Justin Trudeau

Mr. Speaker, Canadians are horrified by the anti-Semitic attack at a synagogue in Pittsburgh on Saturday. Our hearts are with the Jewish community in Pittsburgh and across Canada. May the families of those murdered be comforted, and may the injured recover quickly and fully. We are working with U.S. authorities and are ready to assist if required. We will always stand united against hatred, intolerance, anti-Semitism and violence.

Mr. Speaker, Canadians are horrified by Saturday's anti-Semitic attack at a synagogue in Pittsburgh on Saturday. Our hearts are with the Jewish community in Pittsburgh and across Canada.May the families of those murdered be comforted, and may the injured recover quickly and fully. We are working with U.S. authorities and are ready to assist if required. We will always stand united against hatred, intolerance, anti-Semitism and violence, no matter where it occurs.

Mr. Speaker, we seem to have hit a nerve in the way the Conservatives are misleading Canadians on intolerance. Let us try them on climate. Today, we learned the Conservatives are hiding, from their own constituents, tax benefits that would give Canadians hundreds of dollars. Conservatives want to take hundreds of dollars away from families in New Brunswick, in Ontario, in Manitoba, in Saskatchewan. Indeed, their only plan seems to be to mislead Canadians about our plan to fight climate change. That is even more unacceptable. They continue to mislead Canadians.

Mr. Speaker, NDP members are once again showing that they do not understand the issues around marijuana. Decriminalizing it would provide a legitimate source of income to street gangs, criminal organizations, and gun runners.We have a proposal to legalize marijuana so that we can protect our children by making it harder for them to get marijuana and eliminate a source of income for criminals. That is what we promised to do, and that is what we will do.

Mr. Speaker, we see that the Conservatives learned nothing in the last election campaign. They continue to try to invent and torque things, and to attack their opponents and demonize everyone as they try to make things happen. It did not work. It failed miserably. You underestimate Canadians' intelligence when you treat them like children and try to scare them into supporting you.Sorry, Mr. Speaker, not you, but them.We are going to take Canadians seriously.

Mr. Speaker, Conservatives continue to mislead Canadians, and Canadians deserve better.On Monday, the Conservative leader refused to denounce white supremacists in this House. On Tuesday, a Conservative senator said, “I would find it disturbing to believe that there is a politician in this country that believes that white supremacy is a threat to our way of life in Canada”. When will the Conservative leader finally denounce white supremacists by name, and will he denounce comments from a member of his own caucus?

Mr. Speaker, we agree with the NDP that it was shameful that the Harper government allowed garbage to be exported without permits or safeguards. That is why in 2016, we signed the Basel agreement. The NDP needs to get its facts straight on that. We changed our regulations to comply with international obligations and strengthened controls of our exports.Despite this garbage having been exported to the Philippines under the Harper government, we are doing the right thing by bringing it back to Canada to ensure that it is properly disposed of.

Mr. Speaker, not only do I stand with the United Nations on this and many other issues, I actually, personally, brought up this issue when I was in Liberia, challenging local leaders and local governments to step up on the fight against FGM.We will continue to stand against violence against women. We will continue to lead the way, pushing for an end to these barbaric practices of female genital mutilation, everywhere around the world and here in Canada. This is something we take very seriously.

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives are doubling down on misleading Canadians. It shows that they are still following Stephen Harper's playbook. We put the member on notice because he and his party have a history of making false and defamatory statements. That is what he did in December against the Minister of Innovation. He was forced to swallow his false words and retract his statements. We will not stand by while he continues to mislead Canadians.

Mr. Speaker, in this time of misinformation and fake news and populism, the opposition leader is doubling down on misleading Canadians. It shows that he is still following Stephen Harper's playbook. We put him on notice, because he and his party have a history of making false and defamatory statements. That is what he did in December against the Minister of Innovation. He was forced to swallow his words and retract his statements. We will not stand by while he tries to mislead Canadians again.

Mr. Speaker, here is what I have to say about the truth: We put the Leader of the Opposition on notice because he was making false statements and misleading Canadians.The opposition leader and his party have a history of making false and defamatory statements. In December, he had to retract statements he made online about the Minister of Innovation. He has done this repeatedly and now pretends that it is somehow virtuous for him to mislead Canadians. Misleading Canadians, as the opposition leader has done, is never virtuous.

Mr. Speaker, once again, the opposition leader is doubling down on misleading Canadians. It shows that the Conservatives are still following the Harper playbook. We put him on notice because he and his party have a history of making false and defamatory statements. That is what he did in December against the Minister of Innovation, where he was forced to swallow his false words and retract his statements. We will not stand by while he misleads Canadians again.While the members of the opposition are focused on me, we will stay focused on Canadians.

Mr. Speaker, we can always tell the Conservatives are on shaky ground when they stoop to making snide personal remarks.For the member's own riding and his own province of Saskatchewan, Canadians in Saskatchewan will be $1,300 better off with our plan to fight climate change and to make it affordable for Canadians than they would have been had we not moved forward with our plan to put a price on pollution so that we get less of it. They want to make pollution free again; we are putting a price on it.

Mr. Speaker, what we all remember from the years of the Harper government are the organizations that were de-funded because the government disagreed with them, whether it was KAIROS, whether it was a range of court challenge programs, or whether it was other organizations that were labelled as eco-terrorist. That Conservative Party is consistent in trying to shutdown anyone who dares to disagree with it. Know what? Canadians shut the Conservatives down by excluding them from government. We respect the rights of Canadians to hold a diversity of opinions. We will defend the charter.

Mr. Speaker, we always condemn hate-filled anti-Semitic or homophobic or Islamophobic and hate-filled speech of all types across this country. Canada is a welcoming, diverse country of a broad range of views and perspectives, but we do not allow hate speech and we do not allow the incitement of hatred. We are a country that is built on mutual respect, on openness and compassion, and we reject the politics of division and hate wherever they come from.

Mr. Speaker, the Leader of the Opposition continues to mislead Canadians. This shows that the Conservatives are still following Stephen Harper's playbook.We put him on notice because he and his party have a history of making false and defamatory statements. That is what he did in December against the Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development. He was forced to swallow his false words and retract his statements. We will not stand by while he continues to mislead Canadians.

