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Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honour a national hero and a personal idol. Earlier this month, we lost the Hon. Ken Dryden. Ken's story is profoundly Canadian. He was born in Hamilton, grew up in Islington and was the son of a builder and kindergarten teacher. He joined the Islington Hornets in Toronto as a goaltender at the age of seven. He entered the NHL as a player for the Montreal Canadiens 16 …
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Mr. Speaker, the President of the United States is a modern man: He has a cell phone. I speak to him on a regular basis and we exchange texts. The most important thing right now for Canada is to diversify our trade relations abroad, with Europe, Asia, Africa and South America.
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Mr. Speaker, Canada-U.S. relations are good. Yes, we have difficulties, we have challenges, and we have differences of opinion. I am proud of this government. The government stands up for Canada. That is true. I speak with the President on a regular basis, including last weekend, about the current situation in Ukraine, Russia, and China.
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Mr. Speaker, the current situation is as follows. We have the best agreement in the world with the U.S. Right now, more than 85% of exports to the United States are tariff-free. That is huge. We have the lowest tariffs in the world right now. I call that a success.
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Mr. Speaker, I think if we are going to build the strongest economy in the G7, and we will, we need to be clear about the scale of the crisis we are in. We need to be clear about the scale of investment that we need. There was $60 billion in new projects announced last week, $200 billion in investment announced last week and $100 billion in housing investment announced just yesterday. That is the …
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Mr. Speaker, the government is undertaking the biggest investment in protecting Canadians in the Canadian military, doubling our investment in the Canadian military from last year, when the member last sat in the House, by the end of this decade. There is more.
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Mr. Speaker, the government has been absolutely focused on improving affordability for Canadians. That is why there was the largest tax cut for 22 million Canadians, every taxpayer in this country. That is why we made the cut to the GST. That is why we launched "build Canada homes", which will reduce the cost of homebuilding in this country. That is why we backed the CRTC to get broadband costs do…
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Mr. Speaker, I understand that the Leader of the Opposition was busy. He missed the largest tax cut for 22 million Canadians. He missed the cut on the GST for new homes. He missed our eliminating all federal barriers to trade. I hope I will have another opportunity to finish a very long list of what the Leader of the Opposition missed.
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Mr. Speaker, I completely agree with the Leader of the Opposition's feelings and objectives for our great country.
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Mr. Speaker, I am sure I speak for all parliamentarians in welcoming the member for Battle River—Crowfoot back to the House of Commons. He may notice a few things have changed since he was here last: the largest women's caucus in Canadian history and a spirit of collaboration that was shown in the opening session, including in the passage of the Building Canada Act. The House also passed the Bloc …
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Mr. Speaker, when it comes to Canada‑U.S. trade, over 90% of our exports to the U.S. are duty‑free. That is a success. We are the only country in the world to have achieved such success. However, we are not satisfied. We need to find markets, and we need to come up with fair arrangements with the Americans for the steel, aluminum and auto industries.
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Mr. Speaker, the future of both young and older Canadians is one where we are going to build this great country with one Canadian economy.
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Mr. Speaker, there is a difference between average and maximum. The maximum is indeed $840 per year. This is a tax cut for 22 million Canadians. I thank members for supporting this measure.
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Mr. Speaker, I am proud, as Prime Minister, to have made the biggest investment in our military in decades. I am proud to be reversing the decades of cuts from members opposite.
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Mr. Speaker, once again, a tax cut is a cut for those who pay taxes. Twenty-two million Canadians pay taxes in this country. Eighty-six per cent of that tax cut goes to those in the first two tax brackets. For a two-earner family, the maximum tax cut is $840 a year. The members opposite think it is irrelevant, but it is relevant for Canadians; it is building the economy. We are glad they voted for…
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Mr. Speaker, there is a direct link to the steel and aluminum industry. There are surpluses because of the U.S. tariff war. Bill C-5 will create demand for Canadian steel and aluminum to build major infrastructure in Quebec and across Canada for good jobs.
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Mr. Speaker, I recognize that the job of prime minister comes with many responsibilities; I did not know addition and division were one of them. The Parliamentary Budget Officer refers to the reductions for all Canadians. The vote on which the members opposite supported the government delivers a tax cut for the 22 million Canadians who pay taxes and drive this country forward.
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Mr. Speaker, unlike the member opposite, I am proud of having experience in the private sector. I am proud of having experience helping to build this country. I am proud of having filed all my requirements in advance, before required, including a screen for conflict of interest.
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Mr. Speaker, that is one of the reasons this process needs to be tightened up. The processes take too long for major projects. With confidence, we are going to produce steel and aluminum and create jobs here in Canada, starting this summer.
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Mr. Speaker, I think it is important to follow details, including important details such as that there was just an election. Canada's new government was elected to focus on getting best value for Canadian taxpayer dollars and building the strongest economy in the G7. That is exactly what we are doing. We are focused on the future.
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Mr. Speaker, Canada's new government is focused on best-in-class procurement. That is why we have a new Minister of Government Transformation and new Department of National Defence procurement at a time when we are seeing the biggest increase in spending to defend our country.
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Mr. Speaker, the government is focused on best-in-class procurement. That is why we have put in place a new Minister of Government Transformation. That is why we are putting in place new Department of National Defence procurement. It is to get taxpayer value for money and to build the strongest economy in the G7. That is how we get value for Canadians.
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Mr. Speaker, there are different systems and different transitions. This is not an injustice. We are being consistent.
