Randy Hoback
Prince Albert, Saskatchewan · Conservative · Canada
“This tax also makes our manufacturers, suppliers and international traders uncompetitive in the global marketplace. What do I mean by that? The reality is that these are costs Canadian manufacturers and Canadian producers face, but their competitors around the world do not.”
“They did not need to be the ones doing it all by themselves. Keep in mind that we produce 2% of global emissions, yet we thought we were taking on the world and we are trying to find a way to solve 100% of global emissions.”
“I never got the tractor stuck. That was always my dad. I will say that, or at least that is what I will admit to. Talking about stress leads to what we are talking about today. Canadians are stressed. They are financially stressed. They are feeling the impact of costs going up.”
“To farmer friends in my riding, across Saskatchewan and across Canada, slow down, take a breath, relax and be safe out there. To those who are working in agricultural districts or driving down those roads, remember that those farmers are working really hard and they are have time constraints. Give them space on the road.”
“Mr. Speaker, I know the sincerity of the hon. member's heart. His approach to it is one way of approaching it. Is it the right way? Is it the most efficient way? That is where we would differ. The need is there. There is no question about it.”
“All we are saying is to take the hand from behind their backs and put them on a level playing field. That is what we are saying here by removing the clean fuel standard.”
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“It is about time that our Prime Minister recognizes the challenge at hand and shows Canada that our farmers and our jobs are worth fighting for. Will the Prime Minister show the resolve needed to defend our farmers and work to end the stalemate with Beijing, or will he just continue to roll over to China and sacrifice western Canadian farmers?”
“Mr. Speaker, the riding of Prince Albert and the people of Saskatchewan have an esteemed agricultural history. Our farmers are proud exporters who help feed the world and improve food security for all. Unfortunately, punitive action taken by the Chinese Communist Party has unfairly targeted Canadian canola. In response to this unjust, unilateral behaviour, the Prime Minister sent a parliamentary secretary to Beijing. When the Conservative Party was in government, we sent the minister of agriculture because we recognized the importance of the canola industry to the Canadian economy. The Liberal government fails to properly understand the significant negative impacts this Chinese trade action would have on Saskatchewan, our farmers and the Canadian economy.”
“Mr. Speaker, at a time when Canada should be expanding energy production, the Liberals are using their anti-energy laws to stop pipeline construction. Companies that have wanted to build have not because of these laws. For 10 years now, the government has driven away investments and stranded our energy sector. It is time for anti-energy laws like Bill C-69 , the shipping ban and the job-killing industrial carbon tax to go. If the Liberal government really wants to see energy projects built, will it finally do the right thing for Canadians and repeal its anti-energy laws?”
“Mr. Speaker, it is an interesting question. I was just talking to a lady on Facebook who said it has the ability to bring these organizations together so we can go on Facebook and find them. There are solutions out there. It is about putting our heads together and finding a mechanism so they are all in one place to activate them. The member brings up a good idea, and I think it is something we should consider and pursue. Maybe it is something a committee could study to see what it looks like.”
“I would encourage the government to change that view, have a fleet in place, sit down and talk to the premiers about how this fleet will operate and be funded, and make sure Canadians are taken care of, because it is our communities and future at stake.”
“Mr. Speaker, that is a great question. What is the role of the military when it comes to forest fires and emergencies? Our military is spread very thin, and if it is required to go somewhere else in the world and we still have this scenario going on in Canada, heaven forbid, I wonder if it can handle all that at the same time. The member also makes a good point about the ability of Canadian industry to build water bombers. We have all that technology in Canada. We just have to commit to it and say that it is something we make a priority. The government over the last few years has watched Canada burn. It has done nothing proactive to create a scenario where there are resources put in place to be there for Canadians.”
“When we talk about mental health and items like that, some of the first nations in the northern part of the province have some really good individuals working in mental health. We just have to make sure we empower them so they are there to take care of individuals and help them progress through this tragedy.”
“Mr. Speaker, I made the same mistake twice tonight, and I have been here for 17 years. I apologize. It is going to happen, as you said. The member raised some really good points that tend to happen. We take care of individuals when they are away from home, making sure we do everything we can to make their life as comfortable as possible, but then they go home. In the situation in Saskatchewan, they could be going home to somewhere with no power and no telephone because those systems have been wiped out by the fire. We do not know what the highways are going to look like once the fires have gone through the highway system. In a lot of the places, the communities people are going back to have one way in and out, which is basically the highway, so there are a lot of things on the logistical side that need to be dealt with for sure.”
“If other communities have done things in the past that have been effective at helping evacuees deal with the stress of not being at home, we look forward to having that information and any of those ideas so that we can take care of these people as they go through this stress. I am proud of the people in my riding of Prince Albert. I am proud of what they are doing and how they are stepping up. I am proud to represent them, and I want to thank them for putting me here. It is an honour to represent them. I just wish my first speech in the House had been about something different, rather than talking about forest fires, but that is what we have here today.”
