Connie Cody
Cambridge, Ontario · Conservative · Canada
“It has ignored organizations of all stripes and the tens of thousands, or even hundreds of thousands, of Canadians from communities like mine who took the time to write, call and petition. This is not how we stop hatred. This is how we build resentment. This bill would amend the Criminal Code. It is not a minor administrative matter.”
“In my community of Cambridge, whether it is at events or just in the parking lot of a grocery store, I have had people come up to me to say that I should not let this one pass without a fight. It is no secret that religious freedom across this nation is under threat.”
“I did not have a reassuring answer for her, and that is precisely the problem. When a law aimed at combatting hate creates fear in the hearts of law-abiding, community-minded, faithful Canadians, when it drives them to petition their MP and write letters by hand, something has gone wrong in the drafting, in the process and in the governme…”
“The Muslim imams deserve a full debate. Even the rabbis and civil liberty advocates who raised the alarm bells deserve a full debate. The pastors, teachers and parents who contacted my office deserve a full debate. I want to close by bringing this back to the people who sent me here.”
“I have heard from all of them, people who picked up the phone or sat down to write to me because they genuinely do not know what the bill would mean for their lives. The government itself has mused about this.”
“Madam Speaker, today I rise on a topic of great concern to people in my community and to many Canadians from coast to coast. Perhaps no piece of legislation in this place has drawn as much public interest as Bill C-9 . Combined, our offices have received tens of thousands of emails from concerned citizens opposed to the bill.”
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“I find it a bit ironic that this bill is supposed to address the fentanyl flowing across our borders, all while the government continues to hand it out here at home and defend a regime that we all know has failed and is failing so many. If we truly want to stop the opioid crisis, then let us stop all the opioids, including the ones the government gives out for free in communities across Canada. Concerns like these are ones my colleagues and I hope to address at upcoming committee hearings through amendments offered in good faith. We want to make this legislation stronger and better, because stronger legislation means better outcomes for the people we serve.”
“The health minister testified in front of a parliamentary committee just days ago that not only would she not commit to ending this radical experiment, she would not even commit to ensuring these sites are not placed next to places like schools in our community. That means a safe supply site in a city like mine could be put right around the corner from kids who are literally four or five years old. It seems like now everywhere has become a drug consumption site. I hear stories from parents who find needles and drug materials in parks and playgrounds, places we never would have dreamed of finding any of these things in just a few years ago.”
“We see people in doorways, on the sidewalk or the street corner who have lost everything they had because of one mistake. We hear the sirens of ambulances going to help someone who has had yet another overdose. Many people do not make it out alive. These are not statistics; these are people who get a government in Ottawa that does not offer a helping hand or invest in recovery and treatment, a government that wilfully pushes hard drugs onto our streets through so-called safe supply sites. There is nothing safe about a government-funded institution that hands out drugs that can literally kill people, all for free. These so-called safe supply sites do not just keep vulnerable people hooked on the poison that is killing them; they also feed the opioid crisis even more because many of the drugs they give away end up on the streets.”
“When the system fails to hold criminals accountable, it does not hurt just victims, but everyone who is trying to keep our communities safe and healthy. It puts pressure on our hospitals, shelters, outreach workers and emergency services. It creates burnout, frustration and fear. These are the people we rely on in our most vulnerable moments. They deserve more than lip service; they deserve a system that works. They deserve a government that stands with them, not one that leaves them to clean up the mess. While crime continues to rise, it is not the only crisis gripping our communities; the opioid epidemic is another tragedy unfolding in plain sight and one the government continues to mishandle. We see people living in tents in what used to be public parks and green spaces.”
“Let us not forget who else is paying the price for this soft-on-crime, hug-a-thug approach: our emergency services, frontline workers, first responders and hospitals. Police are being stretched thin responding to repeat offenders who should never have been released in the first place. Paramedics are racing from one overdose call to the next, often with no time to recover between emergencies. Nurses and doctors are overwhelmed treating the fallout of drug poisonings, violent assaults and mental health crises, many of which could have been prevented if the justice system actually worked. Our first responders are doing their jobs with courage and compassion, but are being asked to do more with less. They are expected to manage the consequences of failed policies while the government continues to delay action and deflect responsibility.”
“The Liberals had an opportunity to fix the justice system in this very piece of legislation. They did not. The bail reform could already be reported out of committee by now. It is not; it is just getting started. (1530) The Liberals had an opportunity to vote for Conservative legislation to put the bad guys in jail and end Liberal bail. They did not. They have ignored this problem for years; they have ignored the police officers, the mayors and the frontline workers. People in communities like mine are paying the price. Every day the government delays is another day criminals are allowed to break the law with absolute impunity, no deterrents, no consequences and no accountability. That needs to stop now.”
