Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I would like my colleague to share his views on the provision in Bill C-30 that gives the minister the power to approve the use of a pesticide that has been banned by Health Canada. Does he not think that this is a slippery slope?
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his speech. I respect my colleague. He has a sharp mind. He is right to speak out against closure, because this situation is deplorable. It is plain to see that at this rate, the Liberal government will surpass the record set by Stephen Harper's Conservative government. His party apparently holds the record. He can correct me if I am wrong. I was just teasing.…
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Mr. Speaker, it is with great pleasure that I rise in Parliament on what we sincerely hope is the last day before we rise for the summer. I would first like to inform the House that I will be sharing my time with my very gracious and delightful colleague from Côte-Nord—Kawawachikamach—Nitassinan. To begin, I will also take a moment to offer some acknowledgements, as my colleague before me did. I w…
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Mr. Speaker, I am glad my colleague enjoyed my speech. That is nice. However, I will tell him that the Liberals are going to beat Stephen Harper if they continue on this path. They are going to break the record. That is not the way to do it. In my opinion, if, a few months ago, the Liberals had included in the calendar the bills they wanted to deal with on a priority basis for June instead of forc…
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to extend my heartfelt thanks to my colleague because, unfortunately, in a 10-minute speech, there is not enough time to cover everything, and this is an issue of the utmost importance. The fact that they want to sell the airports simply to improve the bottom line in six months shows that we are dealing with people who cannot see beyond the end of their nose and who figur…
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for her question because it gives me an opportunity to elaborate on my point, especially if any farmers are listening to us right now and wondering whether we are still working for them. Of course we are. We work for their best interest and in everyone's best interest. We must retain some control. This gives me an opportunity to explain that what we are criticizin…
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for her excellent speech, which was packed with truth and clearly articulated. She spoke about indigenous peoples, who are often mentioned here in lofty terms, but who, in reality, still face many challenges. National Indigenous Peoples Day is coming up in a few days. I would like my colleague to say a few words about that.
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Mr. Speaker, now it is my turn to wish my colleagues safe travels back to their ridings and a summer filled with sunny days, BBQs and corn boils. This session, we saw opposition members crossing the floor almost as often as we saw the Prime Minister crossing the Atlantic. We now have a majority government and a Prime Minister with a whole lot of air miles. That caused a lot of upheaval and so it i…
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Mr. Speaker, another day, another example of anti-democratic behaviour from this Prime Minister. Today, he is muzzling the opposition to pass Bill C-22, which contains serious privacy violations. Yesterday, he shut down the debate on Bill C-30, which allows him to approve pesticides that were previously banned by Health Canada. It is simple. Since June 1, the Prime Minister has moved time allocati…
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Mr. Speaker, bad projects do not deserve support. The Prime Minister has a majority. He spends the majority of his time travelling, but he also has a majority in the House. All of his bills are guaranteed to pass. All he is doing with these repeated time allocation motions is preventing MPs from doing their job. All he is doing is trying to push things through so quickly that civil society does no…
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Mr. Speaker, anyone who has ever dealt with the Canada Revenue Agency or Service Canada knows that it is never that straightforward. We are talking about volunteers who take care of seniors, not experts on red tape. All the minister is being asked to do is to postpone her reform until the organizations that are eligible to register have a chance to do so, with enough time to ensure that the smalle…
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Mr. Speaker, what troubles me about Bill C‑30 are the changes regarding the approval of pesticides and herbicides. Under this bill, for economic reasons or in emergency situations, cabinet will be allowed to decide whether to use hazardous products. These people are not scientists and do not know what impact the use of these chemicals could have on nature, the environment, the plants intended for …
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, June 12 is Quebec buy local day. To celebrate, I invite my colleagues to treat themselves to an unforgettable getaway at Auberge Saint-Mathieu, an inn in Saint-Mathieu-du-Parc that is renowned for its superlative cuisine. After earning a green star from the famous Michelin Guide last year, this exceptional establishment was honoured once again this year with its first Michelin red sta…
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Mr. Speaker, changes to the New Horizons for Seniors program are threatening hundreds of community projects. Organizations have barely a month to register as a business, obtain a registration number and then submit their projects. Otherwise, they will be disqualified. Yesterday, the Secretary of State for Seniors responded to this concern by telling them to figure it out themselves, that there is …
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Mr. Speaker, before I begin, I want to note that the Bloc Québécois members share all the sentiments that have been expressed today regarding the police officers who lost their lives in Ontario. I think that is important. I also want to acknowledge my dear friend Normand Branchaud, who is celebrating 60 years as a musician this weekend. He is an extraordinary individual who bought his first harmon…
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Mr. Speaker, this time I will ask my colleague a question that relates to the topic at hand. That said, I really liked his previous answer, which I am sure will be greatly appreciated. My colleague referred earlier to the vote we took during the previous Parliament to maintain Quebec's political representation at 78 ridings. We know that the demographic weight of the Quebec nation will continue to…
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Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order. The member is rustling papers near the mic and it is causing problems.
