Government Orders
Madam Speaker, I still believe that Bill C‑5 is a good bill with a good foundation. Unfortunately, the amendments we proposed were rejected, leaving us with provisions that are far from perfect. The point that my colleague raised is worrisome. However, I think we need to be careful when we look at justice statistics. We need to consider each case individually. When a court is seized with issue X i…
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Madam Speaker, I will be sharing my time with my colleague from Avignon—La Mitis—Matane—Matapédia. What our Conservative colleagues are essentially proposing is to turn back the clock and basically cancel Bill C-5, which already passed. They are doing so for all sorts of reasons that could be called fallacious, false or unfounded. First, Bill C-5 sought to do two things: repeal mandatory minimum p…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, “will” is in the future; by then, it will be too late. The Prime Minister made that promise not only to Lion Electric, but to all the company's workers, including the 400 workers who were just laid off, right before the holidays. Lion Electric took the Prime Minister at his word at the time. The company opened a second battery plant in Mirabel, hired people and made arrangements with …
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Mr. Speaker, the situation is critical for Lion Electric, and the Prime Minister must keep his promise. In 2021, the Prime Minister personally visited Lion's plant to announce billions for the zero emission transit fund. The Prime Minister told Lion to prepare for a flood of bus orders from Canada. That never materialized, primarily because of the federal government's refusal to provide the full s…
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Mr. Speaker, I want to begin by saying that the Bloc Québécois stands in solidarity with the workers who are losing their jobs at Lion Electric. It is the eleventh hour for the Quebec flagship of electric transportation, and Ottawa needs to intervene. Lion Electric believed the Prime Minister and his government when they came to its plant in 2021 and announced billions of dollars for the electrifi…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Mr. Speaker, I am not a member of the NDP caucus, but, if I were, I would have a great deal of respect for our colleague, the member for Esquimalt—Saanich—Sooke. I had the pleasure and privilege of serving with him on the Standing Committee on Justice over the past few years. I do not know him very well, but I can say for sure that he is a man of integrity, a dedicated man who always passionately …
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Mr. Speaker, the gang wars are in our streets. Gangs are taking hits out on journalists, killing innocent people by burning down businesses and shooting at each other in broad daylight. They are even killing each other in the federal prisons. What is the government doing? Where is the government? It is doing nothing. It is nowhere to be seen. The Liberals could send a strong message to the crimina…
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Mr. Speaker, last week, I introduced a bill on behalf of the Bloc Québécois, and, if it passes, it will really help fight organized crime. Not only does our bill establish a list of criminal organizations, but it also hits them where it hurts by making their members prove that their assets are not proceeds of crime. It reverses the burden of proof. It sends a clear message to criminals. Will the g…
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Madam Speaker, I heard some surprising things in our colleague's speech, but I admit that I am getting used to hearing surprising things in the House. However, I would like him to explain his thoughts on two things a bit better. First, he said that this bill has to do with essential goods and then listed a few. I saw that the goods covered under the bill include alcoholic drinks and video game con…
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Mr. Speaker, today is a good time to tackle organized crime in our cities and at our borders. We need to hit criminals where it hurts: their wallets. This morning, the Bloc Québécois introduced Bill C-420 to create a registry of criminal organizations. Most importantly, we propose reversing the burden of proof when it comes to the proceeds of crime. We propose letting law enforcement freeze or sei…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
moved for leave to introduce Bill C-420, An Act to amend the Criminal Code (criminal organizations and proceeds of crime). Madam Speaker, I am pleased to introduce a bill today that aims to create a registry of criminal organizations. This idea has been raised in the House a number of times in recent years. This is the third time I personally have proposed it. The bill also includes provisions for…
