“I oppose this bill. It harms our rights, hurts the environment, and lets the federal government take control of Quebec land. Did the Prime Minister talk to Quebec before doing this?”

“Mr. Speaker, Bill C‑39 has nothing to do with making Canada strong. It is a bill for making democracy weak. It is 250 pages of measures that take an axe to almost every federal law, undermining our rights and harming our environment. In one of these measures, Ottawa is giving itself the power to designate any part of Quebec as a region of national interest and place it under federal control. Did the Prime Minister consult Quebec before seizing power over Quebec soil?”

“The government did not consult Quebec before moving to privatize airports, and now it wants to privatize ports and let foreign investors run them. Did the Prime Minister consult Quebec before introducing this bill?”

“Mr. Speaker, I will take that as a no. Quebec was not consulted on regions of national interest. That is not all. After announcing, without consulting Quebec, that it planned to privatize airports, the government is now using Bill C‑39 to privatize ports. Quebec’s ports are obviously essential infrastructure for our economy, but the federal government is opening the door for them to be run by foreign investors. Did the Prime Minister once again forget to consult Quebec before introducing legislation to privatize its ports?”

“The Prime Minister is making decisions that hurt Quebec without talking to its government first. His business tax cut will cost Quebec $1 billion every year. Will he stop acting like Quebec does not exist?”

“Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister is completely cutting Quebec out of decisions that affect it. It happened with Bill C-39, and it happened again this morning with the tax cut for businesses. Christine Fréchette says that she was never consulted about this tax cut that will blow a $1-billion hole in Quebec’s public finances every year. In the middle of an election, all the parties are finding out that they will have to prepare a budget on October 6 with $1 billion less to work with. The Prime Minister’s stubborn insistence on flying solo is plainly detrimental to the governance of Quebec. Is he going to keep on behaving as though the Government of Quebec does not exist?”