Government Orders
Madam Speaker, through you, I want to thank my colleague for Kingston and the Islands for his speech.
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Madam Speaker, part of this is about preparing our country for the future. I spoke about this in 2020. I wonder if the member could comment on this. Our country lacks CL-215 water bombers. Public Safety has asked the military for help. We do not have a fleet of water bombers; we are short of them. Australia has the polar opposite forest fire season than we do. It would make sense to have shared re…
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Madam Speaker, it is always interesting to hear my colleague from Winnipeg North speak about how much the Liberal government is doing. People in my riding of York—Simcoe are on the outside looking in. I am going to give the hon. member a couple of examples. He spent about five minutes talking about oceans, but the member's government did not support my Bill C-204, which was to stop the export of p…
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Mr. Speaker, Canadians are on the ropes, trying to pay this Liberal carbon tax. It raises gas prices by 41¢ a litre every single time they fill up. However, like a one-two punch, the Prime Minister is now forcing a second carbon tax on Canadians, adding another 17¢ to the cost of fuel. Canadians are already down for the count, having to take on extra jobs and turn to food banks just to get by. Ins…
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Mr. Speaker, I have a point of order on that point of order. Those numbers are part of the member's speech.
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Mr. Speaker, York—Simcoe is the soup and salad bowl of Canada and Lake Simcoe. At this very moment, the planting season has begun for fresh fruits and vegetables, and I want to wish all farmers right across Canada the best of luck. I know we are not allowed to use props, and I will set him down, but Gwilly flew in all the way from Bradford West Gwillimbury for this debate tonight. Canadian farmers…
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Mr. Speaker, I would request a recorded division.
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Madam Chair, just to correct the minister, I was never a mayor. I was a small business person before I got into politics. Does the minister know personally how long it takes to apply for a building permit?
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Madam Chair, to Canadians now this is not a game. These are questions this housing minister should know as a representative of Canada. These are important issues to Canadians. For a building permit now, the time has increased from 90 days to almost a full year. This is unacceptable right now. This is due to red tape and various other things that are happening in municipalities and it is unacceptab…
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Madam Chair, I would like to know from the minister just how long it takes now to apply for a building permit.
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Madam Chair, the cost is now over $2,500 in York Region. It is enough to make most Canadians' eyes water. It has become far out of their reach. In York Region alone, house prices have gone up 122% since 2013. I will ask the minister something else: When is the last time he applied for a building permit?
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Madam Chair, I will make it easy for the minister. I will ask more broadly if he can tell me the average in York Region, please.
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Madam Chair, I would like just the number, please.
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Madam Chair, I will be splitting my time this evening with two of my colleagues. I would like to ask the minister if he knows the average rent for a one-bedroom apartment in Keswick.
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Madam Chair, this is what frustrates Canadians. We ask a question and we expect an answer. This minister should know the answer to that, so I am going to try one more time. I am going to make it really easy for him because I know he can answer questions. What time is it?
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Madam Chair, I can say what I would not do. I would not give the gatekeepers at CMHC $27 million in bonuses. If we look at where housing has gone in Canada, this is rewarding something that just is not happening at CMHC. Does the minister agree that, instead of finding new ways to line their pockets, the CMHC should be focused on lowering costs for housing for Canadians?
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Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order. I think what the member was trying to convey is that Liberals are like atoms: They make up everything.
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Mr. Speaker, my colleague is a respected critic for public safety. We talk about surprises, and I was surprised. I wonder if he could tell the House why he was removed as critic and why the leader of the NDP removed him at the height of Bill C-21, seeing as he represents rural Canadians so well in his riding, and replaced him with the NDP House leader, who is really an urban MP. I wonder if the me…
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Madam Speaker, I was stuck to the floor with red tape. I do not know who sat here before me. It is everywhere here in Ottawa. I will be splitting my time with the hon. member for Dufferin—Caledon.
