Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I want to know what my colleague thinks about the fact that the motion is devoid of nuance. For example, the Conservatives are saying that they want to bar refugee claimants with criminal records, something that is already provided for in the law. Without further nuance, this means that refugee claimants who are political prisoners or prisoners of conscience would automatically be bar…
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Mr. Speaker, not long ago, the House voted on a bill dealing with applications for citizenship by descent. In committee, an amendment was moved to require that applicants for this kind of citizenship undergo the same citizenship screening as any other applicant, particularly the criminal record check. Why did the Liberals, along with the NDP, vote against this amendment, ensuring it would be defea…
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Mr. Speaker, in several European countries, the standard is to process asylum claims within three or four months. Here, it takes four or five years, sometimes longer. In my colleague's opinion, what are the consequences of such long wait times? It is also a humanitarian issue. Should we not try to reduce these wait times?
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Mr. Speaker, I think the new office will be useful because it can provide us with information on treaty compliance. However, I wonder whether it should also have coercive powers to ensure treaty compliance. Does my colleague think that is a good idea?
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Mr. Speaker, we have seen overwhelming support for this bill from first nations. I believe that the commissioner will be a watchdog who will conduct research and provide us with information so that we can enforce the treaties if the government fails to do so. That said, I think the commissioner should also have coercive powers. What does my colleague think?
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to know what my colleague thinks about the following point. These last two Parliaments, the Conservatives have devoted almost all of their opposition days to abolishing the carbon tax. The Conservatives said it was driving up food prices. The Liberals took a page from the Conservative playbook and abolished the carbon tax for individuals. However, it has not had any impac…
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Mr. Speaker, it is far from clear that the taxes aimed at preventing pollution from everything oil-related are actually linked to food prices. However, pollution increases climate change and all its impacts, such as floods and forest fires. That creates considerable costs for farmers, and the bill is then passed on to consumers. Has my colleague taken that into account?
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Mr. Speaker, there has been talk about supply. I would like to know what my colleague thinks about the following. To improve the supply of imported fruits and vegetables, the government could promote greenhouse cultivation. It could also stop making cuts to agriculture, particularly to research centres. This would enable farmers to adapt and to develop technology to be more competitive. The govern…
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to pass on my regards to my colleague. I would like to know whether he has considered the impact that the proposed measures will have on pollution and climate change, or the impact that climate change, floods, forest fires and other events have on farmers and food prices.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague, who is also a member of the Standing Committee on Official Languages. First, I would like to know how he explains the fact that the Liberals eliminated the carbon tax and yet there has been no impact on the cost of food. Second, does he see a link between climate change and the effects of pollution, like floods and wildfires, which are having an impact on farmers…
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to know what the Leader of the Opposition thinks about the fact that the government opposite's scrapping of the carbon tax has had no impact on food prices. I would also like to know whether he believes that rising food prices can be attributed to the industrial carbon tax and environmental laws alone. Do any other factors come into play?
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Mr. Speaker, this measure was not included in budget 2025. It materialized out of thin air. It is a one-time cheque, which means that it is clear it is a vote-buying scheme. It aims to address the increase in the cost of living, which was in fact created in part by the measures of this government. What are my colleague's thoughts on this?
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Mr. Speaker, we at the Bloc Québécois have long been proposing an increase to the GST credit, and we think it would have been better to increase this amount regularly starting now, rather than making a single payment by June. We agree with the subsequent 25% increase, but we propose paying the credit monthly because we know that the most vulnerable are really struggling financially. Since credit c…
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Mr. Speaker, my colleague was talking about, among other things, reducing the carbon tax. However, the more the government supports the oil industry and subsidizes oil companies, the more greenhouse gases that are emitted, which increases the effects of climate change like flooding, wildfires and so on. This is a cost that trickles down to the people. Climate change has a price. In addition, it is…
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Madam Speaker, I want to know what my colleague thinks about the fact that the Conservatives' motion seems to imply a weakening of provincial sovereignty. The motion encourages investments that would lead them to pull away from their laws and rules in accordance with their priorities in terms of the environment, language and their specific needs.