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Mr. Speaker, it is easy, we just have to reverse the burden of proof. Let me reiterate today that the federal government has every interest in demonstrating that it takes the problem of organized crime seriously. The Americans are watching us. Our Bill C-420 makes it easier to lay charges against criminal gang members. It provides new tools to police officers for seizing the proceeds of crime befo…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, d'Adil Charkaoui is exhorting crowds to pray for Israel to be wiped off the map at protests where people are setting cars on fire and breaking shop windows. Protests in Montreal are becoming more and more violent, and the target of this violence is increasingly clear: Quebec's Jewish community. It is beyond intolerable that a human rights defender like Irwin Cotler has been threatened…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Madam Speaker, I always enjoy listening to my esteemed colleague. I have a great deal of respect for his judgment and his ability to have respectful and productive debates. However, I have some serious questions about the debate we are currently having. I tend to agree with the Conservatives that the government should hand over the documents that are required, for all sorts of reasons that have be…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, we mourn the passing of the Hon. Murray Sinclair on Monday, November 4. This former lawyer, judge and senator was best known for his role as the chair of Canada's Truth and Reconciliation Commission. After graduating from law school in 1979, the Hon. Murray Sinclair was called to the Manitoba Bar in 1980 and went on to become Manitoba's first indigenous judge, appointed in 1988. He wa…
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Madam Speaker, I see that this bill proposes transferring matters involving military tribunals to common law court judges. I agree in principle. I think it is an excellent idea, and it will solve a lot of problems. However, it will also add to the workload of the common law courts. Take the Superior Court, for example, which is already overwhelmed. Then there are the vacancies that I have repeated…
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Madam Speaker, I would like to ask my colleague a question. He just answered a question about the Supreme Court decision and indicated that it was constitutional. However, I would like to read an excerpt from that Supreme Court decision: The decision not to criminalize such conduct is not grounded in devaluation of the child, but in a concern that to do so risks ruining lives and breaking up famil…
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Madam Speaker, not surprisingly, the Bloc Québécois is skeptical about this bill, to say the least. I already mentioned this during consideration at second reading. I want to say that I proposed an amendment, which was rejected, that would have allowed for reasonable force to be exerted in order to ensure the safety of a child or third party, or the education of a child. Today, I have no choice bu…
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Mr. Speaker, we should give careful consideration to this bill and study it in committee. That said, neither the Bloc Québécois nor I are prepared to vote for it in its current form. Make no mistake: We need to tackle the problem of auto theft. In 2022, according to the reams of figures I have looked over, 10,595 car thefts were reported in Quebec. Over the same period, 70,000 were reported in Can…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, we have lost a great patriot. My friend Marcel Tessier, who shaped the imagination of Quebeckers for several decades, passed away on August 26. Some heard him sing opera with gusto. Others watched him charm audiences on television or read some of his books. The really lucky ones had him as a teacher. Without exception, anyone who spent time with him would be left spellbound, hanging o…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
With regard to the April 7, 2021 decision of the former Minister of Justice, Hon. David Lametti, ordering a new trial for Jacques Delisle: (a) what are the details of all legal advice received by the former minister regarding the holding of a new trial, including, for each instance, (i) the identity of the person who provided the advice, (ii) the mandate conferred by the minister, (iii) the eviden…
Read full speech →Emergency Debate
Mr. Speaker, the subject of our debate today is important. The Bloc Québécois is concerned about it too. I read a lot about the events that have brought us here tonight and that occurred just about everywhere in Canada except Quebec. That being said, Quebec is not free from this type of violence and injustice. There have been cases like that of Sindy Ruperthouse. Unless I am mistaken, my colleague…
Read full speech →Emergency Debate
Madam Speaker, I would like to let my colleague continue answering the question. He is off to a great start. I would just say, after listening to the speeches over the past little while, I think almost all of us would agree that the situation that brings us here this evening is unacceptable and that more needs to be done. I also note that the report by the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdere…
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Madam Speaker, when the Bloc Québécois leader's office informed me that I would be delivering a speech in the House about Bill S‑224, I thought it was a joke, but it is not. Apparently I really have to do this. Bill S‑224 is quite simple. It contains a single clause. The committee worked hard on this. We heard from witnesses, and we ended up deciding to delete the clause in question as well as the…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, I welcome the remarks of my colleague opposite. I would like to know what his position is. There are some good things in this bill, but there is also the date change. Earlier my colleague from Montcalm asked a question about changing the date for a religious reason. I see two things here. First, the religious reason raises a number of questions. How many religions are there in Canad…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, there have been discussions among the parties and, if you seek it, I believe you will find unanimous consent for the following motion—
