Steven MacKinnon
Gatineau, Quebec · Liberal · Canada
“[ Translation ] We have come here to Ottawa with different solutions to the challenges we currently face, but let us be very clear: We are united in this chamber by our love for the Parliament of Canada and for Canada itself.”
“Mr. Speaker, as we prepare to adjourn for the summer, I would like to express my gratitude to a few people. [ English ] I want to extend my personal thanks to everyone here on Parliament Hill.”
“Mr. Speaker, we are at the end of a session, and I wish the Leader of the Opposition, his colleagues and obviously his family a restful summer, as I wish for all my colleagues on this side of the House. I want to point out that we are finishing one of the most productive legislative sessions in recent history.”
“[ English ] I want to thank my colleagues, the 174 proud and committed Canadians who serve their people proudly every day. [ Translation ] I do not want to overlook the contribution made by the other parties.”
“Mr. Speaker, let us talk about generations and generational investments. We have invested hundreds of millions of dollars in Quebec's and Canada's French-speaking culture. That is something that the Bloc Québécois did not even ask for in its budget requests.”
“Mr. Speaker, we have been having an interesting conversation this week in this very forum. The Conservatives pretend to stand up for and care for vulnerable people in this country, yet every time we propose a program, a tax reduction or a hand-up to people, they vote against it.”
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“Mr. Speaker, my hon. friend would like the distractions to stop. I suggest that he tell his leader to not go on podcasts anymore, to not pay for shawarma with crypto and to not call into doubt the independence of our institutions such as the CBC, the Bank of Canada and the proud men and women of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.”
“Mr. Speaker, I am shocked, and I think that most Quebeckers are too. This government is investing in essential services for people from linguistic minorities across the country. Take, for example, the Dr. Georges-L.-Dumont University Hospital Centre in Moncton and the health care centres in the Prairies. Of course, we are also investing in health care in Quebec. Is the member suggesting that English-speaking Quebeckers should be denied critical care in the language of their choice? That is what he is suggesting. Shame on him. We will keep—”
“Mr. Speaker, our friend across the way comes from a national assembly in Quebec City where decisions need to be made. He is well aware of that. We made the choice to support families, support child care services, support day care centres, support dental care, support pharmacare, support our seniors, and support our youth. I think that is the choice he would have made at the National Assembly of Quebec. Why is he now standing up and criticizing us? He is going to vote against it. Let him take responsibility for that.”
“Mr. Speaker, what strikes me when members opposite rise and speak about inflationary spending is that they never identify the inflationary spending in question. Are they talking about the Breakfast Club? Are they talking about the increased benefits for seniors? Are they talking about child care or day care? What is inflationary spending?”
“Mr. Speaker, the member opposite will have to wait for the budget to see the numbers and the investments that it will generate. During the election campaign, we said that we would spend less in order to invest more, and that remains our commitment. We are going to build Canada. We are going to focus on major projects and create jobs in every region of this country. The member opposite is welcome to carefully review the document that we will be presenting on November 4.”
“Mr. Speaker, as the member for Gatineau, I can assure my colleague that Quebeckers already count on the government's support for housing. We have very robust agreements with all of Quebec. We introduced the first home savings account, or FHSA, which allows young people to save for a down payment on their first home. We acted on all of these fronts without being prompted by the Bloc Québécois. With 42 members from Quebec, we are well aware of what Quebeckers want in their budget.”
“Mr. Speaker, forgive those of us on this side of the House who are somewhat perplexed. First, the leader of the Bloc Québécois said that it was unthinkable to support the budget. Then there was a series of non-negotiable demands. We can therefore assume that the Bloc is prepared to support the budget. I think the Bloc Québécois should review the budget and then make its decision.”
“Mr. Speaker, the Leader of the Opposition has a vivid imagination. I would like to point out, for the record, that the Leader of the Opposition had two opportunities to apologize to the RCMP, our judges and our judicial system, and he refused to do so. As for the alleged inflationary spending, the Leader of the Opposition has yet to suggest a single way to reduce spending or identify what spending or support for Canadians he considers to be inflationary.”
