Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, here is the proof that this budget fails to meet the needs of Quebeckers. Yesterday, the same day that the budget was passed, the Arbec forestry company laid off nearly 100 workers in Amos. However, just three weeks ago industry representatives, including representatives from Arbec, were in Ottawa pleading for support. They were asking the federal government to advance them 50% of all…
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to issue the same warning that I gave my colleague earlier. This is a very serious matter. We must be careful not to undermine public confidence in our institutions. It seems to me that, since this morning, the Conservatives have been trying to stir up discontent among the public by saying that everything is broken, criminals are being set free and the system is not worki…
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Madam Speaker, I want to congratulate the leader of the official opposition on his speech. I hope he has impressed his troops. We want to keep it a minority government. The budget includes plenty of investments in fossil fuels. It is utterly silent on the energy transition. It includes massive investments in defence. It is a Conservative budget, as my colleague from Mirabel said, so much so that s…
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Mr. Speaker, my colleague was a member of the previous government. Like me, he saw the measures that I found insufficient, but that at least partially acknowledged the problem of climate change. He probably noted, as I did, that carbon pricing was in the previous budgets. He probably noted, as I did, that there was an emissions cap. Now I am wondering how he interprets this budget, which completel…
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Mr. Speaker, in the introduction to his speech, my colleague did a great job of explaining a major problem facing the federation, which is the fact that people try to smear Quebec's reputation whenever there is talk of immigration. The same thing happens when there is talk of secularism. Looking back, the same issue came up when Bill 101 was passed. However, today, not a single elected official wo…
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Mr. Speaker, while I may have some disagreements with my colleague, I cannot help but agree—for the most part, of course—with what she said in her presentation on national identity. In Quebec, the issue of collective identity is critical. A cornerstone of Quebec's collective identity includes the idea of secularism. How can we integrate migrants if we do not have a collective identity? It is absol…
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Madam Speaker, I appreciate my Liberal colleague's lyrical flight of fancy, but there is still one niggling question. What about integration? Migrants need to integrate into the host society. Even in his speech, he sort of proved our Conservative colleague right when he said that Canadian society is not actually founded on any strong symbols of identity. Language is the strongest symbol of identit…
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Madam Speaker, what the parliamentary secretary to the government House leader is not saying is that the government took amendments that were duly adopted in committee meetings and threw them out. Right now, my colleague is talking about the government's majority in the House. That is one thing. However, committees serve a purpose. Otherwise, we would not have them. We would vote on bills here in …
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Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order. I am sure that my colleague will share his time if he is asked.
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Mr. Speaker, my colleague really hammered on the notion of feeling safe, and I get the impression that by using random examples and saying that people released on bail commit other crimes, it may be we politicians, myself excluded, who are somehow exacerbating this feeling people have of being unsafe. New media may also be making it easier to access this very specific type of case. I would like to…
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Mr. Speaker, I have been listening to my Conservative colleagues since earlier this evening. I know that they are well aware that there is a separation between the legislative and judicial branches, but they seem to be questioning the judges' ability to use discretion with regard to pre-trial custody. I would like to hear my colleague's comments on that. Does he agree that a judge is able to deter…
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Mr. Speaker, it looks like the Liberals have been had too. Apparently they believed the Prime Minister when he said there would be a deal with the Americans by July and then said there would be one this fall. There is no deal, and it is now clear that the Liberal Party will not be saving anyone. This is a rude awakening. It hurts, but they need to understand that our economy is in urgent need of p…
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Mr. Speaker, yesterday, our forestry industry and its workers came to Parliament Hill to demand that Ottawa support them at long last in dealing with the Americans. They are calling on the federal government to advance them 50% of any future countervailing duties that have to be paid. This is a no-cost measure, considering that the U.S. tariffs are illegal and that our producers will eventually be…