“People reach out to me constantly in emails, phone calls, texts and responses to my community surveys. They tell me, “I don't feel safe when I lock the door at night or when I let my kids play out in the yard.” They asked me to bring their concerns to the government. I have stood up time and time again in debate and in question period to let the government know just how badly it is failing law-abiding citizens. What does the Liberal government say in response? For years, the Liberals said, “Hold on, be patient, the legislation is coming soon”; that is, when they did not call us racist, conspiracy theorists or supporters of so-called American-style policies. For this government, it has always been about doing something tomorrow instead of doing it today, about blaming someone else instead of taking ownership.”
“Last week, there was a shooting on Dellgrove Circle and Baintree Way. A couple of months ago, bullets struck a home on Park Avenue and Grant Street. Back in June, a house on Roseview Avenue was targeted with six gunshots in broad daylight. These are not supposed to be dangerous places. They are quiet neighbourhoods where families should feel safe. My neighbours in Cambridge did not ask for their streets to become crime scenes. Ten years ago, this would have been unimaginable in a country like Canada and in a community like ours. These are not just headlines; they are real families, real neighbours and real lives disrupted by violence. Every time I hear about another incident, I think of the children growing up in fear and the parents wondering if their street is still safe.”
“I am really glad that the sections encroaching on Canadians' personal freedoms and privacy rights are no longer in the bill, but let us talk about what else is not in the bill. There is still no action to end Liberal catch-and-release policies, meaning people who smuggle drugs and guns across our borders can still be arrested, get released and go right back to breaking the law all in the same day. The Liberals are still allowing people who get arrested for the most serious crimes to serve what should be multi-year sentences in the comfort of their own homes. There are still no mandatory minimum prison times for fentanyl traffickers, gangsters who commit gun crimes and other heinous offenders. This soft-on-crime agenda is not just an abstract idea; it is hitting home in my community every single day.”
“While this new piece of legislation, Bill C-12 , is intended to address many of the thoughts that I, many of my Conservative colleagues and indeed people from all across Canada had about that old bill, I am grateful that the government listened to our Conservative ideas and the voices of thousands of Canadians, including people in my community, to remove these problematic elements. This proves that the work Conservatives are doing in Ottawa is producing results for the people we serve. Legislation about border security should be about keeping our borders safe, not about completely separate topics like online surveillance, private business transactions and reading people's mail. Bill C-12 is a small step in the right direction, but it is not without problems.”
“Mr. Speaker, it is always a privilege to rise on behalf of the people of Cambridge and North Dumfries in this place, especially to discuss an issue as important as our Canadian borders and keeping people safe. Everyone watching at home might remember that this is not my first time in the House talking about border security. A few weeks ago, I spoke about Bill C-2 , which was introduced by the government with goals similar to those of the bill before us. I expressed my deep concerns with many portions of Bill C-2 , including the parts that would allow Canada Post to open any mail without a warrant, ban certain cash payments and transactions, allow warrantless access to personal information, and let the government snoop on people's online activities and see deeply personal financial information from Canadian banks.”
“The Liberal government's soft-on-crime, revolving-door justice system forces officers to repeat hard work while communities remain at risk. I thank the south division for allowing me to join its patrol. I thank all officers across the country for their service. I will always stand with them. They deserve more than our gratitude They deserve a justice system that has their backs.”
“Mr. Speaker, during constituency week, I had the privilege of joining a ride-along with the south division police in Cambridge. I have always respected the work our frontline officers do, but seeing their focus and professionalism first-hand was a powerful reminder of the challenges they face every single day. That night, officers were on alert for Kevin Koehler, a violent repeat offender released after serving only 10 years for choking his elderly roommate to death. Despite a clear warning from police that he posed a significant risk to public safety, he was back in our community, and within just one day, he breached his release conditions. He was picked up the same night, during my ride-along. This is not just frustrating. It is dangerous.”
“Mr. Speaker, there have been consultations among the parties, and I believe you will find unanimous consent for the following motion: Motion That, notwithstanding any Standing Order or usual practice of the House, Bill S-1001, An Act to authorize Gore Mutual Insurance Company to apply to be continued as a body corporate under the laws of the Province of Quebec, be deemed to have been read a second time and referred to a Committee of the Whole, deemed considered in Committee of the Whole, deemed reported without amendment, deemed concurred in at report stage and deemed read a third time and passed.”
