Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, the minister has already responded to this slew of falsehoods. What we still have not heard is the opinion of the Conservative MP for Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles. The Monterosso project is in his riding. Dozens of affordable housing units are being built thanks to the agreement we signed with the Quebec government exactly one year ago. However, his Conservative leader says these …
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Mr. Speaker, our colleague is absolutely right that it is important to support the middle class and all those working hard to join it. That is why it is so sad to see the Conservatives vote against the Canadian dental care plan, which the NDP also worked very hard to bring in. One million Quebeckers now have their Canadian dental care plan card. We are looking forward to moving forward in 2025 to …
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Mr. Speaker, the good news is, this morning, we announced an additional $92 million for the historic agreement with the Government of Quebec, which is now building 3,000 new affordable housing units. This is a big problem for the Conservative leader, who says those homes do not exist. Where is the Conservative leader going to hide his members for Montmagny—L'Islet—Kamouraska—Rivière-du-Loup, Chico…
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Mr. Speaker, our colleague is well aware that, in the House, members have to choose the right words to express things properly. If he would like to learn more about indigenous procurement, which is very important to the Canadian government, then he should ask respectfully and I will be more than happy to meet with him to explain how it works.
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Mr. Speaker, I have two things to say. The first is that what the member just said is false. The second is that the minister has explained himself several times. What we have not heard today is the reason why, after several hundred days, the Conservative leader is still refusing to get his security clearance, not only to protect himself but also to protect his members. His only priority is to trig…
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Mr. Speaker, first, let us talk about investment. In my colleague's riding, investments were made for affordable housing units that are currently under construction. The Conservative leader raised doubts about funding for more than 200 such units last week because he wants to cancel the agreement with the Government of Quebec. Second, let us talk about important things, too. Will my colleague ask …
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Mr. Speaker, the worst way to defend supply management is to join forces with the Conservative Party and form an alliance with it. It is the Conservatives who continue to oppose supply management and always will. They could not support us when we defended supply management when dealing with the Americans. Unfortunately, the Bloc Québécois is currently forming an alliance with them.
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Mr. Speaker, I want to make three points. The first, which my colleague knows, is that the Conservative leader built a total of six affordable housing units across the country during his entire term in office. The second point is that, a week ago, the Conservative leader announced that he would cancel a $900-million agreement with the Quebec government that is about to launch the construction of 8…
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Mr. Speaker, you know that the Conservative leader built six affordable housing units during his entire tenure as minister responsible for housing. What is more, we searched for them all summer and could not find them. Then he added another layer, saying that building affordable housing, including for seniors, on federal property is a form of communism. The good news is that we are going to build …
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Mr. Speaker, the Conservative leader mentioned picking fights. He is the one who insulted Quebec municipalities by calling them incompetent. Will he apologize for calling Quebec's municipalities and, indirectly, all their employees and the Government of Quebec, incompetent? Let us not forget that, during his term as minister responsible for housing, he built six affordable housing units.
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Mr. Speaker, the Conservative leader has a big problem. He claims to be among the world's leading economists on monetary policy, when he has not even read the beginning of the first chapter of an Economics 101 textbook on monetary policy. If he had, he would know that, when it comes to preventing inflation and helping the central bank reduce interest rates, one of the fundamental rules of monetary…
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Mr. Speaker, what is bad for Quebeckers, including young Quebeckers, are the insults, lies and austerity that the Conservative leader keeps promoting. That is what he does every day. He wants to make cuts, including cuts to housing investments that young Quebeckers need. Not only is the Conservative leader calling everyone, including Quebec's municipalities, incompetent, but he also wants to rip u…
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Mr. Speaker, one, two, three, four, five, six affordable housing units is what the Conservative leader built during his entire tenure as the minister responsible for housing. Even so, he calls Quebec's municipalities incompetent despite the fact that they are currently building 8,000 affordable housing units across Quebec under the historic agreement we signed. Quebec municipalities do not need le…
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague, who is a true champion of affordable and social housing in Quebec. He knows as well as I do that, although the Conservative leader is very, very good at hurling insults, his Conservative policy would be very, very bad for Quebeckers. He keeps attacking Quebec municipalities and calling them incompetent, when they are in the process of building 8,000 affordable ho…
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Mr. Speaker, Bloc MPs and other members in the House can choose to sabotage the Canadian government's efforts to help seniors in their own ridings. There are 7,400 seniors enrolled in the Canadian dental care plan in my colleague's riding. In many cases, this is the first time in many years that these seniors are receiving accessible and affordable dental care. When it comes to investments in hous…
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Mr. Speaker, while there is, indeed, much to say about the Conservatives' hidden agenda, I will leave it to the Conservatives to talk about their increasingly not-so-hidden hidden agenda. We will talk about something more relevant to members from Quebec, at least in the context of the question, and that is the relationship with the Government of Quebec. Over the past few weeks, we have made three …
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Mr. Speaker, the Conservative leader obviously still does not understand the rules of the House, even after being here for 20 years. Another thing that he still does not understand is the importance of dental care for Quebeckers. He is talking about hurting Quebeckers. What is he telling Quebeckers in my region? He is telling them not to enrol in the Canadian dental care plan because it does not e…
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Mr. Speaker, the reality is that immigration and citizenship are federal responsibilities, and we work with the provinces and territories. If citizenship were under provincial jurisdiction, that would be a different story, but Canada is still a country. The good news is that we are working very closely and effectively with the Quebec government on numerous immigration and asylum seeker issues, and…
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Mr. Speaker, all government organizations, all departments, all Crown corporations and all agents working for the Canadian government have the same responsibility to respect the Access to Information Act, and that is what is expected in this case too.
