Oral Questions
Madam Speaker, first, there is absolutely no guarantee that these companies will pass on any savings to Canadian consumers if we do what the Conservatives propose. Second, on this side of the House, we do believe that climate change is real and we know that we need to act now to ensure that we do not pay huge amounts to meet the climate change catastrophe that is at our doorstep.
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Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for his question. We know that the aerospace industry is vitally important to Quebec and to all of Canada as a result. That is why companies that sell aircraft for export are entitled to a tax rebate for this. We are working closely with the aerospace industry to ensure that this important measure, one that seeks to ensure that everyone pays their fair share, wi…
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Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague from Sudbury for the question and her hard work. I am delighted to announce that we just launched consultations on our renewed federal tourism growth strategy. We will work with the provincial, territorial and municipal governments, as well as with our partners in indigenous communities, in order to continue promoting our tourism sector and ensuring economic gro…
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Madam Speaker, unfortunately, I do not agree at all with my colleague on that point. During my 10-minute speech, I talked about how important it is. Every member of our caucus agrees. Our government introduced this bill because we believe that the political weight is important. As I have said many times, Quebec's representation in the House is paramount. I hope that the Bloc will support our propo…
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Madam Speaker, I greatly appreciate that question. I think that it is absolutely true that we need to continue to protect western representation in the House. I am also prepared to listen to any proposal my colleague may want to make. I do not know if he proposed an amendment to our Bill C‑14 to that effect, but I would be pleased to discuss that with him.
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Madam Speaker, I am pleased to rise in the House to debate Bill C‑14, which seeks to amend the Constitution Act of 1867 for a very simple purpose: to ensure that no province will have fewer seats than it had in 2021. As a member from Quebec, I want to be sure Quebec will not lose a single seat, which is what Canada's Chief Electoral Officer, the CEO, proposed initially. As my colleagues are well a…
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Madam Speaker, the process is indeed under way, and I believe it is urgent we get to a vote on this bill. I was quite disappointed to see, over the course of the last number of days, opposition members on the Conservative side trying to delay the vote on this bill. It is critical we settle the matter once and for all.
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Madam Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague for the incredible work she has done on the foreign affairs committee. I would have to agree it is an issue we need to turn our minds to. I can cross my riding, which is in the heart of Montreal, in about an hour. I understand for many of my rural colleague MPs it could take between seven and eight hours to cross their ridings. Making sure rural Ca…
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Mr. Speaker, I agree 100% that gun violence has become a real crisis in Quebec and across Canada. I was with our Minister of Public Safety just this week for an announcement about gun control in Canada. We are taking concrete steps to move forward on this. Mr. Speaker, I think there is a problem.
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Mr. Speaker, my colleague knows very well that we need to combat climate change, which is why we put a tax on pollution. I think it is worth pointing out the majority of Canadians receive more in rebates than they pay. I also want to remind my colleague that most of the taxes on gas are provincial, not federal, and we need to respect jurisdictions.
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Mr. Speaker, we have been there for our small businesses throughout the pandemic and we continue to be there today. If the member opposite would like examples, let him read the budget. Inside the budget he will find that what we are doing is increasing access to one of the lowest small business tax rates in the G7. We have a 9% small business tax rate in this country, and now even more businesses …
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Mr. Speaker, I will close by simply saying that I hope that the Bloc Québécois will work with us on better gun control.
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Madam Speaker, I agree with the hon. member that the relationship between Canada and China is of critical importance. In fact, I have said that many times at our foreign affairs committee. The hon. member and I have the pleasure of sitting on our parliamentary Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, and I would submit to him that that is the appropriate place for us to have these extremely importan…
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Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for his speech. I would like to know if he has any suggestions for us. Instead of talking about the stick, could we talk about carrots? What can he suggest to the House to promote the use of French on social media, as well the arts and the theatre in French?
