Analysis · Speech on a bill · beta

Greg Fergus

Liberal on Building Canada Strong Act 2026-09-24

972 words · 60 sentences · 71 clauses

Statement grade

B+

Average 84 / 100

A score under 50 is red. Choose a measurement to see where it lost points and why; choose it again to clear.

Anecdote 24%Procedure 3%Claims 26%Reasoning 43%Promise 3%Positioning 1%

This view breaks the statement into its steps and names what each one does.

Madam Speaker, Anecdote · 50 wordsthis is the first time I have risen in the House to give a speech since returning from the summer break. I have put questions to several of my colleagues, but this is the first time I have had the opportunity to rise in the House to present a speech.Anecdote Procedure · 21 wordsI am very pleased to rise during this debate on Bill C-39, an act respecting certain measures to strengthen the economy.¹Procedure Claims · 6 wordsAdmittedly, the bill is rather long. Anecdote · 25 wordsI managed to read it last night and this morning. I have to keep referring back to other existing laws to understand the situation better.AnecdotePartly on point Procedure · 1 wordsHowever, ProcedureAnecdote · 146 wordsas I was reading the bill, an image came to mind. It was a train. I love trains. If I have to choose between flying or taking a train, I always take the train, to go to Montreal, Toronto, Windsor or Quebec City, for example. That has been my preference since I was a young child. It is the best way to travel and get around our great country. However, there is something that I never did as a child or a young adult. I never travelled across the country by train. I had the opportunity to do so when I was 49 years old.² It was very exciting. My adult children and I took the train from Toronto to Vancouver.³ It took four days and it was extraordinary.⁴ I recommend that all my colleagues take advantage of the opportunity to see the country by train.Anecdote Claims · 34 wordsThere is the Canadian train that goes from Toronto to Vancouver, the Ocean train from Halifax to Montreal and between the two, there is the Via Rail fleet that serves the Quebec City-Windsor corridor.⁵ Anecdote · 11 wordsThroughout my journey across the country, I thought about one thing.Anecdote Reasoning · 6 wordsCould we build this railroad today? Claims · 41 wordsHistorians and history teachers know that the Canadian Pacific Railway was basically built in four years, from 1881 to 1885.⁶ Yes, construction started a little earlier, but there were issues. The bulk of the construction was done during those four years. Reasoning · 39 wordsCould we do that today?Off point I readily agree with the member for Berthier—Maskinongé that it is important to have modern standards.Partly on point We are not about to use slaves or workers who are treated like slaves to build the train, Claims · 16 wordsas we did with the Chinese-Canadian population at the time.⁷Off point We have labour standards, thank goodness. Reasoning · 23 wordsIn a modern country, we can build in a responsible manner and in a way that ensures worker safety as much as possible.Partly on point Procedure · 4 wordsThat is very important.Procedure Reasoning · 31 wordsHowever, given these factors, would we be able to do that today? I am not so sure.Off point That is one of the reasons I like the specific provisions in this bill. Claims · 28 wordsWhen a project is proposed and all the information is available, we promise that there will be an assessment and that it will be completed within a year.⁸ Procedure · 5 wordsTo me, that is key.Procedure Reasoning · 149 wordsThings need to change. Everything has become too complex. We are complicating things. Is that really necessary? We do not want to get rid of the standards we have established, including environmental standards or standards related to working conditions. We need to keep those. That being said, can we get organized and accomplish great things together, within a reasonable time frame? I hope that, through this bill, we are saying that we can. I am hoping that with the building Canada strong act, we are able to organize ourselves in a way that allows us to respect all the different elements that we have thought are important as a country, that we have put in our laws, but that we can do so in a reasonable time frame because, and I have to say it and I know we have heard it, we really are living in exceptional times. Claims · 18 wordsNever before have I felt that this country has been threatened in the way that we have been.Partly on point Reasoning · 110 wordsNow it is time for us to put all the elements on our side, to take advantage of all the wealth in people and in natural resources and in our industrial capacity, to build big things. When I say “to build big things”, I want to make it very clear that I do not expect us to derogate from a lot of the important standards we have put in place. Still, can we do that evaluation quickly? Can we do so in respect of the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, ⁹which we have an obligation and a duty to consult and to work with? I think we can. Claims · 94 wordsI think we can get ourselves to that place because, again, from another example in history, another time when Canada felt as serious a challenge was during the Second World War. When we got into the war in 1939, Canada was far from being an industrial powerhouse as a country, ¹⁰¹¹but in a very short period of time, Canadians, recognizing the challenges that we had, came together and organized ourselves properly so that we transformed our entire economy to become a wartime economy. We did so quickly, without taking shortcuts or compromising on quality, Reasoning · 15 wordsbut just saying to ourselves, “The challenge is great.” We have to meet this challenge, Claims · 11 wordsand we have planned accordingly to be able to do so. Reasoning · 14 wordsThis is something I expect from Canada and from all members of the House. Claims · 8 wordsI know we will not agree on everything, Partly on pointReasoning · 9 wordsbut I can only control what I can control.Off point Promise · 25 wordsI want to tell all my colleagues that I will listen to their concerns and support suggestions to improve the bill as much as possible.Vague promise Reasoning · 20 wordsHowever, I do not want that to be used as an excuse to paralyze everything and not do the work. Positioning · 12 wordsPersonally, I think we are all up to the challenge before us.Positioning

