Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, it is very nice of the member to say I am six feet, three inches tall when I am actually only six feet, one inch and a hair. Given his line of questioning, it seems to me that the Bloc Québécois is still looking to pick a fight with the federal government. However, that is not enough for it. Now it is looking for a fight with the Quebec government, and it has found one. It is clear th…
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Mr. Speaker, first of all, I would like to point out that we are already transferring $5.2 billion to the Quebec government, partly for French-language instruction. I hope the member opposite is not saying that he wants to deport people who do not speak French in Canada. That would be an illegal, immoral and inhumane thing to do. We are well aware that more work needs to be done to share the burde…
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Mr. Speaker, obviously all of our initiatives to send asylum seekers to other provinces need to be done humanely and consensually. The language criterion is one of many, but should not be the main criterion. We all need to make an extra effort. The federal government has a role to play; Ontario, Quebec and all the provinces do as well.
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Mr. Speaker, I am sure the member opposite would agree that immigration is a vital resource for Canada, Quebec and our economy. What the member is proposing is a motion on which Quebec has not even been consulted. Now, out of the blue, he has made himself the spokesperson for the other provinces so that we can consult them again, when this is something we have already done and do every year. We ma…
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Mr. Speaker, there are definitely two provinces that are doing more than their fair share: Ontario and Quebec. Quebec has made superhuman efforts with respect to asylum seekers, whether it is those who have crossed at Roxham Road or those who arrive at Trudeau Airport. We have transferred $5.2 billion to Quebec since 2015. Half of that federal money is going to Quebec for temporary housing. We are…
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Mr. Speaker, it is inaccurate that we have been able to extract people from Gaza in 2024. We have a unique program, unique in the world, to get family members of Canadians out from Gaza. It has of yet been unsuccessful because of unco-operative local authorities at the Rafah gates. We urge them to help us in getting those people across the border. That said, I have asked my department to review th…
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Madam Speaker, before I begin my speech, I would like to acknowledge that we are gathered on the unceded territory of the Algonquin Anishinabe nation. I am pleased to rise today to discuss this motion and provide members with information on the immigration targets set by the Government of Canada. In the area of immigration, we remain committed to working with our partners in the provinces, territo…
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Madam Speaker, as the member well knows, the plan that I put forth in the fall deals with permanent residency numbers. We know that the number of temporary foreign workers we have in Canada, under various descriptions, has increased significantly in the last couple of years. This has been good for the economy, but it is also something that has gotten out of control in some sectors, which we acknow…
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Madam Speaker, the survey in question shows conclusively that immigrants are good for the economy. There is much left unsaid by the Bloc Québécois. They ask us to revise the targets, but I think what they mean is we should lower them without consulting the government of Quebec. I believe they should make more of an effort if they wish to have a reasoned discussion of the issue. I ask the members o…
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Madam Speaker, I thank the member for her question and, obviously, her passion on this issue. This is not just about coming to Canada and treading water. We have asylum seekers and refugees who are members of cabinet and members of Parliament. One even crossed at Roxham Road and is now a great serving member of Parliament in Ontario. Our settlement services are the envy of the world. I just went t…
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Madam Speaker, I would like to sincerely thank the member for her question about Quebeckers trying to reunite their family. Clearly, the government of Quebec sets family reunification thresholds. At present, I believe these thresholds are kept artificially low. This causes great harm to many Quebeckers when they try to reunify their families. Talks are under way with my government of Quebec collea…
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Madam Speaker, the answer is no. We need provinces to step up and actually do their jobs in regulating designated learning institutions that they have authority over. We trusted for far too long, and perhaps we should have verified this. However, this is really something that needs to be brought under control. That is notably in Ontario, but there are other provinces that need to do a better job a…
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Madam Speaker, I am in politics to work with the Government of Quebec. I am not in show business. There is no question that we can work with the Government of Quebec. Everyone knows the Bloc Québécois does not speak for all Quebeckers. Several members in the House come from Quebec, including the Prime Minister. We are hearing very clearly that the federal government has a role to play in immigrati…
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Mr. Speaker, it does not take an expert in the field to know that criminals exploit vulnerabilities. The member opposite should be well aware that any announcement with advance notice would be another sign of vulnerability and people could exploit it. If he thinks I am going to do it publicly, he should think twice, because there are people who pay attention to every word the immigration minister …
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Mr. Speaker, that is precisely what this measure is about. It is about saving lives in the face of a humanitarian catastrophe. We have said time and time again that we will be flexible about the 1,000-person cap. Right now, the challenge is actually getting an initial list of people out who are pre-approved to cross Rafah gates. I am extremely disappointed with local authorities that we have not b…
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Mr. Speaker, I think it would be useful to point out that, since 2015, Quebec has received $4.4 billion under the Canada-Quebec accord. That is not an insignificant amount of money. It is earmarked for welcoming immigrants and is put towards the services Quebec uses to welcome immigrants and help them integrate under the Canada-Quebec accord. The amount was $300 million in 2015 and it is now $700 …
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Mr. Speaker, we see with this type of question that the Bloc Québécois is still trying to pick a fight. Obviously, as a responsible government we are at the negotiating table with the Government of Quebec. Do members know who is not? It is the Bloc Québécois. The Government of Quebec could invite Bloc members, but they are not welcome. Let them be the armchair quarterbacks that they are and let th…
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Mr. Speaker, the Bloc Québécois is the only one who thinks that $70 million, $50 million and $100 million is just small change. That money is very important to the asylum seekers who will end up in Quebec. As the member knows full well, we have a good relationship with the Government of Quebec. We are going to act the way a responsible government should and work with them. Quebec's finance ministe…
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Mr. Speaker, the Bloc Québécois members are acting like back-seat drivers, as they often do. Quebec received $50 million, along with another $100 million to house asylum seekers, and that is this year alone. The Bloc Québécois picks any old statistic it likes and draws whatever conclusion it chooses. The Bloc Québécois is just a bunch of back-seat drivers. In the meantime, we will work with the Qu…
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Mr. Speaker, as you well know, this kind of decision must be taken seriously. We must first take very important diplomatic steps with Mexico. We will not be making any rushed statements in the House of Commons.
