Government Orders
Madam Speaker, I would like to know what my colleague thinks. I explained a little earlier in the debates that the Bloc Québécois members, in good faith, voted in favour of the bill at second reading. We went to committee with an open mind to work constructively, as we always do, which should not come as a surprise to anyone. However, all of our amendments were rejected outright. I would like to k…
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Madam Speaker, I would like my colleague to explain the way he sees things. In committee, the Bloc Québécois proposed amendments that were extremely reasonable and that sought, among other things, to protect local communities and fishing groups, but they were rejected. Can my colleague explain his viewpoint? Did he agree with those amendments?
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, today I wish to honour an exceptional woman who is a shining star in her community, though she prefers to work behind the scenes. This positive and dynamic woman provides reassurance and uses her organizational skills to make things happen. I am talking about Diane Charrette, who has been active in her community since age 15. Over the years, she has energized the communities of Saint‑…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Madam Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague for her excellent work and tremendous diligence. There are things that may not be that clear from the outside, but those of us in here can see who is serious about working for the common good. I would like to take this opportunity to tip my hat to her. We are faced with an extraordinarily appalling situation that unfortunately appears to be a repea…
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Madam Speaker, it is rather ironic to see certain elected members, who spoke a few minutes ago about dealing with issues in a non-partisan manner in order to get to the bottom of things, now replying to people from other political parties that this also happened in their government. We need to move beyond that, and I will give the member the opportunity to do so by asking her a fundamental questio…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, farming in Quebec has reached the breaking point. We have been saying so for months. Environmental disasters, inflation and high interest rates are driving our farmers out of business. Their debt load has more than doubled since 2015. Last November, the Government of Quebec asked the federal government to activate the AgriRecovery program. There has been no response in the five months…
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Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague from Saanich—Gulf Islands for her speech. I am not surprised that she supports the bill, because she is a woman with progressive values who generally supports this type of bill. We are very pleased to hear that, because, as we know, the Bloc Québécois is strongly in favour of this bill. During her speech, I also appreciated her recognition of Quebec's pioneering…
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Madam Speaker, I have a rather direct question for my colleague. Does the 18-month delay his government included in the legislation not bother him? That is more time than this government has left, those 18 months before implementation. We are all aware that there could be a change in government before the legislation takes effect. However, this is a fundamental law. We are talking about defending …
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Mr. Speaker, I am proud to highlight that UNESCO has renewed the Lac Saint-Pierre region's prestigious designation as a “world biosphere reserve”. It is a great honour for Berthier—Maskinongé and for Quebec as a whole to see the rich biodiversity of our region recognized in this way for 24 years now. By raising awareness and mobilizing communities to adopt healthy and sustainable practices, the La…
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Mr. Speaker, with all due respect to my colleague, I was not satisfied with the answer given to my NDP colleague earlier about the 18-month delay. As I mentioned earlier today, 18 months is probably more time than this government has left. If the government really intended to legislate to prevent scabs from violating the legitimate rights of workers who have taken legal strike action or who are lo…
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Madam Speaker, my colleague asks a very interesting question. We have a lot of success in Quebec. I invite him to observe the situation in Quebec. In a bunch of sectors, we are still ahead of the rest of Canada. I am not saying that to put down the other provinces. Let us think of child care, or of immigrant integration levels. Quebeckers make up one of the most welcoming societies in the world. I…
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Madam Speaker, my colleague touched on a key point. We have to look at wealth distribution and where the government puts its resources. When we talk about greed and record, disastrous, even shameful profits, I immediately think of the oil and gas industry. It is funny that I do not often hear my Conservative colleagues talk about this and the millions and billions of dollars being funnelled into i…
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Madam Speaker, I am pleased to rise to speak to our opposition motion today. I really want to clarify that today's topic is successful immigration. That is what we want. Our motion today is not anti-immigration, far from it. On the contrary, it seeks to bring in newcomers decently and properly, with class and dignity. I heard a lot of things today, but no one has spoken about one aspect that I wou…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, I rise today to highlight the presence of dairy farmers from across Canada, and especially those from Quebec. They are on the Hill for the day to attend meetings with parliamentarians. Our entrepreneurs are proud to offer the public their product at a stable and reasonable price that allows them to earn a decent living from their trade. That is why they are asking parliamentarians to …
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Madam Speaker, to echo my colleagues' most recent comments, I think it is a shame to see the Conservatives sending such a negative message not only to Canada and Quebec, but also to the world by saying that we are not unanimous in our support of Ukraine. This is a very simple agreement. In fact, it updates a temporary agreement that was already in place. It implements some important things, includ…
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Madam Speaker, I share my colleague's disdain for the Conservatives' position. It is deplorable. However, as long as we are discussing the free trade agreement, we should discuss its contents. I would like to hear him comment on a section of this agreement that still allows private companies to sue governments on the ground that they are preventing these companies from fully capitalizing on their …
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Madam Speaker, my colleague and I agree on several points. I wonder if he could talk about what we can do to recognize what is being done on the ground in the agricultural sector. Should farmers who adopt good practices not be rewarded for that? My colleague is very familiar with this idea because I often explain it to him. The idea is to recognize good practices and create a decentralized fund th…
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Madam Speaker, it is a great pleasure for me to speak to Motion No. 75. It is also a great pleasure to see you back in the chair and to see your smiling face again. It is only right for us to adopt this motion. There is just one question we should be asking ourselves. Given how long the Polish people and Polish culture have been contributing strength and vitality to our societies, and given that t…
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Madam Speaker, obviously, just like on any other Conservative opposition day, we are still talking about the carbon tax. People watching the debates might wonder if what MPs do all day amounts to anything. I will let them in on a secret: We sometimes wonder the same thing. I have enjoyed working with my colleague on bills. I know him to be an extremely intelligent and friendly guy. I will give him…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Madam Speaker, I request a recorded division.