At a glance

Lost points for

Switch Claims on to list the checkable claims here.

What the tags mean

Signal · 67

24 of 59 deductions are Signal

Signal checks whether every part makes a point, gives a reason, or asks for action. A low score means the speaker filled time with fluff, pleasantries, or attacks.

A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “this is the first time I have risen in the House to give a speech since returning from the summer break.”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “I have put questions to several of my colleagues,”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “but this is the first time I have had the opportunity to rise in the House to present a speech.”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
Throat-clearing: announcing what you are about to say, or the House’s routine business.What the tags mean “I am very pleased to rise during this debate on Bill C-39, an act respecting certain measures to strengthen the economy.”Procedure or throat-clearing: no claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “I managed to read it last night and this morning.”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “I have to keep referring back to other existing laws to understand the situation better.”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
Throat-clearing: announcing what you are about to say, or the House’s routine business.What the tags mean “However,”Procedure or throat-clearing: no claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “as I was reading the bill, an image came to mind.”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “It was a train.”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “I love trains.”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “If I have to choose between flying or taking a train, I always take the train, to go to Montreal, Toronto, Windsor or Quebec City, for example.”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “That has been my preference since I was a young child.”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “It is the best way to travel and get around our great country.”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “However, there is something that I never did as a child or a young adult.”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “I never travelled across the country by train.”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “I had the opportunity to do so when I was 49 years old.”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “It was very exciting.”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “My adult children and I took the train from Toronto to Vancouver.”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “It took four days and it was extraordinary.”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “I recommend that all my colleagues take advantage of the opportunity to see the country by train.”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “Throughout my journey across the country, I thought about one thing.”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
Throat-clearing: announcing what you are about to say, or the House’s routine business.What the tags mean “That is very important.”Procedure or throat-clearing: no claim, reason or ask.
Throat-clearing: announcing what you are about to say, or the House’s routine business.What the tags mean “To me, that is key.”Procedure or throat-clearing: no claim, reason or ask.
Praise, blame or attack with no claim, reason or ask in it.What the tags mean “Personally, I think we are all up to the challenge before us.”Positioning: praise, blame or attack. No claim, reason or ask.

Relevance · 71

34 of 59 deductions are Relevance

Relevance checks whether the speaker stays on topic and answers the question asked. A low score means the speaker dodged the issue. Measured against the bill under debate.