“Mr. Speaker, we will have a lot of opportunity to talk about the imaginary taxes the Leader of the Opposition comes up with. Last week, the Leader of the Opposition put into question the independence of our judiciary, of our prosecutors and of the police, the very police who put their lives on the line to protect him. The Leader of the Opposition has the next 30 seconds to make amends, to apologize and to tell the people of this chamber, of the House, that he is sorry for what he said. We do not do that in Canada.”
“Mr. Speaker, we will be speaking about these issues at length, but last week, the Leader of the Opposition put into question the independence of our judiciary and the integrity of the very police officers who put their lives on the line to protect him. Now he has an opportunity to set things right before the House. The Leader of the Opposition has the next 30 seconds to make amends. Will he do so?”
“Mr. Speaker, I think the member should take it that the request is under consideration with a little dose of skepticism. It cannot be much of an emergency if we did not have an opposition motion on that very matter today.”
“[ Translation ] When we return on Monday, October 20, we will begin debate at second reading stage of Bill C-12 , an act respecting certain measures relating to the security of Canada's borders and the integrity of the Canadian immigration system and respecting other related security measures, introduced yesterday by the Minister of Public Safety . We will continue that debate on Tuesday. On Wednesday, we will resume consideration of Bill C-10 , an act respecting the commissioner for modern treaty implementation. I will end where I began, by wishing everyone a happy Thanksgiving.”
“Mr. Speaker, the only thing I will agree with my esteemed colleague on is wishing all Canadians a happy Thanksgiving. [ English ] We have much to be thankful about in this country, and that includes a very healthy and vibrant democracy and exchanges like this one. We have a lot of blessings in this country, and I wish every Canadian a happy Thanksgiving. The member referred to an emergency take-note debate, but Mr. Speaker, I would never presume to impede your judgment in these matters. This afternoon, however, we will continue with debate on the opposition day motion brought forward by the Conservative party that, let us agree, always includes a bit of sketchy detail, despite what the hon. member tried to convince us of. Tomorrow we will resume consideration and second reading of Bill C-11 , the military justice system modernization act.”
“Mr. Speaker, of course Canada's economy is in fact growing. That is a statistical and objective fact. I do not empathize particularly with the hon. member, who is reading the points that were sent in from a backroom, but I do very much empathize with the people of Cambridge and the anxiety that is felt throughout the auto sector. It is obvious that the President of the United States has put on the table tariffs that completely alter that sector and does not necessarily always respect the very good and very hard work that the sector does. We will defend those people.”
“Mr. Speaker, Canada has produced automobiles as part of an integrated North American industry for well over a century, and it will continue to produce automobiles for a century and more into the future. The member knows well that we are standing up every day for union jobs in automaker plants right across this country and in southern Ontario. We are standing up for the auto-parts manufactures. We are standing up for the entire supply chain. We have the support of the automakers on that position, and we will always stand with the auto industry in this country.”
“Mr. Speaker, once again, taking the opposition research bureau's stuff and just repeating it does not make it true. What we do know, and Statistics Canada would confirm this, is that Canada's economy is, in fact, growing. What does growth mean? It means we are adding value to our economy and adding opportunities for workers. Of course we are concerned about job losses, and of course we will continue to defend Canadian workers right across this land, but one thing is for sure, and that is that we will take our statistics from this side of the House.”
“Mr. Speaker, we have this disturbing trend with the Leader of the Opposition making something up, and then members up and down the line add on new, and very intriguing, figures and facts. We do not really understand it. We cannot follow the logic. Here is what I can say the government is doing: It is in negotiations with the United States. As we speak, the Minister responsible for Canada-U.S. Trade is there. We are going to negotiate a great deal for Canada, and we are going to continue to build Canada strong.”
“Mr. Speaker, it is quite unusual for a Conservative MP to quote Radio-Canada. The day before yesterday, he wanted to defund Radio-Canada, but I digress. Pension funds are investing in Canada, and the world is investing in Canada. We are among the best in the G7 for foreign direct investment. I have more good news. We will have projects to invest in, projects across the country. There will be ports and railways built with Canadian steel and Canadian aluminum, made by Canadian tradespeople.”