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Mr. Speaker, although it is already January 29, I do not think it is too late to extend my best wishes to everyone. I hope we can engage in constructive politics. That is exactly what we are going to try to do this morning. Listening to the speeches, I feel as though this is being treated like an either-or issue. One side is saying “axe the tax” while the other side is saying that we need to send …
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With regard to the Local Food Infrastructure Fund (LFIF): (a) how are organizations that have submitted an application that complies with the program told that their application will not be considered due to a lack of funds and that the evaluation criteria were changed during the program; (b) how is it that on the government website the LFIF program still shows the original criteria, causing other…
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Madam Speaker, the accusations that we just heard are absolutely ridiculous. The whip of the Bloc Québécois respectfully presented the issue earlier. This is not personal matter. It is a matter of confidence. That is what the member for Kingston and the Islands does not seem to understand or does not want to understand. I think it is the latter. He is saying that we asked the Speaker to resign. Ye…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Madam Speaker, concerning grocery store prices, I would like to ask my colleague for his interpretation of the theatrical performance put on by the Minister of Industry. The minister called in the CEOs of major corporations to give evidence and asked them to change their prices. However, when they appeared before the Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food, these same CEOs told us that the…
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Madam Speaker, I am pleased to rise in the House to speak to Bill C‑355, which seeks to prohibit the export by air of live horses for the purpose of being slaughtered. That is a very specific bill. I listened to my colleague who spoke before me, and I think he made some interesting points in the Conservative way, obviously. He raised concerns about where this bill will take us. This bill is one of…
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Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for his speech and his last answer in which he talked about the crickets we often get from the Conservatives. I find that very interesting and relevant. I would like him to comment on the 18‑month delay being placed on the bill's coming into force. I do not understand that. We have had similar legislation in Quebec for 47 years. I think we know how this works an…
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Madam Speaker, to begin, I would like to take this opportunity to wish a happy holiday and a good vacation to everyone in the House, but mostly to the people of Berthier—Maskinongé, who have worked so hard over the past year. I hope they get time with their loved ones. I wish the same for my colleague who just made his speech, because I know him well enough to wish him a merry Christmas. If we kno…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, 2023 was a terrible year for our farmers. Fortunately, there is an easy way to make sure that 2024 is better. The federal government can push back the January 18 loan forgiveness repayment deadline for the emergency account. That is an easy way to prevent farms from going bankrupt. It is an easy measure that will provide much relief to farmers who are working like mad, but are still w…
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Mr. Speaker, 2023 has been an extremely difficult year for farmers: rising interest rates, rising input prices, floods, droughts. It is one thing after another. Meanwhile, the federal government is abandoning them. Ottawa's investments in agriculture do not even amount to 5% of agricultural production value. That is four times less than in Europe. The government must immediately set up an emergenc…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Madam Speaker, that is a very interesting question. As I was saying earlier, we have to have another look at how we support farmers and have a serious review of the insurance programs. These programs were designed 20 or 25 years ago in a context where we had a bad year every six or seven years. These days, we have three bad years in a row and we do not know what next year will bring. The people fr…
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Madam Speaker, I would like to thank my NDP colleague. Indeed, we do very good work together on the Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food. As I mentioned earlier in my speech, what we are experiencing right now is quite ironic. People come to committee and tell us that they are not taking in any more money than they used to and that their profit margin is only 2%, yet when we look at the…
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Madam Speaker, I will begin by saying that I am very pleased that my colleague from Beauce answered the call I sent out to him during my speech. I appreciate it. I will explain something to him. In Quebec, we participate in the carbon exchange with California, and agricultural producers are currently at $471 million in costs. Farms in Quebec are exempt from buying carbon credits. However, they are…
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Madam Speaker, as I do every time I am given this great opportunity, I want to say that Quebec is less familiar with the carbon tax because that is not how we do things. We participate in the carbon exchange with California. However, according to the numbers I have seen, the carbon tax is responsible for 0.15% of the inflation we are currently experiencing. Most of the inflation that we are seeing…
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Mr. Speaker, as I usually do, I want to bring the debate back to the subject we were asked to address, namely a report from the Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food. However, that does not mean that I disagree with the comments that have been made to the effect that the Conservative Party has been engaged in systematic and ongoing obstruction while claiming to be working for the common …
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for her speech. Unfortunately, she has just failed to answer the question. My NDP colleague asked her about the oil and gas companies' exorbitant, astronomical, skyrocketing profits, which are having a very significant impact on the cost of groceries. I would like my colleague to talk about oil and gas profits. I hope she heard the question.
