Routine Proceedings
Madam Speaker, we request a recorded division, please.
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Madam Speaker, the government policies are driving farmers to the breaking point right now. Fertilizer has increased by 80%, machine fuel by 78.5%, machinery costs by 20%, pesticides by 7%, feed by 29% and shelter, including barns and sheds, by 13%. That is all because of the NDP-Liberal government's policies. Farmers are the best stewards of our land and the ones who make our bread and butter fro…
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With regard to the Canadian Plastics Innovation Challenges: (a) how much funding has the program received in total; (b) how much of the total program funding has been allocated; (c) how much of the allocated funding has been distributed; (d) what projects have been funded by this program; (e) what are the details for each project; (f) what are the targets for each project; (g) what is the timeline…
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With regard to Report 5 (2024) of the Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development to the Parliament of Canada: (a) how much has the Department of Agriculture and Agri-Food spent in the past five years on developing a climate change mitigation strategy; (b) how many employees were or are assigned to work on the strategy; and (c) how was the money spent, broken down by initiative?
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moved for leave to introduce Bill C-409, An Act to amend the Canada Labour Code (hours of work of flight attendants). Mr. Speaker, Conservatives have been travelling across this country, and we have heard for years from flight attendants that flight attendants in Canada are not paid until their aircraft is in motion. This is unfair, and it puts many women and diverse Canadians at a disadvantage. C…
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With regard to the Dairy Innovation and Investment Fund: (a) how many applications did the program receive; (b) how many of those applications were accepted; (c) how much of the total program funding was allotted to applicants; and (d) how much funding has been released to date, broken down by province?
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moved for leave to introduce C-410, An Act to amend the Income Tax Act (campgrounds). Mr. Speaker, Canada is home to over 5,600 campgrounds that are enjoyed by over 70% of Canadians who actively participate in outdoor and wilderness activities. These businesses employ over 140,000 Canadians and operate on very thin margins, making reinvestment for their facilities and upkeep hard to manage. My rid…
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Mr. Speaker, my colleague mentioned affordable food prices in his speech. As we know, the government is constantly deciding to introduce bad policy that is hurting our farmers and will increase the cost of food. The carbon tax is an example. Another example is the P2 plastics ban on plastic packaging for fresh fruits and vegetables. We have heard that this policy alone will increase the price of f…
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Mr. Speaker, that is another fairy tale from a Liberal who clearly does not understand food production. The government cannot deny that paying $25,000 in a single month in carbon tax is punishing this farmer. The NDP-Liberals live in la-la land if they do not think that these costs get passed on to Canadian families. When will the government leave fantasy land, stop hurting our farmers and pass Bi…
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Mr. Speaker, after nine years, the Prime Minister is not worth the cost. Canadians are struggling to afford food, and the NDP-Liberal government does not care. From its carbon tax and red tape to its ban on plastics for produce, every single bad policy the government announces hurts our farmers and makes food more expensive. One farmer paid over $25,000 in a single month in carbon tax alone. Farme…
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Mr. Speaker, it is interesting listening to my colleague across the way. I appreciate that he is thanking his farmers, because we all appreciate our farmers. However, what I do not understand and what I find a bit rich coming from the member across the way is that he talks about lowering food prices, yet his government still supports a carbon tax for farmers. Farmers have to pay the carbon tax on …
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With regard to the government’s provision of goods and services to irregular border crossers seeking asylum: (a) what items are provided to entrants at the time of crossing; (b) what items are provided to entrants once they are relocated to accommodations; and (c) what is the cost, per item, of provisions to entrants, broken down by each item with its associated per unit cost?
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With regard to the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario: (a) what was the total amount spent by the agency on consultations and consultants during the 2021-22 and 2022-23 fiscal years; and (b) what are the details of all contracts related to the consultations or consultants in (a), including, for each, the (i) date of the contract, (ii) vendor, (iii) amount or value, (iv) descr…
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With regard to the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario: (a) what was the total amount spent by the agency on advertising and outreach during the 2021-22 and 2022-23 fiscal years; (b) what are the details of the agency’s advertising and outreach initiatives; (c) what metrics were used to determine the success of such endeavours; and (d) were the targets met?