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Madam Speaker, I would like to know what my colleague thinks about the polluter pays principle, which requires polluters, particularly oil companies, to bear the costs associated with managing the effects of the increase in greenhouse gases they produce. As we said earlier, these companies rake in over $130 billion in profits, 60% of which goes to the U.S. Instead of helping to ensure that these c…
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to hear my colleague's thoughts on something in the Conservative motion. The motion talks about providing free trade bonuses to remove internal trade barriers, but what are these barriers if not each province's respective language laws, environmental laws, public rules, workforce training and labour standards? This is basically a direct attack on the sovereignty of the pr…
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to know what my colleague thinks about the fact that, as he said earlier, the Liberals have already adopted several of the measures set out in the Conservative motion, including doing away with environmental protection measures, providing additional support for oil companies and axing the carbon tax. Can my colleague explain why the Liberals are shifting toward favouring …
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, Quebec has lost a great patriot. Jean Dorion passed away after a lifetime devoted to Quebec independence. Early on, Jean Dorion was an activist with the Rassemblement pour l'indépendance nationale and a founding member of the Parti Québécois. He served as chief of staff under René Lévesque and was responsible for key portfolios, such as immigration and the enforcement of the Charter o…
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Mr. Speaker, the Bloc Québécois agrees with Bill C‑16 as a whole. It includes several of our recommendations. We see that the Liberals want to strengthen certain laws in order to undercut the Conservatives. For example, we rose several times on the issue of the Jordan decision because prosecutions for serious crimes, like murder or sexual assault, were dropped as a result of delays. Fortunately, B…
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Mr. Speaker, the MOU with Alberta is proof that the Liberals are abandoning the fight against climate change. It looks like they want to bring Conservative voters on side, but the Conservatives are doubling down with this motion. What does my colleague think of the Liberals' new approach? Does this threaten the Conservatives' base?
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Mr. Speaker, climate change is causing droughts and natural disasters. It is also driving up the cost of living because of the financial repercussions involved. Could my colleague expand on that?
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Madam Speaker, my colleague was talking about seniors earlier, but one of the Bloc Québécois's very important requests for seniors is nowhere to be found in Bill C-15. I am talking about the 10% OAS increase for seniors aged 65 to 74. As the House knows, a few years ago, we pressured the government to increase old age pensions, since seniors were losing their purchasing power. There was an increas…
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Madam Speaker, I would like to hear my colleague's thoughts on the fact that Bill C-15 will make the media crisis worse. A few months ago, the government was supposed to impose a 3% tax on foreign digital platforms. That would have generated billions of dollars in tax revenue that could have been used to help private media outlets, which are really struggling right now. Instead, the Prime Minister…
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Madam Speaker, I want to know what my colleague thinks about the fact that this budget will perpetuate a deeply unfair tax situation by refusing to reinstate the digital services tax. Foreign platforms from the U.S. do not pay taxes, while Quebec and Canadian platforms like illico+, ICI TOU.TV and others are required to pay taxes and royalties. What does my colleague think about that?
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Madam Speaker, the Conservatives are being criticized for delaying the passage of bills. However, in the case of Bill C‑15, most of our requests were denied. Does my colleague agree that the government, which is a minority government, is behaving like a majority government? It consults very little with the opposition parties and makes very few compromises.
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Madam Speaker, Bill C-241 raises the major issue of flood and drought prevention. These phenomena are no longer isolated incidents. They have become recurring realities that disrupt our communities, weaken our infrastructure, and threaten our economy. The numbers cannot be denied. Over the past 10 years, the average cost of insured disasters in Canada has been $2.5 billion a year. Last year, we re…
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Mr. Speaker, the new Minister responsible for Official Languages is already fed up with his mandate. He thinks that saying that French is in decline is about electioneering. He thinks that saying that Montreal is being anglicized is an identity-based grievance. That is how he is starting his mandate. For him, it is very clear that defending French is a boring file that gives racist, xenophobic sep…
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Mr. Speaker, by officially scrapping the carbon tax, Bill C-4 confirms that Quebeckers were robbed. The Liberal government decided to entice voters with compensation for the carbon tax, even though the tax had not even been levied for the period in question. This was funded through taxes paid by Quebeckers, meaning we lost $814 million. What does my colleague think of that?
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Mr. Speaker, this bill is poorly thought out. The government is offering a tax cut, but at the same time, this means higher taxes for some seniors and some people with disabilities. What does my colleague think about these flaws in the bill?
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Mr. Speaker, I am very proud to recognize the 40th anniversary of Les Relevailles de Montréal centre in La Pointe‑de‑l'Île. Since 1985, this centre has supported 15,000 families as they transition to parenthood and through their journey of parenting a child from birth to age 2. The centre provides training, support services, in-home respite care and prenatal and postnatal activities in Montreal Ea…
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Mr. Speaker, this budget is a complete sham. Thanks to some very creative accounting, it hides a $78-billion deficit by claiming that $45 billion in spending is actually an investment, when that is not the case at all. Normally, an investment is backed by assets. For example, a person who invests in a house keeps the house. However, in the budget, tax credits for oil companies are presented as inv…
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Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister promised climate competitiveness. Well, what we got was climate capitulation. Furthermore, we have just learned that the Liberals are going to announce funding for a new dirty oil pipeline. This is the second pipeline they are going to invest in. All of this will, of course, be financed in part by Quebeckers. As for news media, CBC/Radio-Canada is getting $150 milli…
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Mr. Speaker, the provinces were asking for $100 billion for infrastructure. They got $9 billion in new money. That is not very much. It is like a sprinkle of little goodies. The entire thing is just a bad deal for Quebec and the provinces.