Mr. Speaker, again, the Conservatives are trying to divert attention from their own failure on this file. The Conservative government perpetuated a system that made it easier for young people to access marijuana in Canada than in 29 other countries in the world. Their system was a total failure. We want to better protect our young people. We want to keep profits out of the hands of organized crime. That is exactly what we are doing and they have nothing to say about it.

Mr. Speaker, we trust our security services and intelligence agents to do what needs to be done to protect Canadians at home and overseas. We will continue to work with partners around the world to go after criminals who are attacking or harming Canadians. This is something that we take very seriously and will continue to work on with the collaboration of all Canadians.

Mr. Speaker, the Leader of the Opposition continues to mislead Canadians.This shows that the Conservatives are still following Stephen Harper's playbook. We put him on notice because he and his party have a history of making false and defamatory statements. That is what he did, and he will have to withdraw his statements because that is what happened in December, when he was forced to swallow his false words and retract his statements against the Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development.We will not stand by while he continues to mislead Canadians.

Mr. Speaker, we put the Leader of the Opposition on notice because he was making false statements and misleading Canadians.The opposition leader and his party have a history of making false and defamatory statements. In December, he had to retract defamatory online statements he made against the Minister of Innovation.He has done this repeatedly and now pretends that it is somehow virtuous for him to mislead Canadians.

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives tabled legislation for this initiative but did not actually put any money forward on this.Canada already has a national sex offender registry, which helps ensure that offenders are properly registered and high-risk offenders are identified. No one in this House believes that we should do anything but keep our communities and our children totally safe.This Conservative Party continues to play the worst kind of political games with it, which is part of why people are so cynical about their approach to politics.

Mr. Speaker, right now the sale of marijuana across this country puts billions of dollars in the pockets of organized crime. That is a failure of the current, actual system. We know that by legalizing and controlling the sale of marijuana, not only will we reduce the profits going to organized crime, street gangs, and gun runners but we will do a better job of protecting our kids and their communities with a legalized framework.

Mr. Speaker, we are moving forward on legalizing marijuana for two reasons. One is that the current regime is failing our kids. Right now, under-age kids have easier access to marijuana than those in any country around the world. There is higher per capita use by under-age Canadians than kids in any other country. We want to make it more difficult for kids to access marijuana. That is why we are going to legalize and control marijuana. We also want to remove the billions of dollars from criminal organizations and street gangs that they use to commit more crimes.

As I said, Mr. Speaker, the previous Harper government also funded this organization, and on this side of the House, we will not brand Canadians as “eco-terrorists”. We will not remove funding from advocacy organizations because we as a government happen to disagree with them.We remember what that previous government did. Canadians do not want to go back to those terrible years.

Mr. Speaker, as politicians, we engage with a broad range of people, but we have been unequivocal. We deeply oppose Iran's support for terrorist organizations, for its threats toward Israel, its ballistic missile program, and its support for the murderous Assad regime. We will always defend human rights and hold Iran to account for its actions. We continue to maintain sanctions on Iran, which include restrictions on sensitive goods, and a list of individuals and entities subject to asset freezes. We will always remain firm in our defence of human rights and are standing against state sponsors of terrorism around the world.

Mr. Speaker, speaking of misleading Canadians, the very first thing we did was lower taxes on the middle class and raise taxes on the wealthiest 1%. We then delivered a Canada child benefit that lifted 300,000 kids out of poverty. The Conservatives voted against both of those measures.How is our economy doing? It has among the best in growth in the G7 and the lowest unemployment rate in 40 years, and Canadians have created over 900,000 new jobs. No wonder the Conservatives can only sling mud instead of talking about any plan for growing the economy. It is because they have none.

Mr. Speaker, we have made cuts to these subsidies and we will be eliminating them by 2025, as promised.We will continue working on creating a meaningful climate action plan, since that is what Canadians expect. The Conservatives obviously have no plan, and perhaps even worse, the NDP continues to pit the environment against the economy. It is trying to force us to choose between one or the other. We understand that we need to grow the economy and protect the environment at the same time.

Mr. Speaker, once again the opposition leader is doubling down on his false and misleading statements. We put him on notice because he has a history, and his party has a history, of misleading Canadians. That is exactly what they did when he had to withdraw and retract misleading statements he made about the Minister of Innovation just a few months ago. We know that the Conservatives' way is to try to mislead Canadians as much as they possibly can. We need to call them out on that because falsehoods have no place in an election campaign.

Mr. Speaker, I am very happy to answer the hon. member's question. We are legalizing and controlling the sale of marijuana with two goals in mind. The first is protecting our young people from the easy access they have to marijuana right now. It is easier for a teenager to buy a joint than a bottle of beer, and that is not right. Second, we want to remove from criminal organizations and street gangs the billions of dollars in profits that they make. Until the House chooses to legalize and control marijuana, the law remains the law.

Mr. Speaker, once again, as all Canadians know, as everyone in the House knows, supporting terrorism is a crime and travelling to support terrorism is a crime. That is why we have full confidence in our police and intelligence services to ensure that there are consequences for people committing these crimes, and that at the same time we do everything necessary to keep Canadians and our communities safe. Those are among the many reasons why we will be supporting the Conservatives' opposition day motion.

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives continue to play a very dangerous and, quite frankly, repulsive game of politicizing a tragedy and speaking for others who they have no business speaking for.We continue to state, obviously, that this is a situation in which a previous Conservative government reclassified an offender, from a maximum security institution to a medium institution. This individual is currently in a medium security facility.As Stephen Harper's former—

Mr. Speaker, we are choosing to legalize marijuana because the current system is failing Canadians. We are not protecting our children adequately, because they have easier access to marijuana than they do to nicotine cigarettes. We are continuing to funnel billions of dollars into the pockets of criminal organizations and street gangs. Everywhere around the world people are grappling with a failed war on drugs. People are very interested with the leadership that Canada is showing in terms of figuring out how to better protect our kids and pull away the profits from criminals and organized crime.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for her statement and support. We were all saddened to learn about today's incident near the British Parliament in London. I express my deepest condolences to the victims of this cowardly attack. The scene unfolding in London is one that is all too familiar to members of this House who were here two and a half years ago.Today's attack on the United Kingdom Parliament is an attack on the world's democracies.An attack on the symbol and the seat of democracy is a cowardly and reprehensible act that we condemn in the strongest terms. Canada and the U.K. are close friends and allies and our message to the citizens of the United Kingdom and our colleagues in the British Parliament is simple: We stand with you.