“I know that in our communities, a lot of farmers have that type of capacity and are using it. They are doing berms and firebreaks. They are being proactive, trying to make sure they are protecting each other. It is really a sad event that has happened. As I said, in some ways it has brought people together, but in other ways, the power of Mother Nature is really sobering. When I talked to the mayor of Prince Albert, one of the things we discussed was, as we receive evacuees and understand the stresses they are facing, what we can do to help. How can we help the kids who are not going to school? Can we do some sports events? The city is talking about opening up its leisure centre and maybe the Prince Albert Raiders will do ball hockey. We are looking at different ideas to keep people active and busy, and we are open to other ideas.”
“A lot of those trained professionals, such as first nations people, have been doing it year after year, so we have to rely on them. We cannot just take somebody and say, “Hey, go fight fires tomorrow.” That does not work. We have to rely on the people who know the territory, how to properly fight fires and how to evacuate when they need to evacuate or retreat when they need to retreat. We have that expertise in Saskatchewan; we just do not have enough of it. Of course, we have to keep in mind too that when running water bombers and helicopters, pilots time out. Even though the hardware is sitting at an airport, the fire could still be going on but we do not have the people and personnel to operate that hardware in a 24-hour-a-day cycle. It is the same with CATs and things like them.”
“That is something the federal government should talk with the provinces about: Is this something we should be imagining in light of what has happened over the last few years? Whether it is in British Columbia, as it was last year; Quebec, where it could be next year; or Saskatchewan and Manitoba, as it is this year, it seems like there is a need for surge capacity to take the expertise and move it to the fire location to deal with the fires. We cannot just take somebody off the street and say, “Go fight forest fires.” The fire we have in Saskatchewan is so violent, for lack of a better word, that we cannot take somebody who does not know what they are doing and put them in the bush to fight that fire. We need trained professionals.”
“That is the type of thing that is really frustrating, because there are so many people negatively impacted by fires, and then there is somebody doing something as stupid as that. This has had a major impact on communities. Even in the north, as we look forward, we have lost telephone lines and power grids. The highways are closed. These things are not built or rebuilt overnight, so it is going to require a lot of work in this region to get it back to normal once the fires are put out and people return home. One thing Premier Moe has talked about, and I will talk about quickly, is the need for surge capacity and a federal water bomber fleet. There needs to be something in place so that when we have fires throughout Canada, we have the ability to react quickly and move resources where they are required.”
“Along the Torch River, there is an area that is really dry, and there are lots of houses along the northern fringe. People are working together to protect those houses and farms, something that has been ongoing for the last week, week and a half. They are working late into the night and starting early in the morning, and nobody is grumbling or complaining. They are doing what they have to do to save each other's houses and their homes. That is the good part. Now, with this, there are always some bad parts too, like the fact that the fires happened. It sounds like a good portion of them were man-made. Today, an individual was arrested who was actually lighting fires along one of the highways. Who could be so stupid?”
“We hear stories of it going into northern states and other parts of Canada. (1935) If there is a good story about this, it is people coming together. I have to say that I am so proud of the constituents I have and am lucky to represent. Whether it is putting together a group of people to make sandwiches for the volunteer firefighters, RM of Buckland's firefighting crew lending their water truck to SPSA or TacoTime in Prince Albert making tacos for firefighters and evacuees, there are so many examples of people coming together to help each other out. Actually, in some ways, it is truly community building, similar to what we used to see in the early 1900s when the province was being settled. People are working hand in hand together in saving their communities and protecting each other's farms.”
“As we look at what is coming up for the weather and the wind changes that have been happening, it just creates more concern. Really, we are in the hands of God in a lot of ways. We are praying for rain. One of the issues we need to deal with, of course, is air quality. For seniors, young people, young women, pregnant women, people who work outdoors, people involved in strenuous activities and people with chronic health conditions such as cancer, diabetes, lung and heart conditions, including asthma, and mental illness, air quality is important. Of course, the smoke is creating a scenario where people cannot go outside because the air quality is so bad. Air quality warnings have gone out right across the north, and as I said, the smoke has gone as far as Saskatoon and Regina.”
“This is a list of evacuation areas: Lower Fishing Lake, Piprell Lake, East Trout Lake, Little Bear Lake, Narrow Hills Provincial Park, Whiteswan, Whelan Bay, Brabant Lake, Hall Lake, Nemeiben Lake, Sucker Lake, Wadin Bay, English Bay, Foran Mine and McIlveena Bay, Jan Lake, Pelican Narrows, Creighton, Denare Beach, Weyakwin, the resort subdivision of Ramsey Bay, Sturgeon Landing, the northern hamlet of Timber Bay, Molanosa and the resort village of Candle Lake, which is a voluntary evacuation area. The map is of concern. These fires are in an area where there is just dry tinder. When I was home on the weekend, I was walking on my grass and it actually crunched under my feet because it is so dry. We have not had any rainfall pretty well all spring.”
