Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, the president of Grain Farmers of Ontario warned that we cannot have affordable food if farmers cannot afford to farm. Fertilizer prices are crippling, and suppliers are now telling farmers they may not even have enough supply for next season. Canada is the only G7 country that has a tariff on fertilizer imports. Can the minister tell me exactly how much the Liberal government has col…
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Madam Speaker, it is great to see you back in the chair today. It is a sight for sore eyes. In my colleague's comments, he was talking about trade, not just north and south but east and west, even though our trading partner to the south of us is the most important trading partner for our economy, and the Liberals are turning their backs on it. Regarding the east-west comment, the member knows that…
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Mr. Speaker, Foothills families are shaken. A local man was charged with more than 500,000 pieces of child exploitation material, and he was released. Ten-year-old Grace asked me why this man was not in jail. She does not feel safe playing outside with her friends, and that is not right. Okotoks families want to know why a man charged with such a heinous crime was released into the community. Cons…
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Mr. Speaker, well, that is no answer from the minister. We have 30 more of those. I sure hope they upped their game with the answers. The CEO of Farm Credit Canada last year, Justine Hendricks, spent more than $213,000 just on travel. She spent another $53,000 on hospitality, including one meal for more than $6,500. This is more than a third of what a family of four spends on groceries for an enti…
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Mr. Speaker, Canada is the only G20 country in a recession, and the business leaders who actually create the jobs and attract the investment are raising the alarm. The CEO of one of Canada's largest energy companies said the Liberals' industrial carbon tax and antidevelopment laws make investing in new projects “unfinanceable”. That is interesting, because a year ago the Prime Minister promised Ca…
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Mr. Speaker, it is clear they are not taking any lessons from the business leaders in this industry. The CEO of Cenovus was crystal clear that building a new pipeline and expanding oil production to fill it is “unfinanceable”. That means the Liberals' anti-energy policies and carbon tax make investing in nation-building projects impossible, but the Liberals supporting these anti-energy policies sh…
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Mr. Speaker, I certainly understand that during question period there could be some heated moments. However, during the questions from my colleague, the member for Thornhill, who is a Jewish member of Parliament speaking about the very real threats to her community, the member for York South—Weston—Etobicoke called her a liar on a number of occasions. I would ask the hon. member if he would stand …
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister told Canadians he had a plan, but he did not say his plan was to plunge Canada into a recession. Every G7 country is facing global instability, economic headwinds and tariffs, but Canada stands alone as the only G7 country in a recession. Canada stands alone as the only G7 country whose economy has contracted in three of the last four quarters. Canada stands alone i…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, I rise today to remember the remarkable life of the iconic Albertan Don Seaman. His influence in Alberta and all of Canada will be felt for generations, especially by his friends and family and by the business leaders he mentored. A visionary pioneer of Alberta's energy sector, Don helped build Canada's economy, but his impact will reach far beyond business. In the true spirit of “bui…
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Mr. Speaker, I find it interesting that our Liberal colleague does not believe that Canadians are going without and having to skip meals. We know that the facts tell a very different story. There was the Great Depression, World War I, World War II and the global recession, and never had a Canadian government had to borrow money to help Canadians buy groceries, but that has happened twice in the la…
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Mr. Speaker, Canadian farmers expect the government to defend them at the negotiation table, not leave them behind, yet the Liberals constantly fail farmers in trade disputes. Canadian beef and pork exports to Europe and the United Kingdom dropped to zero last year, yet the Liberals are rushing into a Mercosur agreement despite the risk to Canadian cattle, pork and poultry. Mercosur countries do n…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, on a point of order, in reference to the study that is being tabled by my colleague, I think it is very important to highlight that of the recommendations in that report, which were unanimously supported by all parties, there is a recommendation to reverse the closures of those—