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, there are two things I would like to point out about Bill C-69. First, there is the much-touted open banking system provided for in division 16 of the bill, which my colleague from Joliette mentioned earlier in his speech. That is a real problem for Quebec. Should the Leader of the Opposition become prime minister, I would like to know whether he will repeal that division in order to …
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Mr. Speaker, it seems as though the member intends to support this bill. Although I am not a member of the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security, it is my understanding that the Conservatives filibustered during the study of Bill C-20. That being said, I would like to ask my colleague whether his party really intends to make this issue a priority. If his party does take office …
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Mr. Speaker, the Bloc Québécois obviously supports Bill C‑20, but we have to wonder. Neither of the two former bills, Bill C‑3 or Bill C‑98 was prioritized by the government, so they died on the Order Paper. The next election campaign is fast approaching. Next winter will be the last before the next election. Can my colleague assure us that, this time, her government will make this bill a priority…
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Mr. Speaker, today's motion reads as follows: That the House: (a) condemn the federal government's repeated intrusion into the exclusive jurisdictions of Quebec, the provinces and the territories; (b) remind the Prime Minister that, despite his claims, it is not true that “people do not care which level of government is responsible for what”; and (c) demand that the government systematically offer…
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Mr. Speaker, I do not think that the leader of the Bloc Québécois has any designs on leading Quebec, but we shall see. I will leave it to him to respond to that. We do not want to further tax people in order to provide them services. We want efficiency. We want every penny paid by Quebeckers in taxes, whether to Quebec City or Ottawa, to be used 100% efficiently. There is a captain of health and t…
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Mr. Speaker, the answer is that we do not want discussions. There is nothing to negotiate in the Constitution. It has been signed for 150 years. It is important to remember that. Everyone should reread it and it should be respected. Health is a provincial jurisdiction. The government needs to transfer the money to Quebec, the provinces and the territories, and stop meddling in areas that are none …
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Mr. Speaker, I would say that in Rivière-du-Nord, as in the rest of Quebec and probably across Canada, everyone is happy to have social measures that help people. However, no one is happy when that is done in such circumstances, where there is no respect for anyone in this House. When we stand up and ask the government to respect us, we are told that we like picking fights. That is all this govern…
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Madam Speaker, at the NDP's instigation, the Liberals have often overstepped jurisdictional bounds. Now it looks like excess tax revenue will once again be used to overstep those bounds, including in areas such as housing. I would like to hear my colleague's thoughts on that. Would it not be better for the federal government to fulfill its own responsibilities in its own jurisdictions and send the…
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Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for his speech. I would like his opinion on a certain budget matter. Nothing in this budget addresses the situation facing our seniors by trying to correct what was done before. In fact, the government created two classes of seniors: Those aged 65 to 75 and those 75 and over. Bill C‑319, however, was studied, unanimously passed in committee and sent back to the …
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Madam Speaker, with all due respect, I do not think that it is necessary to listen to the recordings because we all heard the member repeat the word three times. The question is whether or not, in your opinion, the word “disgusting” is acceptable in the House. If it is unacceptable, then you must take immediate action. Every time you give the member the opportunity to explain herself, she says, ri…
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Mr. Speaker, this feels a bit like Groundhog Day. I have sat in the House since 2015, and there is a recurring debate between the Liberal and NDP vision of opposing mandatory minimum sentences and the Conservative vision of applying this policy to as many offences as possible. I think we need to reflect on the issue, which is no small matter, but we also need to find ways to be effective, to adopt…
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Madam Speaker, my colleague from Montcalm's speech was extremely interesting. I have been listening to all this and observing the federal government's spending spree in provincial areas of jurisdiction over the past few weeks, which is obviously terrible. I wonder if the real problem we are having with this bill and with the way the NDP-Liberal government is behaving by investing in provincial are…