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Mr. Speaker, we are talking about democracy, and the purpose of the bill is to make things simpler. The Bloc Québécois believes that public funding for political parties should be reinstated because the tax refund basically amounts to public funding anyway. Who among us can afford to donate $1,750 to a political party? That is completely ridiculous. What does the member think about reinstating pub…
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to start by saying hello to a dear friend who will be celebrating a 60-year career this weekend. His name is Normand Branchaud. Early in life, Ti-Nor got his first harmonica for the modest sum of $3.50 by running errands in the village. At age 17, he made his first appearance before an audience at the École Rinfret in Sainte-Ursule and then got up on the back of a truck i…
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my distinguished colleague from—and I will take the liberty of referring to the riding by its future name—“Jonquière—Hébertville—Pays-des-Bleuets”. I do not know if my colleague heard me earlier, but I mentioned that the name is quite poetic. Bravo to our poet from the north. I did also speak about political party financing. I mentioned earlier that few people ca…
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Mr. Speaker, sometimes Canada looks to what is being done in Quebec, although it typically takes too long to do so, child care being one example. Indeed, we are often out in front. I often say in my speeches that the country of Quebec already exists. I am sure my colleague would agree. We are already very different in terms of our culture, how we organize ourselves, our political culture and our e…
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Mr. Speaker, it is rather unfortunate, but Canada does not take these things into account when it reviews the electoral map. As elected officials, we can meet with members of the electoral commission. They will listen to what we have to say about changes to the riding boundaries. In my case, I was very lucky during the last election. The beautiful area of Saint-Sulpice was added to my riding. In f…
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Mr. Speaker, in response to the first part of my colleague's question, I must unfortunately inform him that I now represent the people of Saint-Sulpice. I love them and I am keeping them. The advantage is that it forces me and my colleague from Repentigny to work together, which is very positive, but it can be more difficult when people come from different political parties. Sometimes, it is even …
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Mr. Speaker, I would like my colleague from Terrebonne to talk to me about the following. At first, there were a lot of objections to the bill. People said it would detract from freedom of expression, that there was a risk of abuse, and so on. I think that we found the right solution by reinstating the Attorney General's consent to prosecute the offence. That way, with the Attorney General's judgm…
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Mr. Speaker, first of all, the members of the Bloc Québécois stand with the members who expressed their full solidarity with our colleague from Côte-du-Sud—Rivière-du-Loup—Kataskomiq—Témiscouata earlier. Our hearts go out to him. I believe that this spirit of collegiality and solidarity is fundamental to the House. In the same vein, I would like to call your attention to the fact that, in respondi…
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Mr. Speaker, the Bloc Québécois agrees to apply the vote and will vote in favour.
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Mr. Speaker, I will be sharing my time with my esteemed colleague from Lac-Saint-Jean. I am sure he will make very good use of that time. Since we are talking about the estimates today, we can address any aspect of the use of public funds. I want to briefly revisit our disappointment regarding the implementation of the budget, Bill C-31, among others, and the lack of response to one of our main co…
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Mr. Speaker, despite his poor reasoning, I still find the parliamentary secretary quite likeable. If he were being fair, he would admit that the excise tax exemption is lining the pockets of oil companies. That is what we have always said, and it is what we have been saying for years: The government needs to stop giving these companies tax breaks. They are vultures. They will siphon off every last…
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to once again thank my esteemed colleague for that very interesting question. What happened in Mirabel with the supposedly international airport that never came to be was that the government had to return nearly 90% of the land that it stole from people. People had to buy it back at today's prices. That is what happened. Now, Alto is coming to our area, even though Mirabe…
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Mr. Speaker, that is not much time to assess this risk. The risk is that anyone can make decisions about anything. Let me draw a parallel. During COVID‑19, members of the Conservative Party wanted us to vote on motions that would lift the health measures in place for air travel. We agreed, but we had the wisdom to concede that we were not microbiologists or epidemiologists. We therefore asked to i…
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Mr. Speaker, my colleague raised some good points. I liked the part where he talked about the protections that Quebec offers consumers. I would like to talk to him about the business world. Berthier—Maskinongé witnessed a minor miracle this morning. It was the grand reopening of Duchesne et Fils, which had been under the protection of the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act for months. All of the electe…
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Mr. Speaker, I do not know whether my colleague was here earlier when I asked my question about businesses, but the Bloc Québécois believes that small businesses in Quebec and, of course, across the rest of Canada need direct, rapid, effective support to avoid going under. Over the past few weeks, we have seen furniture businesses closing down. I mentioned earlier that a very happy event took plac…
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Madam Speaker, I would like to ask my colleague a question. Obviously, the Bloc Québécois supports the bill, because we want housing to be built. However, a similar body already exists, namely the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation. Its mandate is very similar, if not identical, to that of Build Canada Homes. Why create a new body? What is the logic there? What will happen to the CMHC?
