Garnett Genuis · TranslatePolitics.ca

Adjournment Proceedings

2026-06-18

“Thanks for the nice words. Come visit Alberta and talk to the people there. The government should do the things in that report. We need new solutions like the Conservative plan.”

Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my colleague for his kind words. Indeed, I would welcome him, and all members of this House from all parties, to come to Alberta this summer. Let me know. I would be happy to host. Members could spend some time talking to people in our province to understand some of their concerns. These are precarious times, but youth unemployment is very high here compared to in peer countries, and compared to what we have seen historically. I would draw the attention of the government to the 10th report of the human resources committee. It is a unanimous report that identifies specific policy problems in this country that need to be addressed, including high taxes, high red tape, hiring costs and failures in immigration policy and training policy. These are things we need to talk about. When folks on the government side talk about this, they often highlight the continuing existence of programs that have already existed for a very long time. What we need are new solutions, like the Conservatives' youth jobs plan that would make a difference. I would encourage the member to refer to that report.

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“I'm extending generic best wishes to everyone, then I'm pivoting to my real topic. I think the upcoming Alberta debate over Confederation is very important, but I want my province to stay in Canada. A lot of my constituents agree. I want the rest of the country to listen to Albertans' concerns about how the federation is working. Now I'll transition again. I think young Canadians are facing a worsening employment crisis, and it's harder for young families to afford their first home. We Conservatives have a lot of ideas to fix this. We want to unleash the economy, fix immigration, fix training, build homes where jobs are, and shake up parental leave to make life easier for young working families. We put out a detailed jobs plan and and work-life plan - but the government keeps ignoring us. So I'll complain about lack of cooperation and ask them to reconsider. I'm basically just plugging our Conservative policy plans and trying to pressure the government to adopt them.”

Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, I want to extend my best wishes for the summer to all colleagues from all sides. We have fought hard for our constituents, for our convictions and to advance the common good of this country. I want to share my best wishes with all colleagues, as well as the various staff and people in this institution who support the important work that we do. In addition to thanking and wishing best wishes to all colleagues and support staff here, I want to note that this will be a very important summer in my province because we will be discussing and debating the question of Alberta's place within Confederation. I can tell the House that I firmly believe in the importance of a strong Alberta within a united Canada. I believe that is the position held by the majority of my constituents. I look forward to talking to people and listening to them over the summer. I would encourage colleagues from all parts of the country to also listen to, respect and try to understand the concerns Albertans have. Many Albertans, including those who support a united Canada, have concerns about the way our federation has operated and want to look for opportunities to improve things for the good of the whole country. Coming back to the question I had originally asked and that I am following up on, I am deeply concerned, as we go into the summer, about the challenges facing young Canadians and young Canadian families when it comes to finding employment, starting out in life and believing they can have a better future and that they can pass a better future on to the next generation. We have a worsening employment crisis. It is getting increasingly harder for young people to find their first job, and for young families to afford their first home and be able to afford to take those critical steps forward in life. In recognition of that problem, and in an effort to be constructive, we have, as the Conservative Party, put forward constructive proposals to try to make life better for young people seeking jobs and for young families. Last fall, we announced the Conservative youth jobs plan to unleash the economy, fix immigration, fix training and build homes where the jobs are. This plan, if implemented by the government, would help young people have hope that they can have jobs and opportunity going forward, afford homes and have the standard of living their parents had. We have also released a work and family life plan to support young families. This plan includes vital reforms to parental leave to make it easier for parents who are trying to start a family, maintain a connection to work and earn an income at the same time. I am very proud of the work we have done as a Conservative opposition, focusing on what matters to Canadians and on putting forward constructive proposals to make people's lives better. We have asked the government, in a spirit of goodwill and co-operation, to take these ideas forward and adopt our Conservative youth jobs plan and the parental leave reforms we have put forward. Unfortunately, in many cases, we have seen the government choose to move in the opposite direction, for instance, by defunding grants to students at vocational institutions who are trying to gain the vital experience they need for jobs. We have always sought to be productive and constructive by putting forward these good ideas and asking the government to adopt them. Therefore, as we face these ongoing challenges, an affordability crisis and a youth unemployment crisis, will the government take a serious look at what we have put forward, including the Conservative youth jobs plan, parental leave reforms and the need to reform training to connect Canadian young people with Canadian jobs? Will the government look at our ideas, take them seriously and consider implementing them as part of the budget so we can finally reverse the trajectory that we have seen and give young people hope for jobs, homes and opportunity in the future?