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Mr. Speaker, with elbows firmly down, the Prime Minister made a promise to Donald Trump to invest a trillion dollars into the United States. The promise was kept. An RBC statement shows that a trillion dollars of investment has fled Canada. The Liberal policies have caused the largest exodus of capital in Canadian history. Canadians are paying the price, with 74% saying that fuel and food costs ar…
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Mr. Speaker, as the Liberals make more promises and more announcements, they are driving farmers into the ground. Farmers lost $3.3 billion in 2024 and are expected to lose another $30 billion over the next decade, yet the Liberals continue to double down, closing research centres, imposing a fertilizer import tax and increasing the industrial carbon tax. This is why 75% of farmers are telling the…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, finally the Liberals have acknowledged that they are indeed the reason for and the cause of the affordability crisis Canadians are enduring. For years, the Liberals have tried to blame everyone else for the cost of living crisis that lays at their feet, and they know it. Donald Trump is not the one who asked them to increase the industrial carbon tax by 16% on April 1, driving up the …
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Mr. Speaker, it is incredible how the Liberals can twist themselves in pretzels. It was not that long ago they were accusing all Conservatives of taking a summer vacation while the planet burned, and now they are saying we can travel around the world. It is not a benefit when the Liberals are pocketing billions of dollars in gas tax revenue right from the pockets of Canadians who are struggling ju…
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Mr. Speaker, the Liberal gas price change amounts to what is really chump change. It is only for a third of the year, for a third of the tax. It is not relief when Canadians barely save 10¢ a litre on gas and four cents a litre on diesel. It is not relief when Canadians still have to pay the GST and the Liberal fuel tax. Canadians are going to get back pennies. Meanwhile, the Liberals are collecti…
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Mr. Speaker, I would like the minister to know that the Liberals' fuel regulations are so complicated and has made it so expensive that three-quarters of the feedstock comes from the United States or used cooking oil from China, not canola farmers in Alberta. It is the clean fuel standard, the industrial carbon tax, the escalator tax and tariffs on fertilizer that are making food unaffordable and …
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Mr. Speaker, we are not talking down the economy. The Liberals are bringing down the economy. A recent survey shows that 84% of farmers think the Prime Minister is an epic failure. I am wondering if the Prime Minister could tell me which one of his policies have made farmers so angry. Is it the fact that the Liberals are closing seven research centres and firing hundreds of scientists? Is it becau…
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Mr. Speaker, the numbers do not lie. The levers that the Liberals are pulling are obviously wrong, with 73,000 private sector jobs lost and youth unemployment at more than 14%. It is clear that young Canadians are being locked out of the workforce, cannot afford housing and cannot afford food, while the Prime Minister jet-sets to cocktail parties with global elites. Will the Liberals admit that th…
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Mr. Speaker, February's job numbers are crushing, with 108,000 full-time jobs lost, the largest collapse in full-time employment since 2020, since COVID. Youth unemployment is more than 14%. Canada now has the second-highest unemployment and the only shrinking economy in the G7. Let us be clear. It is because of Liberal policies that the private sector is hemorrhaging jobs, making the affordabilit…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, my colleague brings up an excellent point. The Prime Minister has gone to the United Kingdom on a number of occasions, and he is on his way there again later this week or next week, I believe. It is his second home, for all intents and purposes. He keeps talking about his close relationship with the Government of the United Kingdom and the EU. He calls himself a European. Why is he no…
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Mr. Speaker, I agree. I ran out of time in my speech, but I agree with the member. The indexing of the British pensions in Canada is a critical piece of this, and I hope that is resolved.