“Sucker River, Wadin Bay, English Bay and Nemeiben subdivisions were all issued evacuation orders on Monday. As of Tuesday, there are 20 active wildfires in the province, with seven considered contained. Air quality warnings are still in effect for much of the entire north. At least 20 communities have been evacuated so far in Saskatchewan and 8,000 people have been evacuated, with the premier saying today that he estimates it could be as high as 15,000 in the next three or four days. The shoe fire, currently the largest in the province, has prompted the closure of Highway 165 and evacuation alerts for several communities, including East Trout Lake, Whelan Bay, Narrow Hills and Little Bear Lake.”
“Candle Lake is a resort village with lots of people who live there year-round. It has a volunteer evacuation going on at this point in time. A 100-metre berm has been put in along the highway to give them a bigger area to stop the flames from coming toward the community. Basically, they are doing everything they can to protect the community from fires, and they have been getting lots of support from the provincial government and the SPSA. There are also extensive fires north and northeast of Prince Albert. Last night, we saw the evacuation of La Ronge. That was a scary event for a lot of people. They were basically told to pack up supplies for at least three days, if not more. They made the trek from La Ronge to Prince Albert, and then from Prince Albert, I understand, they are being displaced to different cities around Saskatchewan.”
“I have experienced forest fires in previous years, but this in the city of Saskatoon was something new, I think, to everybody there. I want to give members a sense of just how grave the situation is in Saskatchewan. Last week, I reached out to mayors and reeves to talk about what was happening in their communities. I want to talk a little about that today and give a situation update on Saskatchewan so the House is aware of what is going on there and some of the actions that are taking place. Then I want to highlight some of the amazing people who are working behind the scenes to help fight the fires and take care of evacuees as they are being displaced. They are trying to deal with their stressful situations as they are being moved because of the fires. Right now, the largest fire is just outside of Candle Lake.”
“Mr. Speaker, I want to thank members for being here tonight for this important debate about the situation going on in Canada, in my riding and in the riding north of mine in Saskatchewan. I will be sharing my time with the member for Selkirk—Interlake—Eastman . I know he has some things to talk about with regard to the impact it is having on the people of Manitoba. When I landed in Saskatoon on Friday at the airport, it was like I landed in another world. One would swear one was in eastern Canada in a fog, but it was not fog; it was smoke. Those flying the airplane probably could not see across the runway. They were definitely on full instrumentation when they landed, no question about that. Getting off the plane as they opened the door, I could smell the smoke coming into the cabin of the plane.”
“Mr. Speaker, in the riding of Prince Albert, we have extended our hospitality to the member for Desnethé—Missinippi—Churchill River if he needs an office to work out of in Prince Albert as some of his constituents are moving south, so he has a place to work out of. I just want to make sure that the Government of Canada has people in place to help and receive these people as they go through issues of, maybe, unemployment insurance, social services and whatever other items that may come across, that they would normally get in their riding and are now going to receive in areas where they are displaced to. What have you put in place to actually accomplish that, and what other things do you think should be put in place at a local level to make sure these individuals are properly taken care of?”
“Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the presentation from the minister. I live in the riding of Prince Albert. We are receiving some 7,000 to 8,000 evacuees, and that could go up to 15,000 throughout the province of Saskatchewan. Lots of people are asking questions about how we are going to take care of these people and what types of resources are going to be available. The Province of Saskatchewan has mentioned that the Red Cross are going to be there, and it is going to provide them with $15 million in funding to support the evacuees. I have two questions. What would you recommend that the communities that are receiving evacuees do? Will the federal government consider something similar, as we used to do for disasters in other parts of the world, whereby if people donate to the Red Cross, it would match those donations?”
“It is about protecting our communities, our forests and our future. I thank the firefighters and emergency personnel, who are putting themselves at great risk to protect our communities. Please, let us all pray for rain.”
“Mr. Speaker, before I begin, I would like to thank the residents of the riding of Prince Albert for re-electing me as their member of Parliament. As members of the House are aware, my home province of Saskatchewan is experiencing one of the worst starts to the wildfire season on record. More than half a million hectares have been burned, and as of Sunday afternoon, 20 communities remained under evacuation orders. Fifteen active wildfires are forcing residents from communities such as Timber Bay, Hall Lake and Pelican Narrows to flee their homes. Premier Scott Moe recently spoke about the value of developing a national investment strategy, one where critical resources, such as air tankers, can be owned by the country and shared across jurisdictions to meet the surge capacity when and where needed.”
“Mr. Speaker, I really appreciated the member's comments and suggestions on the throne speech and working together. I have a very simple question. A lot of people in Canada are trying to figure out who this Liberal Party is. With this throne speech, it really is confusing, because there are things that were talked about during the campaign that are so different from what was talked about in the previous Liberal government. Of course, a lot things that were talked about in the campaign were actually things that we brought forward, so the question I have for the member is this: Which Conservative policy does she think is the best policy the Liberals took away from the Conservative Party?”