“Mr. Speaker, here is another lesson for the Conservatives across the way. In Canada, we have pension funds. For example, the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec invests globally, makes profits and brings them back to Canada. Our firefighters, our nurses and our tradespeople benefit from this money. Canadian investment abroad is a good thing for Canada. It is key to building Canada strong. That is what we are doing with the workers, with our steel and with—”
“Mr. Speaker, I look forward to working with my hon. colleague on this issue. We have had many interesting conversations and will have, I am sure, many more. We are protecting the environment, of course. We are removing wrecked and abandoned vessels. For infrastructure like shipbreaking, for example, we work closely with our provincial counterparts. We are going to be taking action to protect our waters and our coasts. Again, I look forward to working with my hon. friend on this issue.”
“Mr. Speaker after this entire question period, Canadians can be forgiven for thinking that it takes the Conservatives a little long to get out of their seat when it comes to defending this country. It looks a little too sneakily much like the Conservatives are happy to see a tough negotiation in the White House. Canadians will not accept anything but standing four-square behind our Prime Minister and this government as we take Canada's hopes and Canada's dreams to Washington and get the best deal possible. That is what we will be doing, and the Conservatives should not look like they are settling for anything less.”
“Mr. Speaker, once again, it falls on the lowly old MP for Gatineau, Quebec, to point out some Alberta truths to the Alberta members over there. We built a pipeline to tidewater. We are increasing Canada's GDP. We are getting the world price to benefit workers in the resource industry in Alberta. If the member does not believe it, I will get him Danielle Smith's phone number, and he can ask her.”
“Mr. Speaker, one would think this parade of members of Parliament from Alberta would know the basic facts. We have increased petroleum production over 30%, while getting our emissions down. We built a pipeline to the west coast, increasing our oil exports, which is something the member and Stephen Harper could never do. We are getting Canada's GDP up. We are creating opportunities in Canada's resource sector. MPs from Alberta should know the difference.”
“Mr. Speaker, I will say it once again. We voted for a law that prevents the government from negotiating on supply management. Supply management is not on the table, and spreading fear will not change that. Supply management is not on the table.”
“Mr. Speaker, we understand the anxiety these workers are experiencing, and that is why we have announced major action to defend our workers in the key sectors the member mentioned. I should add that the Bloc Québécois seems to take pleasure in these things, whereas we are dealing with a trade regime the United States is forcing on the entire world. We have already achieved the best possible trade regime in the world. We hope to improve it, once again in the interest of our strategic sectors and our workers.”
“Mr. Speaker, what Canadians saw today is a Prime Minister who stands up for our industries, for our forestry industry, our steel and aluminum industry, and yes, our manufacturing industry, including heavy trucks. Our Prime Minister is working to reach very complicated trade agreements and move forward with them. We already have the best trade regime in the entire world. The Prime Minister is trying to move things forward. I hope that this member and all of Parliament wish him to succeed.”
“Mr. Speaker, we have said all along that Canada will look after its own people with our own projects, our own labour and our own material. We will be opening mines. We will be opening ports. We will be opening railways. We will be opening our Arctic. We are going to continue to build this country and get a fair, good trade deal for Canada. It will be thanks to the Prime Minister .”
“Mr. Speaker, do members know how Canadians feel when they see the Prime Minister and ministers in the Oval Office defending Canada? They feel pride. They feel pride that the Prime Minister is standing up for our country, standing up for our workers, standing up for our steel industry. These crazy hare-brained schemes that the Leader of the Opposition comes up with just to get in the news cycle are, quite frankly, a little embarrassing.”
“Mr. Speaker, we do not need Donald Trump's permission to open mines, roads and infrastructure in Canada. That is exactly what we are going to be doing, building Canada with Canadian labour, Canadian steel, Canadian aluminum and Canadian lumber. If the member is referring to the Maple 8, the pension funds that Canadians are so proud of and invest in, which invest all over the world and take their profits back to Canada to pay Canadian pensions, I say to bring that on too.”
“Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister and his colleagues are at the White House today advancing Canada's interests: advancing Canada's trade interests and advancing our interests in foreign policy generally. I know the hopes of all Canadians accompany our Prime Minister to those meetings, where he very clearly defends the rights of Canadian workers and the Canadian economy. I sure hope the Leader of the Opposition is among those Canadians.”
“Mr. Speaker, that is absurd. The Prime Minister was there to promote Canadian interests, including commercial interests. Canadians are also proud to be major investors who reap profits abroad in order to bring them back to Canada and pay for Canadian pensions. I do not know what the Leader of the Opposition is talking about, but it seems that he does not want the Prime Minister to be successful today, which is shameful.”
“Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister and many of his colleagues are at the White House today to advance the interests of Canadians. I know that the entire country wants our Prime Minister to keep moving forward on this file, to protect jobs, to build Canada strong and to create opportunities. I hope the Leader of the Opposition supports him on that.”
“Mr. Speaker, I am going to withhold more severe judgment. The member may well know there is a war going on between Russia and Ukraine. Canada is an important supplier of potash and Canada will continue to be one of the world's most important suppliers of potash. The member should well know that the only realistic fertilizer option for Canada is Russian or Belarusian fertilizer.”
“Mr. Speaker, the member knows full well that we have important, crime-fighting legislation before Parliament. He should get behind Bill C-2 , the strong borders act. Just as my colleague indicated, we will be inviting him to get behind bail reform and measures to prevent intimate partner violence. The problem with Conservative legislation is that it always ends at the Supreme Court. It gets struck down and laughed out of court because it is against the Constitution, against Canadian values and against the things we hold dear in terms of managing the justice system.”
“Mr. Speaker, we have always said that we intend to work relentlessly to negotiate and sign agreements with the United States. We believe that the steps it has taken toward the forestry sector, and the tariffs in general, are completely unjustified. The Prime Minister will, of course, be visiting the White House next week to continue this process. Canadians can rely on our Prime Minister, our diplomatic team and the Minister responsible for Canada-U.S. Trade to negotiate and sign agreements that will secure our economic future.”
“Mr. Speaker, obviously, the forestry industry has not been doing well when it comes to foreign trade for quite some time now. We believe that the tariffs and the actions taken by our neighbours to the south are completely unjustified, wrong and bad for consumers in the United States. We will always stand up for our forestry sector. In my own region and in that of my colleague from Pontiac—Kitigan Zibi , in Maniwaki, we have workers who are affected. We will always stand up for our workers and the forestry industry.”
“Mr. Speaker, Canadians chose the Prime Minister and government that they believed would be the best at standing up for Canada. We have announced agreements with Europe, Asia and Mexico. Yes, the Prime Minister will be going to Washington next week to continue the admittedly arduous process of negotiating with the United States. I know that Canadians have great faith that our Prime Minister will carry out this mission.”
“Mr. Speaker, I would simply point out to the member that Canada's economy continues to grow, wages continue to grow, interest rates are down, and the Prime Minister is creating opportunities for Canadians in export markets and for Canadians here at home. We are going to be building major projects. We are going to be building them with Canadian steel, Canadian aluminum, Canadian lumber and with Canadian skilled trades men and women. The Prime Minister is on the job on the economy. The Conservatives need to wake up to that.”
“Mr. Speaker, the idea that the Prime Minister is flying around the world without bringing back, to Canada, productive results is a ludicrous one. We have signed landmark agreements in Europe. We have signed landmark agreements in Asia. We have gone to Mexico and signed landmark agreements with the administration there. The Prime Minister is active. He is out there building export markets. He is out there building opportunities for Canadians. He is building Canada strong.”
“On Tuesday, we will commence second reading debate of Bill C-10 , the commissioner for modern treaty implementation act. Thursday, October 9, shall be an allotted day.”