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Mr. Speaker, I apologize, but I am not aware of the amendment that my colleague moved at committee. However, I want to be clear that our agriculture stakeholders have changed their position. They want to support the United Kingdom, in good faith, joining the CPTPP. They are upset because the Liberal government should have addressed these issues before the continuity agreement expires and before th…
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Mr. Speaker, it is a pleasure to rise in the House. I will be splitting my time with the hon. member for Peace River—Westlock. The focus of my speech today is going to be on what the difference is between free trade and fair trade. As members have heard today, Conservatives are not opposed to the United Kingdom's accession to the CPTPP. However, what we are frustrated with is that once again the L…
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Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the question from my colleague, who is doing a great job as the chair of the agriculture committee. I spend time pretty much every day speaking to producers right across the country. I will say that there is guarded optimism. There is no opportunity to take advantage of these trade agreements, because they do not trust that the elements of those trade agreements will actu…
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Mr. Speaker, the agriculture minister gave his word to farmers that he would support a request for emergency use of strychnine. Prairie farmers were devastated last season, with some losing 20% of their yield. Denying the request from Alberta and Saskatchewan is another Liberal broken promise when farmers needed help the most. It is also further proof that the agriculture minister does not have cl…
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Mr. Speaker, he is disappointed. The agriculture minister gave his word to farmers. He gave his word to the provinces. He broke that promise again when farmers needed him the most. This summer, and I cannot understate this, if we do not have access to strychnine and the gopher population continues to explode, the damage on the Prairies will be catastrophic. Again, will the minister keep his word t…
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Mr. Speaker, the minister is right: It is not the farmers who are making the money. This is why 90% of agri-food business owners say that Liberal policy is restricting their ability to be productive and grow, and 70% of Canadian farmers are telling their kids not to take over the family farm. This is devastating for the future of Canadian food production and food security. It is making Canada less…
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Mr. Speaker, the Liberals are shutting down agricultural research, and now their red tape is literally choking the life out of agri-food businesses. A survey said that 90% of agri-food business owners believe that Liberal policies are putting the future of Canadian agriculture at risk. Red tape and regulations have already increased Canadian food inflation to 7.3%, by far more than double the rate…
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Madam Speaker, it is a pleasure to get up and speak to my colleague's private member's bill, Bill C-237, an act to amend the Fisheries Act. It is probably a little surprising to some of my colleagues that a member of Parliament from southern Alberta would get up to speak to a bill on Canada's Fisheries Act. Many people in the House may be surprised to learn that my riding, in southwest Alberta, is…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, I am tabling a petition on behalf of more than 600 of my constituents who signed this petition about the Canada pension plan. They are concerned by amendments that the Liberal government made to the pension plan in 2018. They are worried about the security of their pensions, especially those with disabilities. The news that the Liberal government may be dipping into the Canada pension…
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Mr. Speaker, Canadian farmers are worried that an announcement by Beijing today means there is no deal to reduce tariffs on canola. On January 16, the Prime Minister said that he was engaged in a “new strategic partnership” with the People's Republic of China. He stated, “By March 1...Canada expects that China will [reduce] tariffs on Canadian canola seed to a combined rate of approximately15%.” T…
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Mr. Speaker, it is wild to hear the foreign affairs minister claim that they support science when the Liberals are literally attacking agricultural research. They are shutting down research centres in Lacombe, Indian Head, Guelph, Quebec City, Portage la Prairie and Cumberland County. Meanwhile, they spend $19 billion on consultants, $33 million on a prison farm and $22 million on beans for women …
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Madam Speaker, I will be splitting my time with the outstanding member for Regina—Lewvan. Before I get to the essence of my speech, I would ask for the indulgence of the House for just a couple of moments. In small towns like ours, hockey is the fabric of life. Unfortunately, in my riding yesterday, that fabric became frayed. Heartbreak struck southern Alberta yesterday when three members of the S…
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Madam Speaker, perhaps Canadian consumers would wish the Liberals had stopped at the consumer carbon tax, but when we have a consumer carbon tax, and then we add an industrial carbon tax, a fuel standard tax, a P2 plastics ban, bulk labelling on fertilizer and now new labelling rules that, as I said, add $15 billion to the cost of producing food, that is why we see food inflation go from something…
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Madam Speaker, my colleague's question gives me an opportunity to comment on another point made by my colleague, the whip of the Liberal Party, who talked about how he does not like to hear from the food professor. They only like their experts, but not ours. I want to articulate the fact that when we quote the food professor, we are many times talking about the food price report. As my colleague m…
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Madam Speaker, I think that is an excellent point. This is the difference, in terms of why the Liberals were willing to throw their principles away and get rid of the consumer carbon tax. They made the mistake of actually having it on receipts and bills, where Canadians could see it. That is why they have no problem increasing the industrial carbon tax and the fuel tax. They are right. They can sa…
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Madam Speaker, my colleague was talking about honesty and how important it is. I recall sitting in the House over the past 10 years or so. At some point, the Liberals were telling Canadians and members about opposing the carbon tax while the world is burning. I remember the former health minister asking how Conservatives would dare go on a summer vacation with their kids in the car while the plane…
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Madam Speaker, I would like to request a recorded division.