“Mr. Speaker, the government says that Bill C-12 protects Canadians, yet it expands government powers to collect and share personal information across departments. Could he speak to why it is so important that Parliament scrutinize these new authorities to ensure Canadians' privacy is not compromised?”
“Mr. Speaker, after Conservatives forced the Liberals to back down from Bill C-2 for overstepping Canadians' freedoms and privacy, they have now returned with Bill C-12 . Would my colleague not agree that Parliament must carefully scrutinize this revised legislation to ensure that nothing has been added that could once again put the privacy rights of law-abiding Canadians at risk?”
“Mr. Speaker, it is the same old answers. Let us talk about those so-called programs. Nine out of 10 kids do not get fed by the failed food program. The Liberals take food away from families to instead feed the government's constantly expanding bureaucracy. If those programs were working, then food bank visits would be going down, not up. Since the Prime Minister took office, beef strip loin is up 28%, sugar is up 19% and apples are up 13%. These are not luxuries; they are everyday essentials being priced out of Canadian diets, which is forcing kids to go to bed hungry. I will ask again: Will the government finally listen to the evidence and stop its reckless spending so families—”
“Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister told Canadians to judge him by the prices they pay at the grocery store, so let us do just that. Sheri, a senior in Cambridge, wrote to me this week. She sent a photo of her grocery receipt: $197 for a few basics that will not last the week. The cause is Liberal hidden taxes like the industrial carbon tax on farmers who grow the food. These taxes are buried in everyday essentials. Runaway Liberal spending has turned the grocery aisle into a luxury lane. With the budget coming, Canadians like Sheri want to know, will the government axe the hidden taxes and rein in the spending so they can afford to eat?”
“Mr. Speaker, that was not an answer. The government took food off Canadian tables and then built a bureaucracy to take credit for giving some of the crumbs back. Liberals talk about all of these programs, but if they were working, a third of the people using food banks in Cambridge would not be children. In my community, I have met parents who are working full time and are still skipping meals so their kids can eat. They are not failing; they are being failed, so on their behalf, I will ask this: Why is it no longer a guarantee that a full-time job will put food on the table for families?”
“Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister said that Canadians should judge him by the cost at the grocery store. Well, they have, and he has failed. In Cambridge, the food bank saw over 23,000 visits last year, a 114% increase. One-third of those visits were children and youth, and 43% were first-time users. Families that have never used the food bank before are now lining up for food. Even people with jobs cannot afford groceries because the Prime Minister continues to take their lunch money to wine and dine abroad. If this is what success looks like to the Prime Minister , what does failure look like?”
“Mr. Speaker, Canada already has the fastest-shrinking economy in the G7 and the second-highest unemployment. It is only going to get worse for Cambridge auto workers who work at Toyota, with jobs and investments fleeing south. Just after the Prime Minister 's trip to Washington, the Trump administration said there will be no deal on autos, putting thousands of workers and their families at risk. To add insult to injury, the Prime Minister promised to send $1 trillion to the U.S., spending money on American jobs while Canadians get pink slips. Why is the Prime Minister so quick to invest in America's future while selling out the livelihood of Canadian auto workers?”
“Mr. Speaker, I volunteered at the Cambridge Legion for several years, and I am always proud to support our veterans and those serving in our armed forces. We all know that veterans put so much on the line for our country, and all they want is support from our government, but the Liberals have passed legislation like Bill C-5 , allowing criminals convicted of sexual assault to serve their sentences at home. In a military context, that could mean that right around the corner from their attacker on a small base, some could still reside. Does the minister agree that we should repeal Bill C-5 , stop soft-on-crime policies and protect not only CAF victims but all victims of sexual misconduct?”
“Mr. Speaker, given the scale and severity of the criminal activity covered under Project Road King, which spanned organized auto theft, international drug trafficking and firearms, could the member explain why 27 of the 30 individuals charged were released rather than held in custody? What does this say about our current approach to incarceration for serious and organized crime? Are there gaps in our system that need to be addressed to ensure public safety is our priority?”
“Mr. Speaker, just recently, a 22-year-old and a 16-year-old in Cambridge violently attacked police and security officers, punching them, kicking them and pushing them to the ground. One was later caught possessing crack cocaine. The offenders are already back on the streets, released on bail. Crime is on the rise because there are no longer consequences to bad acts. My colleague is an accomplished lawyer who has been practising for a long time. He remembers what it was like under Stephen Harper. Can he elaborate on what it means for criminals to face real consequences?”