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Madam Speaker, I do not know who sat here before me, but it is everywhere. They were doing their best to cut through it. These days, we would need a chainsaw to cut through the red tape in Ottawa. With Bill S-6, the Liberals have brought nail clippers. As Canada's shadow minister for red-tape reduction, I am pleased to contribute to this important debate tonight. Bill S-6 proposes to make 46 modes…
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Madam Speaker, I am so happy that my hon. colleague is supporting my bill for the financial protection of fresh fruit and vegetable farmers. As the hon. member knows, I represent the soup and salad bowl of Canada, so farming issues are important. I can think of two or three farms in my riding that have now had to hire full-time people just to navigate the paperwork that the temporary foreign worke…
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Madam Speaker, if anyone is watching tonight, they can go to www.cutredtape.ca if they have experienced red tape. I think this is about the frustration people have. A business owner reached out to me just last week and said they own a chain of duty-free stores. The government came in and said they had to put all kinds of different labels with ingredients and nutritional facts on all their products…
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Madam Speaker, yes, I do. This is about common sense. I have seniors in my riding as well who are not well versed in emailing, and they do require paper copies of things. I think we can become efficient to give those people what they require and have an and/or part to it. We still require some things to be done via fax and some things to be done via paper, and some things are done electronically. …
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Mr. Speaker, the Liberals' economic failures have forced too many Canadians into desperate situations. Some feel like they have no one to turn to. For those that are having to choose between food for the table and fuel for the car, “You are not alone.” For those having to turn to food banks, charity bins and community services, “You are not alone.” For those who worked their entire lives, now forc…
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Madam Speaker, the Liberals could not organize a birthday party. We have seen it time and time again with inflation, passports, airports, cost of living and housing. Now there is the largest public service strike in history, despite increasing spending on the bureaucracy by $21 billion. There is no planning ahead. There is no leadership and no respect for taxpayers. Canadians just want their gover…
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Madam Speaker, Canadians are getting their lunch eaten and being told it is good for them. Under the Liberals, everything is broken. Canadians are being denied basic government services once again, because of the largest public service strike in history. It is said that Nero played the fiddle while Rome burned. The Prime Minister is now doing the same, but, knowing him, he is playing dress-up. Whe…
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Madam Speaker, it is spending, spending, spending. There is one thing that should concern all members in this House, something that is not really being talked about. We touched on it at the finance committee: the Bank of Canada, with $600 billion on the balance sheet. It was $120 billion in 2020. For the first time in 87 years, the Bank of Canada lost $522 million last year. We do not see that in …
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Madam Speaker, my hon. colleague brought up the carbon tax a number of times. In my riding, the soup and salad bowl of Canada and home to the Holland Marsh, we are seeing onions come in from Egypt and Morocco. I talked to farmers and they tell me we are losing our competitive edge on pricing now with the carbon tax. In my riding, we have no choice but to dry our beans and our onions with propane. …
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Madam Speaker, with respect to the speech of the hon. member for Saanich—Gulf Islands, I did not get that far into the budget implementation act. I may be 25% of the way through. The member and I had a conversation earlier about the funding for the Great Lakes and Lake Simcoe, Lake Winnipeg and the Fraser Valley. For freshwater resources, $650 million over 10 years is only $65 million a year. The …
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Mr. Speaker, buying a house used to be a milestone moment, like getting one's driver's licence, starting one's career, getting married and becoming a parent, or becoming Speaker, but the Liberals' failure to cut red tape and get houses built has made housing unaffordable for most people. In Ontario, the gap between house prices and incomes has become a chasm. Over eight years, the Liberals have se…
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Madam Speaker, I know the member loves the fresh fruit and produce business. As I mentioned in my speech, we have support right across Canada from all producers. This is one thing, and I know the member for Winnipeg North prides himself on this as well, where we were getting out and talking to constituents. I would love to have him come out to Bradford and see that rich, dark soil, and come out to…
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Madam Speaker, that relates to a quick story. When COVID first started, I had a farmer reach out to me in Bradford. He said to me, “Scot, I don't think I'm going to plant in my field this year.” I asked him, “Ken, why aren't you?” He said, “I'm so worried about getting paid. The stress is for my family. I cannot plant my field, sit at home and pay the $20,000 in taxes because, if I plant my fields…
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Madam Speaker, it is so important. We should be number one in the world in Canada with agriculture. I have always said that a General Motors plant can be moved but a farm cannot be. We have the most arable land in the whole world. That has to come into the vision for Canada. That is one thing I talked about missing in the budget. Where is the vision? We should be number one in the world with agric…
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moved that Bill C-280, an act to amend the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act and the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act (deemed trust – perishable fruits and vegetables), be read the second time and referred to a committee. Mr. Speaker, we are really excited tonight for fresh fruit and vegetable farmers across Canada. It is an honour to finally have the opportunity to speak to the financial protecti…