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, the Liberals are literally the definition of insanity. Three years ago, the finance minister promised Canadians that the Liberals would solidify food prices. Today, he is tabling the tired Trudeau policy that failed the first time. The only results of Liberal policy are that Canada has the highest food inflation in the G7, twice that of the United States, and Canadian families are pay…
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Mr. Speaker, this is going to hurt the Liberal member, but under a Conservative government, the average weekly food cost was about $160 a week. Now it has more than doubled under the Liberals to $340 a week. The fact is that Liberal policies are driving up food prices to Canadians. The fact is that 2.2 million Canadians are using a food bank every single month. The reasons for the food prices are …
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Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister said he should be judged by the price of food at the grocery store. The food price report gave the Liberals a failing grade. It confirmed that food prices are going to increase by $1,000 a family next year, a cost they simply cannot afford. Canadians did not need a report to tell them that. They are experiencing it every single day. Canadian food banks are on the br…
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Mr. Speaker, this did not happen yesterday. A decade ago, when the Liberals took office, the average weekly food bill was about $160 a week. A decade later, it has doubled to $340 a week. That is $17,500 to feed a family of four. That is unbelievable in a country like Canada. Canadian food banks cannot manage the load. These are not just strangers. These are friends, families, co-workers and neigh…
Read full speech →Statements By Members
Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister told Canadians to judge him by “their experience at the grocery store”. Well, what Canadians see on the shelves now is Liberal failure. The food price report confirms what Canadians already know: Food prices are out of control and are going to get worse. In 2015, when the Liberals took office, the average weekly food bill was about $160. In a decade, it has doubled …
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Mr. Speaker, Canadians will have a very different point of view. They know that these food price increases, as is in this report, are a direct result of the Liberals' industrial carbon tax, fuel tax and inflationary spending. The Prime Minister himself said that he should be judged by the price of food. By his own metrics, he has failed. When the Liberals came to office, the annual food budget was…
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Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister told Canadians that he should be judged by the price of food at the grocery store. Well, the verdict is in and the Liberals have failed. Canada's food price guide said Canadians will spend $1,000 more on groceries next year, the highest increase in years. When the Liberals took office, the average weekly food bill was about $160. In a decade, it has more than double…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, it is always a pleasure to rise in the House on behalf of the constituents and families in Foothills, my farmers, my ranchers, my agri-food processors and certainly my families and entrepreneurs. Bill C-15, the budget implementation act, is anything but a plan for prosperity. It is a blueprint for higher taxes, higher debt, higher inflation and higher costs for the people who feed a…
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Madam Speaker, I just want to touch on a couple of things in my colleague's question. I think he has highlighted very well that the budget is about what is not there. What is not there is the details. The Liberals talk a lot about spending, but the success of a budget is not about how much we spend; it is about the impact that spending is going to have. We do not see anything about expanding ports…
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Madam Speaker, I would say to my incredible colleague from Cariboo—Prince George that I could not agree more. The message being sent to Canadians, especially in the forestry and energy sectors, is that the Prime Minister, at one of the most critical times in our history, just does not care. I think that says all there is to say.
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