Parliamentary Speeches
512 speeches by Simon-Pierre Savard-Tremblay — Page 3 of 11
Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, let us get back to the retaliatory measures we have been talking about. We know that the Minister of Finance challenged the study conducted by Oxford Economics. If I am not mistaken, he mentioned that earlier. How many billions of dollars were we at? Can he just remind me of the figure that was given a little earlier—
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Mr. Speaker, we know that this initiative is a major source of dissatisfaction. I have the data right here: There are calculation errors in duties and taxes, trouble obtaining technical support, serious system performance issues, and 22 service interruptions. Everything I just mentioned happened in the first month of the program's existence. Is that what the minister calls a system that was ready …
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Mr. Speaker, I heard the minister's press conference too. He was disputing the 97.5% figure from Oxford Economics. On social media, he said that 70% of the retaliatory tariffs that Canada has imposed on the United States since the beginning are still in place. Can we get the most official figures available this evening?
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Mr. Speaker, given that Quebec has kept its own carbon trading system intact, will products from Quebec be exempt from customs duties if the European Union decides to follow through on its threats?
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Mr. Speaker, we were expecting $20 billion. How is the government planning to get the remaining $18.3 billion?
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Mr. Speaker, did the main sticking points come up in the discussions that he confirmed took place? We know that for them, it is our supply management system. Hormone-treated beef was also a very difficult subject and was one of the reasons negotiations were suspended. Were these things discussed, or was there just a commitment to raise them again when the negotiations resume?
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Mr. Speaker, we know that importers have recently been required to deposit a financial guarantee themselves in order to participate in the Release Prior to Payment Program, since they can no longer use the financial guarantee deposited by their customs brokers. The transition period ended on May 20. It is a terrible situation. What is being done about it?
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to move on to another topic, namely the negotiations for a free trade agreement with the United Kingdom. Negotiations seem to have been stalled for quite some time. It turns out they have been officially suspended for a year and a half. Can we get an update on the discussions?
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Mr. Speaker, I will address one last subject. My colleague and I studied the CARM system, the CBSA assessment and revenue management system, twice at the Standing Committee on International Trade. Fears were expressed. The system was criticized by some people, including importers and exporters. Today, according to a survey of their members, things are not going well at all. Apparently, the situati…
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Mr. Speaker, Ottawa just announced $9 billion in new defence spending starting this year. In the current global context, the Bloc Québécois agrees that we must invest in defence, but that is another $9 billion that the Liberals are asking us to blindly support without a budget or even an economic update. No one will know how that spending will be financed or how big the deficit is at the time of v…
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Mr. Speaker, the layoffs in the forestry industry are an indication of what is going to happen with steel and aluminum if Ottawa does not change its current approach, which is to do nothing at all. We know that it is not what they are known for, but maybe the Liberals could be proactive for once. They need to proactively offer cash to the industry and create a wage subsidy to prevent a wave of lay…
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Madam Speaker, the fact that the provincial premiers are doing all the work may be a sign. First, it is certainly not making me reconsider my political viewpoint. Second, I think that the fact that the agreement inappropriately called “Confederation” states that international relations are the purview of the federal government says something. That being said, the only time Quebec and Ontario were …
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Madam Speaker, when we speak of borders, that includes the ports. I am not that familiar with my colleague's riding, but auto theft has long been a major issue at the port of Montreal. Clearly, the lack of surveillance is a problem. We have the same problem at the border, which is probably related to the problem at the ports.