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Mr. Speaker, I listened carefully to my colleague earlier. He was talking about the ideology of the Liberals, who have unleashed fear in our streets. Those are my colleague's words. I think we need to be careful with ideology. If we engage in alarmist rhetoric, we could needlessly elicit fear in people and end up with laws ill-suited to the public's needs. Sometimes I get the impression that my Co…
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Mr. Speaker, if Donald Trump follows through with his threat to increase tariffs by 10%, Quebec's forestry industry will be hit harder than any other industry in Canada, and yet Ottawa is doing nothing. The financial assistance it promised back in August has yet to be released. Our workers are still not protected through any wage subsidies, and our businesses are still paying billions of dollars i…
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Mr. Speaker, the forestry industry, forestry workers and municipalities were on Parliament Hill this morning. Representatives from Chantiers Chibougamau, Domtar, Arbec, the Association québécoise des entrepreneurs forestiers, Unifor, the reeve of the Antoine-Labelle RCM, and the mayor of Ferme-Neuve are all here to demand that Ottawa advance them 50% of the countervailing duties that will have to …
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Madam Speaker, I am inclined to offer my colleague a word of advice. It is perfectly acceptable to be critical of a bill, but one still has to keep one foot in reality. When I heard my colleague talking about fentanyl and supervised consumption sites earlier, his comments did not in any way reflect the message that we are getting from the experts who are trying to help people struggling with addic…
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Madam Speaker, I agree with many of the observations my colleague raised about the Conservatives' negligence in matters of immigration. I am sorry, I meant to say “Liberals”. I quite agree with him regarding asylum seekers, and Quebec has taken in more than its share of asylum seekers without being able to benefit from the money that should have come back to us from Ottawa. However, I would like m…
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his very enlightening speech. We know that things are tough right now when it comes to international co-operation because of the current global context. I also know that my colleague is working closely with the member for Lac‑Saint‑Jean on this issue. I would like to hear his thoughts on an amendment proposed by the member for Lac‑Saint‑Jean to ensure that the…
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Mr. Speaker, we talked a little bit today about part 8 of the bill, which includes some of the demands that the Bloc Québécois has repeatedly made concerning asylum seekers. However, there is something missing from the bill, and I would like to know where my colleague and the Conservative Party stand on it. Do the Conservatives agree that Quebec has welcomed more than its share of asylum seekers a…
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Mr. Speaker, the Liberal Party's comments are consistent, at least, as are those of the Conservative Party. As I mentioned earlier, the government has repeatedly criticized the Bloc Québécois for ideological reasons because we had proposals that were aimed at tightening the rules on temporary immigration. Now I see my Liberal friends criticizing the Conservatives for their leaders's comments on se…
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Madam Speaker, we need to focus on treaties that have a slightly broader scope. Why have all the other countries, like the European countries and the United States, decided to have a more democratic treaty-making process? I suppose it is because they believe in the role of elected officials when it comes to international treaties. We have seen some major blunders in the past. I was first elected t…
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moved that Bill C-228, An Act to amend the Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development Act (prior review of treaties by Parliament), be read the second time and referred to a committee. Mr. Speaker, it is my pleasure today to rise to speak to my bill, C-228. I will read the summary of the bill: This enactment amends the Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development Act to add certa…
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Mr. Speaker, the member clearly showed that the government has been slow to act, particularly with regard to part 8, which deals with temporary migrants. As my colleague rightly pointed out, during the previous Parliament, when the Bloc Québécois highlighted the issues with foreign students and asylum seekers, the government did terrible damage to our reputation. We were called all sorts of names.…
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Madam Speaker, what an intelligent question. I think that is fantastic. The answer is yes. During a recent discussion that my party caucus had with Daniel Johnson, who was premier of Quebec and also a trade agreement negotiator, Mr. Johnson told us how dysfunctional Canada's approach was, since it does not involve the terms of negotiation being validated by its houses of assembly. In the United St…