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Mr. Speaker, we know that greenhouse gas emissions are the cause of considerable climate change and have led to significant increases in the price of vegetables, grains and fruit in recent years. The whole point of the carbon tax is to lower greenhouse gas emissions. That is one thing. For another thing, Quebec decided to join the Western Climate Initiative, which is a kind of carbon exchange. Cal…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, doing nothing twice as fast still amounts to doing nothing. The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court and the Federal Court are telling the government that the number of vacancies is preventing our justice system from working properly. The Chief Justice of Canada wrote, and I quote, “Access to justice and the health of our democratic institutions are at risk”. It is not just anyone who i…
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Mr. Speaker, a year ago, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court criticized the government on its judicial appointment process. He said, and I quote, “The government's inertia regarding vacancies and the absence of satisfactory explanations for these delays are disconcerting.” Since then, the Liberals have been dragging their feet. There were 85 vacancies; now there are 68. In February, the Federal…
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Madam Chair, my colleague and the other Liberals who rose before her, be they ministers or not, have been saying for some time how important it is that Canada help Ukraine in this conflict. We are on board with that. We agree with it. However, we also all know that, to date, Canada has delivered on only about 42% of its commitments. I asked a question earlier and I did not really get an answer. Th…
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Madam Chair, according to the Liberal member who spoke before my colleague, Canada is having trouble keeping its promises because the weapons and equipment are not always available, the soldiers are not always available, the money is not always available and so on. Would my colleague not agree that the problem is really that the government made too many commitments and should have been more realis…
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Mr. Speaker, it is disappointing. The Liberals want secularism to be odourless, colourless and tasteless. They want Quebeckers to adopt a secularism that means nothing and is inconsequential. However, the separation of church and state does mean something. It means that every single person's beliefs and non-beliefs will never interfere in their interactions with the state. That is the purpose of B…
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Mr. Speaker, I think that the issue before us is an important one, and I recognize the work that my colleague, the Minister of Justice, has done on this file. That being said, with all due respect, I have to say that we already deliberated on this issue several years ago and that we determined that March 17 would be the date on which this would come into force. Quebec has worked on this and it is …
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Mr. Speaker, French is hanging by a thread in Canada. We saw it again in committee. The Liberal parliamentary secretary, the Conservatives and the NDP all voted against bilingualism for the miscarriage of justice review commission. The Liberal member's pretext was that he was defending unilingual francophones. Give me a break. Francophones always lose when bilingualism takes a back seat. He added …
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Mr. Speaker, if that is true, then he will have to talk to his parliamentary secretary about it. As I was saying, French is hanging by a thread in Canada, even in the Prime Minister's Office. Radio-Canada reported that it obtained a copy of a letter from the Privy Council indicating that it would take too long and cost too much to translate the documents produced for the Rouleau commission. Even p…
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Mr. Speaker, all three federalist parties voted against a bilingualism requirement for miscarriage of justice review commissioners. The Liberal parliamentary secretary and the NDP justified dropping the bilingualism requirement by saying it would stand in the way of hiring unilingual French-speaking commissioners. Frankly, unilingual francophones have never benefited from bilingualism taking a bac…
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Mr. Speaker, the parliamentary secretary is not following his minister's instructions. Another excuse for giving up on bilingualism is that apparently it is too expensive. Yesterday, Radio‑Canada reported that it obtained a copy of a letter from the Privy Council announcing that it would take years and it would be very expensive to translate the documents produced for the Rouleau commission. It se…
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for her speech. However, I have some questions about what she is telling us. She is talking again about getting rid of taxes, saying, “Axe the Tax”. We see in this budget that $30.3 billion are granted in subsidies to the oil and gas industry in the form of tax credits, meaning that all taxpayers in Quebec and Canada will subsidize the oil and gas industry, which …
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