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Madam Speaker, I am very honoured to rise today in the parliament of America's 51st state, albeit in the absence of its governor. All kidding aside, I think we are dealing here with a very important, troubling situation. Let us be clear: We must not bury our heads in the sand, but neither should we engage in fearmongering. We are still talking about the threat of tariffs, but our discussions centr…
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Madam Speaker, I do not think so, but I would say that there is definitely a difference. I would say that I agree with both sides. I think it is better to have a deal than no deal, but it is often better to have no deal than a bad deal. That is clear. We agree with that. I also think there may be a way out of this. Stakeholders in the U.S. do not seem to be unanimous on the softwood lumber issue. …
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Madam Speaker, I think it goes without saying that we are always better off going into negotiations ourselves, 100% focused on our own interests. We should not have to fight tooth and nail to promote and protect little bits of our interests here and there. I gave a few examples. It is a good thing we were there to fight for aluminum, although a concrete change in the status of aluminum in the agre…
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Madam Speaker, it is a very simple principle. The less we depend on one country, the better off we are. There may be ups and downs. At the moment, we are talking about the United States, but, no matter which partner we are talking about, when we put all our eggs in one basket, we make ourselves vulnerable to this kind of situation, as we saw in 2019 when China decided to halt all imports of Canadi…
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Mr. Speaker, there is no longer any doubt about it: The CARM app is a fiasco. There was already talk of a 50% cost overrun and a $556-million price tag. However, by last March, maintenance costs had already pushed that price tag up to $625 million. At this rate, we could well be over the $800-million mark. Not to mention that CARM must also have been costly ever since it was rolled out, because it…
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Mr. Speaker, it is expensive when the Liberals go digital. There is the Phoenix payroll system, which is still giving public servants nightmares after nearly nine years. There was ArriveCAN, which was supposed to cost $80,000 and ended up costing $60 million, benefiting shady companies that did not even deliver any services. Now there is CARM, which cost at least $625 million, and quite likely mor…
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Mr. Speaker, first it was the ArriveCAN fiasco, and now the CBSA assessment and revenue management, or CARM, fiasco is taking down the Canada Border Services Agency. This app for clearing goods at the border crashed 22 times in its first 30 days, paralyzing imports. It is a complete failure with a 50% cost overrun, inconclusive testing and documentation being hidden from parliamentarians. Clearly …
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Mr. Speaker, the minister responded yesterday by praising the work of border officers. We too salute their work. It is their bosses in the offices we are not so sure about. The CBSA was already in the hot seat because of ArriveCAN. Now the CARM app is creating another fiasco, with its irregularities and cost overruns. At least ArriveCAN worked. CARM does not even work. If Ottawa fixes this as quic…
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Mr. Speaker, the fiasco with the CARM app is not a first for the Canada Border Services Agency. The CBSA was also responsible for the ArriveCAN app, which was supposed to cost $80,000 and ended up costing $60 million. Clearly, there is a fundamental problem at CBSA when it comes to being transparent, tracking expenses and staying on budget. The Bloc Québécois and the Standing Committee on Internat…
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Mr. Speaker, there is a real cost to the CBSA's fiasco with CARM. The cost to taxpayers is $556 million, but there is a cost to business people as well. Their imports are stuck at the border. They have to cope with billing mistakes, automatic withdrawals made twice and endless delays. There is no client service when CARM crashes. It takes weeks for the CBSA to fix these mistakes. What is the gover…
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Mr. Speaker, the problems with the CARM app is yet another fiasco for the CBSA. The app, which took 14 years to develop and cost taxpayers $556 million, crashed 22 times in one month. We are talking about half a million dollars, which was a 50% cost overrun, not to mention the fact that the CBSA hid important documents from parliamentarians. Today, the Standing Committee on International Trade vot…
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Madam Speaker, what is a government that is sinking in the polls faster than the Titanic after hitting an iceberg to do? It can try to get people talking over Christmas dinner. It can come up with some sort of a measure, a PR stunt, a half-baked measure that gives the impression of putting more money in people's pockets. This measure takes the form of a cheque, for workers to be exact, and not for…
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Madam Speaker, I think that when a government is in free fall as the government is now, its first instinct is to panic. It starts improvising out of necessity. What could it possibly come up with next? We are being invited to take part in a complete sham, a real PR stunt that does not even help the people who are struggling the most. Right now, the most vulnerable people are those who are more lik…
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Madam Speaker, I apologize. I did not want to interrupt the speech, but is there a party going on in the House that I have not been invited to and am not aware of? There seems to be a lot of jabbering going on.
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Mr. Speaker, Trump's tariffs are meant to force Canada to tighten its borders against illegal immigration and drug trafficking. Quebec has been calling on Ottawa for years to fix the border, which is like a sieve. It has even deployed members of the Quebec provincial police force to patrol the border. The Bloc Québécois has been hounding Ottawa to do something about smugglers and organized crime f…
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Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister needs to announce that he is finally taking responsibility at the borders. He needs to announce how he is going to plug the holes in the border by January. That is the bare minimum that he needs to do after shirking his responsibilities, despite repeated warnings from Quebeckers. Smugglers and organized crime bosses have been running the show at the border for years…
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Mr. Speaker, Donald Trump wants to impose a 25% tariff on all Quebec and Canadian products. That would be a disaster for us and for Americans. First, we appreciate the fact that the Prime Minister has agreed to meet with his Quebec and provincial counterparts tomorrow. However, he will have to present a clear plan. He needs to take immediate action to protect supply management with Bill C-282. Ott…
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Mr. Speaker, my colleague touched on a number of areas. We support Bill C‑262. I am a supporter and co-sponsor of the bill, and I thank the NDP for bringing it forward. We support this legislation and, as co-sponsor, I fully and freely endorse it. It is a perfect example of genuine due diligence legislation. The Conservatives and the Liberals voted for Bill S‑211. As I said at the end of my speech…
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Mr. Speaker, I need to start by clarifying something for my colleague. The Liberal chair did not vote in favour of the motion. She was absent that day. His Conservative colleague, the committee's vice-chair, was presiding that day. The vote came down to a tie, and it was his colleague who voted in favour of the motion. I thank him for that. I thank the Conservatives for supporting our motion. I ho…
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Mr. Speaker, I am puzzled by my colleague's question, because I did address that point. I devoted several minutes to talking about Bill S-211. That bill that does not cover all human rights. I would remind my colleagues that the UN recognizes human rights as a whole, whereas that bill addresses only forced labour by adults and children, which I obviously agree with, but which is not enough, and on…
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Mr. Speaker, I move that the 21st report of the Standing Committee on International Trade, presented on Wednesday, October 30, be concurred in. The number of shipments seized at Canadian customs, all regions combined, for use of forced labour is zero. That does not include the one shipment that was seized in 2021 and then released following an appeal by the importer. In comparison, Washington seiz…
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Mr. Speaker, I would need a good two or three hours because there is so much to say about that. I have just been asked a question by a colleague from my own party, and I am tempted to pretend that I am reading from notes and to say that I thank him for his hard work and his very relevant question. However, I did not know the question in advance and I do not have an answer written down. There are s…
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Madam Speaker, I request a recorded division.