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Madam Speaker, I rise on the question of privilege, and this is concerning false information contained in the government's response to Order Paper Question No. 2340, which was filed by the NDP member for Cowichan—Malahat—Langford. While it may seem unusual for me, as a Conservative member, to be rising about a government response to a question filed by the NDP, this is not just about the member wh…
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With regard to government surplus vehicles being scrapped rather than sold on the GCSurplus auction site: (a) how many vehicles were scrapped during the 2023 calendar year; (b) what are the details of each vehicle that was scrapped, including, for each, the (i) make, (ii) model, (iii) year, (iv) reason the vehicle was not listed on the GCSurplus auction site or otherwise sold as government surplus…
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Mr. Speaker, all day long today we have heard that people get more back in the carbon tax than they pay, which is categorically false, as proven by the Parliamentary Budget Officer. Conservatives know common sense. If one does not take the tax in the first place, one will not have to give back anything to Canadians. With respect to Bill C-234, and I am wondering whether my colleague could comment …
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Mr. Speaker, I rise today to address a question of paramount importance and profound concern to many of my constituents in Lambton—Kent—Middlesex: Will Canada cross the Rubicon and expand access to assisted suicide for otherwise healthy individuals whose mental disorder is the sole underlying medical condition, or do we have enough common sense and moral clarity to stop this radical and dangerous …
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Madam Speaker, we are here tonight debating Bill C-234 again. Why are we? It is because the Liberal-appointed senators voted to gut the bill from its original form to prevent it from passing. The panicking Liberals are resorting to every trick in the book, trying desperately to prevent farmers from getting a carbon tax carve-out for drying grain, heating barns and other farm operations. This is ah…
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My apologies, Madam Speaker. I will continue with the exchange. [The hon. minister]: I had conversations with five or six senators, yes. [The hon. member for Dauphin—Swan River—Neepawa]: ...five or six senators. What are their names? [The hon. minister]: I don't have the names with me. [The hon. member for Dauphin—Swan River—Neepawa]: Can you table those? [The hon. minister]: I'm sure we can make …
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Mr. Speaker, after eight years of this NDP-Liberal government, Canadians who used to belong to the middle class are going hungry. The Prime Minister and his radical environment minister know that if it costs the farmer more to grow food, it is going to cost Canadians more to buy food. This Prime Minister is not worth the cost. Farmers, ranchers and producers are asking for Bill C-234 to lower thei…
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Mr. Speaker, the two million Canadians who rely on food banks deserve better than that cheap deflection. One in five Ontario households who struggle to put food on their tables deserve better. They need this government to stop inflating food prices. They need the Prime Minister to stand up to his radical environment minister and carve out the inflationary carbon tax for our farmers, producers and …
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Mr. Speaker, I rise today to talk about the report from the public accounts committee entitled “Protecting Canada's Food System During the COVID-19 Pandemic”. In this report, we learn that the NDP-Liberal government spent $515 million, more than half a billion dollars, in various funding envelopes “increased risk of food insecurity”. This is the key question: How much food security did Canadians g…
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Mr. Speaker, I will take the opportunity to wish my colleague a happy birthday as well. As my colleague said, yes, I have spent years of my life in food production. In fact, we heard from one of my colleagues on this side of the House today and from many farmers in my area this year that they have actually had a bumper crop. They have had higher yields than they have seen in years with some of the…
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Mr. Speaker, again, this year we have seen record yields. I can say that in our harvest in the last crop year, I have seen record yields. In the 50 years that my father farmed, and my grandparents before my father, and in my 45 years of life, I have been through years when we have had droughts, when we have had floods, when we have had record crops and when we have had not so good crops. Farmers a…
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Mr. Speaker, after eight years of this NDP-Liberal government, life in Canada has become unaffordable. It is unthinkable to continue the inflationary carbon tax scheme while millions of Canadians are relying on food banks and are forced to choose between heating and eating. The government surely understands there is no way to produce food without using energy to dry grain, to heat barns and to bri…
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Mr. Speaker, I will say to Canadians that Conservatives on this side of the House will vote to axe the tax. We are calling on the House right now to send Bill C-234 back to the Senate in its original form so we can give producers and farmers a break on the carbon tax so their input costs go down and Canadian families can pay less at the grocery store.
