Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe

Mr. Speaker, Procedure · 13 wordswe hear it all the time, but this time it is especially true.ProcedureUnearned certainty Greeting · 12 wordsI am pleased to rise to speak to the long-awaited Bill C‑26.Greeting Claims · 62 wordsIt took a long time to understand the actual impact of Bill C‑26. Even though the bill contains too few details for us to judge, the government refused to provide us with information or answer our questions for two months.² These were two months wasted, and here we are studying the bill under a time allocation only a few days before summer. Positioning · 4 wordsWhat is Bill C‑26?Positioning Reasoning · 16 wordsWith only one clause, a person might think it insignificant, but that is far from true. Claims · 38 wordsThe first subclause of this one-clause bill provides the following: The Minister of Finance may make payments to the provinces and territories, the total of which is equal to $1.‍713 billion, for the purpose of improving housing supply.⁴ Positioning · 9 wordsThis is wonderful, but the second sentence, less so.Positioning Claims · 73 wordsThe amount of each payment is to be determined by the Minister of Finance. The second subclause provides the following: Any amount payable under subsection (1) may be paid by the Minister of Finance out of the Consolidated Revenue Fund at the times and in the manner that the Minister of Finance considers appropriate. The words “at the times and in the manner that the Minister of Finance considers appropriate” carry serious consequences, Procedure · 13 wordsbut I will return to that later. Let us start with the positive.Procedure Claims · 54 wordsBill C-26 finally provides funding that will go directly to the provinces and territories for housing without going through a new federal structure or entity such as Build Canada Homes. Once the bill receives royal assent, the transfer will essentially be unconditional, as long as Quebec and the provinces use it for housing initiatives. Positioning · 5 wordsThat is a good thing.Positioning Claims · 7 wordsThere continue to be acute housing needs, Reasoning · 29 wordsand only a transfer that does not come with unnecessary conditions can get projects off the ground quickly instead of sparking a protracted tug-of-war between Quebec City and Ottawa. Claims · 17 wordsThis means that $1.7 billion will be going directly to provincial governments to support the housing supply.⁵ Reasoning · 15 wordsThat is exactly what the government should have done for all of its housing initiatives, Claims · 28 wordsbecause the housing situation is not the same in Rimouski, Montreal, Val-d’Or, Sept-Îles, Alma, Dolbeau or Roberval. It is even less so from one province to the next. Reasoning · 28 wordsTo claim that a centralized structure in Ottawa can impose a uniform vision that works everywhere is to profoundly misunderstand regional realities and the constitutional division of powers. Claims · 54 wordsWe saw this with the programs managed by the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation. When Ottawa selected projects, Quebec systematically received less than its share. It was only when there was a transfer with an envelope set aside for each province that things went smoothly. I am thinking here of the rapid housing initiative. Procedure · 3 wordsNot only that, ProcedureClaims · 67 wordsbut the Parliamentary Budget Officer estimated in his December report on Build Canada Homes that “[Build Canada Homes] will add about 26,000 units over five years, representing a 2.1 per cent increase in housing completions relative to [the Parliamentary Budget Officer’s] baseline projection.”⁶ An increase of 2.1% as a result of $7.3 billion in spending is a pretty expensive percentage.⁷ It is $3.5 billion to be exact.⁸ Positioning · 20 wordsWe are supposed to believe with these estimates that Ottawa knows better than the provinces when it comes to housing, PositioningClaims · 65 wordswhich, I repeat, is within their own jurisdiction. We would have been quite happy to vote on this bill sooner, if only the government had been transparent and provided us with the details we requested two months ago, instead of dragging its feet as usual. In fact, we have had to keep pressing it for these answers ever since the bill was introduced in March. Positioning · 6 wordsWe know the federal government well.Positioning Claims · 49 wordsI have been an MP for seven years.¹Partly on point When a transfer is announced, it usually comes with strings attached, even when funds are transferred for areas of jurisdiction that are not federal. Details about potential hidden conditions are exactly what we have been trying to obtain for two months, Procedure · 3 wordsas I said.Procedure Claims · 67 wordsThe bill, with its single clause, makes no mention of this. However, it contains this magical phrase, which is magnificent, “at the times and in the manner that the Minister of Finance considers appropriate.”