Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, with respect, the hon. member has now made the most bizarre argument I could possibly imagine when it comes to inaction on climate change. He is now suddenly opposed to heat pumps. Heat pumps have the ability to reduce pollution in our community and bring the cost of power down or heat for homeowners who live in my community. This is particularly important as we are coming up on the w…
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Mr. Speaker, I will simply say that we have found a way to save people money and reduce pollution. That is a good thing. If the Conservatives agree, I invite them to support us.
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Mr. Speaker, the hon. member talks about a terrible plan. I will tell him what a terrible plan is. It is not taking action on climate change. His community and mine are both still dealing with homeowners cleaning up the debris in their backyards. His community and mine are both dealing with farms that have had silos torn down and farmers who are more than $100,000 out-of-pocket so they can feed th…
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Mr. Speaker, the hon. member talks about protecting the pocketbooks of Nova Scotians. I would find it interesting to hear him explain to his constituents why he voted against making sure that low-income families can afford to send their kids to the dentist. I find it interesting why he is not putting out social media posts about today's announcement that child care fees are going to be reduced by …
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Mr. Speaker, it is a good thing Sherlock is on the case. We would have never figured this out. Holy smokes. It is unbelievable that somebody could have a heat pump and some other source of heating as well. The reality is that we have a new $5,000 grant that will give an upfront payment directly to homeowners. It is going to allow them to save thousands of dollars every year. It will help reduce po…
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Mr. Speaker, what the hon. member calls reckless spending is what we used to support Canadians during their time of need. We have helped nine million Canadians keep food on the table through the pandemic. We have helped millions of Canadians remain on the payroll with the Canada emergency wage subsidy and helped hundreds of thousands of Canadian businesses keep their doors open. Now the Conservati…
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Mr. Speaker, as I was saying, the Conservatives have a very difficult time with hard truths. Canadians need support. It is our government that has been here to support them since 2015, and it is our government that will be here to support them going forward. What the Conservatives call reckless spending are the supports we extended to keep nine million Canadian households fed, to keep millions of …
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Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for Richmond Centre, who put together a round table with employers in his community when I had the chance to visit him. They told us very clearly that employers needed access to labour if they were going to meet the needs of their clients and customers. I am pleased to share with the House that yesterday a new national occupation classification system was put in pla…
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Mr. Speaker, if people actually tune into this place over a couple of months, they will realize that the economic argument the Conservatives have been making is self-defeating. On the one hand, the Conservatives say that people are in need of more help and at every opportunity they oppose measures that will give more help to people. From the very beginning of my time in office in 2015, they have o…
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Mr. Speaker, I find it revealing that in the preamble to the hon. member's question, she seemed to criticize us for making serious investments in climate change. It should come as no surprise, though, that the Conservatives oppose our measures, because she knows very well that the policy we have advanced actually puts more money in the pockets of Canadian households. I am not surprised that they a…
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Mr. Speaker, let me start by thanking the member for Willowdale for his relentless advocacy on behalf of the Iranian-Canadian community. I have joined in the protests and participated in round tables with members of the Iranian community, and we have heard them. I want to be absolutely clear that Canada has now designated the Islamic Republic of Iran as a regime that has engaged in terrorism and g…
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Mr. Speaker, I had the privilege of visiting farms in my own constituency, as a member who represents rural Nova Scotia, and the farmers in my community right now are telling me how expensive it is to deal with inaction on climate change, how expense it is when severe weather events take down silos, how expensive it is when they lose more than six-figures worth of—
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Mr. Speaker, it seems I may have struck a nerve. The reality is that I have the privilege of representing dozens of dairy farms. Over the last number of weeks, when I have been visiting those farms, they have been telling me in rural Nova Scotia that the inaction they see coming from the Conservative Party on climate issues is leading to costs that are unimaginable. As the Conservatives continue t…
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Mr. Speaker, I come from a region of the country that has recently seen the most severe weather event over the course of my entire life, but what really upsets me is that we know there is more to come. We know that, since the time I was born until the turn of the century, the average insured losses in this country were between $250 million and $450 million a year for severe weather. Now it is almo…
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Mr. Speaker, I have a better solution than people listening to their whips. Turn the microphones on in the background so we can hear members on that side denying that climate change is a real threat to Canadian communities. The reality is that the cost of inaction is too great to ignore. We are dealing with hundreds of millions of dollars, probably billions of dollars, of losses from events that h…
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Mr. Speaker, with great respect to my hon. friend, colleague and neighbour in Nova Scotia, I point out to him that governments from Newfoundland to Ontario of different partisan persuasions have done exactly what he has just declared is not possible. The facts tell a very different story. What is most important is that we actually address climate change. There is a cost to my community. If we talk…
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Mr. Speaker, if that member is concerned about the government standing by Canadians in their time of need, I am curious why he stood by the hon. Leader of the Opposition at the beginning of the pandemic. When we rolled out supports to keep food on the table and a roof over people's heads, he said that Conservatives do not believe in “big, fat government programs”. Now he is concerned about making …
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Mr. Speaker, Canada needs a lot of people, but the member knows perfectly well that it is up to the Government of Quebec to set immigration levels in Quebec. We are working harder with the Government of Quebec and with my counterpart. This is an opportunity to grow the population and the economy and to work with our partner in Quebec.
