Mr. Speaker, it has been nearly six months since the order was given by the House demanding the Liberal government provide documents regarding conflicts with Sustainable Development Technology Canada's board of directors. For the last two and a half months, the chamber has been in the midst of the longest privilege debate this place has ever seen. Why is that? The reason is not complicated: The Liberal government has refused to honour its obligation, as affirmed by the House, to produce unredacted documents related to the $400-million green slush fund scandal.
It can be tempting to look at this issue from only a procedural lens, but that would be a mistake. This is not just a procedural issue; it strikes at the very core of the democratic accountability of this country. Government transparency is paramount to the functioning of our democracy. This principle is not just a matter of political theory but the foundation upon which trust between Canadians and their elected officials is built. Without it, confidence in public institutions erodes, governance fails and the needs of everyday Canadians are ignored.
The ruling of the Speaker was clear: the government must produce these documents. The House has the authority to compel the production of documents, persons or papers, yet for two and a half months, the Liberal government has defied this directive by withholding critical information. That is just the time we have been speaking about this in the House. It disrespects not only the will of the members of the House but also every single Canadian we have the honour of representing. In this place, we are their voices. When we ask for transparency and accountability from the government on their behalf, the government should recognize the full weight of responsibility it has, not only to the House but also to the Canadians we represent.
In response to the order from the Speaker, the Liberal government provided heavily redacted documents, which is not in the spirit of what was requested and is not enough. What we need, and what Canadians deserve, are the full, unredacted records so they can be handed over to the appropriate authorities for thorough investigation.
This scandal is staggering in its scope. We are talking about $400 million of taxpayers' money funnelled into a so-called green initiative that enriched Liberal-appointed board members. There were 186 documented conflicts of interest, where individuals on this board voted on decisions that directly benefited their own financial interests. That is almost equivalent to one conflict every other day last year.
The situation surrounding Sustainable Development Technology Canada, or SDTC, is a clear example of the need for greater government accountability. SDTC was a Crown corporation funded entirely by taxpayers. Its mandate was to promote the development and commercialization of clean technologies and contribute to environmental sustainability. In theory, SDTC was an organization that should have been helping to build a greener, more sustainable future for Canada. Instead, we see an organization where the scale of corruption is mind-boggling.
To put $400 million into perspective, it is the annual federal income tax paid by around 22,000 hard-working Canadian families. These families sacrifice their time and energy to pay their dues, believing their money will be used to improve their lives and communities. Instead, it went to enrich a select few Liberal insiders. That is not just mismanagement; it is a betrayal of public trust and we should not turn a blind eye to it. However, the most troubling part of this scandal is not the misallocation of taxpayers' dollars; it is the fact that despite these findings, the Liberal government has failed to act. The House issued an order for the production of documents related to this scandal that could help uncover the full extent of the wrongdoing and hold those responsible to account, yet the government has refused to comply.
The Auditor General is an essential part of our system of checks and balances. This independent officer of Parliament is tasked with reviewing government operations and ensuring that public funds are spent wisely and ethically. The Auditor General's office gives Canadians an impartial, thorough examination of government activities, often uncovering serious issues of mismanagement, waste or misconduct that would otherwise remain hidden. It is the job of the House to take those findings seriously, to examine them and to demand accountability from those who are entrusted with managing public resources.
The Auditor General's work is not only about finding faults but also about protecting Canadians. When the Auditor General raises a red flag, it is the responsibility of the government to respond with transparency, to take corrective action and to ensure public funds are being spent appropriately.
The Auditor General looked at the operations of Sustainable Development Technology Canada after a whistle-blower came forward. She conducted a thorough investigation and ultimately highlighted some troubling findings. She determined that the whistle-blower complaints were rooted in serious issues within SDTC; shockingly, her investigation uncovered nearly 400 million dollars' worth of contracts that were inappropriately awarded to members of the board of directors, all of whom had multiple conflicts of interest.
Despite the Auditor General's finding and the grave nature of the issues uncovered, we see a government that continues to ignore its responsibility. The Liberal government has failed to comply with House orders, obstructed investigations and protected insiders who have violated public trust. This cannot continue. In recent months, Canadians have witnessed a troubling pattern of obfuscation and avoidance from the government. Time and again, legitimate requests for accountability have been met with redacted documents, shifting narratives and outright refusals. This has to end.