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Mr. Speaker, this is interesting. The Bloc does not want to blame immigrants, yet they are telling us to amend our plans. I would like to ask the Bloc members from rural ridings to go and visit the farmers in their ridings to see where they are finding workers. Would they want to reduce the number of temporary workers? The Bloc members need to answer the question, because it is a very important on…
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Mr. Speaker, it is true that this affects real people. People should not be treated like cattle. They need to be treated with respect and compassion. It is true that we are making efforts to send asylum seekers to other provinces when they request it, but people need to be treated with respect. That is why I announced yesterday more than $300 million to house asylum seekers. Canada is not exempt f…
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Mr. Speaker, we can hear the members laughing, but yesterday in the House, the leader of the Bloc Québécois compared immigrants to heat pumps. Then, during my announcement of more than $300 million to help house refugees, he was talking about social housing. They are not taking this seriously. It is an issue that needs to be taken seriously. We are not negotiating with the federal member for Beloe…
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Mr. Speaker, as people heard yesterday, we are providing the money. Quebec has done more than its share, and we applaud its efforts. There is still work to be done to speed up the work permit process, and we are doing that. We are working with Quebec to speed up the process so that asylum seekers can work in the health care sector. That is very important, but the starting point is working collabor…
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Mr. Speaker, the member across the way seems to forget that we have a unique agreement with Quebec, the Canada-Quebec accord, which transfers more than $700 million a year to Quebec precisely to manage its levels. Quebec is almost exclusively responsible for choosing who comes to Quebec. We will work with Quebec to ensure that this is consistent with its integration capacity. I have a question for…
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Mr. Speaker, the government is not saving money by giving Quebec $700 million a year under the Canada-Quebec accord, in addition to a surplus of over $700 million that we have never asked Quebec about. We never asked for an accounting, but obviously there will have to be a conversation about that with Quebec. We are ready to have that conversation. We are already having some good discussions. As I…
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Mr. Speaker, the member was here in the House. He did not learn about it in the papers, unless he did not listen. I was the one who announced that there would be good news this week. It will deal with matters under my authority, and naturally, Quebec will not be getting all that it asked for. That is very clear, but it will deal with matters under my authority. It is our responsibility to support …
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Mr. Speaker, it is nice to hear the member opposite admit that this responsibility falls to both levels of government. Last year, he was claiming that it was solely Canada's responsibility, and that all the provinces needed was money. We are clearly going to work together. We clearly need to make more effort. There are two provinces that are overburdened, Ontario and Quebec. This is something we c…
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Mr. Speaker, I want to begin by welcoming my colleague from the Bloc back to Parliament. I understand that, for the Bloc, this is about the essence of immigration. Let us just make sure we work in the interests of immigrants. I had a good conversation with Minister Fréchette on Friday. We are prepared to do more. It is clear that Quebec has done more than its fair share, but we are here to work to…
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Mr. Speaker, good news is coming this week. It is clear that relationships go both ways. We will continue to work with Quebec to deal with the record number of asylum seekers who have arrived this year. That is not something that is going to end any time soon. More work needs to be done by both levels of government.
