hazylavender/hi huggingface dataset:
Labour
Date: 2023_04_24
Chamber: HOUSE OF COMMONS
Hon. Karina Gould: for our government, it is important to make sure that we respect the right of workers to strike and we respect the collective bargaining process. We are doing just that because we believe that a good deal can be reached at the negotiating table, while we are also making sure that we are respecting Canadians and the price they are going to pay to ensure that we get a fair deal for Canadians as well as for workers. I can assure the member opposite, and all members across the House, that for those who file their taxes online, their tax returns will not be impacted at all.
Labour
Date: 2023_04_24
Chamber: HOUSE OF COMMONS
Mrs. Stephanie Kusie: the minister is responsible for the passport backlogs in the first place. The Prime Minister had two years to negotiate an agreement, and he failed. In addition, he raised the cost of the public service bureaucracy by 50%. Canadians are receiving poor services, and outside these doors, we have the largest strike in Canada in the history of the public service. Will the Prime Minister commit to providing the most basic services for Canadians and ending this strike?
Labour
Date: 2023_04_24
Chamber: HOUSE OF COMMONS
Hon. Karina Gould: unlike the Conservatives, we actually respect workers' rights. We are taking an approach that makes sure that we respect the right to collective bargaining and the right to strike. We believe, and we are committed to making sure, that the best deal will be reached at the negotiating table. Those negotiations are ongoing. We are going to make sure we get a good deal for both public servants and Canadians. We know how important it is to deliver core government services. We are going to get that deal.
Labour
Date: 2023_04_24
Chamber: HOUSE OF COMMONS
Mr. Adam Chambers: this is the largest public sector union strike in 40 years. Revenue Canada workers are off the job, and vital services have been halted. The tax-filing deadline is this week, and Canadians cannot even get their phone calls answered. What will the government do to ensure continuity of service so that Canadians can get their most basic questions answered?
Labour
Date: 2023_04_24
Chamber: HOUSE OF COMMONS
Hon. Randy Boissonnault: my hon. colleague stated very clearly in this House that if Canadians file their taxes online before the deadline, there will be no impact from the PSAC strike that is going on right now. Let us be really clear: We believe in a negotiated settlement. We believe in working at the table. Let us look at the contrast between nine years of economic stagnation on the other side, when the only playbook from the Conservative austerity caucus was chop, chop, chop. This included the status of women offices and veterans offices, as well as raiding EI. Canadians know what government has their back, and that is our Liberal government.
Labour
Date: 2023_04_24
Chamber: HOUSE OF COMMONS
Hon. Diane Lebouthillier: the Conservatives are two-faced. They say they care about Canadians but they voted against the Canada child benefit. They voted against the Canada workers benefit. They voted against the dental care programs. They voted against the housing programs. I want to reassure my colleagues by stating that this is the best tax season we have had since 2015, because 95% of Canadians are submitting their tax returns electronically and there are no delays in payments.
Labour
Date: 2023_04_24
Chamber: HOUSE OF COMMONS
Mr. Rene Villemure: three years after the PM supposedly cut ties with the Trudeau Foundation, we learn that said foundation is holding a meeting at the Prime Minister's Office, directly in the Langevin Block, with five deputy ministers. How many charitable organizations hold meetings at the Langevin Block with deputy ministers? None. Let us recap. The Prime Minister's Office calls the foundation about the donation from China. The Prime Minister's Office invites the foundation to the Langevin Block. How are we to believe that the Prime Minister cut ties with the foundation 10 years ago when there are still ties between his office and the foundation?
Labour
Date: 2023_04_24
Chamber: HOUSE OF COMMONS
Hon. Mark Holland: that is a good conspiracy theory. It is interesting, but not factual. It has nothing to do with reality. I am not sure how many times we have to say this, but it is absolutely clear that there have not been any ties between the foundation and the Prime Minister for more than 10 years. I understand that the Bloc Quebecois really wants there to be a connection for partisan reasons, but no such connection exists.
