Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I cannot believe the member can actually make those statements and keep a straight face. Under the Conservative Party, they actually had just below 1% of GDP going to Canada's military. The current Prime Minister, elected just over a year ago, made a commitment to bring it up to 2% of Canada's GDP. We accomplished that months after. Before the end of last year, we achieved the 2%. We …
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Mr. Speaker, I would reinforce where the Conservative Party is probably at its weakest. The member tried to paint a picture that is just not true. At the end of the day, I would compare our investments in the Canadian Forces to the Conservatives' when his leader was a member of government for 10 years. They actually dipped just below 1% of Canada's GDP. It is truly amazing that the member would tr…
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Mr. Speaker, there is no surprise at the approach the Conservative Party of Canada is taking. It does not necessarily believe in investing in Canada's infrastructure. The information that the member talks about focuses on taxes and tax breaks. The government has provided tax breaks for the issue of affordability in several different ways. I will get into that in my comments. I would like to unders…
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Mr. Speaker, Canada has the best credit rating in the G7, arguably in the world, with a AAA rating. We have the opportunity to use our financial space in order to build a stronger Canada. Why does the Conservative Party oppose that?
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Mr. Speaker, let me give a bit of a sense of this to those who might have been following the debate over the last number of months here in the House of Commons. Let me give a sense of the reality of what has taken place since the last federal election. I think we do need to take a more holistic approach, because the picture that the Conservatives paint every day, whether inside or outside the Hous…
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Mr. Speaker, part of what the member said might actually have been a little encouraging, because he seems to imply that, in principle, he would support a sovereign wealth fund. Well, I can tell the member opposite that there are many countries that actually have a sovereign wealth fund for which borrowed money was used. If the member genuinely supports the principle of a sovereign wealth fund, I w…
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Mr. Speaker, whether it is the Prime Minister, the government, or any member of the Liberal caucus, that is something we will not do, because we understand the significance of the Canada-U.S.A. relationship. Billions of dollars cross our borders every day. The relationship between Canada and the United States is well rooted, but there is something that is really important for us to recognize: Cana…
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Mr. Speaker, this is one of the things that really have not changed since the last election. In fact, this has been there for a long time. Even when I was in opposition, the Conservative twist always seems to be to attack the personalities through personal character assassinations. We often hear that today and have heard it in the past. It is a consistent issue for the Conservative Party. I say to…
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Mr. Speaker, I really welcome that question. Unfortunately, because of time constraints, I was not able to bring that into my comments. We have a fabulous program for the Red Seals. The Red Seal program is literally dozens of skilled trades that are recognized across our nation, and we have made a commitment to support Red Seal certificates. It is about $5,000 for people who actually complete the …
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Mr. Speaker, my colleague and friend has actually articulated exceptionally well, within a very short time allocation, some very important issues. If there is something I would like to just re-amplify, something I am very passionate about, it is Canada's national health program. I believe it is a part of our identity. It helps identify who we are as Canadians. I am very proud of the fact that this…
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Mr. Speaker, the youth unemployment rate is at around 14.3% today. In 2012, when I was in opposition, it was at 14.3%. Therefore, it is roughly the same, if not the same. What I will tell the member is that we are not going to cut summer youth jobs programs, because that is one of the ways young people are gaining expertise, contacts and so much more, so they will in fact have better opportunities…
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Mr. Speaker, the member referred to the labour issue and skills. The Red Seal program is going to see up to 100,000 young Canadians and others who will be able to get that Red Seal certificate through a program of this nature where we are helping. Does the member support the program?
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Mr. Speaker, if I may, I would like to pick up on a couple of points. We have heard a lot of wonderful, encouraging words this afternoon. Even though I was not at committee, I can imagine the mixed emotions that would have been expressed to the committee members and were, no doubt, part of the driving force behind building the goodwill we are witnessing today. I want to recognize the efforts of th…
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Mr. Chair, I have a number of things that I would like to say, leaving maybe 15 seconds for the minister to respond. I will try to get everything in in the next four minutes. We need to put things into the proper perspective. First of all, I would recognize that we had an election just over a year ago, when the Prime Minister made a commitment to Canadians that we were going to stabilize immigrati…
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Mr. Speaker, I want to start off with what my colleague across the way started his comments with. He made reference to the Prime Minister's going down to the United States. I think that a vast majority of Canadians see that we have a Prime Minister today who is in this for the long haul. He recognizes the importance of international trade and relationships. He was not only meeting with the Preside…
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Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 36(8)(a) I have the honour to table, in both official languages, the government's response to eight petitions. These returns will be tabled in an electronic format.
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Madam Speaker, I would ask that all questions be allowed to stand, please.