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Madam Speaker, my question is very straightforward. Right now, in Parliament, absolutely nothing is happening and everything is at a standstill. In my colleague's opinion, who has something to gain from the current situation? Who is benefiting from it?
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Madam Speaker, let us look at this. First we heard about WE Charity, and then we heard about the $237 million that was given to a couple of guys who started a business just 10 days before they were awarded the contract and who were unable to deliver even half of what they were asked for. Next, we heard about non-indigenous companies passing themselves off as indigenous in order to get contracts. T…
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Mr. Speaker, we have said it a number of times: We agree that we want to have the documents and that what has been done is unacceptable. Now, why are we not voting? Are my colleagues in the Conservative Party aware that they are making the Liberals happy and helping them because, as long as the House is paralyzed, the Liberals are doing what they like to do best, which is nothing?
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, today, we are saddened to learn of the passing of rocker-poet Lucien Francœur at the age of 76. A passionate bearer of Quebec idiom and the first local poet to explore rap with Rap-à-Billy, Lucien Francœur was a leader in Quebec counter-culture in the 1970s and 1980s. He and his band, Aut'Chose, released three defining albums: Prends une chance avec moé, Une nuit comme une autre and L…
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Madam Speaker, let us return to the topic at hand, namely Canada's record in the fight against climate change. Oil companies are swimming in surpluses after enjoying record profits in recent years. What is more, they are being subsidized to the tune of billions of dollars. On one side we have the Conservatives wanting to make cuts everywhere, except in this area. On the other, we have the Liberals…
Read full speech →Emergency Debate
Mr. Speaker, I listened carefully to the member's speech, and I have several things to say. He gave some history that I think could have provided fodder for several debates. For example, if we are talking about the world order that was established after the Second World War, that order clearly must have had some grey areas, or we would not be seeing what we are seeing today. Perhaps that is becaus…
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Mr. Speaker, I want to point out that October 1 is National Seniors Day. We could not have picked a better theme for this debate. When I think of the issue of seniors, I always immediately think back to 1980. Members will recall that on the eve of the referendum campaign to counter René Lévesque's Mouvement souveraineté-association, the Canadian health minister at the time said ad nauseam that sen…
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Mr. Speaker, I still fail to understand the connection between SMEs, economic indicators and the seniors' issue. Of course, it can be connected to inflation and other things, but my colleague was telling us that everything is going well. That means we still do not know where things stand. I will come back to my question: Will he vote for or against our motion?
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Mr. Speaker, I am sorry, I did not want to bother you, because you seem busy. The member's answer completely misses the point. I asked him a question: is it yes or no?
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Mr. Speaker, my colleague said that the NDP will be voting in favour of the motion, and the Conservatives said the same thing. As for the Liberals, they have been refusing to tell us all morning. We still do not know what they intend to do. We are still in the dark. They are saying that seniors are very important, but they are not telling us what they are going to do about it. How does my colleagu…
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Mr. Speaker, we will always support any plan that respects our jurisdictions. In all kinds of situations in the House, we have voted in favour of creating a plan. That does not mean we will agree to it, but a plan is necessary because governing is planning. We need to be able to see the plan. Then we will debate its contents. We will look at what is good or less good, and then reach a decision. Th…
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Mr. Speaker, my question will be short, clear and simple: Will my colleague vote for or against the motion?
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Mr. Speaker, there is also parliamentary practice. First of all, it is said that in the parliamentary tradition that originated in Great Britain—and has become the Canadian tradition—Parliament is supreme. In this case, however, the executive has decided to unduly keep a bill from coming into force, a bill that it has sometimes supported, sometimes not. It is confusing. It seems to me that, based …
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Mr. Speaker, my colleague said that we voted against the government 200 times. I guess it was a slip of the tongue. It was actually quite a bit more than that. In fact, I assume she is referring to the votes on the various credits. Obviously, we had no choice but to make it work. That does not mean we did not vote against the economic statements and the budgets. This means we did vote against this…
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