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Government Orders

Government Business No. 11—Proceedings on Bill C-26

2026-06-16

“You're cutting off debate to ram this bill through at every stage. I bet it's because the housing minister is afraid to come talk to the committee. Since this motion will pass, I dare you to spend one hour with our committee to actually talk about this. Yes or no?”

Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, in response to what the parliamentary secretary just said, it is important for Canadians to know that there is a big difference between using closure or time allocation at one stage of a bill in the House and shutting the bill down at every stage so there is no possibility of committee study. On Bill C‑5, we moved it forward, but we had detailed committee study and amendments from the Conservatives that improved that bill. In this case, the bill is being shut down at all stages with no committee study, no report stage and no third reading debate. I think it is because, in part, the housing minister is afraid to come to the human resources committee, where we sit— An hon member: Oh, oh! Garnett Genuis: Mr. Speaker, the member is blowing that off. I will ask the minister a simple question. This motion is going to pass; they have their majority, so it is going to pass. Will the minister agree to come to the human resources committee, even for one hour, to talk to us about the bill? The human resources committee is supposed to be studying housing. We have two studies going, one on housing starts and one on homelessness. We have not heard from the minister. We also have this bill going through on housing. The minister is trying to skip coming to committee. Will he come to human resources committee for an hour to talk about this bill, yes or no?

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“I am criticizing the Prime Minister for eroding parliamentary democracy. He is never here, but he is imposing draconian measures to shut down debate on Bill C-26 at all stages, with no committee study or amendments. This is an unconscionable attack on the processes that defend the rights and liberties of Canadians. The Liberals want to shut down debate completely. I am asking the minister how he can justify this drastic use of shutting down the procedure at all stages, with no possibility for debate, study, or amendment.”

Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, we have a Prime Minister who is really eroding the foundations of our parliamentary democracy. He is never here, yet he is imposing some of the most draconian measures on parliamentary debate. The motion before the House would impose on Bill C-26 that there would be one more speaker for each party at second reading, and then after the vote at second reading, it would be deemed adopted at all stages, with no committee study, no report stage debate and no third reading debate. An hon. member: Oh, oh! Garnett Genuis: Mr. Speaker, the member for Whitby is saying, “perfect”. This is what Liberals want. They want to shut down debate. This would not just be closure of debate at a stage. It would be shutting debate down at all stages, with no possibility for committee study or amendment. This is just an unconscionable attack on the processes that are supposed to defend the rights and liberties of Canadians and to defend good decision-making. How can the minister, if he really thinks this is a good bill, justify the most draconian use of shutting down a procedure that we have ever seen in the House, shutting it down not just at one stage but at all stages, with no possibility for debate, study or amendment?

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Government Orders

Combatting Hate Act

2026-06-16

“Religious leaders in the Jewish community are worried about the removal of the religious exemption. I want to protect religious freedom and freedom of speech. I don't want people to have to go through a long court process to get a remedy. Why are you ignoring the concerns of the Orthodox Jewish community?”

Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, first, I would put to the member that the Orthodox Jewish community and the religious leaders within the Jewish community are overwhelmingly opposed to the removal of the religious exemption. I would encourage the member to take their concerns seriously. Moreover, the idea that a statute that denies religious freedom and attacks freedom of speech is not a big deal because the charter protects religious freedom is not great comfort to most people. It may be that this law could be found unconstitutional, if a person who is charged then addresses the issue of religious freedom through the courts and eventually gets a remedy for that, but that is a long and difficult process for an individual to go through. It would be better if we did not pass laws that violate religious freedom in the first place, therefore not requiring that kind of charter action. Why is the member proceeding with this in light of those obvious concerns, especially from the Orthodox Jewish community?

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Oral Questions

Presence in Gallery

2026-06-16

“I want to prove I'm right. Let me show a document to make the other side look bad.”

Oral Questions

Fisheries and Oceans

2026-06-16

“I want to paint your department as incompetent. Picking favorites. Wasting money on the wrong people.”

Government Orders

2026-06-15

“I request everyone's permission for my last vote to count as yes.”

Government Orders

Government Business No. 12—Proceedings on Bill C-30

2026-06-15

“I want to cheer for my party and our past grants. Why did you cancel what we did? Why not spend more on more grants?”