¹³ The press release announcing Bill C-26 was just as vague. It mentioned the build communities strong fund and a “requirement on provinces and territories to reduce development fees and other charges to homebuilding.”¹⁴ Positioning · 30 wordsWhat does that mean, exactly? Is this $1.7 billion part of the build communities strong fund? Is it a mandatory requirement for accessing the fund? Is it simply a guideline?Positioning Claims · 3 wordsNothing is clear. Positioning · 5 wordsWe are in the dark.Positioning Claims · 21 wordsUnfortunately, experience has taught us to be cautious. All too often, vague wording hides requirements that are, in fact, very real. Procedure · 14 wordsBeyond the issue of the terms, there was another equally crucial issue: Quebec’s share.Procedure Claims · 24 wordsWhen nothing is set in black and white for Quebec, we know how it ends.Unearned certainty Quebec is almost always underfunded in federal housing initiatives. Reasoning · 20 wordsThat is why we need a clear guarantee that Quebec will receive at least its share, proportional to its population. Claims · 160 wordsThe second sentence of the bill states that the amount of each payment is to be determined by the minister. That is far from a guarantee. We asked the Minister of Finance and National Revenue about this two weeks ago during the business of supply. He assured us that Quebec would receive its fair share, that the Government of Quebec was aware of the amount and had approved it.³ We are somewhat reassured by that answer, but it took two months to get it. We are nearing the end of this parliamentary session.¹⁵ We are debating under a closure motion.¹⁶ Meanwhile, the situation remains urgent. Housing needs have not diminished, and projects have not progressed any faster. Worse still, this delay comes at a particularly critical time for Quebec. As my colleagues are aware, the October general election in Quebec is fast approaching. Once the election campaign gets under way, the government will be restricted to dealing with day-to-day business. Positioning · 11 wordsWe hope that the Parti Québécois will win the next election.Positioning Aside · 25 wordsI look forward to debating the merits of a referendum on Quebec independence with my colleague from Winnipeg North. This is going to be fun.AsideOff point Procedure · 8 wordsNow, I will get back to my speech.Procedure Claims · 66 wordsIn order to actually get the funding provided for in the bill where it needs to go, Quebec first has to sign an agreement with Ottawa and then it has to sign funding agreements with the municipalities.¹⁷ We are running out of time if we want shovels in the ground this spring, but the Prime Minister’s refusal to discuss the matter has caused a two-month delay. Procedure · 5 wordsI will say it again.Procedure Claims · 22 wordsI do not know how many times I have said that we are two months behind, but that is what is happening. Procedure · 6 wordsI am not making that up.Procedure Claims · 10 wordsBecause of this, we could miss an entire construction season. Procedure · 3 wordsNot only that, ProcedureClaims · 41 wordsbut if we look at the January 21 agreement between Ottawa and Quebec under the Canada housing infrastructure fund, we really do have cause for concern. In that case, the agreement was two years late because Ottawa wanted to impose conditions, ¹⁸Positioning · 9 wordsso that was a job well done, as usual.Positioning Procedure · 7 wordsThere is also cause for concern because, ⁹ProcedureClaims · 17 wordsas my colleague mentioned, Quebec only got about $1 billion, when the total envelope was $6 billion. Aside · 17 wordsMy colleague from Abitibi—Témiscamingue is much smarter than I am, Partly on pointbut we still have the same numbers.Aside Claims · 93 wordsAs he said, that represents 16% of the envelope, which is far less than Quebec’s demographic weight in Canada, which is about 22%. The Union des municipalités du Québec has estimated that Quebec should have received $1.3 billion, ¹⁰but it received $1 billion.¹¹ That means there is a shortfall of $300 million.¹² I am used to speaking in the House. It will soon be seven years. I am used to it.Partly on point I always say that when something is good, we vote for it, and when it is not good, we vote against it. Procedure · 7 wordsI am talking about Quebec, of course.Procedure Promise · 11 wordsIn this case, we will vote in favour of the bill. Claims · 32 wordsWe would have liked to have voted in favour of the bill sooner. We would have liked to have done so following a proper parliamentary and democratic debate, without debate being curtailed. Positioning · 14 wordsI do not understand the government’s position on this matter, and that is unfortunate, PositioningPromise · 17 wordsbut we will be there. We will carry on. We will be there just to be there, Claims · 9 wordsas former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau used to say. Promise · 8 wordsWe will be there just to be there.Off point