Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I would just like to point out to my friend from Chicoutimi—Le Fjord that the Standing Committee on Environment and Sustainable Development had a meeting on the caribou issue, because I moved a motion on the subject and I did that because the Conservatives were trying to play a futile game. The issue of the caribou order has now been set aside, and the federal government is in the pro…
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Mr. Speaker, I want to congratulate the member on the quality of her French. The Conservative Party's record speaks for itself. It is the party that created two categories of unemployed workers. It is the party that tried to weaken the laws that protect unions. The Conservative Party supports workers when it is the opposition, but generally, when it comes to power, it soon shows its true colours. …
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Mr. Speaker, I can absolutely talk about that. It would be great if we were able to increase the purchasing power of seniors 65 to 74. It would be really great if we could ensure that supply management is protected, especially with the arrival of the Trump administration. It would really great if we could eradicate hate speech based on religious exemption. I invite the Conservatives to end their s…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I have a great suggestion for my colleague from Chicoutimi—Le Fjord. I am confident that I can convince my leader to end this filibuster. The member for Chicoutimi—Le Fjord and I could propose a liquidity program for the forestry sector to the government. If he is interested, we could do that together. We could work something out. The government already succeeded in suspending the que…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Madam Speaker, I do not think that the Conservatives will put all their eggs in one basket. I think that they are simply going to do away with any and all measures intended to support the implementation of clean energies. As I see it, Conservatives are Liberals with very few scruples. They know full well that oil pollutes, but are they prepared to put measures such as emissions caps in place? They…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Madam Speaker, I too want to take a few seconds as well to salute my colleague from Repentigny who, unfortunately, will not be with us for the next election. In our caucus, we affectionately call her our eco-warrior, or Momo, which is shorter and simpler. I salute her because she is an inspiration to many colleagues. Today, we are talking about support for clean technologies. An article published …
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Madam Speaker, I got a Liberal member to react by talking about poutine. That is good. Business people are no dummies. What these big oil companies are saying is that Ottawa should be assuming the risks. If we want low-carbon oil, it will not be the greedy oil and gas sector that will take on the risks, it will be the federal government. Taxpayers are the ones who will have to assume the risks on …
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Madam Speaker, I come right out and tell these people to be patient, because transportation electrification is making rapid progress. I am seeing more and more electric F-150 trucks in my region. The best part is that when we plug in our EVs at home, our money does not go to Alberta but to Hydro‑Québec. That will, in turn, enable us to develop these upcoming technologies. What I tell these people …
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Madam Speaker, I tend to agree with my colleague. The Leader of the Opposition already does not allow his members to speak freely, so I am sure that he will try to apply the same logic to scientists in Canada who do not agree with his political aspirations. These are dark days for the planet, but it will be smooth sailing for the oil sector in the years ahead.
Read full speech →Emergency Debate
Mr. Speaker, I would like to acknowledge the respect shown by my Conservative colleagues, for whom I have a great deal of affection. I was somewhat blown away by the Conservative leader's intervention. This evening, we are tasked with coming up with solutions and trying to comfort and reassure business people and workers. The Conservative leader did not do that at all. Later I will turn my attenti…
Read full speech →Emergency Debate
Mr. Speaker, could we please have silence?
Read full speech →Emergency Debate
Mr. Speaker, I do not think a country can be run like an ad agency. I do not think that serious problems can be resolved by chanting incantations. Repeating “Canada first”, “triple, triple, triple” and “axe the tax” has never fixed anything. For 20 minutes, all I heard from the official opposition leader was empty slogans. I think he can reassure Canadians, and I will give him a chance: Can he tel…
Read full speech →Emergency Debate
Mr. Speaker, I was being heckled while I was asking my question. I will withdraw the word I used to describe my colleague, but I recommend that all the Conservative members put what the member herself just said into practice.