Mr. Speaker, we are very pleased to have eliminated chapter 11, which has cost Canadians $300 million over the years.We know that it is important to protect the government's ability to legislate on environmental protection and labour rights.We stood our ground to get rid of that chapter. We are very pleased that Canadians are no longer subject to it.

Mr. Speaker, after being asked directly to condemn white supremacists yesterday, the Leader of the Opposition not only refused to do so, but refused to even say the words.I will give him another opportunity to do so today through his deputy leader. Will he denounce white supremacy, the alt-right movement and finally apologize for sharing a platform with it?

Mr. Speaker, I can understand why members opposite just want to make personal attacks and sully the good name of members across this way. It is because they have nothing to say on the substance of what we are doing. For months, we have heard them shrieking—

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives' habit of pitting Canadians against indigenous Canadians is, quite frankly, disgusting. Our decision to increase indigenous participation in fishing is based on our government's commitment to developing a renewed relationship between Canada and indigenous peoples. Enhancing access to the Arctic surf clam fishery broadens the distribution of benefits from this public resource and is a powerful step toward reconciliation. This will significantly enhance indigenous participation in the offshore fisheries in Atlantic Canada and Quebec, and allow the benefits of this lucrative fishery to flow to more Canadians.

Mr. Speaker, I am very happy to note that we always respect the provinces and indigenous peoples, as well as the work that they do. We are putting forward a bill that will protect our children and prevent organized crime from making huge profits from the sale of marijuana. The Conservatives keep playing politics with this issue.I want to thank the senators and every expert who spoke to this issue. We are moving forward with measures that will protect Canadians.

Mr. Speaker, as I told steel and aluminum workers when I visited their plants, our government will protect them. Canada's countermeasures will remain in place until the unfair steel and aluminum tariffs are lifted. Throughout the negotiations, our goal was always to create conditions that will help grow the middle class and provide more opportunities to Canadians. We will keep working until the tariffs are eliminated. That is what Canadians expect, and that is exactly what we are going to do.

Mr. Speaker, marijuana is now legal in Canada because the previous approach, prohibition, failed to adequately protect our kids and allowed criminals to make massive profits. By controlling and regulating the production and sale of marijuana, we will be able to better protect our communities, protect our kids and ensure that public safety and public health are properly protected by our country.

Mr. Speaker, once again, the NDP and the Conservatives are pretending there was some sort of secret here, that we were going to lower taxes for the middle class and raise them on the wealthiest 1%. We campaigned on that promise. They lost because of that promise. I know they remember it. The fabrications and the personal attacks, the slinging of mud in this place, and hiding behind parliamentary privilege is not what Canadians expect from this place.

Mr. Speaker, the position of Iran is unacceptable, and our position on Iran is clear: We oppose Iran's support for terrorist organizations, its threats toward Israel, its ballistic missile program, and its support for the Assad regime.Canada is a steadfast friend of Israel and a friend to the Palestinian people. We are committed to the goal of a comprehensive, just, and lasting peace in the Middle East, including the creation of a Palestinian state living side by side in peace and security with Israel. We continue to support the building of conditions necessary for both parties to find a solution.

Mr. Speaker, unfortunately, the Conservatives are spewing empty rhetoric. They did not measure up for our soldiers and military personnel, and they did nothing for our veterans. Whether in Latvia or Ukraine, in the fight against Daesh, or through the investments that we plan to make, the reality is that we continue to give our soldiers the respect, the tools, and the support they need, not by spewing empty rhetoric, but by meeting our commitments to our soldiers in a meaningful way.

Mr. Speaker, part of our framework for the sale of marijuana and associated investments involves extensive screenings and background checks of everyone who works in the marijuana industry, including investors. Yes, we will ensure that no one involved in organized crime invests in the sale and production of marijuana.

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives want to play politics with this issue. The Conservatives want to drag up this terrible murder and try and look at political gain on this. They have been politicizing this for well over a week, with all the passion they can muster, and they are debasing the nature of the House and the—

Mr. Speaker, over the past year and a half, we raised taxes on the wealthiest 1% so we could lower them on the middle class. We delivered a Canada child benefit that gives more money to nine out of 10 Canadians by stopping the sending of child benefit cheques to millionaire families, which the previous government did.The fact is, on the tax cut for the middle class and more money through the CCB, that party voted against both initiatives. Shame on them.

Mr. Speaker, we legalized marijuana because we know that that is the best way to protect our children and to eliminate the influence of organized crime on the sale of marijuana and the profits it makes from it.We will certainly ensure that Health Canada and others conduct all the necessary investigations to make good decisions about all licences issued in connection with marijuana.

Mr. Speaker, now we see clearly that the supposed concern of the members opposite for plumbers, farmers, electricians, and small business owners was nothing, because as soon as we put forward the proposals to demonstrate that we would be supporting small businesses while making sure that the wealthiest Canadians pay their fair share of taxes, they had nothing to say about it. They have completely forgotten all the arguments they have made over the past months and do nothing but engage in personal attacks and slinging mud, both at the finance minister and the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner. Shame on them.

Mr. Speaker, we promised to legalize and control cannabis for two very specific reasons.First, we want to prevent our kids from having easy access to cannabis, as they do now. We know that it is easier for a young person to buy a joint than a bottle of beer. That is unacceptable. At the same time, we know that organized crime groups make billions of dollars trafficking marijuana, and that is exactly what we want to prevent.Decriminalizing cannabis will do nothing to protect our kids and nothing to counter organized crime, and I will continue to repeat that until—

Mr. Speaker, I am proud of the work that all members of the House of Commons have done to help us welcome hundreds of Yazidi women and children. It is important to demonstrate that we are a welcoming country for victims of terrorism.At the same time, we protect and defend all Canadians by monitoring anyone who is returning after being involved in conflict overseas. We will be there to ensure that they are monitored and overseen. We will also be there to help them disengage from this terrorist ideology.

Mr. Speaker, I was in Lac-Mégantic to mark the fifth anniversary of the tragedy. With me was the Minister of Transport, who from day one one the job has pledged to improve rail safety. We know we have a lot of work to do, and we are doing it. We never want to see another community or another family suffer because of a tragedy like the one that took place that terrible night in Lac-Mégantic.

Mr. Speaker, every member of the House is grieving with Constable Campbell's family.This is a tragic situation, and the minister has taken steps to address the policy to ensure that this does not occur moving forward. This ensures that we will continue to support veterans and their families who need our help, while maintaining the integrity of the system.