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Madam Speaker, the CRTC, at arm's length from government, made a decision. The decision is not quite as simple as the Conservatives try to portray it. At the end of the day, we have tens of thousands of jobs throughout our nation that are very much directly connected with our culture and our heritage. It is a part of who we are, our Canadian identity, and how different of mediums can influence tha…
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Madam Speaker, I am wondering if the member can provide some fact with respect to the motion itself. It concludes by saying that “the House call on the Liberal Cabinet to use their powers under the Broadcasting Act to reject the CRTC”, which is at arm's length from government. Where in the Broadcasting Act does it say that the cabinet has the authority to do what the Conservatives believe it can d…
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Madam Speaker, for those following the debate, since the start, we have heard from the far right. I mean, it is the extreme right. These people are more right than the Reform Party of the past. Talk about conspiracy theories. Two members are saying the government is trying to tell Canadians what to watch, that they cannot watch this or it is okay to watch that.
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Madam Speaker, there is a great deal of contrast on the CRTC issue between the Conservatives and the government of the day. Can the member provide some clarification on what today's right Conservative Party's position is on the CRTC? Does it believe that it has a role? It seems to me that the Conservative positioning is to get out of the way. What is the Conservatives' position on the CRTC?
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Madam Speaker, I appreciate the compliment from the member opposite. Having said that, it is a fear factor, and no one does it better than today's Conservative right party. I have been around for 35-plus years as a parliamentarian, and I have never seen a political entity cater to the far right as much as this party has. We have clearly seen a demonstration of that this morning. What a way to star…
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Madam Speaker, the Charter of Rights guarantees religious freedom. One would think that the Conservative Party members would recognize that reality, because that is a reality, but it does not fit their political script. What they want to do is cause division and get people angry. How do they do that? They will say things like, the Liberals are trying to limit religious freedoms, even though the ch…
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Madam Speaker, it is important to recognize that, domestically, we are talking about 25% compared to streamers that pay 15%. Levelling the playing field is important. We need to recognize that through the CRTC and organizations like CBC, CTV, Global and others, at the end of the day, we have had some sensational programming. Two right off the top of my head are Schitt's Creek and Corner Gas. Both …
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Madam Speaker, where I disagree with the member is with regard to any suggestion that there is a lack of support for the arts community. I think of the province of Quebec. The member himself resides in Quebec and there are 44 members of Parliament who represent that province. I can assure everyone that there is advocacy to promote and encourage further growth of the industry there. In many ways, Q…
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Madam Speaker, I was in third party opposition when Stephen Harper was prime minister. His attitude toward supporting our arts was lacking, to put it nicely. I can say that the Conservative Party today has moved even further to the right and has virtually abandoned any sort of support for our arts community. That constantly comes from the Conservative benches. My friend is very familiar with how i…
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Madam Speaker, I find it amazing that the member would even say something like that or even use the word “shame.” Let me remind him of what his good friend, the member of Parliament for Bowmanville—Oshawa North, when he travelled representing the Conservative caucus, had to say to Canadians about the U.S.-Canada trade situation. He said that we were having a “hissy fit.” That is what the Conservat…
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Madam Speaker, as I indicated earlier, I genuinely believe that Quebec leads the nation in terms of demonstrating just how important culture, heritage and arts programming are to our overall identity. When I think of the CRTC or CBC, whether it is TV or Radio-Canada, these are important institutions that are there to protect one of the things that Canadians value very much, the fact that we are a …
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Mr. Speaker, it has been an interesting learning process in terms of what the Conservative members have been speaking about this morning. There is definitely a reaffirmation in terms of a lack of commitment to the CBC, as an example, and reaffirming their commitment to take away financing. When I asked the former speaker about their position on the CRTC and its future here in Canada, that question…
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Mr. Speaker, one of the principal arguments that the Conservatives are using is that what the independent body of the CRTC is proposing is having such a profound impact that it is not worth protecting our industry. The industry I am referring to is our arts industry, which creates and has literally tens of thousands of jobs, directly and indirectly. They are trying to blame it all in regard to the…
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Mr. Speaker, it is the independent, arm's-length CRTC that has made the decision. I think it is important for us to recognize that Canada is not alone. There are other G7 countries that have what the Conservatives are saying we should not have as a nation. They believe that, because the United States has said we should not have one, we should abolish it. It is as simple as that. I wonder if the Co…
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Mr. Speaker, part of the point that I have been trying to make is the fact that we have Canadian sovereignty. A part of that sovereignty means our culture and arts performers, many of the professions that my friend from the New Democratic Party has highlighted, are very important to who we are as a nation. What is disappointing is the degree to which the official opposition has capitulated its res…
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Mr. Speaker, it is important to recognize that the CRTC stands alone. It is at arm's length from and independent of the government. That is a very important thing to note. The other thing I would highlight is that it is somewhat shameful to see Conservative member after Conservative member surrender Canada's sovereignty as they advocate on behalf of Donald Trump and the United States with respect …