“Mr. Speaker, the generation that built our prosperity is now being bled dry by the Liberal government's “unaffordabillion” crisis. A shocking new report shows that one-third of seniors are covering their adult children's basic costs, and three-quarters say it is draining their retirement. After 10 years of Liberal spending, costs rise and hopes slip away. Every dollar the Prime Minister spends comes out of seniors' pockets in Liberal taxes and inflation, inflation that will further increase with the Prime Minister's plan to double the deficit. How many more seniors will be forced to choose between supporting themselves and supporting their families?”
“I have a message for the Prime Minister on behalf of the 5,000 people of Cambridge using a food bank and the thousands more going hungry every day: Stop punishing them with high taxes and high inflation. When will the Prime Minister start giving Canadians full plates instead of empty promises?”
“Mr. Speaker, I recently got an email from a senior in Cambridge. She told me about her trip to the grocery store. She paid over $47 for a few basic items that would only last a few days. She was not asking for luxuries, just enough to eat and get by. The Prime Minister promised to create the fastest-growing economy in the G7, but he delivered the fastest-shrinking one instead. There used to be a guarantee in Canada that if someone worked hard, saved up and got a good job, they would be all set. However, after 10 years of Liberal government, Canadians are worse off. According to Food Banks Canada, more than a quarter of all Canadians are facing food insecurity. The Prime Minister asked us to judge him on costs at the grocery store, and Canadians are. With every $100 grocery bill, he gets a failing grade.”
“Mr. Speaker, I appreciate working alongside our colleague. As we know, just recently there was a death in B.C. that was horrendous. A woman dies every six days from murder. It is a huge issue and concern, and should be for all parties. To escape, there could be major costs and transactions involved. We have to keep all of these issues and debate this separately.”
“Mr. Speaker, I think that is the purpose of a warrant, and I think that is what Canadians are looking for, which is to keep their privacy in hand as well as look after the criminals. If the government is serious about helping Canadians, it needs to separate the omnibus bill so we can come together to pass the few measures in it that would actually help, and leave the power grab portions to be debated separately. It would also add the bail reform Canadians have been begging for to keep drug traffickers off our streets.”
“Mr. Speaker, my colleague has a good point. A lot of people no longer trust the government after a decade of decay. It is truly depressing to see our seniors not even feeling safe in their own home because of the Liberal government's soft-on-crime agenda. With drugs having been let run so rampant in our communities, we are seeing drug addicts housed in seniors homes rather than getting them rehab or help. We see them getting drugs from either the government or their dealers while out on bail. Seeing drug dealers and violent gang members run free while our most vulnerable, our seniors, cower in their own home is truly depressing. Just a few weeks ago, an elderly lady in Guelph was beaten, and died of her injuries, in broad daylight. This is not the Canada I grew up in. If we wonder about trust, we should look at the last 10 years.”
“Mr. Speaker, unlike the member opposite, I am here to debate the safety of all Canadians, not engage in political games. My constituents are suffering more than I have ever seen in my life and need the government to focus on the criminals causing this, not crack down on the civil liberties of all Canadians. Bail reform is the biggest priority for keeping Canadians safe, so why is the Liberal government avoiding the topic and instead focusing on collecting Canadians' mail without a warrant?”
“Bill C-2 is called the strong borders act, but there is nothing strong about weak sentencing, revolving-door justice and half measures that punish honest Canadians more than criminals. If the Liberals were serious about strong borders, they would listen to the Conservative proposals, secure the border, end catch and release for traffickers and give people struggling with addiction a real chance at recovery. We are calling for better. Police are calling for better. Victims and their families are calling for better. Is the government going to listen? Only time will tell.”
“The criminals often get more rights than their victims, while getting a slap on their wrist and paying no price whatsoever, and that is not to mention an immigration system that nobody, not even immigrants themselves, trusts to work in the best interest of this country. There is good news and bad news. The good news is that we can fix all these problems. I still believe that Canada is the best country in the world and a place we are so blessed to call home. I remain honoured to be Cambridge's voice in this place through the good and bad times. However, the bad news is that we cannot trust the Liberal government, an overbearing, incompetent and careless government, to clean up the mess it created itself.”