We owe it to Canadians to bring transparency back to governance, to hold those in power accountable and to get the House back to working on the issues that matter most to Canadians. It should be addressing the affordability crisis, getting more houses built, stopping crime and restoring public safety, to name just a few of these issues.
The reality is that many questions about what happened remain unanswered. Why has the Liberal government left the House paralyzed for two months, allowing no significant progress on the legislation? Why are they willing to forgo their own agenda in a minority parliament, in which time is critical? The only logical conclusion is that the truth buried in these documents is worse than a stalled legislative agenda. It must be very bad for the government to risk so much to keep it hidden.
This is not the first time the Liberals have resorted to such tactics. When faced with the WE Charity scandal, they prorogued Parliament. When questions arose about their poor management of security at the Winnipeg microbiology lab, they called an election to avoid releasing documents. Time and time again, they have chosen evasion rather than accountability. It is not a stretch to conclude that this is what is happening now. This has brought us to the place where we are today.
Let us continue with the matter at hand: the mismanagement of Sustainable Development Technology Canada, or as many Canadians know it, the green slush fund. Because the Liberals are the ones who brought this forward, maybe it should be called the red slush fund. Established to foster innovation in sustainable technologies, SDTC was a promising initiative. However, under the government's watch, it has devolved into a symbol of cronyism and corruption.
The Auditor General's investigation into SDTC uncovered staggering governance failures: $400 million in contracts tainted by conflicts of interest, $123 million misappropriated, $59 million awarded to ineligible projects and $12 million handed out in outright conflicts of interest. Board members awarded funding to companies they owned or had financial stakes in. Public officials sat idly by as they witnessed 96 conflicts of interest.
Despite whistle-blowers' raising alarms, the government dragged its feet in addressing these issues. This is not just mismanagement; it is a betrayal of the public trust. The damage done to the public trust is immeasurable. When we demand transparency in the handling of these funds, this is not an exercise in political theatre. It is an effort to get justice for Canadians, who work hard every day, pay their taxes and expect their government to manage those funds responsibly.
How has the government responded? It has refused to comply with House orders to produce unredacted documents, thereby impeding a criminal investigation; this obstruction is completely unacceptable. Transparency is not a partisan issue. It is not right versus left. It is not Conservatives versus NDP-Liberals. It is a democratic necessity that is part of how our system works and how trust in the system is fostered.
A government that does not believe it is accountable to the people it is supposed to be serving will inevitably behave according to its beliefs. The Liberal government does not believe it owes Canadians transparency, so it denies them access to information about how their tax dollars are being spent. This principle carries into other aspects of governance. If the Liberals do not believe they must be accountable to Canadians on this matter, they certainly will not act any differently on other issues before us. We see the evidence of this today. Canadians are paying the price for the government's failures.
We can consider the state of affordability in this country. The cost of living has skyrocketed under the Liberal government. Housing costs have doubled, food prices have soared, and gas and home heating are more expensive than ever. Food banks are overwhelmed. Over two million Canadians visited food banks in March alone, for a shocking 90% increase since 2019. Families are skipping meals and buying less-nutritious food. Seniors on fixed incomes and children now make up a significant portion of those seeking help. This is a grim reality for far too many of our communities. This troubling trend proves true in my riding, where the Samaritan House food bank saw nearly 2,000 more people accessing their services in the last two years. Four in every 10 are children, and one in every 10 is a senior.
Meanwhile, the Liberal government is preparing to quadruple the carbon tax to 61¢ per litre, 19%, driving up costs across the board. From the farmer who grows our food to the trucker who delivers it, every step of the supply chain is burdened by the tax; the costs are passed on to consumers. Canadians cannot afford these increases, yet the government continues to prioritize ideology over the real needs of families and individuals.
The housing crisis is another glaring failure of the government. Over the past nine years, housing costs have doubled. Where it once took 39% of household income to cover the costs of a home, today it takes nearly 60%. This is not sustainable. Young Canadians, many of whom should be looking forward to buying their first homes, are instead stuck living with their parents or renting indefinitely. For some, home ownership has become a distant dream.