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Mr. Speaker, it would take a lot of time to address that particular speech, but let us stick to the motion itself. Time and time again, I have heard from the Conservative speakers on this. First of all, we need to recognize that the CRTC is independent of government. The CRTC is the one that set the price. When we talk about having a fee on international streaming, Canada is not alone. Other G7 co…
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Mr. Speaker, I would like my colleague's thoughts on how it is that the Conservative Party appears to want to surrender our sovereignty on this particular issue. The Conservatives are, in essence, saying that because of negotiations that are taking place, we should just capitulate and have nothing to do with protecting our arts, our performing artists and our culture. I am wondering if the member …
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Mr. Speaker, it is somewhat sad to see Canada's official opposition surrender our arts and cultural sovereignty to the United States. That is in fact what we have been witnessing from Conservative members like the one who just spoke, who made it very clear why he wants everyone's gung-ho support of this resolution. He is advocating for what we would expect to hear from American politicians or for …
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to highlight a couple of things. Canada is one of seven countries that make up the G7, but it is not the only one that deals with this streaming issue. A number of other countries in the G7 do, countries like France and others. I don't believe that they are going to allow themselves to be intimidated. The Conservatives are prepared to capitulate and say that we should get…
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Mr. Speaker, Canada is not the only G7 country that recognizes that streaming fees need to be there. Members of the Conservative Party have put on their tinfoil hats and have come up with the idea that there is a great conspiracy of government wanting to control what they watch and see, which is a bunch of garbage. What I have witnessed throughout today, morning and afternoon, is the Conservative …
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Mr. Speaker, I suspect that if you were to canvass the House, you would find unanimous consent at this time to call it 5:30 p.m. so we could begin private members' hour.
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Mr. Speaker, I am wondering if the member can provide his thoughts in regard to the issue of privacy. I know a part of the legislation would ultimately see reports going to our PBO, the Parliamentary Budget Officer. Does the member have any concerns at all in regard to privacy? Can he expand on that issue?
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Mr. Speaker, I suspect that if you canvassed the House, you would find unanimous consent to call it 6:30 p.m. so we could begin the late show.
Read full speech →Adjournment Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, it has been an interesting process that has led us to where we are now on this issue. I have a couple of thoughts I would like to share with the member opposite. The Conservatives have deemed this issue of such great importance that they brought forward an opposition day motion on it. There were debates for hours in the House. We had Conservative member after Conservative member stand…
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You might love it, but it is the reality of it and the member knows that. Mr. Speaker, I would challenge the member to stand up and cite a specific individual who has lost their property rights as a result of the many treaties that have been put into place. I look forward to him providing a name, but we know he is not going to be able to do that. It does not prevent him from stoking the fear that …
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Mr. Speaker, the point is that there are many different agreements. The Conservatives are very much aware of the issue of private property. I was quoting what the minister responded to the member the other day. That was the quote I referenced, the opposition day motion where that agreement was referenced. I posed the very same question that I posed to the member, and Conservative members could not…
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Mr. Speaker, first off, I compliment the leader of the Green Party in terms of her concern and the way she is carrying herself on such an important issue. I think Canadians as a whole are very much concerned. I do not think I am unique at all. I love Canada. I have always put Canada first, and I would like to think I would be there to support Canada in whatever way I can, and try to be positive an…
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Mr. Speaker, we cannot underestimate the role of indigenous communities, the people of Alberta in this particular situation. I truly believe that the best way we can deal with this issue is to show that co-operative, collaborative federalism works. The more we can send out that sort of a message, showing that having a united, strong country is the way we can continue, as we have done in the past, …
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Mr. Speaker, I will indicate to the member that the Minister of Health has had some discussions. We have been working collaboratively not only with the Province of Alberta but in fact with all provinces, territories and indigenous communities to deal with the important issue of health care. When we think about Alberta, because the member made reference to Bill 11, the Minister of Health's counterp…
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Mr. Speaker, as I indicated in my previous answer, the Minister of Health of Canada has met with the counterpart and has been provided the assurances. However, the member is full of all sorts of misinformation in terms of her response. We do have a national dental program for millions of Canadians, thousands in the member's own riding, that is there today being ensured by this Prime Minister and b…
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Mr. Chair, earlier this week, we had the official opposition challenging the Minister of Immigration, asking, “Are you going to be here on Thursday? Are you going to be here for the four hours on Thursday?” Do members remember those questions? Where are the Conservatives now? They have completely disappeared. I guess they ran out of questions. I am surprised by the games the Conservatives continue…
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Mr. Chair, yes, I do have a question. I am disappointed. Is the minister not discouraged, given that you have been here from the beginning right to the end, and when you look across the way, you see that the benches are absolutely empty? I am disappointed. Are you disappointed?
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