“To me this looks like the Liberal government is focusing on giving itself more powers at the cost of law-abiding Canadians' civil liberties, instead of actually going after the dangerous criminals who threaten the safety not just of the people of Cambridge but of all Canadians. These measures are wrong and must be fixed, because we know that when Ottawa gets more powers, it never, ever gives them up. We would not have even needed to introduce a bill like this in the first place if the Liberal government had not broken what it inherited from Stephen Harper: a strong border, a functioning criminal justice system and a safe and secure immigration process that was the envy of the world. Instead, after 10 years of an incompetent and out-of-touch government, drugs and guns, criminals and contraband flow across our borders with impunity.”
“Restricting those transactions would not stop organized crime; it would just make life harder for people who follow the rules. Let us talk about what the bill would do. Bill C-2 would give the government the power to open mail without oversight, force Internet companies to hand over their data and give itself more opportunities to perform warrantless searches. Canadians need to know that Bill C-2 would goes well beyond border measures; it would also introduce new surveillance powers that deserve a full and separate debate. If the government believes these powers are necessary, they should be studied carefully in their own bill with the proper scrutiny of Parliament.”
“They worked hard all their life, and they should feel safe in their home, but many of them no longer do. Bill C-2 would do nothing to change that. It goes after paperwork, not the predators. It leaves the real criminals free while vulnerable Canadians live in fear. When the Liberals are not using the bill to keep letting criminals roam free on our streets, they are taking massive new steps to give themselves more power to control the everyday lives of Canadians. For instance, they want to impose a massive new restriction on the use of cash in private transactions, limiting cash payments of $10,000 or more. Our multinational banker and economist Prime Minister should realize that seniors, farmers and small businesses often rely on cash for larger purchases or sales.”
“If someone does happen to be put behind bars, the bill would not implement stricter sentencing provisions. We would still have no mandatory prison time for fentanyl traffickers and no mandatory prison time for gangsters who commit violent crimes with guns. We need to stop the smugglers, put the bad guys in jail and end the Liberal regime of endless free drugs for everyone. Instead of cracking down on the drug traffickers and gangs that fuel the crisis, the Liberals are trying to hide the problem by shuffling people into senior housing without safeguards. Individuals dealing with drugs and creating disorder are being placed in the same apartment buildings as vulnerable seniors. The result is theft, fear and seniors who feel like a prisoner in their own home. I hear this every week from seniors in my community.”
“Let me be clear that I am ready to work with anybody from any party who wants to help fix our borders, stop the drugs and get people in my community the help they need, but we simply cannot afford more of the same things from the same Liberal government: more talk and more empty platitudes with devastating consequences for Canadians, and that is what the bill is all about. It would not implement bail reform for violent gang members and smugglers who make drugs, transport drugs, sell drugs and destroy the lives of people who live in my riding and of hundreds of thousands of people across this country. (1530) That means that the people who are driving the crisis get to keep walking through the Liberal revolving door of no consequences, free to keep flooding our streets with narcotics.”
“Canadians deserve laws that protect victims, not revolving doors for offenders. The government can pat itself on the back for introducing Bill C-2 , but here is the truth: There are many parts of the legislation that fall far too short. There are no new tools for prosecutors to keep traffickers behind bars. There are no real investments in treatment and recovery that offer people hope instead of despair, and there are no guarantees that the flow of precursor chemicals, the ingredients for fentanyl, will actually be stopped at the border. For all the government's talk, there is no guarantee that the bill would end the opioid epidemic, far from it. Conservatives believe in strong borders, serious sentences for smugglers and a pathway to recovery for the people trapped in addiction. That is what real leadership looks like.”
“Fentanyl is not just another drug; it is a lethal poison that is tearing apart families in Cambridge, North Dumfries and every community across Canada. A few grains can end a life. Paramedics in my riding respond to overdose calls daily, and our hospitals are overwhelmed with patients fighting for their life. Parents tell me they are terrified their child will be the next obituary. That is the human cost: not statistics, but loved ones lost. Drug smugglers do not operate alone; they are tied to organized crime, violent gangs and international cartels that see Canada as an easy target. When border controls are weak, those criminals walk right through the cracks. Bill C-2 talks about tightening enforcement, but without tougher bail conditions and mandatory jail time, the same gang members will be back on our streets within days.”
“The Liberal government fanned the flames of that program, offering free drugs and a quick high instead of hope and recovery for the people who needed it most, and it left our borders vulnerable and open to international gangs and smugglers to use our country as a dumping ground for drugs like fentanyl. Those drugs end up on the street in cities like mine, and even a tiny amount can literally kill people. Now the Liberals have put forward a new bill, Bill C-2 , that is supposed to address the problem of fentanyl on our streets and narcotics being smuggled across our border. In all seriousness, that is like the person who set a house on fire showing up with a bucket to put out the flames. It just does not make sense. The same people who broke it cannot and should not be trusted to fix it.”