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Mr. Speaker, I enjoy working with my colleague on the agriculture committee as Conservatives continue to stand up for our agriculture sector. My colleague is from Quebec, which is also another big area for growing produce. He talked in his speech about a plastics ban that the Liberal government has proposed. I am wondering whether my colleague could elaborate on how the single-use plastics ban wou…
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With regard to Farm Credit Canada's (FCC) Indigenous Agriculture and Food section: (a) how many employees or full-time equivalents (FTE) are currently assigned to the section; (b) is the section currently fully-staffed, and, if not, (i) when will it be fully-staffed, (ii) how many employees or FTEs will be assigned to the section once it is fully staffed; (c) what is the projected annual budget fo…
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Mr. Speaker, I have to agree with my colleague; we do want to find common ground with regard to food security and making sure that Canadians can afford healthy, nutritious food. The key word is “afford”. While the member talked about record profits, one thing he did not talk about was the fact that there are record input costs for our farmers and producers in order to produce that food. There are …
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Mr. Speaker, I always find it a pleasure to work with my hon. colleague as well. The reality is that the government policies are increasing food costs. Part of it is the carbon tax. Families already cannot afford food right now, and they are going to have to pay another $700 to feed their families next year. Conservatives believe that families should be able to keep more money in their pockets. We…
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Mr. Speaker, I always enjoy working with my colleague at the agriculture committee. We worked really hard together on the code of conduct, which I did not get a chance to talk about yet. For the last several years, I have been a huge supporter of getting a code of conduct in place. This week, we heard that Loblaw and Walmart have no intention at this point in signing the code that is before them r…
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Mr. Speaker, my colleague's question is a great one. The answer is that, at this point, there is no commercially viable option to the plastic packaging available right now. It is a global supply chain. It is not just Canada that we are working with. We are working with the globe. As I said, we import two-thirds of our fresh food in this country from other countries. If there were a commercially vi…
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Mr. Speaker, I am here today to talk about grocery affordability and examining rising food costs in Canada. The agriculture committee submitted this report in June after a fairly lengthy study. This is a topic that has been near and dear to my heart for many years. I come from a produce background. Having a family farm and a produce business feeding Canadians is something that my family has prided…
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Mr. Speaker, I rise today to share the joy and spirit of Christmas, which is deeply woven into the fabric of our communities in Lambton—Kent—Middlesex. In our communities, Christmas is more than a holiday. It is a celebration of Christ's birth. It is a season of unity and warmth that brings together families and neighbours, echoing the rich traditions and vibrant culture that define us. This year,…
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Mr. Speaker, it is almost like the Liberals think that farmers have not had it so good and that Canadians have not had it so good, but they are struggling to put food on their tables and to afford food. Brian, a farmer in my riding, told me he has paid over $16,000 in carbon taxes to heat his two chicken barns this year. The Prime Minister wants to quadruple the carbon tax. It is really not that d…
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Mr. Speaker, after eight years of the NDP-Liberal government's punishing policies, Canadians are hungrier than ever. First, Canada's premiers asked for a carve-out. The Prime Minister said no. Then, farmers asked for a carve-out, and the Prime Minister said no. Now Ontario's first nation leaders are asking the federal court to exempt their communities from the federal carbon tax. Canada is unified…
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Mr. Speaker, under the government, there have been more people using a food bank than ever before. It is record numbers. The Prime Minister is responsible for bringing record-level hunger to Ontario. I understand that the self-proclaimed socialist environment minister has threatened to resign if the bill passes, but Canadian farmers need this carve-out immediately. This will make food prices cheap…
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Mr. Speaker, after enduring eight years of the NDP-Liberal government, one in five households in Ontario is struggling to put food on its table. That adds up to 2.8 million people, including 700,000 children. This is shocking. These are the highest recorded numbers we have ever seen. It is painfully clear that the Prime Minister is not worth the cost. Will the Prime Minister tell his appointed sen…
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Madam Speaker, through this study, we saw that, during COVID, provincially inspected abattoirs were allowed to move meat across interprovincial borders because of some of the COVID protocols out there. If we removed interprovincial trade barriers, we would see a lot more movement of meat across this country, and we would see more abattoirs potentially opening up with capacity.