Labour
Date: 2023_04_24
Chamber: HOUSE OF COMMONS
Mr. Rene Villemure: the Liberals think that the pursuit of truth is a conspiracy. Obviously, this foundation, which was established in honour of the Prime Minister 's father, is very influential. Given the meetings at the Prime Minister's office, the fundraising follow-up calls from the Prime Minister's employees and the ties with the Prime Minister's family and close friends, we get the distinct impression that China bet on the right horse when trying to get into the government's good graces. If one wants to get closer to the Prime Minister, one has to make a donation to his father's foundation. We will no longer believe anything the Liberals say about this file. There is too much secrecy and never any truth. What are they waiting for? When will they set up an independent public commission of inquiry?
Labour
Date: 2023_04_24
Chamber: HOUSE OF COMMONS
Hon. Mark Holland: David Johnston, the former governor general who was appointed by Stephen Harper, is responsible for looking into the matter at this time. I hope that the member opposite is not calling into question Mr. Johnston's character and who he is as a person. He is responsible for the matter. It is of the utmost importance, not just for the House of Commons but also for Canadians across the country, that this investigation be independent.
Labour
Date: 2023_04_24
Chamber: HOUSE OF COMMONS
Ms. Marie-Helene Gaudreau: this morning the Auditor General announced that she would not be investigating the Chinese regime's donation to the Trudeau Foundation. This means that the only ongoing, supposedly neutral, investigation into Chinese interference is the one the Prime Minister personally asked David Johnston to conduct. He is a friend and a former member of the Trudeau Foundation who will report directly to the Prime Minister. Who will shed light on Chinese interference, if not the commissioner of an independent public inquiry?
Labour
Date: 2023_04_24
Chamber: HOUSE OF COMMONS
Hon. Mark Holland: Mr. Johnston is responsible for that. I will state clearly that I fully understand that the Bloc Quebecois wants to make a connection, but there is no connection to be made. I find their efforts odd, given that the Bloc Quebecois knows full well that Parliament's institutions are the best in the world. They are very accountable, and they oversee our system and the integrity of our system. The Bloc Quebecois claims there is a problem because the Auditor General is saying there is no need for an investigation.
Labour
Date: 2023_04_24
Chamber: HOUSE OF COMMONS
Ms. Michelle Ferreri: after endless passport delays over the past year and $20 billion more spent on bureaucracy, along with the biggest public sector strike in more than a generation, the minister in charge of passports said, "My best advice to Canadians is not to make that application right now because it just simply won't be processed". How low can the bar be set for customer service? Canadians deserve better. They deserve competence. When will the Liberals fix what they broke? Most importantly, how much is it going to cost Canadian taxpayers?
Labour
Date: 2023_04_24
Chamber: HOUSE OF COMMONS
Hon. Karina Gould: I understand that the Conservatives have an issue with the truth, but I am just going to tell it. The truth of the matter is that while there is a strike going on, I recommend that Canadians do not submit an application for a passport unless it is urgent. With the strike conditions, under law, those passports cannot be processed. Unlike the Conservatives, I actually believe in telling the truth to Canadians.
Labour
Date: 2023_04_24
Chamber: HOUSE OF COMMONS
Ms. Michelle Ferreri: the truth is that the Liberals had two years to fix this before it happened. The chaos out on the streets, the misservice and the lack of customer service are on their backs, with 50% more bureaucracy and the worst customer service this country has ever experienced. I ask one more time of the people across the aisle: When will they fix what they broke and how much is it going to cost Canadian taxpayers?
Labour
Date: 2023_04_24
Chamber: HOUSE OF COMMONS
Hon. Karina Gould: I know the Conservatives have a short memory, but the public service was increased by 50% because we were delivering the Canadian emergency response benefit to eight and a half million Canadians. It is a fact that, at the greatest health and economic challenge of our time, this government was there for Canadians. My big concern is not only that the Conservatives have forgotten this but also that they would not do the same thing to help Canadians in their time of need.
