Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I certainly recognize the hon. member's private sector experience before joining this place, and that is an attribute for the House. There is a pathway to be able to encourage investment in this country. There is a focus on being able to build out electric vehicles in the country to support workers. Again, respectfully, that is something I did not see in the Conservative position. The…
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Mr. Speaker, I look forward to taking the member's question. Maybe the hon. member can rise in his place and tell me if he thinks that London, Europe and our other allies have no measures to be able to do it. We actually have a solution. It is QNX in this country. We have an ability to manage this as it relates to the 49,000 EVs from China on the import. Having been on the front lines of that nego…
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Mr. Speaker, my hon. colleague represents a very urban riding in Spadina, in the Toronto area, and I represent a rural constituency. The lived realities for Canadians are going to be different. The good news is that the government is putting forward $1.5 billion to help support additional charging infrastructure across the country. In my constituency, that is probably going to be more focused on p…
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Mr. Speaker, it is great to rise today to debate the opposition day motion in relation a really important subject, the Canadian auto industry. I will be sharing my time this afternoon with the hon. member for Mississauga—Lakeshore. As I was saying, I think it is important that we have this conversation. I welcome it, and the government certainly welcomes it, because we have been deeply focused on …
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Mr. Speaker, I agree with some of my hon. colleague's comments. However, with all due respect, I disagree with the assertion that, with the exception of the Bloc Québécois, no other members are fighting for Quebec. We have 44 Liberal members from Quebec who are always fighting for the interests of the province of Quebec within the federation, every day, every week and every month. I agree on the i…
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Mr. Speaker, as always, it is a privilege to be here today to discuss and debate a Conservative opposition day motion. I would like to point out that today is the fourth anniversary of Russia's unjustified and illegal invasion of Ukraine. I would like to add my voice and that of my constituents in Kings—Hants, Nova Scotia, and my colleagues on this subject. Obviously, we are extremely proud of all…
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Mr. Speaker, certainly you can sense my frustration. If there was any unparliamentary word that members heard, I certainly withdraw it and do not mean to offend this House. It is part of the frustration at what I am hearing from the opposition, and I am asking them to be better.
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Mr. Speaker, I would respectfully encourage my colleague opposite, if we want to maintain a place in Parliament to continue to provide compassionate and welcoming places here in Canada, to not put opposition motions on the floor concerning something that is 0.00004% of the entire expenditure of the Government of Canada in any given year, and that is for legitimate asylum claims. They like to stand…
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Mr. Speaker, what I tried to express during my remarks is that I have no problem with the Conservatives coming forward and saying, for example, that they would like to have a changed process. I have no problem with the Conservative Party coming forward and talking about how we can make sure that we have programs in place to support individuals and how, if there are additional challenges in that pr…
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Mr. Speaker, I respect my hon. colleague on the other side. I am going to tackle “interim”. Interim is the interim process while someone is going through the asylum process. Once a person registers and seeks an asylum claim, they are entitled to the benefit. The moment they have exhausted any of the administrative processes they are entitled to, the benefit goes away. It is that interim period unt…
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Mr. Speaker, why does the member stand up in the House of Commons and talk about rejected asylum claimants? I just explained very clearly to the opposition benches what happens once an individual goes through the two processes for making the administrative claim, the IRB process and the ability for an appeal. Once those are exhausted, they are then a rejected asylum claimant and have no access to …
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Mr. Speaker, that is precisely why the government introduced changes to the general process for asylum seekers in Bill C-2 and Bill C-12. We have a system in place to ensure that, in general, the process takes less than 40 months. Most asylum seekers, 80%, are accepted at the end of the process. We have a process. We want to create a faster process for determining status. That is precisely the rea…
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Mr. Speaker, in rural Hants County, sometimes we get a little colloquial and casual. I certainly withdraw it.
