“This new fund is just a trick to spend public money on oil and gas projects, like pipelines. I want to know if my colleague from Nova Scotia worries about spending taxpayers' money on fossil fuels instead of public transit, especially when climate change causes rising sea levels in his region.”

“Mr. Speaker, this new fund is clearly a federal gimmick to take public money and invest it in projects such as major LNG projects. The government has already identified some projects. There is also a major pipeline project that the government wants to pursue. However, the investments would not be limited to major projects, but would also go towards all the companies and projects that have already received federal support. This means, for example, that the planned expansion of the Trans Mountain project, which has already cost us $34 billion, could be financed by this fund. I would like to know what my colleague from Nova Scotia thinks, as his region is being hit by rising sea levels due to climate change. Is he concerned that Canada is giving itself a way to take taxpayers’ money and invest even more of it in oil and gas, while cutting funding for public transit and other measures that would actually enable us to reduce our dependence on oil and gas?”

“The government should have consulted the opposition parties before creating this sovereign wealth fund. We had good ideas to share, and the government promised to work with us.”

“Mr. Speaker, my colleague described the sovereign wealth fund as something major, a major step, a major event. That is how the government presented it to us as well. When there is a major event like this, it seems to me that the least the government could have done was to consult the opposition parties. We might have had things to say or suggestions to make. That would have been constructive, especially from a government that had promised to work together with the opposition parties, given that it won its majority in a not very legitimate way.”

“I want the member to answer my question. Does he support spending $25 billion in public money on oil and gas projects that make climate change worse?”

“Mr. Speaker, I asked the hon. member for Kings—Hants a question about the fact that this fund will finance oil and gas projects, even as we face challenges related to climate change. Climate change does not really worry him, though. He says it does, but he did not answer the question. My question was clear. Does my hon. colleague agree with the government taking $25 billion of public money and using it to fund projects involving liquefied natural gas, pipelines or oil sands, or other projects that would increase production? Is it acceptable to use public funds for that, given that these projects contribute to climate change, among other things?”

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“This investment fund is not independent from the government. It will only pay for projects the government has already chosen.”

“Mr. Speaker, I would like to know if my colleague can comment on the fact that this sovereign wealth fund is in no way sovereign, nor is it in any way independent of government. Its purpose will be nothing more than to advance projects this very government already selected in the economic update.”

“The member used to be Quebec's finance minister, and he used to fight for more federal health money for Quebec. In the latest budget update, payments on the federal debt will grow much faster than health transfers to the provinces. I want him to tell us what he thinks about that.”

“Mr. Speaker, my colleague was once part of the Government of Quebec. He was a member of the Quebec National Assembly. He was even the finance minister, so he is very familiar with Quebec’s financial structure and the relationship with Canada in this respect. He was also part of a government that, like every government since the 1990s, fought to ensure that Quebec got its fair share of health transfers. The Government of Quebec advocated strenuously for that. On many occasions, by means of motions adopted unanimously in the Quebec National Assembly, he even criticized Ottawa for failing to pay its fair share. Here are some of the numbers in the economic update. I am not pulling these numbers out of thin air. Health transfers will rise from $54.7 billion in 2025‑26 to $67.5 billion in 2030‑31. Over that same period of time, interest payments on the public debt will climb from $54 billion to $80.9 billion. The rising cost of simply servicing the public debt is greater by far than growth in spending on something as important as health transfers. I would like my colleague to comment on that.”

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“I want the member to explain what he means. He said we should change how health funding goes to the provinces during future talks. What is he actually proposing?”

“Mr. Speaker, I would like to ask my colleague to clarify his thoughts. A few minutes ago, he told us that he believed the mechanism underlying the Canada health transfer to the provinces should be amended during future negotiations at the next federal-provincial meeting. What exactly does my colleague mean? What is he proposing? What is his opinion?”

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“I am asking my colleague about the cost of the sovereign wealth fund. The Bloc Québécois is worried about the lack of transparency. How much public money will go toward paying interest on the $25 billion and paying for the tax credits? What does she think about using public money for oil projects?”

“Mr. Speaker, I would like to draw on my colleague’s expertise in the field of finance. We in the Bloc Québécois are concerned about this sovereign wealth fund. First, public funds are being invested in a framework whose lack of transparency is concerning to us. Has my colleague been able to estimate the total cost of the public funds that will need to be invested in the sovereign wealth fund, particularly to pay the interest on the $25 billion, but also to pay for all the tax credits that could be offered to encourage investment in this fund? Also, what does she think of the notion that public funds will be invested in infrastructure projects, particularly oil-related ones?”