Read full speech →Emergency Debate
Mr. Speaker, there is probably a contrast in tone, but I started my speech by saying that, whether we are talking about “team Canada” or “Canada first”, the end result is always the same with either the Conservatives or the Liberals: Quebec takes a back seat. I have never seen a political party defend the forestry industry. The Conservatives have bragged about the 2006 agreement, but they reduced …
Read full speech →Emergency Debate
Mr. Speaker, the Conservative Party gets 125 questions a week. As I said earlier, since January 1, the Conservatives have asked 15 questions on immigration. I encourage my colleague to check the record. None of their opposition days have dealt with this or the border issue, but they have dedicated 18 opposition days to the carbon tax. Every day, I hear the Conservatives say they want an election o…
Read full speech →Emergency Debate
Mr. Speaker, I know that Mr. Trump is an irrational political player, but personally, I do not believe that the Americans should be imposing tariffs on aluminum, because they do not produce primary aluminum. If I remember correctly, there is only one aluminum smelter operating in the United States. We are the biggest producers of primary aluminum in North America. It is Quebec, particularly my reg…
Read full speech →Emergency Debate
Mr. Speaker, I could not agree more. It was not a disaster, it was a catastrophe. From 2005 to 2011, Quebec's forestry sector shrank by 30%, yet the Conservative Party and the Liberal Party did nothing. As I was saying earlier on, Canada relies on two economic pillars: oil and gas. As we saw, the leader of the official opposition used a quarter of his speaking time to crow about energy and new LNG…
Read full speech →Emergency Debate
Mr. Speaker, as I said earlier, and as we have been saying for a long time, if we want to protect ourselves from American tariffs, more processing at home is the answer. Unfortunately, the forestry sector receives no federal government support. Sawmills that ask the federal government for financial support are referred to Global Affairs Canada, where they are automatically turned down. Rather surp…
Read full speech →Emergency Debate
Mr. Speaker, certainly the fear is that if CUSMA is renegotiated, new cracks will appear in supply management. Ideally, Bill C-282 will be passed quickly. Unfortunately, we are paralyzed here. The Liberal government seems to be a doormat, I have to say, for two senators who have decided to act like kings. It is rather disappointing. There is a bill on the table, our bill, and the Liberals and the …
Read full speech →Emergency Debate
Madam Speaker, I am really fond of my colleague from Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles. I really like him. We are supposed to be talking about tariffs, but he is talking about national defence. Perhaps because of my limitations, I am trying to understand the connection between the two. I am sure my colleague from Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles will be able to tell me the connection between nation…
Read full speech →Emergency Debate
Madam Speaker, I just want to correct a few inaccuracies we heard from my colleague from Chicoutimi—Le Fjord. First, it is thanks to the Bloc Québécois that there was a special committee on caribou, a special committee on the environment. I hope that he will acknowledge that. Second, the reason why aluminum from Saguenay—Lac‑Saint‑Jean is particularly competitive is that it is clean aluminum, as h…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Madam Speaker, I am always amazed at my colleague from Kingston and the Islands' ability to play the victim. Every time I hear him, he says that the poor government is trapped by this question of privilege, that the infamous Bloc Québécois, with the help of the NDP, will not help break the impasse in the House and that it is appalling. He does not seem to understand that he is part of a minority g…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, I sincerely thank my colleague for his speech, because I now realize how much we have hurt the government. The government, the poor victim, is being overwhelmed by the Conservatives' filibustering, with the support of the Bloc Québécois and the NDP, and we have paralyzed the House. The government is being beaten down day after day. I realize that now and I feel bad. I would therefore …
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, what the government says is one thing, the facts are another, and rarely the twain do meet, unfortunately. The environment commissioner's reports are painful to read. Despite the minister's claims, the Liberal record is bleak. The government cares little about the survival of threatened species, and Canada lags behind every other G7 country when it comes to meeting its greenhouse gas …
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, Canada has six years left to reach its target of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 45% below 2005 levels. According to the environment commissioner, Canada had barely reduced its emissions by a laughable 7.1% by 2022. At this rate, every forest will have burned to the ground and every glacier will have melted before the federal government wakes up. A mere 7.1% is not even one-sixth…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, since July 2023, we have been calling on the government to take responsibility for water contaminated by per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, from CFB Bagotville. Water treatment costs have skyrocketed, and Saguenay will have to spend $7 million a year to provide residents of La Baie with drinking water until a permanent solution can be found. Quick action is imperative befor…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, what the minister is not saying is that a significant chunk of the money that the government puts into oil comes from Quebec. For the nine years that the Liberals have been in power, the Bloc has been calling for an emissions cap for oil and gas companies. The Liberals finally promised to implement such a cap three years ago. Two years ago, they tabled draft regulations but did not im…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Madam Speaker, I almost miss the days when the member for Regina—Qu'Appelle was the leader of the Conservative Party. He was just talking about taking the time to reflect and have a bit more wisdom. I wonder if it takes wisdom to come to the House and say that nurses are no longer going to work because there is no heating at the hospitals, that teachers are no longer going to work because there is…
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Madam Speaker, to me, there is nothing more harmful than an elected official trying to make the public lose confidence in institutions. For a while now, the opposition leader has been trying to stoke public discontent. When members say that the carbon tax is causing teachers to quit their jobs because there is no heat in the schools, that nurses are quitting their jobs because there is no heat in …
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, this year, the Association des libraires du Québec, the Quebec booksellers association, presented its award of excellence to my bookseller, Philippe Fortin-Villeneuve, from Librairie Marie-Laura. Philippe is a real bookworm. If someone asks him about the great classics of Quebec literature, philosophy or sociology, he can make recommendations without even batting an eye. This champion…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, indeed, we cannot ignore the fact that there is a housing crisis, and our out-of-control migration policies have something to do with this. In Quebec we know this only too well, since we are the ones receiving the majority of the temporary residents. These policies certainly have something to do with this. I do not believe, though, that the solution proposed by the opposition leader, …
