Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I have not had a very good chance to get to know the hon. member, but I know that she is held in very high regard by members throughout every party in the House. I have only heard good things about the committee work that she has contributed. I have to say that every question she has put forward, including this one, have been ones that are thoughtful. If one looks at the overall budge…
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Mr. Speaker, I have a great deal of respect for my colleague. However, we disagree on this issue. Canada's fiscal situation is a very important reality for the House and for our country. Canada right now, if we look at the G7 countries, has the lowest deficits, has the lowest debt, if we use the debt-to-GDP ratio as the key metric, which we should. The IMF is clear on that, that this is the key me…
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Mr. Speaker, let me commend the member, who brings to this House 29 years of experience as an educator in his community. He has years of experience as a mayor and, most recently, he was co-chair of the seniors caucus on this side of the aisle. He is right. On the 20th of this month, Canadians can begin filing their taxes. It is absolutely essential to do so to get access to vital benefits, includi…
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Madam Speaker, it turns out the Conservatives apparently are following the lead of their leader, who was staying up very late at night, as we understand, watching crypto episodes on YouTube. What he is missing as a result of that, and what they are missing, is the public record. At the public accounts committee last week, the commissioner of the CRA made it very clear that the verification work is…
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Madam Speaker, all one has to do is go into Canadian communities across this country to understand the importance of the various COVID-19 emergency programs that were introduced. Whether it was CERB or whether it was the wage subsidy, these programs helped the country through. At a time when Canadians needed their government, their government was there. Where was the opposition? The opposition was…
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Mr. Speaker, the key point about the wage subsidy, as I said before, is the way it helped small businesses, small business owners and their employees and medium-sized business owners and their employees. That is the fundamental fact to take away. With respect to the hon. member's questions about avoidance and evasion, this government has invested no less than $1 billion to counter both of those th…
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Mr. Speaker, the opposition leader talks about Canadians. Where was he at the height of the pandemic? When Canadians needed their government, he was talking about an austerity agenda, he was talking about cuts and he was not behind the various programs that helped to sustain this country. The work of the CRA continues, as I mentioned before. It is ongoing. It is serious, and it is focused. In fact…
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Mr. Speaker, I will remind the hon. member that he has access to it, as it is the public record. Last week, at the public accounts committee, the commissioner of revenue made clear that verification work on determining eligibility for the various COVID emergency programs is ongoing. It was the CRA public employees who, in a very focused way, helped to administer the various programs that were put …
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Mr. Speaker, I have respect for the hon. member, because since the moment he was elected he has raised the concerns of working-class individuals and families. On this matter, though, the wage subsidy proved enormously effective for people in his community and every Canadian community, as well as for the businesses in need of support, small businesses and medium-sized businesses. The verification w…
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Mr. Speaker, the member talks about fiscal responsibility. While Conservatives continue to make the case, unfortunately, that crypto poses some kind of promising future for Canada, this government has introduced and will continue to do the vital work of standing by Canadians through the pandemic and into the future. With respect to what the member raised on evasion and avoidance work, just with re…
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Mr. Speaker, again, when it comes to vital COVID programs that helped to keep businesses going, the member was against all of that. The key fact about the wage subsidy is that small and medium-sized businesses in particular were kept going throughout the pandemic. That is what we have to keep in mind. In fact, when it comes to the vital avoidance and evasion work carried out by CRA, the Conservati…
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Mr. Speaker, I rise to highlight the outstanding work of an incredible organization in London, Ontario, Youth Opportunities Unlimited, or YOU. Founded in 1982, its centre has continuously focused on the well-being of youth finding themselves in a variety of challenges. The organization focuses on mid-teens and late 20s, kids experiencing challenges in search of a better future in a way that affirm…
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Mr. Speaker, it is unfortunate. It turns out the member opposite was not attending last week's meeting of the public accounts committee, because if he was, he would have heard the commissioner of the CRA say that verification work is ongoing with respect to CERB, with respect to CEWS and with respect to all of the emergency programs the government turned out to help Canadians, individuals, familie…
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Madam Speaker, my friend in the NDP wants credit. We worked with members of the NDP on that, so he gets credit. We worked with them and it was this government that got it done. I am sure he will give credit to the Liberal government for getting it done. We have great legislation here. I hope all colleagues support it.
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Madam Speaker, the subject today is not Bill 101, but Bill C‑35. In my opinion, Quebec has an excellent model for Canada. In fact, that is exactly what we have seen, a government that has looked at the Quebec model, looked at other provinces and opened the door to ongoing discussions that ultimately led to agreements. I mentioned Quebec before, with nearly a 2% increase in that province's GDP sinc…
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Madam Speaker, my colleague and I have enjoyed a very good working relationship over the years. I have a lot of respect for what he does in his community, and no doubt his constituents do as well as they have returned him to the House many times. On the question, if we have an affordable child care option, we give people choice. If we give people choice, they will take it. We have seen, as I cited…
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Madam Speaker, it is a great opportunity to stand in the chamber to speak to the importance of child care, which is what Bill C-35 is all about. The aim is to establish, through this legislation, a national early learning child care system. This is something that is not a new discussion in Canada. It was this government that was able to get it done, but the discussion, as members know, goes back t…
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Madam Speaker, the member does not give evidence as to what the government apparently has done, in her view, with previous advisory councils. It is important for an advisory council to exist, and the bill would open the door to exactly that. However, if the member has suggestions that she wishes to raise, I would be open to looking at those. It is for the government to make the ultimate decision o…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 32(2), I have the honour to table, in both official languages, the 2021-22 Office of the Taxpayers' Ombudsperson's annual report, entitled “Service Matters: Numbers Speak Volumes”.