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Madam Speaker, I can only agree with my colleague, who stated that all members of the House are entitled to be proud of our French language. I hope that he will try to say a few words in French the next time he gives a speech. I would like to know what the Conservatives are actually proposing as an amendment. It is almost 11 p.m. on a Thursday evening. I was in the House when the Conservatives pro…
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his speech. We agree on several things, including on the fact that French is in decline across the country, including in Quebec. My question is on the very tangible and important measures that our Bill C‑13 proposes in order to protect the French fact in official language minority communities from coast to coast to coast. The purpose of the bill is to allow co…
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Madam Speaker, there was much in that question. I would like to thank my colleague for recognizing the work that Canada has done to continue to support Ukraine. I would also like to thank my colleague for his work at our foreign affairs committee. However, I do believe that it was former prime minister Harper who cut the most from our national defence investments. I believe that we need to continu…
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Madam Speaker, I sincerely appreciate this question. I would point the member to the fact that we, as the federal government, must respect the jurisdictions of different layers of government, and health care is provincial jurisdiction. We are absolutely interested in sitting down with provinces and territories to come to an agreement, but, as I am sure she is aware, we would need the provinces to …
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Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for his question. I completely agree that we need to invest more resources in our immigration system. Members from across the country and I are also getting calls. I know that there are major delays, but there is also work to do in partnership with the Government of Quebec. We set federal immigration levels, and Quebec set other immigration levels, which unfortu…
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Madam Speaker, I will be sharing my time with the member for South Okanagan—West Kootenay. It is an honour to rise in the House to speak to a bill to implement certain provisions of our 2022 budget. Before I get into my speech, I want to acknowledge my family and express my gratitude to them, to my husband and best friend, and to my daughter Ellie, who, although she might not know it, motivates me…
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Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for her question. Our tourism sector was indeed hit hard by the global pandemic, but we have just received some very encouraging stats. Recently, for the first time since the beginning of the pandemic, Canada welcomed over one million travellers in a single week. I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the workers, hotel operators, travel agents and e…
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Madam Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague for his question and for the work he does on the Standing Committee on Finance. We introduced a luxury tax on boats and aircraft because we know that everyone must pay their fair share. The pandemic was difficult. It is important for those of us on this side of the House to ensure that the wealthy, the 1% of Canadians, pay their fair share.
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Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for the question. I would like to draw his attention to our budget, which contains concrete measures to help Canadians. I just mentioned the one-time payment for all Canadians having difficulty accessing affordable housing. We are also bringing in measures to help Canadians buy their first home. I hope the Conservatives will vote in favour of the budget, because…
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Madam Speaker, we have reduced taxes for the middle class on two occasions and the Conservatives voted against it. We have created a Canada child benefit that has helped lift over a million people out of poverty. In our budget, we have concrete measures in order to help Canadians buy their first homes and in order to help Canadians pay for child care. We have been there for Canadians, and the Cons…
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Madam Speaker, the budget that we have just tabled includes many measures that would put money directly into the pockets of Canadians. I am thinking of the one-time payment for all Canadians having difficulty accessing affordable housing. Our continued funding for the Canada child benefit is indexed to inflation. Based on what I have been hearing in the House from the Conservatives, and in their l…
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Mr. Speaker, I want to wish Eid Mubarak to the entire Muslim community back home in my neighbourhood in Montreal and across the country. As we mark the end of the sacred month of Ramadan, I am thinking of our Moroccan community, and in particular its patriarch, Abdelghani Dades. My friend, Mr. Dades, is the driving force of the Moroccan-Canadian community. He and I share the mission of bringing th…
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Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Châteauguay—Lacolle for her excellent question. The budget contains many measures that support economic growth. We will create a new Canada growth fund to attract more private sector investment, and we will continue to invest in our innovation clusters as well. This morning in Montreal, less than an hour and a half ago, the Prime Minister announced that Modern…
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Madam Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague for his question. Obviously, increased energy costs are a result of the war in Ukraine, but the federal government is here to help Canadians deal with the rising cost of living, whether it is through subsidies for dental care, programs that make it easier to access housing, or the fact that we are helping lower the cost of child care. We are here t…
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Mr. Speaker, we are seeing inflation rise right around the world, and we know that this is due to the war in Ukraine, among other things. However, I would like to remind the Conservatives that in our budget we have put forward a plethora of measures in order to ensure that housing would be more affordable and to ensure that child care would be more affordable. Prior to that, we lowered taxes for t…
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Mr. Speaker, what will help Canadians face the increased cost of living is paycheques. Over the past two years, 3.5 million jobs were created. Our economic growth is strong. In fact, it is the strongest of all G7 nations this year, and it will be the strongest next year as well, according to experts. We are creating good, well-paying jobs for Canadians.
