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Business of Supply

This was a Business of Supply debate taking place during consideration of the government’s recent economic update legislation. Conservatives pressed the Finance Minister on deficit spending, asking when the budget would be balanced, how many homes are being built, the costs of a planned sovereign wealth fund, and details of specific spending items such as a spaceport lease, while repeatedly saying the minister was not answering their questions. Liberals defended the government’s record, saying the economy is strong, the deficit is lower than expected, and housing prices and rents have come down. The Bloc Québécois asked about the exemption of American companies from the global minimum tax in Bill C-31 and about wage subsidies for workers affected by tariffs, and the NDP asked why the government is not taxing oil company excess profits or banning surveillance pricing. Some members also raised local matters such as support for regional media.Written by AI from the debate. Updated .

Official text

201 statements

Carlos Leitão

Liberal
“The International Monetary Fund had good things to say about Canada's economy. I want to know how the minister uses that praise when speaking with foreign leaders and investors.”
Official Hansard

Mr. Chair, the International Monetary Fund released its annual report a short time ago, which includes very encouraging remarks about Canada and the Canadian economy, despite the cloud of uncertainty hanging over the global economy. The IMF had some really positive things to say about us. When the minister is abroad, speaking with his counterparts and with investors looking to invest here, what advantage does he get out of the fact that the IMF has such high praise for Canada?

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François-Philippe Champagne

Liberal
“The International Monetary Fund says Canada has the strongest public finances in the G7. Our economy is growing faster than almost all other G7 countries. The opposition should cheer for Canada's success.”

  • Reply to a debate question

    Signal 42 of 100

    Much of this statement went to praise, blame, greetings, routine procedure or general stories rather than reasons, requests or specific points.

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Official Hansard

Mr. Chair, it fills my heart with joy because, here in the House, we often hear the opposition criticizing the government, but when it comes to the International Monetary Fund, we know that it looks at global economies and offers an informed and impartial assessment. In that regard, it can be said that the International Monetary Fund has held up Canada as an example of a country with the strongest public finances in the G7. We can imagine the growth of these countries. I will simply provide a few figures. Canada has the second-fastest growth in the G7. Italy is at 0.5%, Japan is at 0.7%, Germany and the U.K. are at 0.8%, and France is at 0.9%. Meanwhile, Canada stands at 1.5%. Some hon. members: Hear, hear! Hon. François-Philippe Champagne: Mr. Chair, even my Conservative colleagues should be applauding this evening. I know it is a bit late, but they still have enough energy to cheer on Canada and the resilience of our economy, our workers and our industries. It is a pleasure to build Canada strong together and to build the strongest economy in the G7.

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Carlos Leitão

Liberal
“I support the new Canada Strong investment fund. I want the minister to tell us more about it.”

  • Question or comment in debate

    Signal 40 of 100

    Much of this statement went to praise, blame, greetings, routine procedure or general stories rather than reasons, requests or specific points.

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Official Hansard

Mr. Chair, the economic update includes many measures, but I would like to focus on one in particular and ask the minister if he can comment on it. Unfortunately, we do not have much time. I am thinking in particular of the investment fund, the Canada Strong fund, which I think is an excellent idea. Could the minister comment on that?

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François-Philippe Champagne

Liberal
“I support our plan for a national wealth fund. It gives ordinary Canadians a way to invest in our country and share in the wealth we create.”

  • Reply to a debate question

    Signal 42 of 100

    Much of this statement went to praise, blame, greetings, routine procedure or general stories rather than reasons, requests or specific points.

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  • Reply to a debate question

    Clarity 48 of 100

    Much of this statement used imprecise wording, lacked details on timing or responsibility, or made broad claims without support.

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Official Hansard

Mr. Chair, 30 seconds is not very long, because building Canada strong obviously requires a strong team Canada, a strong team of workers who will build this country. The sovereign wealth fund is a unique opportunity to build collective wealth, but in a very Canadian way, since it will enable ordinary people, that is, individual investors, to invest in and own part of this collective wealth that we are going to create together. I think it is a great initiative. It is typical of Canada to want to build. That is why we want to build Canada strong for all.

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François-Philippe Champagne

Liberal
“I followed all the legal rules about this.”
Official Hansard

Mr. Chair, I am pleased to inform my colleague that I have complied with all legal requirements regarding this matter.