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, what this government is seeking to do is exactly what I said in my speech, which is to ensure that for vulnerable individuals, Canada continues its compassionate pathway for individuals who want to make their case, but at the same time has measures to ensure that there is an orderly process, that Canadians believe in that process and that there is no abuse in said process. Those provi…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, it is a bit rich to listen to the Conservatives talk about Canadian farmers and agri-food businesses, when they had their chance in April 2025 and had absolutely nothing in their platform for Canadian farmers or agri-food businesses. We know the price of food is a major issue in this country. That is why we have introduced the groceries and essentials rebate; 12.6 million Canadians wi…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to the late Dr. Geraldine Browning, a prominent and beloved member of our community in Kings—Hants, who passed away on December 31, 2025. Born and raised in the historic African Nova Scotian community of East Preston, Geraldine began her career in nursing in Montreal before meeting her husband, Orval. Together they raised nine children and lived a military …
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the hon. member for her remarks today. She is part of a group within the Liberal caucus that is focused on the questions of immigration, refugee status and the work the government has to do to both create a better system and make sure that Canada continues to have a pathway to compassionate admittance into the country. Obviously, today we are talking about an opp…
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Mr. Speaker, I enjoyed being in the member's riding before Christmas. I had the opportunity to visit with a number of stakeholders, including in Gros Morne and with mayors. I know the member will endeavour to make sure that she is engaging with local stakeholders, because they have not had the chance to actually see her in the time since she was elected as a member of Parliament. I will say, thoug…
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Mr. Speaker, it is great to see the Conservatives finally starting to talk about farmers. The member ran on a platform that had absolutely nothing for farmers, notwithstanding he is in southwestern Ontario in the areas around Leamington and Chatham-Kent. I just listened to his 10-minute speech. There was not one, single measure about business risk management, and nothing about controlled environme…
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Mr. Speaker, I will be splitting my time with my hon. colleague from Madawaska—Restigouche this afternoon. I rise today to speak to the opposition day motion on food affordability. I believe that if we were to ask every member of Parliament in this place, they would agree that there is work to be done to address this particular challenge, there are initiatives that have to be introduced to support…
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Mr. Speaker, 30 seconds does not give justice to this question. Let me do a quick pivot. The member is right that there are important investments in the budget around agri-food processing, but I would like to compliment her on the work she did with this government to remove Chinese tariffs on Canadian lobster. She represents one of the largest fishing ridings in the country, frankly, but certainly…
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Mr. Speaker, since the question was substantial, I will respond in English. That way, I can give a complete answer. It is extremely important. I would agree with my hon. colleague that the Conservative proposition before the House eliminates any elements of environmental policy in this country. I think it would accomplish very little in relation to what they are suggesting the results would be. Th…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, I have a great idea for the member opposite. This government has put a series of measures in place to help support young Canadians getting into their first home and to be able to build more housing supply in this country, whether it is Build Canada Homes or removing the GST up to $50,000 for new homebuyers buying their first home. The Conservatives obstruct at every single pass. The m…
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Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order. A particular piece of legislation was referenced. I just want to ask if there is a piece of legislation called the Canadian sovereignty act.
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Mr. Speaker, the member talked a lot about initiatives that the government has put forward in the budget through the budget implementation act, Bill C-15, which is before members at the moment. One thing the member knows the importance of is international trade, so I was surprised that when I looked through the opposition day motion today there was not a single mention of diversifying trade market…
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Mr. Speaker, I want to give my hon. colleague some good news. Some of the things she talked about, in terms of driving the economy forward, actually reside in Bill C-15, which is still before Parliament. I would encourage the member and her Conservative colleagues to work collectively with the government to advance those measures. The question I have for the hon. member is this: She represents a r…
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Madam Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague for his speech and for speaking English. I congratulate him on that. I have a fairly simple question. If this motion is so important to the Conservatives, and if they believe it is important to Canada, why not introduce a bill? If the Conservatives want to promote certain priorities, they can introduce a bill, not just a motion on an opposition day. Further…
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Madam Speaker, the good people of Kings—Hants, for about 72 of 78 years, voted for Progressive Conservatives. It was a consistently blue riding, but it was a riding that was a moderate Progressive Conservative riding, and that tradition still continues. I identify as a blue Liberal. I identify as a business Liberal, and my constituents increasingly say that they do not recognize the type of party …
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Mr. Speaker, I know a lot of members are sticking around because they are excited for the speeches after question period. I look forward to engaging in today's opposition day motion, presented by the hon. member for Battle River—Crowfoot. I would like to recognize that I will splitting my time this afternoon with my hon. colleague from LaSalle—Émard—Verdun. He is an exceptional member, and I look …
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Madam Speaker, I would go back to where I started in my remarks in the speech. It is not an actual piece of legislation. We have heard Conservative members reference the Canada sovereignty act. As far as I know, and I would have to check with the table officers, there has not actually been a piece of legislation tabled before this place. The Conservatives have simply put principles on a piece of p…
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Madam Speaker, the member represents a riding on Vancouver Island. My question to her and her constituents is whether they would like to see a thoughtful approach to resource development. I can probably assure her that if I went to her riding, her constituents would expect that, yes, we are moving forward on important resource development in this country, but we are being smart about what it means…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, the Hants County Christmas Angels is a long-standing tradition in Kings—Hants, dating back to 1977, that is truly the definition of community and Christmas spirit. Every year, this volunteer organization seeks to raise funds to support local families in need. This year was exceptional. Over the course of a day filled with local musicians and local performances, $93,108 was raised for …
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Madam Speaker, I may play the role of Santa and walk a Q-tip over to my hon. colleague to make sure that he can hear me and that there may not be an impediment with the speech I just gave. I made it very clear that if the Conservative Party had tabled the entire MOU before the House, we would be gladly supporting it. There is an interconnectivity to this. We do support oil and gas. I spoke very pr…
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Madam Speaker, it is always a great opportunity to stand up on opposition day motions, and today is no different. I will be splitting my time this afternoon with my hon. colleague from Vancouver Granville, who will have a lot to offer in the debate. I would encourage all of my hon. colleagues to listen to his words, as he resides in British Columbia and has a good handle on this particular issue b…
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Madam Speaker, what elements of the MOU that Premier Danielle Smith and the government have committed to does the member not support? It is very clear, as he reads the MOU, that we are willing to support a pipeline to tidewater in the Pacific. We believe it has to be a private proponent, that we have to have indigenous co-operation and, obviously, buy-in and dialogue with British Columbia. What el…
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Madam Speaker, yes, we do, with the conditions we have laid out in the MOU, which are working with indigenous communities across this country, working in good faith with the British Columbian government and also ensuring that Alberta commits to the elements that are in the MOU, which the Conservative party failed to put before the House verbatim.