The leader of the official opposition has proposed a common-sense solution: axing the federal GST on the construction of new homes priced under a million dollars. This policy would save Canadian homebuyers up to $50,000 per home and generate 30,000 additional homes annually, stimulating the economy at the same time.
Why does the government refuse to implement such practical measures? Is it because it is too focused on defending its record of failure to consider solutions? Canadians deserve better.
Let us turn to crime for a moment. After nine years of the NDP-Liberal government, our once-safe towns and cities have become rife with crime and chaos. According to a new report, between 2014 and 2022, violent crime in Canada increased by 43.8%. This means that Canada's violent crime rate is 14% higher than that of the United States. On top of this, between 2014 and 2022, the property crime rate in Canada increased by 7%; it is 27% higher than the property crime rate in the U.S., which declined by 24.1% in the same years. On top of that, the number of property crimes in Canada was lower than that in the United States until the Prime Minister was elected in 2015.
Homicides are also up in Canada, increasing by 53.5% between 2014 and 2022. Online criminal behaviour is still rampant, including online crimes targeting children, yet the Liberals' only response has been to table two censorship bills forcing Canadians into a false choice between their safety and free expression. Behind these statistics are real people. There are families torn apart by loss, communities grappling with fear and victims left without justice. What has the Liberals' response been? It has been a radical catch-and-release policy that puts repeat violent offenders back on the streets.
Canadians deserve safe communities where children can play in parks without fear and seniors can walk home from the grocery store without looking over their shoulders. The Conservative plan is clear: It is to end the catch-and-release policies and impose jail, not bail, for repeat violent offenders. Only common-sense Conservatives will do this.
Let us consider the government's environmental record, especially in light of SDTC's failure to manage taxpayers' dollars for the promotion of green technology ethically and responsibly. Over nine years, the government claims to have spent $100 billion on climate initiatives, yet the results are abysmal. Canada remains the only G7 country whose emissions have increased since the Paris Agreement. The only meaningful drops in emissions occurred during the global financial crisis and the COVID-19 lockdowns, circumstances unrelated to any government policy.
Let us talk about the net-zero accelerator fund, an $8-billion initiative. Even the Auditor General found no evidence that this spending led to any measurable reductions in greenhouse gas emissions. This is not just inefficiency; it is negligence. Canadians deserve accountability for every dollar spent, particularly when the stakes are as high as our environment and future.
The Liberals have tried to distract Canadians with a temporary, two-month tax cut and a $250 cheque set to arrive next April, which they have now reneged on. These are not solutions. They are gimmicks. What Canadians need is real, lasting relief. The Conservative plan to permanently axe the carbon tax on everything forever and remove GST on new home construction would provide meaningful support to families.
I raise all these issues because they are important for all of us to see in the House. They are important to the people who sent us here. The House has work to do, and Canadians are counting on us to address the issues that have an impact on their daily lives. However, we find ourselves paralyzed by the Liberal government's refusal to be transparent and accountable. Transparency is the first step toward rebuilding trust. When the government hides behind redactions and delays, it sends a clear message to Canadians that it has something to hide.
The House cannot and should not turn a blind eye to such issues as the $400-million green, or red, slush fund scandal. Canadians deserve better. They deserve a government that is transparent, accountable and focused on their well-being, not one that hides behind redactions and procedural games.
The SDTC scandal, with its conflicts of interest, mismanagement and failure to follow the law, is just the latest in a long line of troubling episodes. Instead of taking responsibility, the Liberal government continues to deflect, obfuscate and delay. Ministers refuse to provide the necessary documents to investigators, and government departments continue to withhold information from the public and the police.
This kind of behaviour sends a dangerous message to Canadians: Those in power are not accountable to the people who elected them, and they can break the law without consequence. This is not just one scandal or one issue. It is about ensuring that the government works for the people, not insiders and political cronies. It is about making sure that every dollar spent is accounted for and that public funds are used wisely and effectively. It is about ensuring that those who violate the public's trust are held responsible for their actions, no matter their political affiliation.
I call on the government to end the cover-up and release the unredacted documents related to SDTC. Canadians have a right to know how their money is spent and who benefited from this mismanagement.