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Madam Speaker, farmers are innovators, and they have always been innovators. Farmers are trying to save money however they can so they can put money back into their businesses, grow their business, and continue to farm and grow food for Canadians. Unfortunately, the carbon tax makes their fuel more expensive. Again, if there were commercially viable options available for heating barns or drying gr…
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Madam Speaker, I have been asking for the grocery code of conduct for over three years. Three years ago, I started talking about that. As a farmer who used to supply three of the five major grocery chains with potatoes, I know the grocery chains were imposing ridiculous fees on farmers and suppliers. They were constantly nickel-and-diming farmers and suppliers. Because farmers are price-takers, an…
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Madam Speaker, I am here today to debate concurrence in the report on strengthening food capacity in Canada for food security and exports. I am a proud member of the agriculture committee. Members on the committee work very well together, and this was a study we did during COVID. We heard from a lot of people across the country about challenges that we face in our agriculture sector. I was able to…
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his impassioned speech, but there is something I disagree with. Conservatives have been standing up for farmers non-stop. I come from a very heavy grain area where farmers right now are telling me that their corn is coming in at 30% moisture or 28% moisture, and they need to get their corn dried down to 13% or 15%. Well, guess what. They have to use natural ga…
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Mr. Speaker, I find it very interesting that yesterday the NDP voted with Conservatives on our common-sense motion to remove the carbon tax from all forms of home heating for all Canadians, instead of just singling out the 3% of Canadians who use heating oil for their homes. The New Democrats are neglecting the 97% of Canadians who use other forms, such as natural gas or propane, for their home he…
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Madam Speaker, it impacts the bill because, every step along the way, families would not need a government program if they could afford to buy food. If it costs more to put inputs into food for farmers, it is going to cost more for families to buy food for their kids. Why are two million people going to a food bank in a month? They should not need to, and it is because of the policies of the gover…
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Madam Speaker, Governor Macklem continued by responding to the second question, which was what the effect on inflation would be if the carbon tax were to be eliminated. He said that it would create a one-time drop in inflation of 0.6%. If the carbon tax were eliminated, it would result in a drop in inflation of 0.6%. The overall inflation rate is currently at about 3.2%. At that rate, eliminating …
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Madam Speaker, the three components the governor referred were those raised by my colleague, which were gasoline, diesel fuel and natural gas. Governor Macklem continued—
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Madam Speaker, Governor Macklem said there are two separate questions. The governor said, “...how much are the increases in the carbon tax adding to inflation each year? That number is about .15 percentage points of inflation. That's the direct impact on those three components.”
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Madam Speaker, if it costs the farmer more to grow food and costs the trucker more to ship food, it is going to cost families more to buy food to feed their children. When the Bank of Canada governor, Tiff Macklem, appeared on Monday before the finance committee, my colleague, the member for Northumberland—Peterborough South asked the governor how the carbon tax affects inflation. Governor Macklem…
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