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François-Philippe Champagne

Liberal
“I followed all the rules under the law. I will answer questions about this when I speak to the committee in the coming weeks.”
Official Hansard

Mr. Chair, as I said, I have complied with all the rules under the law. I will have the opportunity to testify before the Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics in the coming weeks, and I will be happy to answer any questions my colleagues may have when I appear before the committee.

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François-Philippe Champagne

Liberal
“The ethics commissioner wrote to me saying that, as finance minister, I have no power over hiring or staffing decisions at Alto.”
Official Hansard

Mr. Chair, I would like to quote an excerpt from the letter written by the Office of the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner on April 7, 2026: Alto is a Crown corporation accountable to Parliament through the Minister of Transport, and as Minister of Finance, you have no decision-making authority over matters of human resources at Alto; you do not have the opportunity to further the interest—

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François-Philippe Champagne

Liberal
“The ethics commissioner said I had no conflict of interest and did not need to step away from decisions. I decided to step away anyway to be safe. I will explain this to the ethics committee soon.”
Official Hansard

Mr. Chair, allow me to finish quoting the letter, which says that “there is no risk of conflict of interest and that a screen is not required.” Those are the words of the Office of the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner. However, in the interest of integrity, I took it upon myself to proactively implement a screen. I will have the opportunity to explain myself before the Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics in the coming weeks.

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François-Philippe Champagne

Liberal
“I followed all the rules required by law, and I followed the screen that was put in place.”
Official Hansard

Mr. Chair, as I said, I followed all the rules required by law, and of course I complied with the screen that was put in place.

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François-Philippe Champagne

Liberal
“I followed all the ethics rules and laws.”

  • Reply to a debate question

    Relevance 49 of 100

    None of this reply addressed the specific point raised or the topic under debate.

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Official Hansard

Mr. Chair, as I said, I followed all the rules under the law and I complied with the screen that was put in place.

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François-Philippe Champagne

Liberal
“The ethics commissioner wrote to me on April 7 and said I have no conflict of interest. I put up an ethics screen anyway just to be safe.”
Official Hansard

Mr. Chair, allow me once again to quote from the letter for the benefit of my colleague. He is an experienced man. I think he is even a lawyer. It comes from the Office of the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner and it is dated April 7̓. It says that “there is no risk of conflict of interest and that a screen is not required.” In addition, I proactively put a screen in place to avoid any appearance of a conflict of interest.

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François-Philippe Champagne

Liberal
“The ethics commissioner confirmed that I have no power over Alto. It reports to the Minister of Transport, not to me as the Minister of Finance.”

  • Reply to a debate question

    Relevance 100 of 100

    Of this reply, 100% addressed the question or point raised.

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Official Hansard

Mr. Chair, I would like to quote those words again because all manner of allegations can be made in this House, but what matters is the truth. The truth is in a message sent on April 7, 2026, by the Office of the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner, which states, “Alto is a Crown corporation accountable to Parliament through the Minister of Transport, and as Minister of Finance, you have no decision-making authority”—

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François-Philippe Champagne

Liberal
“The ethics commissioner told me I have no control over hiring at Alto. Because of that, there is no conflict of interest.”

  • Reply to a debate question

    Relevance 47 of 100

    None of this reply addressed the specific point raised or the topic under debate.

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Official Hansard

Mr. Chair, I will continue my quote: “...you have no decision-making authority over matters of human resources at Alto; you do not have the opportunity to further the interest of any specific Alto employee”. I was also told that there is no risk of conflict of interest and that a screen is not required. That is what I was told by the Office of the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner.

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François-Philippe Champagne

Liberal
“I sent the letter to the ethics commissioner. I have followed all the rules, and I will keep following them. Everyone in the House must follow the same rules.”
Official Hansard

Mr. Chair, the letter in question was forwarded to the Office of the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner. As I said, I have complied with all the rules under the law. I will continue to do so, as I am required to do and as my colleagues in the House are required to do. We are all subject to the same rules here in the House.

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François-Philippe Champagne

Liberal
“The member should be careful about the claims he is making against other members and their families.”

  • Reply to a debate question

    Relevance 10 of 100

    None of this reply addressed the specific point raised or the topic under debate.