Official Hansard

Madam Speaker, I want to follow up on the issue of the trades. In 2006, Stephen Harper brought in grants for trades workers. In 2009, the same Conservative government brought in completion grants. One of the first acts of this Prime Minister was to cancel grants for trades workers and completion grants. The government also pulled student grants for students studying at vocational institutions. Now, after a lot of advocacy from Conservatives, as well as from unions, we were pleased to see the partial restoration of grants to trades workers. This is something we and unions had advocated for. I want to ask the minister, number one, why did the Liberals cancel these grants in the first place? Second, why are they still denying student grants to those studying at vocational institutions?

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Adjournment Proceedings

2026-06-10

“That makes me sad. I don't like that you cut grants. I think it's very bad. I want you to spend more money on my preferred program instead.”

Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, it is clear from that response that the government has nothing new to offer. The parliamentary secretary spoke about programs that have existed since the 1990s and their rebranded Canada strong program. Here are the facts: Conservatives introduced grants for trade workers in 2009 and 2006: 2009 were the completion grants, 2006 were the other grants introduced for trade workers. The Liberals cancelled those grants. The Minister of Jobs and Families defended the decision to cancel those grants, and then, in the face of significant advocacy from unions, as well as Conservatives and other organizations, the government chose to restore funding that the Liberals had cut. Restoring something that they cut and giving it a new name is not doing something new. We absolutely need to support trades workers. They should not have cut those grants in the first place, but they also should not be cutting grants for vocational training. The fact is the government has nothing new. Why will the Liberals not adopt our Conservative youth jobs plan?

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“I want to talk about youth unemployment. The government should listen to our ideas. Unleash the economy. Fix immigration. Fix training. Build homes where the jobs are.”

Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, as we approach the end of the parliamentary session for this spring, it is important to highlight the ongoing jobs crisis facing young people, and the constructive measures that Conservatives have put forward. We are here in Parliament working late, but we are blessed to have the opportunity to work on behalf of Canadians. Meanwhile, there are many talented young people with skills and passion that they want to put to work but have not been able to. There are the top‑line unemployment numbers. Underneath that, there is declining labour force participation for young people, and there is the reality that many young people are not able to work in the field they have studied in. They have been encouraged to go in one direction in terms of their studies, yet they are not able to find employment that aligns with that area of study. Over the course of the spring session and the previous fall session, as we have been highlighting the youth unemployment crisis in this country, we have always been very constructive in our approach, putting forward specific policy proposals to address that crisis and inviting the government to embrace those proposals. We have highlighted four key areas as we have advanced our youth unemployment strategy. The first is unleashing the economy, addressing major concerns that small businesses have around the cost of hiring and around red tape and regulation, by having incentives, tax cuts and reduced bureaucracy that encourages investment in Canada. Second, we need to fix the immigration system. When it comes to immigration, we hear a big focus from the government on attracting foreign talent, but not enough focus on deploying the talent that is already in this country. There are so many young people with talent, training and passion who want to get to work. We should be focused on deploying the Canadian talent to give young people opportunities. We need to fix our immigration system so that the people who come here are able to have their credentials recognized so they are not competing for entry-level jobs, and so that we are clearly identifying where the skill gaps and needs are. The first two areas are unleashing the economy and fixing immigration. Third, we need to fix training. The government is going in the opposite direction. It is pulling funding for student grants for students in vocational programs. We should be celebrating and recognizing the value of different kinds of post-secondary options, including vocational programs that provide practical, job-ready skills for young people. We need to be training young people for Canadian jobs. We know there is a desire for skilled workers. The response to that should be to train young people to be ready to fill those skilled positions, yet there is a specific attack on vocational institutions by the government. Fourth, we need to build homes where the jobs are. Conservatives are proposing constructive policies to support labour mobility so young people can take up opportunities that may exist outside the region they live in. We have very high unemployment in larger centres, and we have many opportunities in rural and remote areas to seize opportunities for young people who are able. However, when I talk to young people about whether they think they would be able to seize those opportunities, transportation and housing are major concerns if they are moving to an area that is unfamiliar. That is why we have included in our jobs plan incentives to make it easier for employers to offer workforce housing. We need to unleash the economy, fix immigration, fix training and build homes where the jobs are. That is our constructive Conservative plan to address the youth unemployment crisis. It is offered in good faith. Would the government take those good ideas that we have put forward?