Mr. Speaker, this is obviously a tragic situation and the minister has taken steps to address the policy to ensure this does not occur moving forward. This ensures we will continue to support veterans and their families that need our help, while maintaining the integrity of the system.

Mr. Speaker, when the Conservatives were in government, they tried to balance their budgets on the backs of veterans by cutting their services, by nickel-and-diming them and disrespecting them at every step of the way. I will take no lessons on how to treat our veterans with respect from those guys.

Mr. Speaker, when it comes to Omar Khadr, there is only one issue, and that is the actions of previous governments that failed to stand up for and even violated Canadians' rights.When Canadian governments do not respect and defend Canadians' rights, everyone pays the price.I am outraged, the opposition is outraged, and Canadians are outraged by this settlement, and understandably so. They should hold on to that feeling because if people remember this, then a government will never again violate—

Mr. Speaker, we always condemn hate-filled anti-Semitic or homophobic or Islamophobic and hate-filled speech of all types across this country. Canada is a welcoming, diverse country of a broad range of views and perspectives, but we do not allow hate speech and we do not allow the incitement of hatred. We are a country that is built on mutual respect, on openness and compassion, and we reject the politics of division and hate wherever they come from.

Mr. Speaker, our approach as a feminist government has been to invest in women, support women, invest in combatting gender-based violence, and ensure that women have recourse in difficult situations.We will continue to support women. We know that empowering women, encouraging women in the workplace, and protecting women who are victims of harassment or violence are at the core of any Canadian government's mandate.

Mr. Speaker, twice in that answer the member opposite talked about the fact that the Conservatives got to a phoney balance just in time for the election. The way they did that was by cutting services to our veterans, cutting the Canadian Border Services Agency, cutting programs and opportunities for Canadian and by cutting and saving on things like the implementation of Phoenix. They brought together a phoney balance that hurt Canadians, that hurt the services and that is why Canadians kicked them out.

Mr. Speaker, provinces, territories, and municipalities have been asking for a federal government that is a partner to them on building infrastructure after 10 years of a government that was a terrible partner to Canadian municipalities and provinces.That is why we work with municipalities and provinces, with interest groups, with unions, and with a broad range of Canadians to figure out how we can meet the infrastructure needs of our communities, of our small businesses, and of our growing economy.We are going to deliver for Canadians what, unfortunately, 10 years of Stephen Harper was unable to.

Mr. Speaker, we trust our security services and intelligence agents to do what needs to be done to protect Canadians at home and overseas. We will continue to work with partners around the world to go after criminals who are attacking or harming Canadians. This is something that we take very seriously and will continue to work on with the collaboration of all Canadians.

Mr. Speaker, we take our national security responsibilities very seriously. We work with and listen to our national security agencies. We trust our national security agencies, which followed the process, reviewed the transaction, consulted our allies, including the United States, and recommended going ahead with this transaction.

Mr. Speaker, we put the Leader of the Opposition on notice because he was making false statements and misleading Canadians.The opposition leader and his party have a history of making false and defamatory statements. In December, he had to retract defamatory online statements he made against the Minister of Innovation.He has done this repeatedly and now pretends that it is somehow virtuous for him to mislead Canadians.

Mr. Speaker, here is what I have to say about the truth: We put the Leader of the Opposition on notice because he was making false statements and misleading Canadians.The opposition leader and his party have a history of making false and defamatory statements. In December, he had to retract statements he made online about the Minister of Innovation. He has done this repeatedly and now pretends that it is somehow virtuous for him to mislead Canadians. Misleading Canadians, as the opposition leader has done, is never virtuous.

Mr. Speaker, once again, we hear, from these Conservatives, thinly veiled attacks on the quality of work done by the Ethics Commissioner, which, quite frankly, is no surprise.For 10 years, those members were part of a government that attacked the elections commissioner, that attacked Supreme Court justices, that attacked information commissioners, privacy commissioners, that attacked a parliamentary budget officer, that attacked anyone who got in their way of ramming through their views of things.We respect Parliament.

Mr. Speaker, our government stands with those who have lost family and friends in this opioid crisis.We continue to act to address this crisis. We are investing $350 million in emergency response, much of it in treatment, we have approved almost 30 supervised consumption sites, and we are removing barriers to treatment. We will continue to do all we can to save lives and turn the tide of this terrible crisis.

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives want to play politics with this issue. The Conservatives want to drag up this terrible murder and try and look at political gain on this. They have been politicizing this for well over a week, with all the passion they can muster, and they are debasing the nature of the House and the—

Mr. Speaker, every member in the House is grieving with Constable Campbell's family. This is a tragic situation, and the minister has taken steps to address the policy to ensure this does not occur moving forward. The minister has increased the level of scrutiny and the department is addressing its existing policy in relation to treatment of family members under extenuating circumstances, such as conviction of a serious crime. This ensures that we will continue to support veterans and their families that need our help, while maintaining the integrity of our system.

Mr. Speaker, every member in the House is grieving with Constable Campbell's family. This is a tragic situation and the minister has taken steps to address the policy to ensure this does not occur moving forward. The minister has increased the level of scrutiny and the department is addressing its existing policy in relation to treatment of family members under extenuating circumstances, such as conviction of a serious crime. This will ensure we continue to support veterans and their families that need our help, while maintaining the integrity of the system.

Mr. Speaker, I am sorry that what the opposition member has in front of him is not relevant, but the finance minister just answered that question.

Mr. Speaker, our government takes the concerns of Canadians very seriously. We have been working over the past two years to deliver to veterans and their families the kinds of support they need and deserve and, quite frankly, they did not get for 10 years under the Conservative government. On this issue, the minister takes these allegations seriously and has responded to them and apologized.

Mr. Speaker, we continue to ensure the integrity of our immigration system. People who arrive legally or illegally are subject to security checks and an established, rigorous process as part of our immigration system. Canadians can be assured that its rules will be applied throughout the process no matter how people enter the country.

As I said, Mr. Speaker, the previous Harper government also funded this organization, and on this side of the House, we will not brand Canadians as “eco-terrorists”. We will not remove funding from advocacy organizations because we as a government happen to disagree with them.We remember what that previous government did. Canadians do not want to go back to those terrible years.