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, not only are the Liberals discriminating against seniors, but they are even going so far as to cut funding to the organizations that support them. For months, they have been depriving community organizations of funding from the age well at home initiative because they refuse to come to an agreement with Quebec. This is yet another cynical attempt to encroach upon Quebec's jurisdiction…
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to give my colleague the opportunity to clarify or even qualify his thoughts. Earlier, in a question he asked the member for Winnipeg North, he said that, in his opinion, just because someone thinks they are Canadian does not mean they are truly Canadian. Defining oneself as a Canadian does not make one a Canadian. People often mistakenly think that sovereignists like me …
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Madam Speaker, I heard my colleague talk about capital gains earlier. I heard the Leader of the Opposition say earlier this week that this bill could not be amended in committee. I was confused. The leader of the official opposition has been a member for 20 years. Is it possible that the leader of the official opposition does not know how a bill works? I would like my colleague to elaborate on tha…
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Madam Speaker, in his speech, my colleague referred to investments in clean energy. We know that, in Alberta and western Canada, those investments are mainly being made in carbon capture and storage strategies. However, many experts have said that these strategies are a big waste of money. What is more, a Deloitte report commissioned by the Alberta government was just published today, and it found…
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Madam Speaker, I'll be sharing my time with my friend and associate, the member for Terrebonne. This is the umpteenth version of an opposition motion on the carbon tax. When I read the motion, I was kind of confused about my Conservative colleagues' intentions. A careful read of the motion eventually reveals that its mover is seeking access to the government's economic analysis of carbon pricing, …
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, let us be patient. I am getting there. Getting back to carbon pricing, Derek Evans, the former CEO of MEG Energy, is now the executive chair of Pathways Alliance, the largest representative of the oil sands industry. What did Mr. Evans say? He said that the advice he would give to the opposition leader is that the carbon policy will be absolutely essential for maintaining our positi…
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Madam Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague from Timmins—James Bay. I have the pleasure of working with him on the Standing Committee on Natural Resources. He is absolutely right. When it comes to oil and gas, I find the Liberals are just Conservatives with a complex. They are trying to hide things. Earlier, the Minister of Environment was saying that we were the first country to eliminate s…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, that is precisely it. I want members of Parliament to have access to as much information as possible before making decisions. The gist of my speech earlier was that this information has to be used in a rational manner, which the Conservative Party is not doing right now. When a leader says that people are requesting medical assistance in dying because they have no food to eat, that …
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Madam Speaker, at the close of my remarks I was simply pointing out that the Conservatives' motivations when it comes to carbon pricing are to support the oil and gas industry. It was surprising, therefore, to see the leader of the official opposition rise and say that the chief representative of the oil and gas industry is, in fact, a useless lobbyist who says stupid things. I have to wonder whet…
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Madam Speaker, I found my colleague's speech very inspiring, especially when she talked about her time as a minister in Quebec City and said that she wants to put what she did there into a bill. I found that inspiring because I know that when she was in Quebec City, she also voted in favour of carbon pricing. She talked about courage earlier. I think she could have the courage to bring to this Par…
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Madam Speaker, I wish my Liberal colleagues were also aware that fighting climate change means not buying a pipeline for $34 billion. I wish my Liberal colleagues were aware that fighting climate change means not giving $83 billion to greedy oil companies by 2035. Unfortunately, I get the feeling that when it comes to the interests of the oil and gas industry, the Liberals and Conservatives are on…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I would like to commend my colleague from Mirabel. I am his confidant, so I know his secrets, which I will not reveal, but which explain to some extent his candour this morning. As we can see, it is another opposition day marked by rank populism, another demonstration of how the Conservative Party takes liberties with the truth. My colleague from Mirabel offered the perfect illustrati…
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Madam Speaker, I completely agree with my colleague. The government's complacency when it comes to the oil industry is boundless. We were supposed to get clear direction on the elimination of the fossil fuel subsidies, the elimination of inefficient subsidies. However, this government cannot even tell us what the word “inefficient” means. The oil lobby is so well represented here that the oil comp…
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Madam Speaker, that is precisely it. We all remember the 2019 election. The Conservatives had an energy corridor project, where they tried to shove a dirty oil pipeline down our throats, a pipeline that would transport the dirtiest oil in the world all the way to Quebec. We remember that. We remember all the candidates waffling over Bill 21 during the last Conservative leadership race. That is the…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, that is a very interesting answer. The minister just said that the federal government does not run any hospitals. He just said that the federal government has no expertise in the procedures performed at hospitals. In his previous answer to me, however, he said that we need data on the procedures being done in hospitals. He wants data on something that is not within his purview. The on…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, it is really quite astonishing. The minister just said that he respects provincial jurisdictions. However, when it comes to pharmacare and dental care, the Quebec government has repeatedly said that these are inexcusable intrusions into Quebec's jurisdictions. Not only are these inexcusable and unenforceable intrusions into our areas of jurisdiction, but the government is going to cre…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, today I would like to talk about an exceptional nine-year-old, the courageous Gisèle Fortin, who, for three years now, has devoted her Monday nights to mastering the art of karate. Gisèle faces a major challenge, because she has cerebral palsy that severely affects her legs. With the unwavering support of her parents, Audrey Lapointe and Daniel Fortin, and her karate instructor Jean-F…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, every single year, the Quebec government allocates roughly 43% of its total budget to health care. If 43% is spent on health care, that means the other 57% of its entire budget has to cover all of its other government responsibilities, including education, the fight against poverty, housing construction, infrastructure, municipalities, support for businesses and so on. Members can see…
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