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Mr. Speaker, “Sorry, kids, Disneyland is cancelled” is what too many Canadian parents are having to tell their children. Sixty per cent are scaling back their summer vacations because of inflation. However, that has not stopped the Prime Minister from jetting off to Jamaica, costing taxpayers $160,000. It is unbelievable. While our Prime Minister catches some rays with his Trudeau Foundation croni…
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Madam Speaker, I am not sure if that was a question, but I am happy to speak to my hon. colleague's comments. The member for Winnipeg North prides himself on getting out and speaking to his constituents, as I do. In my riding, residents are concerned about health care. Can members imagine York—Simcoe, northern GTA? People in my riding always feel like we are forgotten. We do not have a hospital. T…
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Madam Speaker, I will always stand up for farmers. Here is the funny thing. In my riding, in the soup and salad bowl of Canada, the Holland Marsh, half the riding is on propane. My farmers cannot even get natural gas infrastructure. There is a 35% tariff on fertilizer. Where is the money going? It is going overseas. They are sending money to the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. People in my r…
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Madam Speaker, it was heartbreaking to go out and visit these seniors. At the first trailer I went to, the gentleman told me he is eating Kraft Dinner to stretch his week. I went to the next area and, of all things, there were people actually lined up and there were three people looking at used shoes in tubs because they did not have any money. The senior I spoke about, who was working two jobs at…
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With regard to government expenditures on home Internet services for public service employees: (a) what is the government's policy on which employees are eligible to have their home Internet service paid for; (b) as of January 1, 2023, how many employees have had their home Internet service paid for by the government, broken down by department, agency, or other government entity; and (c) what was …
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Madam Speaker, I know the tourism minister loves Lake Simcoe. I think he even ice-fished there. I wonder if he can square this circle for us. We have been waiting in York—Simcoe since 2017, when the Liberals cancelled the Lake Simcoe cleanup fund. We are still waiting. The government is all talk and no action on the environment. It has just approved an aerodrome, which is tantamount to a fill site…
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Madam Speaker, Canadians are struggling worse than anyone has in generations. With the Liberal government’s 2023 budget, I cannot help but think it is missing some pages. I looked, and there must be pages missing. It has to be the case because there is no vision for the country. Where is the plan to make things more affordable? Where does it show that the Liberals are focusing on priorities that m…
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Mr. Speaker, a home is more than just drywall and lumber. It is the opportunity to raise a family and to be part of a community. It is a place to build memories and a place to have a future. However, for far too many Canadians, the dream of owning a home has been replaced by a cold reality. Even if someone works hard and does everything right the best they can hope for is couch surfing, car sleepi…
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Mr. Speaker, I rise today to present a petition signed by thousands of Canadians, including the residents of the Town of Georgina and the small but mighty community of Pefferlaw. The petition calls on the government to prohibit the development of the so-called Baldwin east aerodrome. To date, the Liberals have done nothing to prevent the planned dumping of more than 1.2 million cubic metres of pot…
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With regard to the renovations to Centre Block and the grounds of Parliament Hill: (a) what is the current projected total cost of the project; (b) what is the current timeline for the project, including the current projected completion date and the year Centre Block will reopen; (c) what is the projected timeline for when the work in front of Centre Block will be completed and the lawn will reope…
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Mr. Speaker, this is one of the toughest Canadian winters ever, not because of the extreme cold, Canadians can handle the cold, but because of the Liberal government's carbon tax. It is -30°C and freezing in many parts of the country and, after eight years, the Liberals have made it unaffordable for Canadians to heat their homes. After eight years of the Liberal carbon tax, home heating bills have…
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With regard to government expenditures related to the renovation, rehabilitation, or construction of government buildings or properties in the National Capital Region, including within the Parliamentary Precinct, since January 1, 2016: (a) what are the total expenditures to date related to the purchase or rental of scaffolding, broken down by year; and (b) what is the breakdown of (a) by building …
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With regard to government expenditures related to the cleanup of land or ground contamination at airports and aerodromes, broken down by year since 2015: (a) what is the total amount spent on such expenditures; (b) what is the breakdown of (a) by airport; and (c) what are the details of each airport cleanup which has been completed since January 1, 2016, or is still ongoing, including, for each, (…
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Mr. Speaker, if there is one thing our Prime Minister hates, it is diversity, the diversity of opinion. He goes after anyone he does not agree with by insulting them, harassing them and restricting their rights. His latest target is law-abiding firearm owners. He is banning thousands of firearms used for hunting, while giving gangs and smugglers a free pass. The PM should spend more time up in a t…
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Mr. Speaker, it is report card time for the Liberals. Let us have a look. Lowering taxes and controlling inflation: fail. Ensuring housing affordability and jobs: fail. Stopping foreign interference and being tough on crime: fail. Fixing our airports and borders: fail. Safeguarding access to children's Tylenol: fail. Providing basic government services: fail. Right across the board, everything fee…
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