Read full speech →Adjournment Proceedings
Madam Speaker, that was an interesting speech, as always, from our colleague. I would be remiss if I did not begin tonight by speaking about the late Jim Carr, a colleague to all of us and a friend to many. He was someone who served with distinction provincially and federally, among so many other different pursuits, and who had a very impressive life. He was a mentor to many MPs who began with him…
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Madam Speaker, I ask my hon. colleague what the Conservatives would have done had they been in power. What approach would they have taken? The result that we see is that the country was sustained. It was sustained because of these programs. The audit work continues. Verification is being carried out. It is being carried out in multiple ways and in line with international best practices. The member…
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Madam Speaker, earlier this year, when Londoner Wayne Dunn was honoured by the Governor General for his contributions to volunteerism, it came as no surprise to residents of our community. For 23 years, Wayne and the organizing committee of the Business Cares Food Drive have done extraordinary work in getting businesses together so food drives could be organized for the community, specifically in …
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Mr. Speaker, today, I rise to pay tribute to the remarkable life of Dr. Peter Fowler, a giant and an icon in the field of sports medicine. Dr. Fowler sadly passed away last Wednesday with his family by his side. In 1974, along with his mentor Dr. Jack Kennedy, Dr. Fowler established an athletic injury clinic. This venture became one of the largest and most successful sports medicine clinics in Nor…
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Mr. Speaker, it is always interesting to hear the member opposite. One thing I have noticed is that he and his colleagues continue to criticize the federal government for introducing COVID-19 emergency programs. I understand the criticism, but I do not agree with it. If they have that criticism, why did they support those programs? Why did they vote in favour of them?
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Madam Speaker, the member knows very well that I cannot comment on specific cases, but what I can say is that our entire social safety net depends on the principle of tax fairness and people paying their fair share. That is why this government, since 2015, has invested $1 billion to counter tax avoidance, and we will continue to do that. It is yielding results. Just in response to the Panama paper…
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Mr. Speaker, today I pay tribute to a political colleague and friend, the Hon. Ed Holder, who was sworn in as London's 64th mayor on December 1, 2018. After much success, he decided not to seek re-election in the recent municipal election. Before being chosen by Londoners to lead our city, Ed served as the Conservative member of Parliament for London West from 2008 to 2015 and as the federal minis…
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Mr. Speaker, I rise to honour Tina Bax and Michelle Quintyn, who were recently inducted into the London and District Business Hall of Fame in recognition of outstanding contributions and ethics in business. Tina is the founder and former president of CultureWorks ESL and the founder of Canada Immigration Pathway. Founded in 1998, CultureWorks was the first public-private partnership of its kind in…
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Madam Chair, I am thankful for the opportunity to speak about a vital issue, to put it mildly. I am glad that the House is taking up the issue of mental health tonight. I have enjoyed listening to the reflections of all members. I should tell you at the outset that I am splitting my time with the member for Don Valley East. Where I want to start is on the issue of stigma. I think it is fair to say…
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Madam Chair, I did not have a chance to cross the way and shake my colleague's hand after the speech he gave earlier, but I think he touched everyone tonight in a very real way, and I say that to him sincerely. I am not sure of the specifics of the particular case the member raises. I am happy to have a further conversation with him and learn a little more about what he is talking about there. How…
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Madam Chair, there is no question that there is enormous urgency. This morning, I had a meeting with the YMCA in London, a virtual meeting of course, and we engaged in a conversation about some of the challenges they are facing. They are also an outstanding group that deserves attention and positive comments. What I can say to the member is that, throughout the pandemic, this government stood up f…
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Madam Chair, I thank my colleague for the question. I know how passionate she is in her work as parliamentary secretary. I think that she was engaged in such issues before she became an MP and deserves a lot of credit for that work as well. I think that accessibility is fundamental to the issue, and whatever government can do to further ensure that is very important. This is something that relates…
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Mr. Speaker, of course, there is an expectation that Canadians and Canadian businesses pay their fair share. To that end, just on tax evasion alone, this government has invested over a billion dollars to counter that.
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Mr. Speaker, in addition, we have put forward in response to the Panama papers, which I know the member opposite who is yelling is quite interested in, 900 Canadians. They have been identified and are under observation. There are 160 audits under way and over 200 have been completed. That work will continue.