“Legislation is going to be coming fast and furious, and the Conservatives will have a decision to make whether they want to support constitutional bail reform concocted with provinces and territories, victims associations and all manner of other stakeholders, or will they keep grandstanding in the way that they do? In the meantime, we have a very interesting week coming up. (1515) [ Translation ] Today, we are concluding debate on the Conservative Party's opposition day motion. Tomorrow, we will resume second reading debate of Bill C-8, An Act respecting cyber security, amending the Telecommunications Act and making consequential amendments to other Acts . [ English ] Next Monday, we will consider second reading of Bill C-11 , the military justice system modernization act. We will continue with this debate on Wednesday.”
“Mr. Speaker, it is funny that those questions did not make the top 40 of the ones they wanted to ask today. Of course, the Prime Minister and ministers are in regular contact with our friends and neighbours in the United States. We will be advocating for Canadian workers and Canadian jobs. In terms of criminal justice legislation, the member well knows that, right now, he could stand up and ask for unanimous consent on a very tough border bill that would help the government get tough on crime. This week, we had the chance to vote on Bill C-9 and move it through the legislative process. The member need not fret.”
“Mr. Speaker, Tobique—Mactaquac is home to McCain Foods, one of the great Canadian food companies. Whether people are from Johnville, Bristol, Hartland or Woodstock, they have a lot of sense and they know this: There is no tax on food at the grocery store. The member knows it, and Conservatives know it. People have big common sense in the Saint John River Valley. We will keep talking to them and doing stuff for them.”
“Mr. Speaker, obviously, criminals belong in prison and we need to have a justice system that works, that has democratic principles and that respects everyone's rights, including the victims'. During this parliamentary session, the Conservatives will have the chance to vote for victims' rights. They will have the chance to vote for common-sense crime laws. Will they do that?”
“Mr. Speaker, obviously, there have been tragedies in Quebec and elsewhere in the country, and we must take action to respond to them. The Conservatives had 10 years to do just that. Things always ended up falling to pieces before the Supreme Court of Canada. The court struck down the Conservatives' legislation because it went against the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The Conservatives will have the opportunity to take action during this parliamentary session. We will see whether they want action or whether they just want to pretend that they have all the answers here in the House, when we know that they want to destroy the charter.”
“Mr. Speaker, if they want to talk about criminal experiments, let us talk about the 10-year, tattered legacy of the Harper government, which finished every single time at the Supreme Court of Canada having bills struck down. That is not helping victims. In this session of Parliament, we are going to see the true agenda of the Conservative Party. The Conservatives can vote for Bill C-2 ; they can vote for bail reform, and they can vote to restrict intimate partner violence. We will see where the Conservatives stand on criminal justice in this session of Parliament.”
“Mr. Speaker, if we wish to discuss criminal experiments, let us talk about the 10-year, tattered legacy of the Harper government that saw every single piece of its criminal and justice— Some hon. members: Oh, oh!”
“Mr. Speaker, firearms tragedies are obviously a tragedy in this country. We had another sad example of that today. What Canadians have clearly expressed to the government, and indeed all parliamentarians, is that Canada needs to distinguish itself in getting rid of assault-style weapons in our society. This party has always supported measures that would accomplish that objective. That party has always stood up against measures that would accomplish that objective. Its members need to get serious about guns.”
“Mr. Speaker, today is National Seniors Day and we want to wish our trail-blazing seniors a wonderful day. Let me assure the member that, unlike him, we are looking after our seniors. He may be too young to remember, but the Conservatives voted against increasing the guaranteed income supplement. They voted against increasing old age security for people aged 75 and over, and they wanted to make seniors wait until age 67 to qualify for retirement. It is disgraceful. It takes a National Seniors Day to remind them of that.”
“Mr. Speaker, today is, of course, National Seniors Day, and I am proud to wish all seniors a happy day on their day. I am not quite a senior yet, but I am old enough to remember when the Conservatives voted against increasing the OAS. They voted against increasing the GIS. They voted against all other supports for seniors during the pandemic. They called it inflationary spending. Did it take National Seniors Day for Conservatives to see the light?”