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Mr. Speaker, we are facing historic influxes, and not just from Mexico. It is clear that restrictions are needed, as I have said publicly. The member opposite has enough experience in politics and in the House to know that the details of such matters cannot be discussed in the public arena, knowing that people who do not have Canada's interests at heart could well make decisions based on what they…
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Mr. Speaker, insofar as Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, or IRCC, is concerned, the 2024-26 immigration levels plan, tabled November 1, 2023, was developed in close consultation with a wide variety of partners and stakeholders and took into account a range of factors. The 2024-26 levels plan aims to balance Canada’s need for population and economic growth with its capacity to welcome …
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Mr. Speaker, the member may be disappointed to learn that we have a good relationship with Quebec. Last week, we spoke in a reasoned and reasonable way about reasoned and reasonable immigration to Quebec within the context of the Canada-Quebec accord that gives Quebec more than $700 million to do the work that falls within its jurisdiction, which is to take in immigrants, especially French-speakin…
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Mr. Speaker, I will give the Bloc Québécois the time to speak. I think it has time to listen to my answer as well. First, I commend the hon. member for his superhuman effort to reinvent and rephrase his question. While I am at it, I will repeat the same answer: Canada is not an ATM for the provinces. It takes a reasoned and reasonable discussion, a good discussion like the one we are having with Q…
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Mr. Speaker, indeed, I met with my counterpart, Minister Fréchette, on Friday. We had some good conversations. It is clear that there are some things where we do not see eye to eye with Quebec. For example, we would like Quebec to make more of an effort when it comes to welcoming and reuniting Quebec families. Nevertheless, the meeting generally went well. Now, we will see. The finance ministers a…
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Mr. Speaker, first of all, we will continue the conversation, but Bloc Québécois members will not be the first to know.
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Mr. Speaker, what is arrogant is to think that a relationship is a one-way street. We have a great partnership with Quebec. I hope to meet with Quebec's representative tomorrow. Hopefully everything will be settled in the House of Commons in terms of our marathon votes. That is not related, but the fact is that we are going to meet with my counterpart from Quebec. We will have a good discussion. H…
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Mr. Speaker, only the Bloc Québécois would say that $700 million a year, plus millions in social transfers in blocks with no strings attached is nothing, but let us leave it at that.
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Mr. Speaker, I cannot stress more to members of the House how difficult it is to actually get people out of Gaza, a war zone faced with a humanitarian disaster. Our priority remains permanent residents and Canadian families. We are looking at options to expand that to make sure that people connected to Canada can be afforded a safe haven, but again, it is a work in progress. It is extremely diffic…
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank all Quebeckers and all Canadians who are contributing their fair share. As the member opposite knows, we have a special agreement with Quebec whereby we allocate more than $700 million to Quebec for integrating newcomers into French-speaking society. I have a meeting with Minister Fréchette this Friday, and I would be happy to update her on it.
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Mr. Speaker, it is not a damn job; it is a job that I love. It is true that there are challenges associated with the migration flows that are affecting the entire world. Roughly 100 million people have been displaced around the world. That is a record number. Canada is also dealing with a record number of migrants. In the past year, we have made progress and reduced the backlogs and delays. Some c…
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Mr. Speaker, when the Bloc Québécois is in power, it can make all the suggestions it wants. In the meantime, it will have to rely on the federal government. Obviously, we can be a Canadian and Quebecker at the same time. I am a proud example. We already give more than $700 billion to Quebec, including for integration and francization. Yes, Quebec is doing its fair share and we have a great partner…
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Mr. Speaker, I very clearly said that Canada is not an ATM. We are going to hold discussions with my colleagues from Quebec to sort out all the expenses incurred. We have demands of Quebec too, but we are not going to hash them out on the floor of the House of Commons with the Bloc Québécois. I am going to discuss them with a responsible government, like Quebec.
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Mr. Speaker, I would simply say that the Bloc Québécois is not Quebec. I am treating this feigned outrage for what it is. If the Bloc Québécois ever has concrete demands, we can discuss them. I have a duty to speak with my responsible counterparts in the Government of Quebec. That is what I want to do. We will engage in two-way communication. This relationship is not a one-way street.
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Mr. Speaker, it is clear that I am not the one hurling insults. The irony in all this is that the Bloc Québécois claims that this is solely a federal jurisdiction, which is totally false. I think that the Bloc has spent too much time in Ottawa to say that this is an exclusive jurisdiction. Just look at section 95 of the Constitution, which very clearly indicates that this is a shared responsibilit…
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Mr. Speaker, the member across the way knows full well that Quebec controls its own immigration levels. It is a little much to presume that the higher rents are due only to the increase in population. However, it is clear that we have challenges in Canada when it comes to ensuring suitable immigration that takes into account integration capacity. That is precisely what we are working on.
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Mr. Speaker, this is a very serious issue. This is the first time I have heard the Bloc Québécois say that it would like more immigrants. I could tell them more about it, but let us have a meaningful discussion on the issue.
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Mr. Speaker, I think people need to stop seeing the federal government as an ATM. We clearly have a relationship with Quebec. Quebec is clearly responsible for taking in asylum seekers and refugees. I have a meeting with the ministers in a week. We also have demands for Quebec. We will talk about it in private and resolve this as responsible governments.
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Mr. Speaker, instead of reading his cue card, the member should read section 95 of the Constitution. He would see that this is definitely a shared jurisdiction. I think my mistake is debating with the Bloc Québécois on the floor of the House of Commons. I have a very good relationship with my counterpart in Quebec. I will be meeting with her in a week. It will be a private meeting, and we will dea…
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Mr. Speaker, I will say this in response to the same question asked in a different way: I am meeting with the minister in a week's time, and we are going to resolve this like responsible governments.
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