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Mr. Speaker, as I just said, the government is laser-focused on best-in-class procurement. That is why we have a new Minister of Government Transformation. That is why we have a brave deputy, who fought for this country and who flew fighter jets, as the new Secretary of State for Defence Procurement. We are going to get best value for Canadians' dollars. We are going to grow the economy. The membe…
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Mr. Speaker, the government, Canada's new government, is focused on best value for taxpayer dollars. We are running a process to review our programs. We are running a process to focus on results for Canadians, not on dollars in. We are running a process to integrate technology. We are running a process to get best value for the largest increase in defence spending in precedent, making up for the f…
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Mr. Speaker, every hour of every day, I intend to focus on best-in-class procurement for Canadians.
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Mr. Speaker, the final carbon rebate payment was issued to help with the transition that millions of Canadian families are going through. All members agreed with our decision to scrap the consumer carbon tax. Many families outside Quebec and British Columbia need a transition period. That is the reason.
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Mr. Speaker, the provinces and Quebec had the choice to impose their own carbon pricing system. We respect Quebec's jurisdictions.
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Mr. Speaker, Quebec did not pay the consumer carbon tax. Therefore, this is not unjust. It makes sense that the rebate would be paid one last time as an adjustment for Canadian families.
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Mr. Speaker, as the leader of the Bloc Québécois just mentioned, he created Quebec's own carbon pricing system. Things were different elsewhere in the country, with the exception of British Columbia. This is consistent, it is fair, and it is done.
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Mr. Speaker, I am proud that we cancelled the carbon tax. Quebec and British Columbia have their own system. Our decision, including the decision about the final rebate payment, concerns the rest of Canada.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank the Auditor General for her service. I note that GC Strategies has been prohibited from government contracts for seven years. It is that standard—
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Mr. Speaker, as a member of Canada's new government and a new member of Parliament, I say we will uphold higher standards.
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to commend the members opposite for supporting the making life more affordable act to get taxpayer dollars back to Canadians. This government is committed. This new government is committed to making the best use of all taxpayers' dollars.
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to know if the member opposite holds himself accountable for letting military spending fall below 1% of GDP when the Conservatives were in government. This government has doubled military spending in cash terms. We are meeting our NATO obligations this year, leading from the front.
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Mr. Speaker, last year, after an independent process, the government suspended the company for this year. It is finished.
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Mr. Speaker, one of the first things I did was review the F-35 contract, because it has to be right for Canada, for Canadians and for our security. We will report back to Parliament this summer.
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Mr. Speaker, I was proud to stand yesterday with the Minister of National Defence and the chief of the defence staff to announce the largest increase in military expenditure in decades. Building our military strong, building our military with Canadian technology, Canadian jobs, Canadian steel and Canadian aluminum, is what the review of the F-35 is about. That is what the future of this country is…
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Mr. Speaker, the U.S. tariffs are illegal and unjustified. They do not make sense. That is very clear. We are in the midst of intensive real-time negotiations with the Americans and, in parallel, preparing reprisals for the aluminum tariffs.
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Mr. Speaker, the bill that is before the House will cut taxes for 22 million middle-class Canadians. The House must support it.
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Mr. Speaker, I am pleased, for the first time, to hear members opposite talk about lowering taxes in front of this House. It is the first time in my hearing. Before the House is a tax cut for 22 million Canadians, up to $840, and they want their support.
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Mr. Speaker, Canadians from Shawinigan to Saskatoon, and the premiers and the Prime Minister who represent them, have agreed on the importance of building projects of national interest. The consensus that is required includes a consensus with indigenous peoples, something that members opposite do not do. We will stand with indigenous Canadians. We will build pipelines, energy infrastructure and th…
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Mr. Speaker, the American tariffs, the new tariffs on steel and aluminum, are unlawful, unjustified and illogical, I agree with the member opposite, and that is one of the reasons why we have retaliatory tariffs on over 90 billion dollars' worth of U.S. goods. We are in intensive negotiations with the Americans and, in parallel, preparing reprisals if those negotiations do not succeed.
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Mr. Speaker, we have already strengthened the EI system. We have committed to giving all of the countertariff revenues to the workers and businesses most affected by the unjustified and unlawful U.S. tariffs.
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Mr. Speaker, as I just said, we need to do several things at once. We are negotiating with the Americans, while simultaneously offering financial support to businesses in the steel and aluminum sector. We are supporting the workers. We are also offering several support measures through public procurement, as the Minister of Industry mentioned yesterday.
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Mr. Speaker, we need to do several things at once. We need to build our economy. We need to build our economy with legislation that will give us one Canadian economy instead of 13. We need to build our economy with projects of national significance. Yes, we need to negotiate with the Americans. These negotiations are taking place at a very sensitive time, but we are going to win, and so are the Ed…
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Mr. Speaker, the bill that is before the House increases health transfers by 5% and increases spending on seniors' benefits by 6%. The House needs to vote for all of that, and to lower taxes and cut the GST on new homes.
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Mr. Speaker, there will be a budget that increases support for seniors, children, child care centres and all of Canada. For now, we will increase our country's growth with a bill for a strong economy.
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Mr. Speaker, I spoke with the Premier of Quebec and the other premiers about the need for commitments and co-operation agreements regarding environmental standards. We will enter into such agreements in the coming months.
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Mr. Speaker, Parliament's motion is duly noted. Yesterday, I was with the Premier of Quebec and we agreed that the best way to increase growth in our country is to have one Canadian economy, not 13.
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