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Mr. Speaker, there is no question that Canada needs more people. We need to look at immigration as a strategy to increase Canada's workforce, reunite more families and fulfill our humanitarian commitments. That is why I have introduced Canada's next immigration levels plan. It is an ambitious plan that brings an increased focus on attracting newcomers to different regions of the country. Canada is…
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Mr. Speaker, I can tell everyone it is nice to take a question from my friend opposite once again, but as an Atlantic Canadian it really burns me to hear this line of questioning. We are dealing with neighbours who have lost over six figures in corn crops and are trying to feed their cattle. We have seen silos come down. We have seen wharves damaged. We know that when we put a price on pollution, …
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Mr. Speaker, with respect to the allegation that our plan to put a price on pollution is a tax on Canadian households, the member knows it is bogus. Year after year, he has been making this point in the House of Commons and year after year, it is proven to him that Canadians actually receive more of a dividend than they put out on pricing. The reality is that this is one among many measures of our…
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Mr. Speaker, I have met people in my community who will not take their kids to the grocery store right now because they are afraid that the cashier is going to tell them that they cannot afford what is in their cart and they do not want their kids to go through that. We are going to be there to support families in that situation. When they talk about tax hikes, they are talking about programs like…
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Mr. Speaker, with enormous respect to my colleague who posed the question, I point out that we have actually processed the largest number of study permits this year compared to any year on record. We have had 30% this year over last year, which represents a 30% increase over the record-setting year prior. In addition, we know we need to do more to continue to support international students. I am p…
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Madam Speaker, the hon. member asked if we know how to do things properly. We know how to bring in a record number of new permanent residents, students and foreign workers. We know how to reach Quebec's immigration thresholds. We will continue to make Canada a welcoming new home for immigrants who make tremendous contributions to our economy and our communities.
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Madam Speaker, the reality is that this year, as a result of decisions we have taken to hire more workers, leverage technological solutions and relax policy requirements, we have the largest number of newcomers arriving in Canada, both permanent residents and temporary residents. There are more newcomers coming to fill key gaps in the labour force than ever before. We are going to continue to do e…
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Madam Speaker, I thank the hon. member for her question, and for her passion and advocacy on behalf of some of the most vulnerable people in the world. I share her concern about their vulnerability and that is why we advanced one of the most substantial commitments, and in fact, the most substantial on a per capita basis, to resettle at least 40,000 Afghan refugees by the end of next year. I am so…
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Madam Speaker, we need to revamp our asylum system, but there is no magic solution. Closing Roxham Road is not a good solution; that would just move the problem elsewhere. Suspending the safe third country agreement would have the opposite effect. What we need to do is modernize the agreement, and that is what we are doing. We are working with the United States to find a sustainable, permanent sol…
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Madam Speaker, we are going to continue to work to improve the situation at Roxham Road, but we have international and domestic legal obligations that we are following to the letter. We are trying to process people in a humane way, to recognize that human beings who are coming into Canada are sometimes very vulnerable. We are going to meet our legal obligations while we work toward a permanent sol…
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Madam Speaker, let me begin by thanking my hon. colleague for his advocacy to grow the Canadian economy and to support international students. Canada has had one of the strongest economic recoveries of any developed nation in the world when it comes to bouncing back from COVID–19. Despite the fact that we have recently hit near the lowest unemployment rate, there are nearly a million jobs availabl…
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Mr. Speaker, as the member opposite knows very well, the Canada-Quebec accord gives Quebec the exclusive authority to select the majority of its immigrants. We have always respected Quebec's jurisdiction with respect to immigration, and we will work closely with Quebec to support its objective of welcoming the immigrants it needs to deal with the shortage and ensuring the development of businesses…
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Mr. Speaker, it is important. The solutions proposed by the Bloc Québécois would simply move the problem from one place to another. The safe third country agreement is an important bilateral tool for managing refugee claims at the land border between Canada and the United States. Contrary to what the member opposite believes, the agreement is a bilateral one. It is essential to work with our partn…
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Mr. Speaker, closing Roxham Road is not a solution for our borders. It would not solve the overall problem. As the member opposite knows, Canada shares the longest demilitarized border in the world. Roxham Road gives officials an opportunity to obtain identification documents from these asylum claimants and prevent dangerous crossings. We need to modernize the safe third country agreement, and tha…
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Mr. Speaker, our system for asylum seekers must be robust and humane. There is no magic solution, and closing Roxham Road is not a realistic solution. Suspending the safe third country agreement would likely have the opposite effect of what we are looking to do. What we need to do is modernize the safe third country agreement, and that is what we are doing. We are working with the United States on…
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Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to table, in both official languages, a detailed plan from my colleague, the hon. member for Surrey Centre, namely Motion No. 44, concerning permanent residency for temporary foreign workers, under Private Members' Business. This document includes plans to expand pathways to permanent residency for temporary foreign workers and international students with significant Cana…