Mr. Speaker, when we report gifts, when we report issues and actions, we report to the Ethics Commissioner. I sat down, answered all the Ethics Commissioner's questions, and disclosed fully everything that happened, and she made her report. She did the work that she is asked to do by this House and by Canadians; that is, get to the nub of the matter, get to the heart of the facts, rather than fall into the partisan mudslinging that, unfortunately, characterizes this House.

Mr. Speaker, I understand the member opposite's outrage at the settlement in the Omar Khadr case. I understand Canadians' outrage. I understand how angry I am that we had to settle that. The fact is that we should all be outraged, and remain outraged, that Canadian governments violated a Canadian's fundamental rights. If we stay angry enough for long enough, maybe no future government will ever violate a Canadian's fundamental rights that way again.

Mr. Speaker, we see that the Conservatives learned nothing in the last election campaign. They continue to try to invent and torque things, and to attack their opponents and demonize everyone as they try to make things happen. It did not work. It failed miserably. You underestimate Canadians' intelligence when you treat them like children and try to scare them into supporting you.Sorry, Mr. Speaker, not you, but them.We are going to take Canadians seriously.

Mr. Speaker, what the Conservatives, who are still Harper Conservatives, refuse to accept is that four of our largest provinces are already taxing pollution and that 80% of the Canadian economy is covered by this pollution pricing. Our economy has been growing at a record pace over the past few years with 80% of it already subjected to a price on pollution. The Conservatives are fearmongering for nothing because they fail to understand anything.

Mr. Speaker, it has been mere weeks since those seats were vacated. We will call those elections in due course, as is required under the Canada Elections Act.

Mr. Speaker, on the contrary, this government takes very seriously the well-being of seniors. That is why we increased the guaranteed income supplement by $1,000 for the lowest-income seniors. That is why we committed and actually followed through on our commitment to lower the retirement age from 67 to 65. That is why we have strengthened the CPP, which will help seniors but also everyone as they approach retirement.The fact is that this government is focused on helping our seniors, our vulnerable, low-income, and middle-income seniors. We will continue to do just that.

Mr. Speaker, in the last election, two parties, the Conservatives and the NDP, committed to balance the budget at all costs, including through cutting services—

Mr. Speaker, the issue of Afghan detainees is one we take very seriously in this House. That is why there have been no fewer than six investigations into that issue, including one that is ongoing. Indeed, when we were offered, as NDP and Liberals, the opportunity to go through 40,000 documents directly pertaining to that, the NDP refused to do it. We engaged with that. We take very seriously those responsibilities. We will continue to take very seriously what Canadians expect from this government and from this party.

Mr. Speaker, the missing and murdered indigenous women and girls across this country have been a national tragedy for decades now. We know we need to bring healing for the families, justice for the victims, and to put an end to this national tragedy once and for all. That is why, despite 10 years of the Conservative Party saying no and refusing to act on this, this government has moved forward on the difficult process of a national inquiry into the missing and murdered indigenous women and girls, and we are working hard with this inquiry to ensure that everyone is heard.

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the member for St. Catharines for his hard work—

Mr. Speaker, as I already said, in our election platform we committed to improving access to employment insurance for people across the country, including in regions hard hit by the drop in oil prices. I can assure my hon. colleague that we will keep our election promises in the budget that we will table tomorrow.

Mr. Speaker, of course we deplore the horrific events that took place in Nanjing 80 years ago. All Canadians can agree that the loss of life and violence that so many civilians faced should never be forgotten. We will never forget those terrible acts. The memory of these victims and survivors must be addressed in the true spirit of reconciliation.

Mr. Speaker, we take the protection of Canadians' privacy seriously, as does Statistics Canada.Statistics Canada has been in contact with the Privacy Commissioner about this pilot project, which has not yet been launched. We will keep working to ensure that protecting privacy remains a priority for Statistics Canada and our government.I do want to point out that the Conservatives are using the same arguments for this issue as they did to justify getting rid of the long form census. Canadians were disappointed in that decision and—

Mr. Speaker, we unequivocally condemn these statements. Such statements are unacceptable in Canadian society. Our society is open and tolerant, but we do not allow hate speech that incites violence. That is and always has been our position. Canada rejects the politics of division and fear. I will always be opposed.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for St. Catharines for his hard work. I highlight that for 10 years, Stephen Harper was unable to do what we just did in budget 2019. We removed the only remaining federal barrier to trade of Canadian wine, beer and spirits within Canada. It is now up to provinces to change their regulations to allow for direct-to-consumer alcohol sales across Canada. We did what Stephen Harper and the Conservatives could not. We freed the beer.

Mr. Speaker, our hearts go out to the workers who were affected by the decisions taken by Sears.We are making every effort to connect Sears employees and pensioners with programs and services that will help them get through this tough time. I understand current Sears Canada pension fund assets are held in trust, and must be used solely for the benefit of pensioners. Service Canada has been meeting with representatives of Sears Canada to ensure a rapid national and coordinated response to meet the needs of the impacted employees. Approximately 80 sessions have already been delivered across this country.

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives are doubling down on misleading Canadians. It shows that they are still following Stephen Harper's playbook. We put the member on notice because he and his party have a history of making false and defamatory statements. That is what he did in December against the Minister of Innovation. He was forced to swallow his false words and retract his statements. We will not stand by while he continues to mislead Canadians.

Mr. Speaker, once again, the opposition leader is doubling down on misleading Canadians. It shows that the Conservatives are still following the Harper playbook. We put him on notice because he and his party have a history of making false and defamatory statements. That is what he did in December against the Minister of Innovation, where he was forced to swallow his false words and retract his statements. We will not stand by while he misleads Canadians again.While the members of the opposition are focused on me, we will stay focused on Canadians.

Mr. Speaker, during negotiations, our purpose has always remained to create the conditions to grow a stronger middle class and improve opportunities for Canadians. We will not stop working until these unfair tariffs are gone. It is what Canadian workers and their families expect, and it is what we will do.

Mr. Speaker, last night I spoke with the CEO and chair of GM, Mary Barra, to tell her how disappointed we are with this decision, and this morning spoke with Premier Ford to talk about how we are going to work together to support the workers in Oshawa and across the region who are going to be affected by this decision. We will be working together on this one in a way that is not political because we know that being there to support the workers in this region is what people expect of all of their orders of government.

Mr. Speaker, Canadians watch these Conservatives stay focused on me, while I stay focused on Canadians. We are focused on small business owners who need help.