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Madam Speaker, I would like my colleague to comment on something. We know that Build Canada Homes will be entitled to acquire shares in companies involved in public housing. It seems to me that the roles are getting mixed up. We have some reservations about this. I would like to know what my colleague thinks about this.
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Madam Speaker, Ottawa is once again bowing to pressure from Washington. The government wants to cancel a levy increase and allow Netflix, Amazon and other streaming platforms to get out of paying their fair share towards funding culture. The Coalition for the Diversity of Cultural Expressions is concerned about this situation. It stated: “Ottawa's decision...represents a major and deeply troubling…
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Madam Speaker, he should take a look at our platform. It is full of proposals about culture. Here is what the Société des auteurs et autrices de radio, télévision et cinéma said concerning the Prime Minister's cultural capitulation: “this announcement cuts us to the core, because it suggests that our industry is nothing but a bargaining chip”. Those are their words, not ours. The Prime Minister ha…
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Mr. Speaker, it is always a pleasure to see you in the chair. Today, I am speaking to Bill C-20 on Build Canada Homes or, as it was originally mistranslated in French, “Bâtir Maisons Canada”. It is not in the Bloc's nature to agree to the creation of federal Crown corporations that encroach on Quebec's areas of jurisdiction. I would remind all members that housing is under Quebec's jurisdiction. H…
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Madam Speaker, for once, the parliamentary secretary anticipated my response quite well. We can both agree on that, but we will also have to agree to disagree. That said, as I mentioned in my speech, we are here to salvage something from the wreckage. We are defending Quebec and trying to get as much as we can for our people. That is what we are doing today. We will take that billion dollars. My c…
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Madam Speaker, I thank the member for his question, which was very long but very interesting. It is always interesting to dialogue with colleagues who are cultured and give historical dates. It is wonderful. It is quite a coincidence that I am talking about Mr. Johnson when it is the 60th anniversary of when he was first elected and, at the same time it is also Mr. Clark's 87th birthday. I had not…
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Madam Speaker, I want to thank my “original whip”. Today is the first time I have called her by her nickname in public. I want to thank her for her thoughtful question and the wise counsel that she kindly gives me on a regular basis. She is right to talk about Quebec's uniqueness, its specificity and the diversity of its models. We would like to see more respect for those things. We do not underst…
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Madam Speaker, I apologize to my Conservative colleagues from Quebec, but my colleague is gradually becoming my favourite Conservative. Not only is her French exemplary, but she is also very receptive. I would like other members of the House to take a lesson from her. She has only been here for a short time, but she is already doing extraordinary work. I commend her and I appreciate the fact that …
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Mr. Speaker, the Bloc Québécois agrees to apply the vote and will be voting against.
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Mr. Speaker, the Bloc Québécois agrees to apply the vote, and will be voting against.
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Mr. Speaker, the Bloc Québécois members agree to apply the vote, and will be voting against.
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to say that we are rather disappointed with Bill C-31. We are disappointed because neither the implementation bill nor the economic update really take into account the current tariff crisis. This serious crisis is affecting businesses in general, but, once again, it has been particularly hard on businesses in Quebec, where these tariffs apply to one-quarter of exports. Sm…
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Mr. Speaker, he is not the only one who is disappointed. I am disappointed with that answer. The government talks a good game. It says that it is working co-operatively and that it voted in favour of private members' bills, but that was when there was a minority government. For the past few weeks, the government has had a rigged majority, a manufactured majority. It is a similar story in the previ…
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my esteemed colleague for her intelligent and logical question. I hope the government is listening when I say that this is essential. This measure has already been implemented in the case of mead, for example. When it was done in committee, it was done quickly, and the amendment was incomplete, because it did not include berry-based alcohol. This is a fundamental measure. Ther…
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the hon. member for her question, which is an interesting one. Having a minority government forces parties to compromise. Absolute power is never a good thing. When the government has a minority, it is forced to consult with the other parties. If it wants a bill to be passed, it must talk with with the opposition and convince them. The opposition may raise some c…
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Mr. Speaker, we could spend all day getting caught up in semantics, but the parliamentary secretary is completely mistaken. When private members' bills were passed, the Liberals were in the minority. That is the key difference. I hope they will do it again. They will probably do it for bills that are not controversial. For example, if we vote on the bill establishing Arab heritage month, which is …
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Mr. Speaker, for one, it could have done more than just provide loans, because, eventually, a company's debt level rises dramatically. I just mentioned the wage subsidy. What a wonderful way to preserve the economic fabric of the regions by maintaining the employment relationship between the worker and the company, even if production has to slow down or operations have to stop temporarily. It seem…
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