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Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my colleague, who, I would note, is a champion for mental health and has been since the day that I met him. Children who are fleeing war are among the most vulnerable people in the world. I am so pleased to share that, earlier this week, I was able to announce that through a partnership with the Kids Help Phone it going to be providing services in Pashto, Dari, Ukraini…
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Mr. Speaker, our immigration system needs to have a compassionate approach. The hon. member knows we are not at liberty to discuss the specific details of individual case files on the floor of the House of Commons. I am happy to continue the conversation we began together about this specific case file. We are aware of it, but we are going to continue to look at the details and ensure the rules wer…
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Mr. Speaker, the hon. member asks a very important question. We developed, in an emergency situation, a brand new model of temporary protection, because we heard of the vast numbers of people who wanted to come but also want to go back home when it is safe to do so. It is really important, though, that there be additional supports that are atypical for people who come as visitors to Canada, becaus…
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Mr. Speaker, with great respect to my hon. colleague, nothing could be further from the truth. As of today, there are more than 30,000 Ukrainians who are being provided with safe haven here in Canada. Yes, the federal government has offered charter to nearly 1,000 Ukrainians. I want to thank both Air Canada and The Shapiro Foundation for their extraordinarily generous donations, which are going to…
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Mr. Speaker, again with respect to my colleague, I would point out that there are more than 30,000 Ukrainians who have already arrived in Canada. We have not seen this pace of arrivals of people who are fleeing war and persecution in any other initiative that could be comparable in the history of Canada. It is extraordinary to see so many people who have been provided with safe haven so quickly, b…
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to place the response to this question in the appropriate economic context and I would like to remind the hon. member that, to date, Canada has seen 115% of the jobs lost during the pandemic returned. Our GDP is ahead of prepandemic levels. We are at the lowest rate of unemployment in the recorded history of Canada. At the same time, we are going to launch a number of mea…
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Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. member for his sincere concern for his constituents. With respect to caregiver programs, last year more than 4,000 permanent residents were welcomed to Canada through caregiver streams. We anticipate that this year the number will be 6,000. As I shared earlier in response to a separate question this afternoon, we are actually processing people for permanent residency …
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to begin by thanking the member for Etobicoke Centre, who has been a tireless champion for Ukraine and Ukrainian Canadians from the beginning of this war. This unjust war of aggression is an affront to humanity and the very values that underpin the international legal order. Canada has opened its arms to provide safe haven so far to 30,000 Ukrainians or more, who have alr…
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Mr. Speaker, my hon. colleague concluded her remarks by talking about the importance of transitioning away from a top-down approach when it comes to decision-making processes that impact indigenous communities. In our home province, Mr. Speaker, you would appreciate the changes that were embraced when the keys were handed over to Mi’kmaq communities when it came to the education system. They saw t…
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Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the employers out there who are working hard to bring in workers to fill gaps in the labour force. It will help kick-start one of the strongest economic recoveries that is already taking place. We have put tons of resources into boosting the processes and capacity of the department, including $85 million in the economic and fiscal update to target work permits, study p…
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Mr. Speaker, we know that immigration plays a key role in combatting the labour shortage. IRCC is prioritizing work permit processing for in-demand occupations. This year, we have processed more than 200,000 work permit applications, which is nearly double the number processed over the same period last year. We will continue to ensure that Canadian employers have access to the workers they need to…
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Mr. Speaker, as I just answered in response to the previous question, we are making unprecedented investments in Canada's immigration system to ensure that we can smoothly welcome people to Canada who make essential contributions to our economy. I would like to point out to the hon. member that we are now in an economic context in which we have seen 115% of the jobs lost during the pandemic come b…
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Mr. Speaker, addressing the labour shortages is a top priority for our government, and that is why we are putting additional resources toward processing cases, including work permits, to ensure that people have access to the workers they need. I would advise the hon. member that the average processing time for work permits in the province of Quebec today is 33 days, which is among the very best av…
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Mr. Speaker, I would remind the hon. member that in fact many of those who have served Canada have already arrived in our country. Just last week, the most recent charter plane carried approximately 330 government-assisted refugees who have come to Canada as a result of their service to our effort in Afghanistan during our mission there. We are going to continue to do whatever we can to make sure …
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Mr. Speaker, with great respect to the hon. member, there are now more than 13,000 Afghan refugees who have arrived in Canada [Technical difficulty—Editor].
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Mr. Speaker, Nazifa's killing was a tragedy that I think on every day as we seek to develop policies that would expedite the arrival of more Afghan refugees. However, with great respect, the hon. member's suggestion that we issue a single-journey travel document would not achieve what he says it would achieve. What the member is seeking to do is have the Canadian government issue a document that w…
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