Mr. Speaker, this government has shown that it is open to working with the communities affected that are struggling with difficult situations, in order to ensure that the employment insurance program provides workers, families, and the regions with the security they need.As we demonstrated last year with the assistance we granted to Alberta and the provinces affected by the drop in oil prices, we will always be there to help struggling communities make it through those difficult times. That is who we are as Canadians.

Mr. Speaker, the member opposite is wrong. This is about trusting our national security agencies to do their jobs and to follow the processes. Our national security agencies engaged in the rigorous process we have. They made determinations based on their investigations, based on conversations with our allies, including the United States, and reported to the government that it would be something that could move forward. That involves trusting our civil servants and our national security agencies, which on this side of the House we do.

Mr. Speaker, NDP members are once again showing that they do not understand the issues around marijuana. Decriminalizing it would provide a legitimate source of income to street gangs, criminal organizations, and gun runners.We have a proposal to legalize marijuana so that we can protect our children by making it harder for them to get marijuana and eliminate a source of income for criminals. That is what we promised to do, and that is what we will do.

Mr. Speaker, the NDP says it will be there for the people, but it just announced that it is against a project that would have created 10,000 jobs for British Columbians. The B.C. NDP supports the project. His colleague, the member for Skeena—Bulkley Valley supported the project. Even so, the NDP just decided it is against this project, which would be the biggest private-sector investment in this country's history. We know that investing in the economy and protecting the environment must go hand in hand. Unfortunately, the NDP has no plan to make that happen.

Mr. Speaker, once again, the Conservatives are fearmongering, but we can confirm that Statistics Canada is actively engaged with the Office of the Privacy Commissioner, just as Canadians would expect. Once again, the Conservatives' attacks on data and information continue. It was that party that cancelled the long-form census, and now it continues the same attacks on policy based on data and the facts rather than ideology. It is disappointing to see that the Conservatives still have not learned their lesson.

Mr. Speaker, our hearts go out to the McLean family, and specifically to his mother. I cannot imagine the grief and anguish that she had to go through and that she must continue to experience.It is the responsibility of all of us in this House to protect Canadians' rights, to protect victims, to make sure that every Canadian's rights are being respected. That is something we take very seriously.

Mr. Speaker, what the Conservatives continue not to understand is their phony efforts to balance the budget just in time for the election, cutting millions from veterans by closing their service centres, cutting millions from hard-working Canadians from coast to coast to coast, whether it was the Canada Border Services Agency or hard-working Canadians getting short shrift because of their cuts to programs. The Conservatives' obsession with providing a phony budget balance before an election hurt Canadians.We invested in Canadians and have the positive results to show for it. They had no plan—

Mr. Speaker, I am very happy to work with the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner to answer any questions she may have.

Mr. Speaker, as Prime Minister, I am happy to stand in this House and continue to say how we will always respect the independence of our judicial system. Because of that, we will not comment on this ongoing court case.

Mr. Speaker, we recognize that workers at Davie do excellent work. They finished work on the Asterix on time and on budget.The Conservatives shut Davie out of the national marine strategy, but we have awarded more than $1.5 billion in contracts to Quebec businesses, including $700 million to Davie for three icebreakers. We will continue to support workers across the country.

Mr. Speaker, it was a family vacation with a long-time family friend. As I have said many times, I am very happy to work with the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner and to answer any questions she may have.

Mr. Speaker, we recognize the excellent work of Davie workers, who did an outstanding job delivering the Asterix. We recognize how important it is to continue to support them through good jobs that create opportunities for Canadians, including those in Saguenay.As I said, we are in the process of negotiating a contract for a number of icebreakers with the Davie shipyard. We are still negotiating to find the best approach for Canadians and workers. That is what we will continue to do.

Mr. Speaker, we established a merit-based appointment process for choosing officers of Parliament and making government appointments that better reflect the diversity and quality of what Canadians have to offer. After 10 years of partisanship, we are proud of the process we have created, and we have great confidence in all our appointments.

Mr. Speaker, as I have been saying, this invitation never should have been sent. As soon as it came to our attention, it was withdrawn.Canada's national security agencies and police services are non-partisan and both highly competent and effective. We trust them to promote and protect Canadian security. They continue to do an excellent job in serving and protecting the interests of Canadians.

Mr. Speaker, I am very happy to note that we always respect the provinces and indigenous peoples, as well as the work that they do. We are putting forward a bill that will protect our children and prevent organized crime from making huge profits from the sale of marijuana. The Conservatives keep playing politics with this issue.I want to thank the senators and every expert who spoke to this issue. We are moving forward with measures that will protect Canadians.

Mr. Speaker, I am very happy to work with and answer the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner's questions. It is extremely important that we work—

Mr. Speaker, we are always proud of the men and women of the Canadian Armed Forces who serve their country, both here in Canada and abroad, to defend our values today, just as they have done for decades.We owe it to our soldiers to give them all the equipment, assistance, and tools they need, as well as the support they need when they come home, so that they can continue to bravely defend our values and share them with the rest of the world.We will continue to work to be worthy of the service performed by these brave men and women every day.

Mr. Speaker, as a government we have moved forward in significant and meaningful ways on gender equality. I am proud of our development assistance policy, which is fundamentally feminist. I am proud that we have put forward budgets with a GBA-plus analysis. I am proud that we have moved forward on pay equity, that we have moved forward on funding for women's organizations across this country and that we have moved forward on a gender-balanced cabinet.I recognize there is much more to do and I am proud that there is now a contest among party leaders to see who can be the better feminist. I think that is a great thing for this country. I think that is a great thing for Parliament.

Mr. Speaker, it would be nice if, for once, the hon. members across the way read the commissioner's report in its entirety because the commissioner said that the Canada-wide framework represents significant progress and that she looks forward to its implementation. The bulk of what she is working on is spread out over the years before we would put this plan in place. She also mentioned that this was one of the best climate plans that Canada has ever had. We agree. We have a plan to honour our commitments and we are determined to follow it in order to do just that.

Yes, Mr. Speaker. By imposing a carbon tax across the country, by establishing an ocean protection plan that is unprecedented in Canada and elsewhere in the world, and by demonstrating that we understand the importance of working constructively with the provinces to meet our greenhouse gas emissions targets, we have shown that we understand that the environment and the economy must go hand in hand. The NDP has never understood that choices need to be made to create good jobs. In order to protect Canadians and their families, we need to protect the environment while creating jobs.