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Mr. Speaker, that is utter nonsense. The member opposite is talking about how hard it is for people to feed their kids, how too many kids are going to school hungry in the morning and yet, last week, his Conservative leader said it would merely feed bureaucracy to support community organizations, including those in my colleague's riding, that help kids go to school in the morning on a full stomach…
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Mr. Speaker, our congratulations to the member for Saint-Léonard—Saint-Michel on the remarkable success of the Canadian dental care plan in her riding, which mirrors the success of the 750,000 Canadians who have been able to receive dental care in recent months. We also offer our congratulations to the Conservative member for Bellechasse—Les Etchemins—Lévis for taking the top prize, with 18,000 se…
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Mr. Speaker, I worked in academia in Quebec for a long time. I know how hard the university community, university administrations, faculty members and department heads work to hire people based on merit. We know that diversity makes our universities strong everywhere in Canada, including Quebec. That is why we will always work with the Government of Quebec, with all those who fight against discrim…
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Mr. Speaker, incompetence is talking about how children are going to school hungry in the morning and then preventing the Canadian government, the NDP and the Bloc Québécois from supporting those children. Is my colleague open to coming with me to Moisson Québec and the Granit food bank in his riding to explain to them why it is bureaucratic to help children learn better at school and get to schoo…
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Mr. Speaker, one, two, three, four, five, six affordable homes. That is all the Conservative leader and chief insult-hurler built across the country during his entire time as minister responsible for housing. We spent all summer looking for those six units. We have yet to find them. In contrast, 160 affordable housing units have been built in the member's own riding in just the last few months, in…
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Madam Speaker, if there is one thing that is easy to do, it is to engage in divisive politics. Dividing Canadians and Quebeckers is very simple. It can be done quite easily. What is harder and more important is bringing people together. All of us in this House have the responsibility and the opportunity to unite, whether we are Quebeckers of one origin or another, white or Black, male or female, w…
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Madam Speaker, I would like to mention three things. First, we increased assistance for seniors aged 75 and up. As my colleague may know, even if it is not from personal experience, when people age, their needs increase and their income goes down. They find it more difficult to work and have to pay more for medication, housing and transportation. Second, we have always said that we will continue t…
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Madame Speaker, my colleague spoke about feeding his Conservative leader's ego. The Conservative leader had a brilliant idea about two days ago, when he said that helping children go to school in the morning on a full stomach is all about feeding bureaucracy. He said that helping children who have no food to fill their bellies before learning is simply about feeding bureaucracy. Are we talking abo…
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Madam Speaker, what a good idea to ask a question on September 20, the day the Canada child benefit payment is made, a day when, in his riding, families are receiving, on average, a nearly $650 non-taxable payment. There are nearly 8,000 families in my colleague's riding. Unfortunately, it is always the same old story. The Conservative Party wants to cut everything, including the Canada child bene…
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Madam Speaker, once again, the member is asking questions to the leader of the Bloc Québécois. I do not know why she is looking at this side of the House. In any case, she did not answer my question. Will she call her insulting Conservative leader to order? Yesterday, again, he spent the day hurling insults. Quebeckers are not like that. Will she call her Conservative leader to order and also ask …
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Madam Speaker, as my colleague may know, I worked in academia for a long time. Quebec universities are known across Canada and around the world for the remarkable level of expertise they have achieved. I have every confidence in the ability of Quebec universities to make the right decisions. They make them based on their employees' skills, but also based on diversity, which is important to have in…
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Madam Speaker, our colleague talks about platitudes. It is not a platitude to say that, as of July 22, 8,022 seniors in her riding were able to get affordable and accessible dental care. Many of them had waited for years for dental care, dentures, exams and cleanings because they are so expensive. Many of them, unfortunately, waited far too long. Indeed, the longer a person waits, the more expensi…
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Madam Speaker, I am a bit surprised. We just heard that supporting seniors should not be the Canadian government's job and that members of the House should not be helping seniors in their ridings. All that seems rather strange and surprising to me in a discussion about helping seniors. All members of the House have a responsibility to help seniors. In this case, it is very easy. People need to cal…
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Madam Speaker, my colleague's question is directed at the leader of the Bloc Québécois, so the leader of the Bloc Québécois will have to answer. However, I am going to give her some very useful information. In her riding, as of July 22, 16,452 seniors had received their member card under the new Canadian dental care plan. The problem is that his Conservative leader said on the radio in Quebec City…
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Madam Speaker, we know how important it is to help seniors, especially after the pandemic. The good news is that 12 out of the 22 projects in Quebec have been approved. Now there are 10 left. All the Government of Quebec has to do is press the “M‑30 button” and the money will flow to the community organizations in her riding and many other ridings. Once it is done, the community organizations in Q…
