Alain Therrien

[Finance, December 16th, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, we already knew that between 20 and 40 Liberal members no longer had confidence in the Prime Minister. We also knew that eight ministers were leaving the Liberal ship.

Today, the finance minister chose to step down rather than present the economic update. She stated in black and white that she disagrees with the Prime Minister on the best path forward for Canada. She, too, is saying that she no longer has confidence in the Prime Minister.

We are watching the Liberal government crumble before our eyes, and it really is not a pretty sight.

Will the Prime Minister call an election?

[Justice, December 9th, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, Quebec is a welcoming society that opens its arms to those who choose to integrate.

Successful integration is dependent on everyone sharing values that unite us and bring us closer together, such as gender equality, separation of religion and state, French as a common language and the right to love whoever we want.

Canadian multiculturalism preaches the opposite: no need to integrate, no need to adhere to any values, no need to change.

Does the federal government realize that multiculturalism hinders the integration of new Quebeckers and our ability to live together in harmony in Quebec?

[Justice, December 9th, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, Saint‑Maxime school has made the news with prayers in class, homophobic comments and students resisting sex education.

The Government of Quebec has had enough of attacks on secularism. It is calling on Ottawa to repeal the religious exemption in the Criminal Code and wants to strengthen Bill 21 on secularism.

In Ottawa, it is the exact opposite. The federal government is challenging Bill 21. It is waffling when it comes to the religious exemption. First it is going to get rid of it, and then it is not going to get rid of it. Ottawa is doing nothing at all to defend state secularism.

When will the government stop undermining secularism in Quebec?

[International Trade, December 5th, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, things are not moving fast enough. There are two possible explanations why senators have failed to complete their review of a one-clause bill after 18 months: either they are due for retirement or they are thumbing their noses at us. By “us”, I am not just referring to the parties in the House. They are also thumbing their noses at the supply-managed farmers of Quebec and Canada and the 90,000 Quebec jobs that depend on them. These people deserve some reassurance before the holiday season.

On behalf of our farmers, will all the parties ask the senators to get a move on before the Christmas break?

[International Trade, December 5th, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, this may come as a surprise: The Senate is taking its sweet time with Bill C‑282, the bill to protect supply management. The wise ones in the upper chamber have had this single-clause bill for 18 months now. It has taken them 18 months to look at one clause. Meeting after meeting, they keep postponing the vote on a crucial amendment. They are trying to put this off until after the holidays.

Will all the party leaders tell the senators to stop stalling and vote to pass Bill C‑282 before Christmas?

[Lucille Riendeau‑Houle, December 4th, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, today I wish to pay tribute to Lucille Riendeau‑Houle, a writer and genealogist from my community.

After focusing on raising her children, Ms. Riendeau‑Houle chose to tell her story, not through her own history, but through that of her ancestors. She used her immense talent to write seven books chronicling the histories of the Reguindeau, Riendeau, Hubert and Lesage families. They open up a portal to our past, reminding us what life was like for the brave and determined people who built our communities.

Thanks to her books, which have been sold in the United States and as far afield as Europe, she won the Quebec Lieutenant Governor's Medal in 2022 for her contribution to our genealogy and for her community involvement with J'écris ma vie and the Fondation Anna‑Laberge. At age 82, despite fighting cancer, she continues to write every day to keep the memory of our ancestors alive.

On behalf of the Bloc Québécois, I want to thank Ms. Riendeau‑Houle and commend her for her outstanding contribution to sharing the history of Quebec, our history.

[Points of Order, December 2nd, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order, but it is not related to the previous topic.

As we know, part of the Speaker's job is to maintain order in the House. I know it is not always easy, especially these days, and I know our friends in the NDP sit far away from the Speaker. However, they do sit very close to us, and they often protest very loudly. We are having a hard time hearing the interpretation. They are disturbing us. I would ask you, Mr. Speaker, to pay attention to what is happening in that corner of the House, because it is making things difficult for us.

[Seniors, December 2nd, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, if I have to choose between the minister and the Auditor General, I am going to believe the Auditor General every time.

The Auditor General has shown that the federal government does not know whether its programs really meet seniors' needs. The Liberals do know because they have no evidence. They do not know this, but they claim to know that seniors aged 65 to 74 are too wealthy to deserve a 10% pension increase. That much they know. They also know that retirees are far too wealthy to deserve a $250 cheque, even though it is being offered to people earning up to $150,000 a year. That much they know.

Do they also know that seniors are disgusted about being treated with such contempt?

[Seniors, December 2nd, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, the Auditor General's report proves that the Liberals really do not care about seniors. Consider this. The federal government has no idea whether its programs, like old age security, are actually meeting people's needs. The Liberals do not know whether the indexing formula for OAS corresponds to the actual inflation rate. They do not have any data on whether more needs to be done for seniors. If they do get any data, like the data from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, that prove that their national housing strategy is failing seniors, they just shelve it.

How do they justify having the temerity to lecture seniors? How do they justify telling seniors that they are too rich to deserve more help?

[Border Security, November 28th, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, better late than never. The Liberals have finally clued in to the fact that resources need to be increased at the border. However, they are still unable to tell us exactly when, how and by how much.

This is incredibly serious because, less than two months from now, Donald Trump is going to slap tariffs on the entire Canadian economy. The Liberals do not even have two months left to plug all the holes in the border, yet, until last night, they did not even know there was an issue.

Today, now that they have finally seen the light, can they explain their detailed plan?