Mr. Speaker, as I have said many times, I am happy to work with the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner to answer any questions that she might have.

Mr. Speaker, I have been unequivocal over the fall, and I am unequivocal now, that we will always support Canadian jobs and the growth of our economy. We will always stand up to protect workers right across the country.We will always do that in ways that respect the independence of our judiciary, the rule of law and the institutions that keep Canada one of the greatest democracies in the world.

Mr. Speaker, I look forward to the discussions being had at committee right now on the best way to protect survivors within our justice system. I can emphasize again that we have put forward a strategy on gender-based violence and have even put money toward the training of judges, as well.

Mr. Speaker, Canadians expect that no one should be able to avoid paying their fair share of taxes by giving money or doing favours. For that reason, our budget includes a $440-million investment so that the Canada Revenue Agency can recover money lost as a result of tax avoidance and evasion. The reality is that we must support the Canada Revenue Agency as it works to ensure that everyone pays their fair share of taxes.

Mr. Speaker, I am very proud that every year we come together to acknowledge the fundamental contributions that first nations, Inuit, and Métis people have made to the identity and culture of all Canadians. We are working with indigenous peoples to establish a nation-to-nation relationship between the Inuit and the crown and a government-to-government relationship based on respect, partnership, and recognition of rights. We will continue to work with our partners on shared priorities, including this celebration

The fact is, Mr. Speaker, we can be confident as Canadians that we have an extraordinarily strong system for electoral financing. Canadians can be reassured about the level of accountability and openness, and indeed that limits on electoral financing are in place for very good reasons, and that the Liberal Party always follows those principles.

Mr. Speaker, I am proud of the service of the Minister of National Defence, whether it was as a police officer, whether it was as a decorated member of the Canadian Armed Forces, or whether it is as our Minister of National Defence. The work that he and this government are doing every day to support the men and women of the Canadian Forces to have a positive impact in the world, whether it is in the fight against Daesh, in promoting regional stability in eastern Europe, or through leading a framework nation in Latvia, this is the work that Canadians know needs to be done, and I am proud of the work that the Minister of National Defence has been doing.

Mr. Speaker, the exemplary and extraordinary service that has characterized the life of the Minister of National Defence is one that we can all be proud of, as he stands up every day for the men and women of the Canadian Forces, focusing on giving them the tools and the opportunity to serve and lead the way we know they can on the world stage, the way the world needs Canada to show leadership. This is something that we are tremendously proud of as a government, and we continue to look for more opportunities to lead and serve around the world.

Mr. Speaker, unlike what we saw under 10 years of Stephen Harper's government, we respect the independence of parliamentary committees. Parliamentarians on those committees get to make determinations on how they choose to move forward in their own way. On this side of the House, we will always respect the independence of committees.

Mr. Speaker, it is not up to the Leader of the Opposition or the Prime Minister to decide what the committees will do. Committees are masters of their own agenda and they will make their own decisions. For 10 years, we saw the Conservatives, under Harper, do all they could to control committees. However, on this side of the House we respect the independence of committees. We know that committee members make their own decisions.That is a principle of our democracy that we respect but that they disregard.

Mr. Speaker, on the contrary, this is a victory for transparency, openness, and accountability. I am very happy to answer any questions the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner might have. It is important for all of us to answer the commissioner's questions on matters that are important to Canadians.

Mr. Speaker, Canadians need to be assured that the government is doing everything it can do and everything it must do to keep them safe in their homes, in their cities, at the airport, and aboard planes. We are working with great diligence to ensure that there are no safety concerns at our airports and that Canadians remain safe in their travels.

Mr. Speaker, I am very proud to have welcomed Malala as an honorary Canadian citizen here, in Ottawa, so she could address Parliament.I would like to point out that she became an honorary citizen thanks to a unanimous vote in the House of Commons. Everyone wanted Malala to become a Canadian citizen.

Mr. Speaker, I am happy, as should be any member of this House, to work with the Ethics Commissioner and answer any questions that she may have. I think that is important.

Mr. Speaker, do they know whom I listen to? I listen to Hassan Yussuf of the Canadian Labour Congress, who said that the updated NAFTA “gets it right on labour provisions, including provisions to protect workers against employment discrimination on the basis of gender.” I listen to Lino LoMedico, a team leader at Chrysler's Windsor assembly plant, who said, “We're actually very proud of the job that our Canadian government did and kudos to the negotiator”.I listen, of course, to our friend Jerry Dias at Unifor, who said that this is a much better deal than the deal that was signed 24 years ago.

Mr. Speaker, we recognize that Canadians chose a different approach when they elected us as government. We choose to make decisions based on how Canada can best help in the world. We make decisions based on facts, based on evidence, and based on the best way to move forward. That is the approach we have always taken and will always take, particularly in regard to the brave men and women serving in the Canadian Forces.

Mr. Speaker, we have taken a stand. We believe in ensuring a strong Canadian voice within UNESCO to continue to stand up for Israel, to continue to stand up for good projects around the world, to continue to be the voice that Canadians and, indeed, people around the world expect from our representatives to stand up and fight for what is right. We believe that doing that from within organizations rather than from without is, in many cases, the best way to go.

Mr. Speaker, we look forward to debating this bill in committee. We know that there are many witnesses and members who want to make suggestions regarding this bill in committee. That is an important step in the process.We look forward to sending this bill to committee so that the NDP, the Conservative Party, and others can share their opinions on this important bill. That is why we are very happy to soon send it to committee so that we can all do the work together.

Mr. Speaker, we have always shown our commitment to openness and transparency on the international stage.I want to once again congratulate the members of the National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians for the incredible work they have done. We accept their recommendations and we will continue to respect the great work they do.

Mr. Speaker, first, I am very proud to invite the world leaders to our magnificent region of Charlevoix. I know that the residents of Charlevoix are proud to welcome people from all over the world and to show them how beautiful their region is.I will be headed to the beautiful region of Charlevoix this afternoon to meet with community leaders, the mayor, and residents to answer their questions, as we have been doing for the past few months, and to talk about how this event will be a great success for them, their country, and the world.

Mr. Speaker, the reports of the environment commissioner are very important to highlight the status of issues and to highlight issues that require attention. We welcome this report.However, let us be clear about what it says. She said that the pan-Canadian framework represented significant progress and looked forward to seeing its implementation. She also said that this was one of the best climate plans that Canada had ever had. We agree. We have a plan to achieve our commitments, and we are committed to doing so.