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Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives certainly cannot be counted on to defend Quebec's interests, and certainly not those of the Quebec government. The Conservatives, including unfortunately my colleague from the Quebec region, want to cut everything, and this includes cuts to child care, housing, public transit and health transfers. How is making cuts, cuts and more cuts, including cuts to supports for…
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Mr. Speaker, like you, I was a page in the House of Commons a few years back, and I would like to congratulate and thank the new cohort of pages we are fortunate to have with us this year. We know how important their responsibilities are. Members of the House appreciate their service. I thank them for being with us in the coming months. As for the Leader of the Opposition, what he is saying is lau…
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Mr. Speaker, unfortunately, we cannot count on the Conservatives' lieutenant to defend the interests of Quebec either. A few weeks ago, he had a good idea. He said that the money for modern public transit should go to the people of Quebec City. A few hours later, his leader rebuked him and humiliated him. He said not to listen to his Quebec lieutenant, that the money going to the Quebec City regio…
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Mr. Speaker, if he spends so much time in Quebec City, then my colleague, the Quebec lieutenant, should have heard what his Conservative leader said on Radio-Canada recently. He said that the Canadian dental care plan does not exist. He said that he cannot say why he is against it because he does not think that it exists, and yet 10,500 seniors in his riding have received their cards for the Canad…
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Mr. Speaker, I apologize. I said something I should not have.
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Mr. Speaker, instead of undermining the interests of Quebeckers, my colleague from Mégantic—L'Érable should be looking out for his constituents and correcting the lies told by his Conservative leader, who says that the Canadian dental care plan does not exist. In my colleague’s riding, 11,000 seniors have registered for the Canadian dental care plan, yet he stands by while his leader claims that t…
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Mr. Speaker, on the contrary, for the first time in this country's history, the new Official Languages Act recognizes that French is in jeopardy in Quebec and that it must be protected across the country, but especially in Quebec. I have already answered that question. I made it clear that all Crown corporations are subject to the same treatment. I have a few seconds left, so, on behalf of all mem…
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Mr. Speaker, not only is the Conservative leader against the Canadian dental care plan, but he also misled seniors in Quebec City by saying on the radio just a few days ago that the Canadian dental care plan does not exist and that people should not try to register for it. That shows contempt for seniors in Quebec. The good news is that it is not working, because over one-third of the two million …
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for giving me the chance to remind the entire House that all federal institutions, including Crown corporations like Canada Post, are subject to the Canadian government's Official Languages Act. The good news is that this act was strengthened in the past few years. For the first time in this country's history, this act and the Canadian government recognize that we…
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Mr. Speaker, what we can do today is go visit some of the 222 affordable homes built in his riding over the last few months. That figure does not include the thousands of homes that will be built there in the coming years with the support of the Quebec government. Unfortunately, this stands in stark contrast to the six affordable homes that his Conservative leader built during his entire tenure as…
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Mr. Speaker, I would not want to compare the records of Conservative MPs in the Quebec City region. In her own riding of Bellechasse—Les Etchemins—Lévis, 205 affordable housing units have been built in recent years. That is slightly less than the 222 affordable housing units in Charlesbourg—Haute‑Saint‑Charles, but it is far more than the six affordable housing units that our colleague, the MP for…
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Mr. Speaker, it has been a while since we reminded my colleague from Charlesbourg—Haute‑Saint‑Charles that his Conservative leader built six affordable housing units across the country during his entire career as minister responsible for housing, while there are 222 in his riding alone and, in the next few days, we will be announcing the Habitations Charles IV housing project right in his riding. …
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Mr. Speaker, I have bad news for the member for Chicoutimi—Le Fjord. A hundred and eighty-one affordable housing units have been built in his riding. Now for the good news: 181 affordable housing units is 30 times more than the six units that the Conservative leader built across the whole country during his entire career as housing minister. He got six affordable housing units built. I know people…
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Mr. Speaker, how can the Conservative leader and chief insult-hurler explain the nonsense of asking someone who earns $500,000 in capital gains to pay less tax than a nurse who earns $50,000? How can he claim that it is common sense to ask middle-class families to pay more tax than those who make huge capital gains?
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Mr. Speaker, unlike Conservatives, who have been treating home ownership like a casino, we put in place a foreign buyers ban so that foreign speculators no longer price out hard-working Canadian families. Unlike the Conservatives, we are working with MPs in the GTA to use public lands for affordable homes and not for the profits of the highest bidders, and our plan for tax fairness is asking wealt…
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Mr. Speaker, my colleague knows full well that that decision and recommendation were made by the National Capital Commission, an independent organization, which has said that it wants to focus on revitalizing downtown Ottawa. It recommended this decision to the Treasury Board, obviously without the Prime Minister's Office, or any other minister not associated with the Treasury Board, having a say …
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