Labour
Date: 2023_04_24
Chamber: HOUSE OF COMMONS
Hon. Michael Chong: during the pandemic, Canadians had to wait hours in line to apply for passports. With the delays, it then took four or five months for Canadians to obtain those passports, and by last August, the backlog had reached 340,000 Canadians. The pandemic ended, and Canadians thought things would finally get back to normal. However, they failed to take into account the competence of the government's ministers. Despite the largest expansion of the public service in recent decades and tens of billions of dollars spent on consultants, the government has managed to oversee the largest strike in the public service in decades. What is the minister 's response? She says not to apply for a passport. What travel documents are Canadians supposed to use?
Labour
Date: 2023_04_24
Chamber: HOUSE OF COMMONS
Hon. Karina Gould: during a general strike, by law, passport services are not considered to be essential. If there are urgent or humanitarian cases, they will be processed. That information is available on the website. However, I have grave concerns with the short-term memory loss of the Conservatives. They have forgotten that those investments that were made were there to help eight and a half million Canadians get through the biggest health and economic challenge of our time. Canadians understand that when they are in need, the government has their backs. We just do not know where the--
Labour
Date: 2023_04_24
Chamber: HOUSE OF COMMONS
Mr. Brian Masse: Canadians are paying some of the highest prices in the world for telecom services, and the Rogers-Shaw merger approved by the government will only make things worse. Now it has been reported that the former industry minister is joining Rogers as executive in charge of public policy. This was a minister who allowed Rogers to raise cellphone prices through the roof. Former Liberal cabinet ministers landing cushy jobs in big corporations is nothing new, but this is unreal. We just cannot make this stuff up. Why do Liberals seem more interested in jumping on the gravy train than bringing down costs for everyday Canadians?
Labour
Date: 2023_04_24
Chamber: HOUSE OF COMMONS
Hon. Francois-Philippe Champagne: the one important issue for Canadians is to bring costs down. That is what we did in the last iteration that he is talking about. The way to bring costs down in Canada is to have more competition. The way to have more competition is to have a fourth national player. That is what we delivered for Canadians. We are always going to stand up for Canadians to make sure that prices go down in this country.
Labour
Date: 2023_04_24
Chamber: HOUSE OF COMMONS
Mr. Matthew Green: I can assure everyone that the way to bring costs down is not by appointing Liberal insiders to executive positions at Rogers. The fact that the minister does not even know what the problem is just shows how out of touch Liberals are with Canadians. They green-lit the Rogers-Shaw merger even though the Competition Bureau said that it was a bad deal for consumers. Now the former industry minister gets an executive position at Rogers. With this Liberal-Rogers merger almost complete, Canadians have a right to know which Liberal insider had influence and was involved in the approval process and when the last time was that the Prime Minister or the industry minister--
Labour
Date: 2023_04_24
Chamber: HOUSE OF COMMONS
Hon. Francois-Philippe Champagne: let me provide a bit of background for the member. Actually, we denied the transfer of licence from Shaw to Rogers. This government stood up to big telco. We put 21 conditions in place. This has never been done in Canada's history. Does anyone know why? It is because Canadians have asked us to bring prices down. That is what we did. The way to get access to competition is to have a fourth national player. Canadians know which side we stand on: We stand on their side.
Labour
Date: 2023_04_24
Chamber: HOUSE OF COMMONS
Mr. Majid Jowhari: economies around the world are striving to achieve a net-zero transition and adapt to green technologies for the future. Manufacturing of electric vehicles and batteries will play a key role in reaching these objectives. Can the Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry update this House on the historic announcement that Volkswagen is setting up shop in St. Thomas, Ontario, and what this means for jobs and investments for generations to come?
Labour
Date: 2023_04_24
Chamber: HOUSE OF COMMONS
Mr. Garnett Genuis: the Prime Minister has been saying for weeks that he built a wall between himself and the Trudeau family's taxpayer-funded foundation. New revelations now show that the Prime Minister did not actually build the wall and that these claims are completely false. The Trudeau Foundation hosted a meeting inside the Prime Minister's own office with five deputy ministers. Was there a wall down the middle of the room or something? Canadians deserve a full investigation into political involvement and foreign interference into the Prime Minister's taxpayer-funded family foundation. Will the government allow that full investigation to take place?