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Mr. Speaker, I want to congratulate my colleague on his very cogent and interesting speech. If the past is any indiction, I would say that we have often seen the government roundly criticize the reports of the Parliamentary Budget Officer, who was at least able to inform the House of the government's excesses. My concern is that the first nations commissioner will suffer the same fate. I would lik…
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Mr. Speaker, I do not necessarily want to defend what my Conservative colleague just said, but as the saying goes, the past predicts the future. We have seen the Liberals forcefully and vehemently state on several occasions that the Parliamentary Budget Officer's reports were unfair and then refuse to act on them. I wonder if they will do the same thing to someone in charge of alerting us to unfor…
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Madam Speaker, I agree with my colleague, and I am concerned about this situation, specifically that some of the most despicable aspects of American politics can sometimes slide into Canadian politics, particularly among groups that have a narrow interpretation of nationalism and do not always have good intentions. However, there is another issue that cannot be ignored, and that is the rise of rel…
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Madam Speaker, I find that genuinely fascinating. My colleague is saying that he speaks on behalf of Christians and that he represents Christians. According to him, in the bill, Christians, like people of any other faith, should be defended by members of Parliament. Personally, I believe all religions should be treated equally. In that regard, does my colleague not think it is necessary to amend B…
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Mr. Speaker, I listened to my colleague, who was telling us that there should be minimum sentences for vandalizing churches or synagogues. I can understand the principle behind that, but let us take it a step further. I wonder if my colleague would agree that the religious exemption for displaying hate symbols should be repealed. Does he agree with me that the religious exemption should be repeale…
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Mr. Speaker, I have tried many times to get a response from my Conservative colleagues but without success. Maybe I will have a better chance this time. Bill C‑9 continues to include a religious exemption for hate symbols. Does my colleague not find this illogical? Would the Conservative Party be willing to review this situation, perhaps in committee, in which two types of rights are granted? This…
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Madam Speaker, I congratulate my colleague on the excellent synopsis he gave. When it comes to immigration, we do not believe that cultural minorities inevitably turn to hate crimes. However, we must be aware that hate inherited from the past is causing tensions today. There are tensions between ethnic groups. What my colleague seemed to be saying in his speech, which I appreciated, is that the me…
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Madam Speaker, as we have indicated, Bill C‑9 has some merit. It needs to be studied at committee. Earlier, in response to two questions we asked him, the minister told us that he might be prepared to review the religious exemption as part of the study in committee. Are the Conservatives open to that as well? Are they willing to review the religious exemption granted when hateful symbols are displ…
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Madam Speaker, I applaud the minister's open-mindedness. In response to a question earlier, he indicated that he was open to reviewing in committee the exemption granted to religious groups when it comes to hate symbols. I would like him to repeat his position, just to be sure. What I understood from the minister is that he is open to a discussion in committee to see whether the exemption for hate…
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Mr. Speaker, my colleague is making a statement similar to the one made this morning by the member for Pontiac—Kitigan Zibi. They are arguing that implementing a policy that regulates religion is at odds with invoking the notwithstanding clause, which allows Quebec to follow its own political leanings. I find that quite surprising. Anyone with even a passing knowledge of Quebec history will quickl…
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Mr. Speaker, unfortunately, cowardice is the right word. We watched the red herring all day long as the Liberals stood up to say they have nothing against Bill 21, but they want clarifications about the possible impact of the notwithstanding clause. Only the most fearful would go to such lengths to avoid standing by their position. There was a Liberal government in place before. Most of the member…
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Mr. Speaker, Quebec's identity is not a distraction. Quebec's plan to govern itself is not a distraction. Quebec's autonomy to make its own choices is not a distraction. The Conservatives should be ashamed of this petty rhetoric they have been engaging in all day.