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Madam Speaker, I will be splitting my time with the member for Cowichan—Malahat—Langford. As this is the first occasion I have had to speak in the House now that we are back after the parliamentary recess, it is an honour to be back with colleagues. It is great to see people again and I look forward to the work ahead. I am speaking on the Canada dental benefit today, but I would be remiss if I did…
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Madam Speaker, if the Conservatives are now coming on board calling for a full-blown dental program, that would be welcomed, but somehow I think that is not the case. As I said at the outset of the speech, perhaps the member was not in the chamber at the time, this is the case in the first instance. It applies to children under 12 in the first place, then to kids under 18, and by 2025 it will be a…
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Madam Speaker, there is so much there I do not know where to begin. With respect to the Canada child benefit, and I know the hon. member is concerned with poverty in Canada, it has lifted hundreds of thousands of children out of poverty. I will put that to the member if he was not already aware. With respect to his understanding of how this particular dental benefit will work with respect to kids,…
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Madam Speaker, I think what we have with respect to this bill is one of the greatest advances in social and health policy the country has seen. Therefore, I applaud colleagues in the NDP for helping to raise this issue. I know Liberal colleagues on this side of the House have been advocating for something like Bill C-31 for a long time. In the first place we see kids supported. We are going to see…
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Madam Speaker, I rise today to celebrate the career of Deb Harvey, the executive director of the Grand Theatre in London. She is retiring after 23 years, coming from Nova Scotia on a six-month contract when the theatre was at serious risk of closing due to significant debt. Since taking the helm, Deb has led the theatre to two decades of surplus, only having a small bump in the road due to COVID-1…
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Madam Speaker, I appreciate the speech from the member opposite, although I cannot help but disagree. Someone else who would disagree is the Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada. This is what they said about Bill C-11: Canadian creators need support to continue to develop Canadian music in the world of streaming, and Canada must be a place for emerging music creators, where…
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Madam Speaker, in thinking back to Progressive Conservative governments of the past, they very much championed the idea that television corporations or radio corporations, for example, would have an obligation to support Canadian content. The world has changed very much since the last time the Broadcasting Act was updated in 1991. Streaming services play a fundamental role and are even more import…
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Mr. Speaker, every company has to pay their fair share. I look forward to engaging more with NDP members, as I think all members on this side of the aisle do, on that matter to get their thoughts. I know where they stand, but let us collaborate, let us listen and let us work toward a fair playing environment, if I can put it that way, in terms of the digital creators the member is so concerned abo…
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Mr. Speaker, it has been very interesting to take part in tonight's discussion and hear the different views expressed. I am happy to have what I believe will be the last word tonight on the matter, on Bill C-11. At the heart of it is culture and questions around culture. That is the way we make sense of ourselves and our place in the world as individuals and also as members of communities on a loc…
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Madam Speaker, it is a pleasure to engage with the member. I work with him on the public accounts committee. I enjoyed his speech, particularly when he said that cultural producers should enjoy the space and security to tell Canadian stories. His focus was on indigenous stories. I wonder what he thinks of a point of view that we often hear from the opposition side, including today. I think it is o…
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Mr. Speaker, I rise to pay tribute to the members of the London Home Builders' Association. I recently attended their president's industry gala dinner and heard perspectives on what is needed to address housing affordability and supply. The evening also honoured leaders who have made significant contributions to the local and national industry. I am speaking of Peder Madsen of CCR Building and Rem…
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Madam Speaker, the minister spoke about victims and victim organizations raising their voices over the years and offering input that has been expressed in Bill C-21. Could the member elaborate on that point, particularly for urban communities? We have seen that impact not only there but also in rural communities. I would like to hear her perspective on that.
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Madam Speaker, I was just going to offer that to my hon. colleague. If he wishes, we can discuss it, but it is clear, in my view, that sport shooting is not impacted. Another key aspect of Bill C-21 is the maximum penalty offences such as smuggling and trafficking would go up from 10 years to 14 years of imprisonment. That is an advance of great importance. It is something we have not seen before …
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Madam Speaker, it is almost midnight, and I see there are still a number of members of Parliament in the House and a number of us who have participated in tonight's debate, which is no surprise. This is an issue of fundamental importance, and we—
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Madam Speaker, it was a compliment to the House. I am not sure where that came from. I always get along with my colleague on committee. In any case, the point is that it is nearly midnight, and we are here debating an issue of such fundamental importance. The starting point for me begins with that fundamental truth, that the role and responsibility of any democratically elected government is to en…
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Madam Speaker, the member is very good, as usual, at citing hypotheticals, but he has not pointed at all to anything in the bill that would prevent someone from becoming a sport shooter. The critical thing is to take it back and focus on—
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Madam Speaker, I am glad to provide my colleague with an answer. The answer is that Bill C-21 deals with criminal activity. For his purposes, though, to reassure him, authorized high-performance sport shooting and athletes and coaches are exempt in the bill. It is under the exemptions. I am not sure where the Conservatives are coming from. Perhaps they are borrowing from the Bill C-71 playbook fro…
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