Labour
Date: 2023_04_24
Chamber: HOUSE OF COMMONS
Hon. Mark Holland: the meeting in question was between public servants and the foundation. It did not involve the Prime Minister . It was in a building, yes, and there are many meetings that take place all over Parliament Hill. This is what is going on: Again and again, the Conservatives are looking for any way they can to connect this when no such connection exists. I made it clear that no such connection exists. I will repeat that, day in and day out, and they will continue to try it with us.
Labour
Date: 2023_04_24
Chamber: HOUSE OF COMMONS
Mr. Garnett Genuis: let us listen to the words the government House leader used. He said that, yes, it was in a building. Do they know what building it was? It was in the Prime Minister 's own office. That is not just any building. It is of some significance. If there were a meeting that took place in my office, and then I claimed I had no idea that people were using my office, how would they have gotten in? Did I leave the key somewhere? Could the government House leader provide us with a more serious explanation? If the Prime Minister did not know about this meeting, then how did the people get into his office?
Labour
Date: 2023_04_24
Chamber: HOUSE OF COMMONS
Hon. Mark Holland: with respect to the underlying assumption that comes again and again, let us be very clear about what the Conservatives are trying to do. They are trying to paint a picture of the government, and it is offensive to suggest that any Canadian government would allow a foreign government to interfere or help make decisions. It is absolutely ridiculous. It attacks one of the fundamental tenets of our democracy, which each of us has here, and that is to protect our institutions.
Labour
Date: 2023_04_24
Chamber: HOUSE OF COMMONS
Mr. Luc Berthold: the Prime Minister said, and I quote, "I made that decision 10 years ago to not engage with the [Trudeau] foundation and that is what we have all been consistent with." It appears that the Prime Minister has once again misled the House. We know that his cabinet was in contact with the Trudeau Foundation in 2016. We learned this morning that the Trudeau Foundation secured a meeting with the most influential deputy ministers of the new Liberal government just six months after the election. If what the Prime Minister said is true, then why was that meeting held in his office?
Labour
Date: 2023_04_24
Chamber: HOUSE OF COMMONS
Hon. Pablo Rodriguez: here is what Chantal Hebert said this morning, and I am paraphrasing: I have been to the Langevin Block three times. All three times, it was for round tables organized by the Clerk of the Privy Council with deputy ministers. I have never met the current Prime Minister. It is entirely possible that the Prime Minister did not even know that the meeting with deputy ministers had taken place. It had nothing to do with him. It was not his political staff. Are the Conservatives saying that Chantal Hebert is also part of the conspiracy?
Labour
Date: 2023_04_24
Chamber: HOUSE OF COMMONS
Mr. Luc Berthold: no, that is not what I am saying. What I am saying is, "Pass Go and collect $200,000". That seems to be how the Trudeau Foundation saw the 2015 election: donations from the regime in Beijing and access to the federal government's top mandarin. It was a jackpot for Liberal cronies. As La Presse reported, the Prime Minister has been droning on for the past three weeks about how there is a wall between him and the Trudeau Foundation. Little did we know that he was referring to an actual wall in his own office. I have a number of questions for the Prime Minister. Who requested the meeting? Who asked the deputy ministers to attend? Why was the meeting held in the Prime Minister's building? Last but not least, who gave the Trudeau Foundation such unprecedented access to the Prime Minister's staff?
Labour
Date: 2023_04_24
Chamber: HOUSE OF COMMONS
Hon. Mark Holland: let us talk about the walls that protect our institutions. Let us talk about the CBC and Radio-Canada. Let us talk about the fact that the Leader of the Opposition wants to work with large tech giants to destroy the walls that protect those foundations. Let us talk about the Bank of Canada, which he wishes to reach into to change its direction. This is the Bank of Canada, something that has been completely independent while protecting monetary and fiscal policy. I wonder if, like when he was giving advice about cryptocurrency, he would apply that advice to the Bank of Canada and make the Bank of Canada listen to his political direction. It would have the same disastrous effect on all Canadians as it did on those who listened to his advice on cryptocurrency.