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, I wonder if my colleague realizes that the dog and pony show put on by his colleague, the Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry, counted for absolutely nothing. I do not know whether he is following the work of the Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food, but we heard again this week from the CEO of Metro. I salute him and thank him for his candour. He frankly admitted …
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for his brilliant speech and for his continued, meaningful defence of Quebec's interests. I would like him to elaborate further because, before he arrived in the House earlier, I asked a question regarding that same issue. The parliamentary secretary replied that we were only approving the agreement and could not change it. That is exactly what my colleague has …
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Madam Speaker, it would be worth our while to discuss this bill. I would like the member for Winnipeg North to tell me about his vision for the free trade agreement with Ukraine. We obviously agree on the bill, though it still has some shortcomings. The Bloc Québécois has long objected to the fact that private companies can sue governments under free trade agreements by claiming that a government'…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, last week, more than 1,000 farmers took to the streets of Quebec City to ask for more government support. Farmers need help to deal with climate change, and yet Canada is investing almost four times less money than the United States and the European Union to support our people. This puts our farmers at a disadvantage, creates unfair competition and jeopardizes our food security. For a…
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Madam Speaker, someone was unaware that I was speaking. The member just referred to families, and I would like to know what is the Conservatives' definition of family. Are we talking about two parents with one child? Will people who have no children pay the carbon tax? I would like to understand that part. I would also like the member to tell me whether it is true that low-income families receive …
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Madam Speaker, my colleague just said again that the Conservatives wanted to repeal the tax on families. How is a family defined in the context of their motion? It is not defined. Is it when there are at least two parents and one child? Is a couple without children a family? That will be pretty much—
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Madam Speaker, the basic problem we face, a problem that has been going on for months, is that some political parties are unreasonable and put different misleading labels on all the others. Here is a prime example of this situation. Today's opposition day was triggered by Bill C‑234, which is currently in the Senate, and by the amendment that was passed in the Senate. Last week, we voted against a…
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Madam Speaker, I am going to give my colleague an opportunity to use up a bit more floor time. Joking aside, this is a very serious subject. We are seeking a fragile balance between individual rights and collective rights, the protection of society and the community. This is not an easy balance to strike. I am very interested in what my colleague had to say. He showed that people do not need to sp…
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Madam Speaker, I would like to thank the minister for his statement. This is a delicate issue that must be handled intelligently. It is a matter of striking a balance between individual and collective rights, between safety and social peace. Finding that balance is a very delicate exercise, and we all have several cases we could cite. What is also important is to preserve the basic principles of l…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Madam Speaker, I want to thank my colleague for that great question. My colleague said that the trade alliance represents 90% of farmers. They often say that, but it actually represents 90% of exporters. That is an important nuance. Of course the alliance is worried, because it believes that we will need these producers in order to develop other markets. What we are being told is that the governme…
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Madam Speaker, that is an excellent question, and the member basically answered it for himself. My esteemed colleague from Abitibi—Témiscamingue is absolutely right. He raised a very important point, and he provided a more in-depth explanation of what I was trying to quickly explain earlier. I am talking about a societal choice, about public infrastructure that would create an ecosystem. That is w…
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Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for his intelligent question, like the ones he often asks at the Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food. That is what I was talking about earlier when I spoke about having a vision for the future. When we take action, we need to consider what things will be like in 10 or 20 years. We need to start informing, training and providing information to our you…
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Madam Speaker, I really want to thank my colleague for that great question. I went over that earlier, but this will allow me to reiterate what I said. It is a public investment. It takes ongoing public support for the other small-scale sites. There are a lot of projects that exist already. There is no need to start from square one. I often say that we need to trust the people working on the ground…
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Madam Speaker, absolutely. In fact, that is one of the recommendations that I did not have time to talk about. The report recommended that in the agri‑food sector, the cap for foreign workers increase from 10% to 20%. I even proposed 30%, but the majority wanted 20%, so we put 20%. Then the government did it. That is one of the things in the 18 recommendations that was done. I say bravo, but it is…
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Madam Speaker, I am pleased to take part in this discussion. I want to get right to the substance of the debate because, as usual, I have a lot to say in a short period of time. This report looked at the possibility of increasing food processing capacity. I would like to bring the debate back to the main issue in this report, which was prepared during the COVID-19 pandemic, at a time when we were …
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