QP: Freeland in a fighting mood

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With the prime minister still away at the Summit of the Americas, his deputy was present once again, though none of the other leaders were. Luc Berthold led off, and he noted that mask mandates were being lifted as were vaccine mandates, except for federal ones, and insisted this was not following science. Chrystia Freeland thanked Canadians for their collective action during the pandemic, noting the second-lowest morality rate from COVID in the G7, and the lowest unemployment in over 50 years, and vaccines were responsible for this. Berthold railed that that she didn’t answer his question, to which Freeland pointed out that it was because of vaccines that the number of hospitalisations and deaths were lower in Canada than the US. Berthold then pivoted to gun crime and complained that the mandatory minimums bill was being “rammed through” Pariament, and Freeland insisted that they were taking concrete actions to limit guns in Canada, and it was absurd to listen to Conservative complaints about it. John Brassard took over in English to say that they agree on measures in the gun control bill around domestic violence and asked to split the bill so that those can pass quickly while they rework the rest of the bill, and Freeland cited that as a member from downtown Toronto and a mother of teenagers, she would never water down their measures. Brassard said they would be putting forward a motion in good faith to split the bill and wanted cooperation, but Freeland called out their false concern for victims of gun crime, and insisted they were not interested in helping them.

Claude DeBellefeuille lead for the Bloc, and she said that the Quebec has a binder full of amendments to the official languages bill because they are the experts in French, but Freeland was not moved to capitulate to the provincial government. DeBellefeuille insisted that the federal government needed to listen to Quebec about protecting French. Freeland agreed that it was an existential issue, that she understands as a Ukrainian-Canadian when it comes to language and culture, but the bill as it stands was “excellent.”

Alexandre Boulerice appeared by video to lead for NDP, demanding action to make life more affordable for families. Freeland agreed that this was an issue, which is why they had concrete measures in place. Jenny Kwan took over in English to make the same demand with added demands around co-op housing, and Freeland noted the government’s investments in co-op housing, before repeating her points about affordability measures. 

Round two, and Dane Lloyd confused “recommendation” and “advice” when it comes to the invocation of the Emergencies Act (Mendicino: The RCMP commissioner said we approached them, got their advice, and went back to them before revoking them), Michael Barrett insisted the government was keeping public health measures up for “political science” (van Koeverden: We have adjusted measures but 1700 people still died last month), Tracy Gray worried that delivery times for RV and boat dealer could not get parts from the US because of vaccine mandates at the border—which makes no sense (van Koeverden: Same answer), and Stephanie Kusie recited a one-act play about vaccine mandates being “punitive” (van Koeverden: Vaccinations remain the best protection).

Kristina Michaud complained that the federal government was creating their own carbon market rather than the existing cap-and-trade system Quebec has with California (Duguid: We are creating market incentives to reduce emissions; We are working on many fronts to reduce emissions).

Gary Vidal worried about gasoline prices and rising food prices in northern Saskatchewan (Freeland: We have concrete affordability measures in the budget), Rod Zimmer worried that an iron mine in Nunavut did not get a new permit (Vandal: Both the company and the local Inuit are at table), and Ryan Williams complained about the labour shortage (Fraser: Let me put this in context and we are increasing immigration approvals faster than before).

Leah Gazan worried about the rising cost of living (Gould: Reciting a script about the Canada Child Benefit), and Laurel Collins demanded “bold” climate action and using our Defence Production Act for clean tech (Duguid: We have a robust emissions reduction plan).

Round three saw questions on a settlement between a woman and Hockey Canada which as not discussed at committee (St-Onge: I want to ensure that no public funds were spent on this and I have orders a financial audit), mandatory minimum sentences (Mendicino: We need Conservatives to stop using dilatory measures so that we can pass our gun control bill; Anandasangaree: We have measures to strengthen penalties in the gun control bill), Quebec claiming they did not get money for policing (Mendicino: We already transferred around $50 million and have an open line of communication), a caregiver work permit being delayed (Fraser: We are processing files faster than ever, but if you have concerns about this specific file, come speak to me), pilots got getting medical certification (Alghabra: Transport Canada is putting in new measures to expedite applications), Passport Canada increasing their timelines (Gould: We are experiencing unprecedented volumes, and need to provide transparent information, and we are not an outlier internationally), front-of-pack labels on packaged meat (van Koeverden: We are concerned with high rates of crippling chronic illness which can be exacerbated by foods high in fat; During consultations, Health Canada did make adjustments to the programme), a barge failing that is required by a remote First Nation (Hajdu: The department is working on this), and homelessness (Hussen: We have invested $562 million on the Reaching Home programme, plus more funds to front-line services).

Overall, it may not have been as loud or rowdy as yesterday, but Chrystia Freeland was in more of a fighting mood, and had much more pointed responses, particularly around the gun crimes bill, and the Conservatives’ sudden request to split the bill to deal with the domestic violence provisions separately—entirely so that it won’t let the Liberals say “Hey, we had this bill with domestic violence provisions and you killed it.” It’s political for both sides, so I get it, and the Liberals are under no obligation to give the Conservatives a win, even under the guise of “cooperation” and acting in good faith (because it’s unlikely to be good faith in reality). Freeland has also been a bit more solid in listing actual affordability measures like their working tax credit and indexed benefits, and not just pointing to child care and dental care which doesn’t affect most people.

Otherwise, there was one particular exchange that was a bit…greasy, which was this denunciation of Hockey Canada giving an out-of-court settlement after a sexual assault. While this was a serious issue, the Conservatives were trying to use it as a dilatory motion in the Heritage Committee instead of the online broadcasting bill, and this question was an attempt to publicly shame the Liberals for not letting this go forward. It’s skeezy, and good on Pascale St-Onge for calling it out in her second response on the question. I would also point out the Dane Lloyd vs Marco Mendicino exchange, in which Lloyd gave a torqued misquote and Mendicino weaselled about his previous statements on the subject, and it just left everyone feeling dirty. These were not good moments today, and nobody should feel any pride in them.

Sartorial speaking, snaps go out to Adam van Koeverden for a tailored navy suit with a white shirt and a light blue bow tie and pocket square, and to Arielle Kayabaga for a powder blue jacket over a black top and slacks. Style citations go out to Pam Damoff for a dark green dress with a tight floral pattern, and to Arif Virani for a tan suit jacket with a white shirt, black tie and slacks, and a navy pocket square.