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Mr. Speaker, the request amounts to 0.5% of Canada's GDP. That is not excessive at all. However, I do agree with my colleague to a certain extent. The Liberals often say that this is a generational budget. Of course, they are going to leave behind a generational debt and deficit. Above all, they will be leaving behind measures that promote climate change and that will be very difficult for future …
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Mr. Speaker, I see that the member for Mirabel understands the situation. There is nothing in the budget on official languages. We see that francophones outside Quebec are struggling. We hear them say that they have rundown schools that are former anglophone schools. They are truly being treated like second-class citizens and the government is sitting on its hands and doing nothing. In Quebec, how…
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Mr. Speaker, I was told earlier that I am not a Conservative. That said, I can confirm one thing for my colleague. Some people say that the Conservatives are not as interested in centralization as the Liberals are. We saw an example of centralization in housing. We asked for the funds to be transferred to the Quebec government, with no strings attached, but the federal government is centralizing t…
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to know what my colleague thinks about the various strategies for trying to buy votes. In the last election, the Liberals provided compensation for the carbon tax for a period in which Canadians did not have to pay that tax at all. The Liberals did not provide compensation in Quebec and British Columbia, saying that those provinces did not pay any carbon tax. However, the…
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to know what my colleague thinks of the Liberal strategy to buy votes. For example, during the last election campaign, the government handed out $3.7 billion in election goodies in the form of a carbon tax rebate for a period when the carbon tax was not even collected. We in Quebec certainly find this shocking, since $814 million of our tax dollars went to fund these elec…
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Madam Speaker, my colleague referred to French-language content and what is in the budget, but there is almost nothing for official languages in the budget. I think there is a measure for National Acadian Day, which is a good thing. However, I am not the only one who has criticized this shortcoming in the budget. Since 2020, the Liberals have been saying that the federal government has a responsib…
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Madam Speaker, what my colleague just said in response to my question was completely false. There was no measure to protect French in Quebec. I studied the action plan for official languages 2023-2028, and even Quebec's minister of the French language looked it over and was surprised to see no measures. I also studied the 2023-24 public accounts, and nowhere was there any new measure for French in…
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Madam Speaker, I would like to hear my colleague's thoughts. The Bloc Québécois wanted the budget to include an increase in old age security for seniors aged 65 to 74. Everyone knows that the OAS was increased for those over 75, but seniors aged 65 to 74 also need support, since many of them have ended up living in poverty. No adjustments are planned to close this gap. The government has created t…
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Madam Speaker, we completely agree that the attempts to pass off spending as investment in the budget is all smoke and mirrors. Can my colleague give us other examples of spending that is billed as investment?
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Madam Speaker, I am guessing that my colleague has a number of seniors in his riding, as I do. Does he think that the government should increase pensions for those aged 65 to 74, as it did a few years ago for people aged 75 and over?
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Mr. Speaker, the bill eliminates the ladder principle when there is a reverse onus at the bail stage. The Bloc Québécois is questioning this measure because the Supreme Court has never ruled that remand is prohibited. I would like to hear my colleague's opinion on that.
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Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives want to step up the fight against crime. Would my colleague agree that we should crack down on criminal organizations by creating an organized crime registry?
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Mr. Speaker, judges lose a lot of independence with this bill. For instance, it imposes pretrial detention for a range of crimes that do not necessarily pose a threat to the public, such as car theft. Just because someone is accused of car theft does not necessarily mean that they are guilty or that they pose a threat to the public. The Bloc Québécois is not opposed to all reverse onus provisions,…
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Mr. Speaker, during the 44th Parliament, the Bloc Québécois introduced Bill C‑392 to provide a framework for the use of the Jordan decision, which results in cases being thrown out and criminals being released on the grounds that the proceedings are taking too long. We would like to make it impossible to use the Jordan decision for sexual offences, murder, kidnapping, crimes involving firearms, or…
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Mr. Speaker, the Jordan decision stipulates that, once a certain time limit has been exceeded, criminals who have committed murder, sexual offences, or acts of terrorism may be released on the grounds that the delay in bringing their case to trial has been unreasonable. Would my colleague agree with us so that the Jordan decision cannot be invoked to justify the release of these individuals solely…
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Madam Speaker, first of all, I congratulate my colleague for introducing Bill C-221, especially in such an emotional situation. I have never experienced that, so it is hard for me to imagine, but I think victims have a right to know. The bill aims to share information about temporary absences more effectively. It is heartening to see all the parties working across party lines to support this bill …
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