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives are playing politics once again. It is misleading of them to suggest that if we stopped the funding that is going towards landslide mitigation in Sri Lanka, flood management in the Philippines and irrigation modernization in Indonesia, it would not be good for Canada or for our role in the world.We are going to keep making sound investments by focusing on infrastructure here at home and around the world, investments that help people and promote peace, security and prosperity around the globe.

Mr. Speaker, we on this side of the House are very proud of the support we provide to our farmers. The Conservatives cut nearly $700 million from agriculture budgets, whereas we are investing in hard-working Canadian farmers. We reached a trade agreement with Europe that will increase our agricultural exports by over $1.5 billion per year, and the comprehensive progressive agreement on the trans-Pacific partnership will boost them by over $1 billion a year. We invested $350 million to help dairy producers and processors modernize their operations, and we will always support Canadian farmers.

Mr. Speaker, once again, we see that the Conservative Party is trying to sow division by pitting one part of the country against another. It is this type of irresponsible behaviour that relegated the Conservatives to the opposition benches.The reality is that we are still working with Bombardier to ensure that we have good news from Air Canada, as we saw yesterday, that we are helping families in need, and that we are seeking to make sound investments for the economy and for taxpayers. That is what we are going to do.

Mr. Speaker, I am proud to say that I have tremendous confidence in the intelligence and perspective of Canadians, who will always know how to hold people to account, always know to expect a greater level of openness and transparency. Quite frankly, I think it is good that a prime minister would take questions from all members in the House, not just party leaders. I am pleased to be here more often than my predecessors to take more questions throughout the week. These are the kinds of things that I think make a huge difference. When one takes more questions every week than the predecessors ever have, that is good for democracy.

Mr. Speaker, we recognize the expertise of the workers at the Davie shipyard. They did an excellent job delivering the Asterix. This summer we awarded the Davie shipyard a $610-million contract for three icebreakers and the conversion of a first vessel.When the Conservatives were in power, they excluded the Davie shipyard from the national shipbuilding strategy and all the significant work that entails. Our government continues to support the shipbuilding industry across the country.

Mr. Speaker, once again, the Conservatives demonstrate that they still do not understand anything about getting a good trade deal for Canadians. Wherever we go around the world, we will be demanding a good deal for Canada. We are not going to follow the Conservative Harper doctrine of “any deal”, and capitulation, as a trade strategy. We are going to demand good outcomes for Canadians, on the environment, on labour issues, on a broad range of issues, because that is what Canadians elected us to do.

Mr. Speaker, I want to wish my hon. colleague a happy International Day of La Francophonie. I also want to remind him that the rules of the House allow for committees to set their own agendas and to decide what they will do. It is not up to party leaders to tell committees what to do. On this side of the House, we respect the independence of our committees and we always will.As for pharmacare, we are very proud of the $500 million we have allocated to help families dealing with rare diseases pay for their medications.

Mr. Speaker, I am very proud that we on this side of the House support the work of the parliamentary budget officer. In fact, we gave him a broader mandate and more authority so that he could do his good work. We have always provided him with sound data in order to give his work added strength.As far as the CRA's data is concerned, the Agency has concluded an agreement with the PBO. By the end of the month, the CRA will provide its data to the PBO in a manner geared to protect Canadians' privacy.

Mr. Speaker, we are proud of our Canadian workers and companies. Indeed, we know that they can successfully compete right around the world. Signing trade deals allows us to access procurement opportunities around the world so that we can see things like Bombardier trains in Africa, in Asia and around the world. We will continue to promote the extraordinary quality of the work that is done by Canadian companies around the world. We know that as we engage in trade we create better opportunities for our workers and for all Canadians.

Mr. Speaker, as a government, we recognize just how important the agricultural industry is to our economy; it is even a source of economic growth.We were very happy to approve a protein industries supercluster, which will provide solutions across the country. We remain concerned about dairy producers and farmers in Berthier—Maskinongé. We will work with them, just like we will work to protect farmers across the country.

Mr. Speaker, anything a prime minister or a government must do must be in the interests of Canada and of all Canadians, particularly when it comes to transforming our electoral system. I understand the passion and intensity with which the member opposite believes in this, and many Canadians mirror that passion and intensity, but there is no consensus. There is no sense of how best to do this and, quite frankly, a divisive referendum at this time, an augmentation of extremist voices in the House, is not what is in the best interests of Canada.

Mr. Speaker, the Liberal Party continues to hold open events across the country. This evening, we will hold our Christmas party, which will be attended by 2,500 people coming from all over Canada. The reality is that people do not have to pay any money to win the contest or attend the party. Therefore, there is nothing to reimburse. Inviting people to celebrate the holidays shows openness. My colleague is welcome to attend.

Mr. Speaker, we have a merit-based appointment process in place for choosing the best qualified individuals who reflect the full diversity of our country within this government. We consulted the opposition parties. We held a vote in the House of Commons on officers of Parliament. At each stage we demonstrate how important it is to us to respect the merit-based process for choosing the best people to serve this country.I thank the members across the way for their interest in this strong and independent process.

Mr. Speaker, two years ago, during the election campaign, we committed to re-engage Canadian soldiers in UN peacekeeping missions. We know that it is something that is important to Canadians, and is important to the world, that we be helping out in the best ways we can. That is why we are happy to respond to a direct request from the UN and from our allies to provide logistical and support helicopters to their mission in Mali. We will continue to work with the members opposite to determine the best way to move forward on debate in the House. We look forward to talking about that more in the coming days.

Mr. Speaker, together with our G20 partners, we have committed to phase out inefficient fossil fuel subsidies by the year 2025, and we are on track to meet that target.Canada is able to develop its resources while protecting the environment. That is why we are committed to the Trans Mountain expansion project, which will create thousands of good jobs.We have also made significant investments in our world-class oceans protection plan totalling $1.5 billion.

Mr. Speaker, Canadians have world-class content creators and creative industries. We know that investing in them, and supporting our creators is the best way to ensure not just that Canadians hear our stories but the people around the world understand and hear the stories that Canadians have to tell. We are incredibly proud of the innovative work that our minister of heritage has done to look at the future of broadcasting and creativity, and recognize that we can move forward with strength and pride, relying on the extraordinary capacity of our creators to create great content for the world.