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Mr. Speaker, I understand from my colleague's response earlier that he is making a distinction by saying that today's debate is simply about the notwithstanding clause, and not about Bill 21. I have a very clear question for him. As a member of Parliament from Quebec, does he support Bill 21, which regulates religion in the civic sphere in Quebec? That is my question for my colleague, nothing more…
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Mr. Speaker, it is disappointing. If the Liberals want to amend the Constitution and section 33, the notwithstanding clause, let them launch constitutional negotiations. Let them reopen the Constitution if they want to change its rules. Let them treat Quebec and the provinces as equal partners in a public debate instead of going through the courts. Let them respect their own federation. Let them b…
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Mr. Speaker, I will start by sharing my thoughts on what I have been hearing all day. The government members, in all their speeches, tried to make us believe that they were not seeking to oppose Bill 21, but rather the notwithstanding clause. Even though we heard the former prime minister, Mr. Trudeau, strongly disavow Bill 21 repeatedly in the past, even though we heard many people on the governm…
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Madam Speaker, I rise on a point of order. I can see why my colleague might think the government is trying to avoid the cost of living crisis, which is affecting people. However, I think that Quebec's Act respecting the laicity of the State and the fact that it is being challenged are important issues for Quebeckers. I would politely ask my colleague to focus on the motion we moved today. I do not…
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Mr. Speaker, that is exactly right. What happened is that Quebec was sidelined after 1982. If Quebec, as a national minority, wants to follow its own path and create its own laws, it needs some kind of political autonomy. We have constantly been denied that political autonomy by the different federal governments. The notwithstanding clause is an insurance policy that at least allows Quebec to brin…
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Madam Speaker, I agree with my colleague that the cost-of-living crisis is a very important and worthy issue that we can talk about. However, there is another very important issue, which is the survival of a minority nation and Quebec's ability to enact its own laws to regulate religion in its society. My colleague did not comment on that, so I will ask him a very simple question. As an elected me…
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Mr. Speaker, that ploy is not working, not even with the media. If, as they claim, this challenge is not specifically against Quebec, why does their factum specifically challenge Bill 21? Why did they do it in this specific case? I sense a touch of, shall I say, hypocrisy on the part of the government. They want to have it both ways, but the principle is clear. If we go by what the government has …
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Madam Speaker, my colleague quotes Simone de Beauvoir extensively. I would like to congratulate her for that. Kudos to her. However, she should be aware that women in Quebec have been fighting hard to break free from religion. In the 1940s to 1950s, women in Quebec did not have the same rights as men, and they had to campaign for a long time and fight hard to replace religion with something else. …
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
moved for leave to introduce Bill C-228, An Act to amend the Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development Act (prior review of treaties by Parliament). Mr. Speaker, today, the Bloc Québécois is keeping a promise by introducing a bill to enable Parliament to not only review but also vote on the text of trade agreements before the Government of Canada ratifies them. This bill will basically …
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Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to see you again and to speak to Bill C-2, a large, complex bill that covers several aspects related to border security, the fight against organized crime, illegal financing and, above all, immigration and IRCC. I may elaborate on that later. It is no secret. As my colleagues from Beauharnois—Salaberry—Soulanges—Huntingdon and Lac-Saint-Jean indicated, the Bloc Québécois …
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Mr. Speaker, it is rare for me to agree with the member for Winnipeg North. The parliamentary session is off to a very good start. I think we need to continue the work. However, the message I would have liked people to take away from my speech is that sometimes, politically, there needs to be an adult in the room. In the past, in the House, when we have talked about immigration, we have been accus…
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Mr. Speaker, it sounds like we agree. My colleague is absolutely right. The majority of MPs in the House, who want to do their job properly, are overwhelmed by highly complex IRCC-related requests. The result is that everyone is frustrated. People come to our offices hoping to find solutions because, the truth is, the immigration system is broken. Unfortunately, it is difficult to get someone on t…
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Mr. Speaker, that is a very good question. Unfortunately, I do not think that Bill C‑2 does anything to address how unfairly Quebec has been treated. Quebec had to foot the bill to take in more than its share of asylum seekers, which put pressure on the health and education systems and the housing supply, as we have said here many times. This whole crisis may have been caused by the previous gover…
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