“It is hard to take a walk through downtown Cambridge without seeing one of our neighbours in distress and people who do not have a warm place to sleep, a warm meal to eat or a chance of getting back on their feet. What used to be a peaceful area has now been transformed into ground zero of a tent city disaster unfolding right before our eyes. The Liberal-manufactured housing crisis, which has caused home prices to double in less than a decade, is a big part of why there are so many people sleeping on our streets. However, another huge reason is the wave of addiction and the opioid epidemic that has flooded our communities, big and small.”
“They told me, overwhelmingly, that a decade of Liberal government has made life harder, that finding a good-paying job or any kind of job is harder, that affording a home or even an apartment is harder and that affording the necessities of life, just basics like groceries, is harder. I am always going to stand up for these fundamental issues and be a champion for common sense and the for Canadian dream that hard work can pay off. Life is also harder for the most vulnerable in our community. The exploding number of homeless encampments and of people experiencing homelessness is an incredibly visible and heart-wrenching concern for all of us.”
“Mr. Speaker, before I move to the matter at hand, I want to say what a privilege it is to be back in Ottawa to fight for the people of Cambridge and North Dumfries. It has been nearly three months since members of Parliament have been in this place to debate issues of importance and hold the government accountable for its actions. It is almost like the government did not want anybody to hold it accountable, or maybe it wanted a long, lazy summer vacation. Whatever it was, it certainly was no vacation for me and my team. Every day, we were out in the community attending events, helping constituents with casework and listening to all the things on our neighbours' minds. What did they have to say?”
“Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister said, when he swore in his cabinet, that Canadians would judge him by the cost at the grocery store. However, with elbows flying up and down, the Liberal government did not roll up its sleeves and bring down grocery prices. While the Prime Minister does his chicken dance, 5,000 people use a food bank in Cambridge. Canadians are getting crushed. Food prices are up nearly 40% and food inflation is 70% above target. This is another Liberal broken promise, another Liberal bait and switch because the Prime Minister is just another Liberal. Is this sticker shock his promise to Canadians?”
“Mr. Speaker, it is like we are living in a Liberal rerun of Groundhog Day where the same criminals get arrested and released and reoffend on a loop. In Cambridge, two men wanted on warrants were just busted with weapons and suspected fentanyl, a drug that is killing Canadians every single day. This endless cycle is not an accident; it is the result of Liberal-made soft-on-crime laws, a revolving door of justice that is a gift to repeat offenders. When will the Liberal government shut the door on its Groundhog Day and finally put violent criminals and drug kingpins behind bars for good?”
“Mr. Speaker, right now the Liberals are criticizing Harper's first-generation limit and claiming they need to fix the system. I decided to go look at Hansard, and the Liberals passed a unanimous consent motion to pass Bill C-37 at all stages on February 15, 2008. Why is it that Liberals continue to mislead the House? Would the member agree that the Liberals today are a far cry from the Liberals from a generation ago, who believed in all-party consensus on immigration policies?”
“Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague for sharing the concerns being heard within the community. The member raised important points about the impact of the gas ban on affordability and access, particularly in high-cost regions such as Vancouver. Given the pressures already facing families and businesses, could the member expand on what specific hardships this policy may create and how those impacts could further challenge communities already struggling with the rising cost of living? In particular, what might this mean for local dealerships that could be burdened with added costs, inventory challenges or penalties tied to compliance?”
“Madam Speaker, you raised important points about how the Liberal gas ban would impact farmers and rural communities. I keep thinking back to the blackout in Alberta earlier this year, where people were told to turn off the lights, lower thermostats and avoid using appliances right in the middle of winter. Are your constituents worried that forcing everyone onto the electrical grid will make things worse, not better? What are you hearing from people about the reliability risk of this rushed transition?”
“Madam Speaker, my riding has a large rural area as well as an urban area, and having a choice is very important. We have a lot of farmers who require trucks to get around. They do not have the proper infrastructure or transit to run their business otherwise. We have a lot of small businesses in our automotive industry. It would shut down a lot of businesses, so it is very important that we keep our gas-powered vehicles going. We also have a lot of car shows, and a lot of those people cannot convert their vehicles to electric. There is a lot of pride when they are showing these vehicles. They keep them. They could have been their parents' or their grandfather's vehicles. We have to respect that for many reasons. We have to understand that everyone should have the choice to decide what car they wish to drive.”