Labour
Date: 2023_04_24
Chamber: HOUSE OF COMMONS
Mrs. Claude DeBellefeuille: where is the Prime Minister in the labour dispute between his government and the public service? After a weekend without any progress and given that the situation is likely to escalate, the Prime Minister must personally intervene. That is a formal request from the union and it is also in the interest of Quebeckers, who have everything to lose if the dispute drags on. Every hour that passes moves us further away from a desirable negotiated solution and leads us closer to an escalation of tensions. Will the Prime Minister finally sit at the bargaining table?
Labour
Date: 2023_04_24
Chamber: HOUSE OF COMMONS
Mrs. Claude DeBellefeuille: the Prime Minister needs to get involved. The union has said that, at this point, he is the only one in office that can resolve certain key issues. If the strike drags on, some people will not receive their tax refund. Some will experience another passport crisis. Some people's employment insurance claims will not be processed. The only reason the strike is still going on right now is that the Prime Minister is refusing to take a seat at the bargaining table. When will he step up to the plate?
Labour
Date: 2023_04_24
Chamber: HOUSE OF COMMONS
Hon. Mona Fortier: we have been in mediation for three weeks now, and our team is working tirelessly to negotiate new collective agreements that are fair, competitive and reasonable. This round of negotiations has been very difficult. As I said earlier, the union came to the table with 570 demands. I am proud to say that there are only a handful left on the table. Our bargaining team is working very hard, and we will come to an agreement very soon. We will continue to make an effort to come to an agreement.
Labour
Date: 2023_04_24
Chamber: HOUSE OF COMMONS
Mrs. Cheryl Gallant: 700 soldiers at Petawawa went without heat and hot water because the Prime Minister could not reach a deal with public servants. According to leaked documents, the Prime Minister secretly told our allies that he does not feel our military is important. Now Canadians know the truth. Under the Liberals, our women and men in uniform will never be considered a priority. The Prime Minister's residence would never go without heat and water. Why were heat and hot water not deemed to be essential services for our Canadian Armed Forces?
Labour
Date: 2023_04_24
Chamber: HOUSE OF COMMONS
Hon. Anita Anand: first of all, an agreement has been reached that allows the heating plant to resume operations and provide heat and hot water to those living at the garrison. On our commitment to the Canadian Armed Forces, our defence spending is increasing, unlike that of the Conservatives, who let defence spending dip below 1% when they were in power. We invested $40 billion in NORAD modernization. Our defence spending is increasing by 70% under our current defence policy. In our last budget, we are increasing defence spending by $8 billion.
Labour
Date: 2023_04_24
Chamber: HOUSE OF COMMONS
Mr. James Bezan: that is called creative accounting. The Prime Minister 's incompetence has caused the worst public service strike in decades, and it is disproportionately hurting national defence. Our troops are not being fed, do not have heat or hot water, and are not being reimbursed for out-of-pocket meal expenses in places such as Poland. It is said that an army marches on beans and bullets, and the incompetent Liberal government cannot even get that right. The Prime Minister does not consider the basic needs of our forces essential. He is literally leaving our troops in the cold and hungry. Why is that?
Labour
Date: 2023_04_24
Chamber: HOUSE OF COMMONS
Hon. Anita Anand: it is somewhat surprising, when the Conservatives let defence spending dip below 1%, for my hon. colleague to suggest that we are not paying attention to what we are rightfully focused on, which is increasing resources for the Canadian Armed Forces, increasing defence spending, ensuring our forces have the equipment they need to fight forest fires and floods here at home, leading the enhanced forward presence battle group in Latvia, making sure we are a leading donor to Ukraine in its time of need, contributing in the Middle East, and the list goes on. We will always be here for the armed forces.
Labour
Date: 2023_04_24
Chamber: HOUSE OF COMMONS
Mr. Richard Martel: the Prime Minister is displaying a special kind of incompetence, and once again, Canadians are the ones who will pay the price. He increased the cost of the public service by 50% in eight years without being able to prevent 150,000 employees from going on strike, the worst strike in 40 years. We also found out that 700 soldiers are living on a base without heat or hot water because of the public servants walking off the job. Does the Prime Minister not think that our soldiers deserve better, after everything they do for our country?