Omar Alghabra

[Tourism Industry, May 30th, 2022]

Mr. Speaker, the last two years have been very difficult on Canadians. The pandemic, a once-in-a-hundred-years event, has caused significant disruptions to our businesses and to our lives. Our government was there helping small businesses and supporting Canadians during a very uncertain period. We will continue to do whatever it takes to protect Canadians. We are glad to see businesses come back to normal. We are glad to see the economy is booming. We are glad to see unemployment at the lowest record in history. We will continue to support Canadians.

[Air Transportation, May 30th, 2022]

Mr. Speaker, I know how frustrating delays at airports have been for Canadians and travellers. It is something that we are taking very seriously. We are witnessing similar phenomena across the world. Airports all over the world are experiencing this, but we are taking action. We hired over 400 CATSA employees. We have convened CBSA, CATSA, airports and airlines to work together on bottlenecks to address this. We are investing in resources. We are addressing procedures. We want to make sure that every Canadian is able to travel safely and efficiently.

[Airline Industry, May 16th, 2022]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians, especially those who work in the tourism industry, saw how the government stood by them during the difficult period of the pandemic. They saw how the political opposition from the Conservatives was against providing support to those who needed it.

We will always be supporting our tourism sector. We are all excited about the travel season coming up. Canadians are travelling. We are doing everything we can to address these lineups. We are working with airports. We are working with the airline sector, and we are working with CATSA to address these issues.

[Airline Industry, May 16th, 2022]

Mr. Speaker, it is not a surprise that a Conservative member of Parliament would repackage and misinform Canadians about what I said. Having said that, it is really important to acknowledge the good news today, which is that more and more Canadians are travelling. That is good news.

We are seeing that the surge for the demand to travel is putting a lot of pressure on our airports and our security systems. We are making sure that we increase resources. We are working with airports. We are working with airlines to address this issue. This is a priority.

[Rail Transportation, May 10th, 2022]

Mr. Speaker, the issue of rail traffic is of incredible importance to our government. We have been there for businesses, for shippers, for farmers and for producers, to ensure that they have the services they need so that they can sell internally, domestically and around the world.

I have written to CN and CP to express the frustrations I have been hearing from shippers and farmers, to ensure that they know that the government cares about an excellent delivery record and safety record. We will be there supporting our farmers as they deliver their products to market.

[Health, May 10th, 2022]

Mr. Speaker, the good news is that more Canadians want to travel, want to go on trips and want to visit family, and we are seeing large volumes at airports. We are working on these delays.

Yesterday I met with the CEO of CATSA. We struck a working group a few weeks ago to address these issues and work quickly to address the surge in demand.

We are seeing surges across the entire economy. Our government is responsive. We are working proactively to address these issues as quickly as possible.

[Health, May 10th, 2022]

Mr. Speaker, let me start with the good news first. More Canadians are travelling today than in the last two years. It is good for tourism—

[Rail Transportation, May 9th, 2022]

Mr. Speaker, let me share with the hon. colleague and all Canadians the excellent news. We are investing in Via to increase public transportation for Canadians. One of the largest investments in Canada's history is the high-frequency rail that is going to connect Quebec and Ontario. We are also investing in other routes in the country. We are committed to supporting rail across the country, either through Infrastructure Canada or through Transport Canada. We look forward to working with our colleagues on delivering on that.

[Marine Transport, May 6th, 2022]

Madam Speaker, my colleague, the Minister of Public Safety, and I are working closely to ensure that we are returning to normal as quickly as possible. We are ensuring that communities are safe and have the resources they need to access the businesses they had. I know it has been difficult over the past two years. Canadians have demonstrated a commitment to each other and to working together closely to ensure that everyone is safe, and that our economy is rebounding as quickly as possible.

[Marine Transport, May 6th, 2022]

Madam Speaker, I want to thank my hon. colleague for his question and his advocacy on behalf of his constituents.

The pandemic has caused a lot of disruptions to many of our marine and other travelling sectors. As we have demonstrated from the beginning to Canadians, we have been there to support Canadians and Canadian businesses throughout this difficult period. As we are turning the corner from the pandemic, we are adjusting our measures and working with community stakeholders to ensure that we return to normal as quickly as possible.