have to add a 35% tax, which goes to the government and does absolutely no …
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Madam Chair, I thank my colleague for his speech. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, or FAO, war and climate change are the main causes of global food insecurity. For example, last summer, droughts in western Canada, the United States and Russia, as well as flooding in Germany, resulted in disastrous harvests. It was hoped that this year, stocks could be repl…
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