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Madam Speaker, the proposed agreement between the Government of Canada and the Government of Alberta includes some very important measures for the environment. It includes, in particular, the Government of Alberta's commitment to increase industrial carbon pricing. That is a key element that will help us ensure that we reduce our greenhouse gas emissions. Other commitments include working with the…
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Mr. Speaker, it is hard to take the member and the Conservative Party seriously, frankly, because the budget actually contains a tax cut for 22 million Canadians. They stand in the way of progress of the bill's being advanced to help support Canadians. They vote against the national school food program. Talking about food, there was not one single thing in the Conservative platform for farmers in …
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Mr. Speaker, again, it is hard to take the member and that party seriously on questions. The member has a lot of farmers in his riding. They are the ones who contribute in this country. In the platform of April 2025, there was not a single platform commitment from the Conservative Party for farmers in this country. It is hard to take the member opposite seriously when he votes against the national…
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Madam Speaker, the member is from Saskatchewan. She mentioned farmers, and I am glad she is raising the needs of farmers in the House, but there was nothing in the Conservative platform in April for farmers. I would invite her to point to any substantial program the Conservatives have had on offer for business risk management programs, or any programs, to help support farmers at the farm gate leve…
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Madam Speaker, it was heartening to hear the hon. member talk about youth nutrition in Canada, but it is disappointing that the member has been voting against the national school food program, which is contained in this budget, in Bill C-15. I want to talk about local issues. I know there are challenges in southwestern Ontario, particularly in the auto sector, but the government and the country ha…
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Madam Speaker, I will return the compliment to the member on his beautiful vest. We like the tartans. I know he has heritage in the United Kingdom as well. I touched a bit in my speech on the imbalance on beef trade. The hon. member is right. I should have included pork as part of that. This is something the government needs to continue to focus on. I do think Parliament needs to ultimately move f…
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Madam Speaker, I do want to clarify for my hon. colleague that, as I said earlier in debate in the House, the Prime Minister has raised this with Prime Minister Starmer. It is something the government is pushing on. We do, as a government, share the member's concerns, particularly around the fact that the carcass wash from a North American standard is not being recognized by the United Kingdom, bu…
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to clarify for the member for Kamloops—Shuswap—Central Rockies that it was actually this government that established an MOU between CFIA and CBSA to tackle spent fowl. The minister may or may not know that, but that is work that we are doing. I will remind the Conservative Party that it had nothing in its electoral platform for farmers. Speaking of farmers, I have a large…
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order. I appreciate that hon. colleagues have the ability to try to weave in a lot of different elements, but this is in relation to the particular motion that is before the House. I hope that you can provide guidance to my hon. colleague to try to keep reasonably within the bounds. I know there is a lot of latitude, but it is starting to feel a bit far away from …
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Mr. Speaker, it is a privilege to rise today to speak to Bill C-13, which is for the accession of the United Kingdom to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for the Trans-Pacific Partnership. CPTPP is the initialism we use, and it is a relatively straightforward bill. The CPTPP has 11 original countries. Canada is a founding member of the trans-Pacific partnership, alongside countries like …
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Madam Speaker, I would agree in the sense that, as I mentioned, the United Kingdom is one of our closest friends and allies. This is an important signal. We do not want to be talking about this bill deep into 2026. The House of Commons should debate this, get it to committee and, ultimately, to the Senate as soon as possible. Let me use this opportunity to also say that this is not the only piece …
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Madam Speaker, I am not too proud to stand in the House and say that I was not aware of that particular circumstance. The member, obviously, is well steeped in that particular issue as it relates to Canada Goose, which is what I heard was the company. As I mentioned in my speech, 99% of the trade between Canada and the United Kingdom is tariff-free, and it comes down to destination originators and…
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Madam Speaker, it is a privilege to rise this morning to speak to Bill C-15, which is the budget implementation act. For Canadians at home, these are the actual legal and legislative measures the government is introducing to move forward with what it introduced in the budget. It is a great opportunity to talk about what the government is intending to do to help support the Canadian economy in a di…
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Madam Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague for his speech. I must admit that I missed part of it. Still, I was a bit surprised that I did not hear him talk about the measures in the budget for the agriculture and agri-food sector, given that I know that my hon. colleague represents a rural riding in Quebec that has a lot of farmers. The budget includes $120 million to enhance business risk managemen…
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