Staying near the subject without addressing the matter at hand: what was asked, or what the bill, motion or speech is about.What the tags mean “Admittedly, the bill is rather long.”A comment on the bill’s length, not its contents or merits.
Staying near the subject without addressing the matter at hand: what was asked, or what the bill, motion or speech is about.What the tags mean “I managed to read it last night and this morning.”A remark about the member’s reading of the bill, not what it proposes.
Staying near the subject without addressing the matter at hand: what was asked, or what the bill, motion or speech is about.What the tags mean “I have to keep referring back to other existing laws to understand the situation better.”A remark about needing other laws to understand the bill, not about the bill itself.
Talking about something other than the matter at hand: the question asked, or the bill, motion or speech under debate.What the tags mean “as I was reading the bill, an image came to mind.”A personal anecdote about an image of a train, not about the bill.
Talking about something other than the matter at hand: the question asked, or the bill, motion or speech under debate.What the tags mean “It was a train.”Continues the train image, unrelated to the bill’s contents.
Talking about something other than the matter at hand: the question asked, or the bill, motion or speech under debate.What the tags mean “I love trains.”A personal aside about liking trains.
Talking about something other than the matter at hand: the question asked, or the bill, motion or speech under debate.What the tags mean “If I have to choose between flying or taking a train, I always take the train, to go to Montreal, Toronto, Windsor or Quebec City, for example.”Personal travel preferences, not the bill.
Talking about something other than the matter at hand: the question asked, or the bill, motion or speech under debate.What the tags mean “That has been my preference since I was a young child.”A personal aside about childhood preference.
Talking about something other than the matter at hand: the question asked, or the bill, motion or speech under debate.What the tags mean “It is the best way to travel and get around our great country.”A remark about train travel, not the bill.
Talking about something other than the matter at hand: the question asked, or the bill, motion or speech under debate.What the tags mean “However, there is something that I never did as a child or a young adult.”Personal travel history, not the bill.
Talking about something other than the matter at hand: the question asked, or the bill, motion or speech under debate.What the tags mean “I never travelled across the country by train.”Personal travel history, not the bill.
Talking about something other than the matter at hand: the question asked, or the bill, motion or speech under debate.What the tags mean “I had the opportunity to do so when I was 49 years old.”Personal travel history, not the bill.
Talking about something other than the matter at hand: the question asked, or the bill, motion or speech under debate.What the tags mean “It was very exciting.”A personal reaction to a trip, not the bill.
Talking about something other than the matter at hand: the question asked, or the bill, motion or speech under debate.What the tags mean “My adult children and I took the train from Toronto to Vancouver.”Personal travel history, not the bill.
Talking about something other than the matter at hand: the question asked, or the bill, motion or speech under debate.What the tags mean “It took four days and it was extraordinary.”A personal account of a train trip, not the bill.
Talking about something other than the matter at hand: the question asked, or the bill, motion or speech under debate.What the tags mean “I recommend that all my colleagues take advantage of the opportunity to see the country by train.”A recommendation about train travel, not the bill.
Talking about something other than the matter at hand: the question asked, or the bill, motion or speech under debate.What the tags mean “There is the Canadian train that goes from Toronto to Vancouver, the Ocean train from Halifax to Montreal and between the two, there is the Via Rail fleet that serves the Quebec City-Windsor corridor.”A list of Via Rail routes, not the bill.
Talking about something other than the matter at hand: the question asked, or the bill, motion or speech under debate.What the tags mean “Throughout my journey across the country, I thought about one thing.”Leads into the railway anecdote, not the bill.
Talking about something other than the matter at hand: the question asked, or the bill, motion or speech under debate.What the tags mean “Could we build this railroad today?”A historical hypothetical about building a railway, not the bill.
Talking about something other than the matter at hand: the question asked, or the bill, motion or speech under debate.What the tags mean “Historians and history teachers know that the Canadian Pacific Railway was basically built in four years, from 1881 to 1885.”History of the Canadian Pacific Railway, not the bill.
Talking about something other than the matter at hand: the question asked, or the bill, motion or speech under debate.What the tags mean “Yes, construction started a little earlier,”A detail of railway construction history, not the bill.
Talking about something other than the matter at hand: the question asked, or the bill, motion or speech under debate.What the tags mean “but there were issues.”A detail of railway construction history, not the bill.
Talking about something other than the matter at hand: the question asked, or the bill, motion or speech under debate.What the tags mean “The bulk of the construction was done during those four years.”A detail of railway construction history, not the bill.
Talking about something other than the matter at hand: the question asked, or the bill, motion or speech under debate.What the tags mean “Could we do that today?”Continues the railway hypothetical, not the bill.
Staying near the subject without addressing the matter at hand: what was asked, or what the bill, motion or speech is about.What the tags mean “I readily agree with the member for Berthier—Maskinongé that it is important to have modern standards.”Agreement on modern standards in general terms, without addressing the bill’s provisions.
Talking about something other than the matter at hand: the question asked, or the bill, motion or speech under debate.What the tags mean “We are not about to use slaves or workers who are treated like slaves to build the train,”A remark about historical railway labour practices, not the bill.
Talking about something other than the matter at hand: the question asked, or the bill, motion or speech under debate.What the tags mean “as we did with the Chinese-Canadian population at the time.”A historical remark about railway labour, not the bill.
Staying near the subject without addressing the matter at hand: what was asked, or what the bill, motion or speech is about.What the tags mean “We have labour standards, thank goodness.”A general remark about labour standards, not the bill’s provisions.
Staying near the subject without addressing the matter at hand: what was asked, or what the bill, motion or speech is about.What the tags mean “In a modern country, we can build in a responsible manner and in a way that ensures worker safety as much as possible.”A general remark on responsible building and worker safety, not the bill’s measures.
Talking about something other than the matter at hand: the question asked, or the bill, motion or speech under debate.What the tags mean “However, given these factors, would we be able to do that today?”Returns to the railway hypothetical, not the bill.
Talking about something other than the matter at hand: the question asked, or the bill, motion or speech under debate.What the tags mean “I am not so sure.”A remark on the railway hypothetical, not the bill.
Staying near the subject without addressing the matter at hand: what was asked, or what the bill, motion or speech is about.What the tags mean “Never before have I felt that this country has been threatened in the way that we have been.”A remark about threats to the country, touching the bill’s rationale only generally.
Staying near the subject without addressing the matter at hand: what was asked, or what the bill, motion or speech is about.What the tags mean “I know we will not agree on everything,”A remark about disagreement among members, not the bill’s contents.
Talking about something other than the matter at hand: the question asked, or the bill, motion or speech under debate.What the tags mean “but I can only control what I can control.”A personal remark about controlling what one can control.