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  • Reply to a debate question

    Signal 0 of 100

    Much of this statement went to praise, blame, greetings, routine procedure or general stories rather than reasons, requests or specific points.

    See full analysis
Official Hansard

Mr. Chair, my colleague is an experienced man. He is a very talented parliamentarian, but he is making a lot of allegations. I know that his legal training should lead him to be cautious in what he says and in the allegations he makes against his colleagues, who are all honourable members of the House, as well as their families.

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François-Philippe Champagne

Liberal
“I followed all the rules under the law. I am answering the member's questions and will speak to the ethics committee. We should treat each other with respect, and the member should be careful about what he accuses me of.”

  • Reply to a debate question

    Relevance 28 of 100

    None of this reply addressed the specific point raised or the topic under debate.

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Official Hansard

Mr. Chair, I want to get back to this point because I have been a member of the House for 12 years. I believe that my colleague has been a member for over 10 years as well. We all deserve respect. We all have the right to treat each other honourably. I have conducted myself in an honourable manner. I am answering his questions. I told him that I complied with all the rules under the law and that I would testify before the Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics. I think my colleague should be careful about the allegations he makes.

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François-Philippe Champagne

Liberal
“I do not understand why the member is asking this. The information is already public, and he can look it up himself.”
Official Hansard

Mr. Chair, I do not understand the nature of the question. If my colleague already has the answer, I do not see the point of asking. As he says, if the information is in the public domain, he will have the opportunity to obtain all the information he needs. We are here to answer any questions, but when it comes to questions involving information that is in the public domain, I believe my colleague is capable of obtaining it.

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François-Philippe Champagne

Liberal
“I have always treated other members of Parliament with respect, and they deserve it. I follow all the rules that the law requires, and I will keep doing that.”
Official Hansard

Mr. Chair, like all my colleagues here, in the years I have served in the House, I have always treated my colleagues with the utmost respect. I believe that all members of the House are entitled to the same respect. I have already stated on several occasions that I have complied with all the rules required by law. I will continue to do so, as I am required to do, and as all my colleagues in the House are required to do.

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François-Philippe Champagne

Liberal
“Canada needs modern infrastructure. That is why our budget invests a lot of money into building it.”

  • Reply to a debate question

    Relevance 48 of 100

    None of this reply addressed the specific point raised or the topic under debate.

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Official Hansard

Mr. Chair, my colleagues will see that the Government of Canada is making generational investments in infrastructure. The country needs modern infrastructure. That is why, in budget 2025, I presented a major infrastructure plan.

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François-Philippe Champagne

Liberal
“You should ask the Minister of Transport these questions. That minister is in charge of this project.”
Official Hansard

Mr. Chair, based on the answers I gave earlier, my colleague will understand that these questions should be directed to the Minister of Transport, who is the minister responsible for this project.

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Comment rules

More from sitting 122

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  2. Government Orders Business of Supply 45 statements
  3. Oral Questions Indigenous Affairs 4 statements
  4. Oral Questions Taxation 4 statements
  5. Oral Questions The Economy 4 statements
  6. Oral Questions Justice 6 statements
  7. Oral Questions The Economy 16 statements
  8. Oral Questions The Environment 4 statements
  9. Oral Questions Finance 6 statements
  10. Oral Questions Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship 10 statements
  11. Oral Questions Public Safety 8 statements
  12. Oral Questions Women and Gender Equality 2 statements
  13. Oral Questions Indigenous Affairs 6 statements
  14. Oral Questions Natural Resources 2 statements
  15. Oral Questions Fisheries and Oceans 2 statements
  16. Oral Questions Labour 2 statements
  17. Oral Questions The Environment 2 statements
  18. Oral Questions Business of the House 2 statements
  19. Government Orders Government Orders 2 statements
  20. Oral Questions Taxation 4 statements
  21. Oral Questions Emergency Management 3 statements
  22. Government Orders Business of Supply 15 statements
  23. Government Orders Business of Supply 15 statements
  24. Government Orders Business of Supply 27 statements
  25. Private Members' Business An Act to repeal certain restrictions on shipping 12 statements
  26. Adjournment Proceedings Adjournment Proceedings 4 statements
  27. Government Orders Business of Supply 366 statements
  28. Adjournment Proceedings Adjournment Proceedings 4 statements