James Bezan

Mr. Speaker, diesel is the lifeblood of Canada's agriculture and transportation industries, but today, with prices in Manitoba now reaching $2.40 a litre, Canada faces a diesel price emergency. Farmers cannot farm without diesel. Truckers cannot move goods without diesel. Trains cannot haul commodities without diesel. When diesel costs more, producing food costs more and Canadians pay more. Conservatives are calling on the government to eliminate all tax on diesel until at least Canada Day, remove the GST on fuel, permanently scrap the 19¢ per litre industrial carbon tax and secure our diesel supply. Sadly, Liberal policies add costs to the production of diesel today and discourage investments into refineries tomorrow. Canadians cannot keep paying the price for these Liberal failures. The Liberals must cut all taxes on diesel and give farmers, businesses and families the relief they deserve.

Mr. Speaker, there have been discussions among all parties for the following unanimous consent motion: That, notwithstanding any Standing Order or usual practice of the House, in relation to Bill C-219, An Act to amend the Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development Act, the Justice for Victims of Corrupt Foreign Officials Act (Sergei Magnitsky Law), the Special Economic Measures Act and the Broadcasting Act, as amended by the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development, (a) Motions No. 1 and 2 , standing in the name of the Member for Selkirk—Interlake—Eastman on today's Notice Paper, be deemed adopted; and (b) the bill be ordered to be reprinted, as further amended, for the use of the House at the report stage.

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to present a petition signed by over 500 members of military families across the country who have raised a great concern regarding access to safe, affordable and well-maintained housing. As we know, the well-being of Canadian Armed Forces members depends on them having comfortable places where they can live and raise their families. It is important that they have fair and equal access to that, that there is a proper assessment being done and that there is an increase in housing stock. We know that all this continues to fall way short of the needs of the over 6,700 military families waiting to have a home on base. The petitioners are asking for a full review of the Canadian Forces Housing Agency. They do not trust its governance, its performance or its accountability. They are asking that the Canadian Armed Forces and/or the Department of National Defence takes over the administration of the current housing stock while building new housing stock, and ensures that houses are repaired and maintained in a timely manner to ensure a safe place where military members, their spouses and families can stay.

Mr. Speaker, the Liberals themselves are warning that public investment in ag research and development has fallen by 15%. Private sector R and D outsourced to universities is down 77%. The number of firms conducting research in Canada has dropped by 30%. However, the Liberal agriculture minister is slashing $115 million in agriculture research. Science took the hit for 75% of the cuts in his department. Did the agriculture minister personally approve these cuts, yes or no?

Mr. Speaker, everything the Liberals say about our military is just an illusion. They promised our troops raises, but they never materialized. Retention benefits for reserves are missing in action. The Liberal minister is gutting housing support for our troops by up to $7,000 a year, plus he is hiking housing rents on Canadian Armed Forces members. Our military is short over 8,600 personnel and over half of our military occupations are suffering critical staff shortages. Why is the defence minister making retention worse for our soldiers, sailors and aviators?