Respect · 100

0 of 59 deductions are Respect

Respect checks whether the speaker argued with people’s positions and records rather than attacking the people: insults, mockery, or bad motives assigned to them. Criticism of what someone did, however strong, is not marked.

Nothing lost points.

Clarity · 96

1 of 59 deductions are Clarity

Clarity checks for plain speaking, clear ownership of actions, and honest limits on certainty. A low score means vague promises or evasive language.

A promise with no date, no measure and no one responsible.What the tags mean “support suggestions to improve the bill as much as possible”The commitment’s own hedge ‘as much as possible’ sets no measure or success condition for the support.

Claims · 11

This list shows the factual statements you can check for yourself: the words as said, and the claim restated to stand on its own.

1“Bill C-39, an act respecting certain measures to strengthen the economy”Bill C-39, the Building Canada Strong Act, is titled an act respecting certain measures to strengthen the economy.search
2“I had the opportunity to do so when I was 49 years old”Greg Fergus first travelled across Canada by train at age 49.search
3“My adult children and I took the train from Toronto to Vancouver”Greg Fergus and his adult children travelled by train from Toronto to Vancouver.search
4“It took four days”The Toronto-to-Vancouver train trip taken by Greg Fergus and his children took four days.search
5“the Canadian train that goes from Toronto to Vancouver, the Ocean train from Halifax to Montreal and between the two, there is the Via Rail fleet that serves the Quebec City-Windsor corridor”Via Rail’s Canadian runs from Toronto to Vancouver, the Ocean runs from Halifax to Montreal, and Via Rail serves the Quebec City-Windsor corridor.search
6“the Canadian Pacific Railway was basically built in four years, from 1881 to 1885”The bulk of the Canadian Pacific Railway’s construction was carried out from 1881 to 1885.search
7“as we did with the Chinese-Canadian population at the time”Chinese-Canadian workers were treated like slaves during the construction of the Canadian Pacific Railway.search
8“it will be completed within a year”Bill C-39 provides that project assessments will be completed within a year once all information is available.search
9“the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples”Canada has an obligation under the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples to consult and work with Indigenous peoples.search
10“When we got into the war in 1939”Canada entered the Second World War in 1939.search
11“Canada was far from being an industrial powerhouse as a country”At the start of the Second World War in 1939, Canada was far from being an industrial powerhouse.search

Analysed on 2026-10-20