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Mr. Speaker, it is ironic that this question comes from a Conservative colleague when, in their electoral platform, the Conservatives committed to spending $168 billion. The IMF has just confirmed that our economy is going to see the highest growth among G7 countries, both this year and next year. Canadians have created over 3.5 million jobs. These are well-paying jobs that will help Canadians mee…
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Mr. Speaker, our Minister of Health, the member for Québec, would be delighted to sit down with provincial and territorial representatives to come to an agreement regarding health transfers. However, I would like to remind my colleague and the House that the federal government covered 80% of the pandemic-related costs. We did not hear a peep from the Bloc Québécois about areas of jurisdiction when…
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Mr. Speaker, we are also concerned about the increased cost of living for our vulnerable seniors. That is why all of our programs for vulnerable seniors are indexed to inflation. That means that any amounts they receive from the federal government increase with the cost of living. I would also invite my colleague to refer to page 189 of our budget, where we talk about expanding and investing more …
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Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives are so excited by our housing policy in this budget that they cannot help themselves. We are investing a historic amount in the creation of housing in this country, and it is going to help each and every Canadian purchase a home. We have incentives for first-time homebuyers. We have plans to create co-op housing. We have plans to ensure that affordable housing is the…
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Mr. Speaker, no government in Canadian history has invested more in the creation of housing than our government through this budget. We are there in order to ensure that more homes would be created—
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Mr. Speaker, we are lowering the debt. Our net debt-to-GDP ratio is consistently declining, as evidenced by this budget. We continue to have the best fiscal balance sheet among countries right across the G7. I would remind my colleague, when she talks about growth, that she is actually downplaying the incredible growth Canadians are creating in our country. There was 6.7% growth in Q4. I would lik…
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Mr. Speaker, two weeks ago, we announced $2 billion in health care funding for the provinces and territories, with half a billion earmarked for Quebec alone. The budget my colleague is talking about provides for $43 billion in health transfers. Our government is there to protect Canadians' health, and we are proud of that.
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Mr. Speaker, I am happy to speak to our fiscal record. Before the pandemic, Canada had the best fiscal record in the G7. Now, even after spending to support Canadians throughout the pandemic, we still have the best fiscal record in the G7. We are there for Canadians and we are also fiscally responsible. This budget proves it.
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Mr. Speaker, my colleague mentioned the Liberal record. Today, Statistics Canada reported that the unemployment rate has hit a 50-year low. We have recovered 115% of the jobs lost during the pandemic. That is our record. Our plan is working, and I thank my colleague for his question.
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Mr. Speaker, the member opposite raises the issue of housing, which happens to be one of the themes of our budget of yesterday. Housing is an important way that we are going to help Canadians deal with the increased cost of living. Housing is incredibly important for us right across the country, and we are the government that has invested the most in the creation of housing. Ninety per cent of the…
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague for asking a question about the results we are delivering. This morning, Statistics Canada announced that we have the lowest unemployment rate in nearly 50 years. We have recovered 115% of the jobs lost during the pandemic. I would like to thank the hard-working Canadians from coast to coast who are rolling up their sleeves, getting to work and creat…
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Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for her question. I must admit that it was quite interesting. I would have to agree with my colleague from Calgary Midnapore. Canadians are not stupid, absolutely not. That is why Canadians understand that the inflation we are seeing here at home, while concerning, is not a made-in-Canada problem. It just is not. Anybody who reads the newspaper or knows the fact…
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Madam Speaker, as a woman from Quebec, I have to say that, frankly, my colleague's comment about child care was very surprising and disappointing. Our government made it a priority to bring in a Canada-wide child care program so that women can decide whether they want to have a career, which is the decision that I, my colleague and all women with both a family and a career have made. I would also …
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Madam Speaker, Niagara is a beautiful part of this country and we are absolutely looking forward to welcoming tourists to Niagara and to tourism destinations right across Canada. In fact, just recently, Destination Canada was thrilled by our announcement to change our border measures. We are opening up to the world. Tourists are coming back and Destination Canada is going to play a key role in tha…
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Madam Speaker, I and our entire government are fully aware that many Canadians are feeling the effects of inflation, including higher prices for groceries and heating. The response that the minister gave was simply to put it into context. Of course, Canadians are seeing price increases at the grocery store, but this is due to circumstances entirely out of our control. We are actually, at the momen…
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Madam Speaker, I will not engage the member's insulting comments at the end of his address. I would say, however, that we have put in place a number of other programs that I would draw his attention to, including for food security in the north. There is $163 million to expand the nutrition north Canada program and there are additional programs for food policy in Canada. I believe he did address fo…
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Madam Speaker, of course I agree. For me and for many of my constituents, raising taxes on the largest and most profitable banks was an essential part of our election platform. However, that is not the only thing included in the motion we are debating today, and that is why we are discussing it.
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Madam Speaker, as a proud Quebecker, I would not dare speak for Albertans, and I think that my colleague would agree with me.
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Madam Speaker, one of the measures that I am very much in favour of is to increase taxes on those who are speculating in our markets here in Canada. We have proposed a tax on foreign buyers who wish to scoop up Canadian homes for the purpose of either flipping them or leaving them vacant in order to have a property sold at a later date. I think we absolutely need to attack speculation, and I thank…
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Madam Speaker, I was very interested by my colleague's earlier question on this same topic. I would like to remind the member, as well as all members in the House, that the price on pollution that he likes to refer to as a gas tax, which I am fine with, is actually completely compensated, for Canadians and all members of the middle class, through our climate action incentive. Canadians do not pay …
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