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Oral Questions

The Economy

2026-06-05

“The recession isn't just some idea from bad people. It's a real fact from Canada's official numbers. The government accepts worse unemployment as normal instead of trying to get back to where we were before. Canada's the only major economy like this. Why?”

“I have to bring up some good news first, but I'm really just here to keep talking about high unemployment numbers and Canada's bad economy.”

“You've made a mess of the economy. Canada has fewer jobs and we're the only G20 country in a recession. What are you doing wrong?”

Adjournment Proceedings

2026-06-04

“That's strange. We Conservatives created grants for trades workers years ago. The current government cancelled those grants, then brought them back and claimed credit. I dislike the government's fiscal plan. Labour agreements and summer jobs programs are old news. The Liberals just rename our old programs. The Liberals have no plan.”

Official Hansard

Madam Speaker, there are many things that are very strange about this response. Let us be clear. In 2006, in the first Conservative budget of Stephen Harper, Conservatives brought in grants for trades workers. We brought in completion grants in 2009. The current government cancelled them under the Prime Minister, and then, with much fanfare, announced they were bringing them back. Of course, we support bringing in these grants. We wish they had not been cancelled before being reinstated. We voted against the government's fiscal plan in general because, in general, it is going in the wrong direction. The member highlighted labour market development agreements, which are, of course, an important and valuable part of our national architecture. Most of those agreements were signed in the 1990s and early 2000s. The last one was signed with Yukon in 2009. The government also trumpets things like the Canada summer jobs program. Again, these are programs that date back to the nineties and have existed for a long time. The government has nothing new. The best the Liberals can do is rename past Conservative programs. The Liberals clearly do not have a plan. They need to get a plan, and fast.

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“Canada has serious economic problems. The government should spend less and cut taxes to unleash the economy, fix immigration, fix training, and build homes for jobs. The government cut grants for trades students then brought them back and pretended it was something new. We need to create conditions for small businesses to hire young people. I want the government to cut payroll taxes to make hiring easier. Businesses are closing faster than they're starting. We presented specific ideas. When will you implement them?”

Official Hansard

Madam Speaker, we face serious economic problems now as a country. We are the only G20 nation in a recession. One in four Canadians is living food-insecure. We have seen a doubling of food bank use since 2020, and we are in the midst of a worsening unemployment crisis, particularly affecting Canada's young people. We have been repeatedly calling on the government to implement a plan to respond to this youth unemployment crisis. In the fall, Conservatives put forward our plan with a series of constructive suggestions focused on unleashing the economy, fixing immigration, fixing training and building homes where the jobs are. We have not seen a willingness on the part of the government to implement these constructive proposals. In fact, we have seen the government choose to move in the opposite direction. We saw, for instance, with changes the Liberals made, the cutting of grants to students who are studying at vocational institutions. The Liberals ended completion grants for students in the trades. They brought them back eventually, following strong advocacy from unions, as well as from Conservatives, but they have now trumpeted them as if they were something new when they were, in fact, the restoration of grants that had previously been cut by this particular government under the Prime Minister. We are seeing some instances in which our advocacy has made a difference, but generally speaking, there is an unwillingness of the government to meet this moment. I will also draw the attention of members, in the context of this unemployment crisis, to a great report recently done by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business highlighting the challenges small businesses are facing when it comes to hiring young people and some of the disconnect that has existed between small businesses and young people. Its proposal, very much aligning with what we have talked about, focuses on creating the conditions in which small businesses can afford to hire young people. It proposed, for instance, payroll tax relief. Payroll tax relief would be a clear and simple way of making it easier for small businesses to hire young people. Small business owners report that a lot of the programming that exists right now can be difficult and onerous for small businesses to use and take advantage of. The CFIB proposed broad-based changes that would reduce the cost of hiring, taking into consideration the costs of training and making it easier for people to start and grow businesses. The Canadian Federation of Independent Business has also highlighted big gaps in terms of entrepreneurship in this country. It is talking about an entrepreneurial drought and saying that far more businesses are closing than are being started. Obviously, this affects the unemployment situation for young people. As I have led this file over the last year, and as Conservatives have been working on confronting this youth unemployment crisis, we have always sought to be constructive. That is, we have sought to put forward specific, concrete suggestions to the government on how these challenges can be addressed. We have put those forward in the form of the Conservative youth jobs plan. The Canadian Federation of Independent Business has put forward its ideas, which are very similar to ours, but really emphasizes payroll tax relief. We have called on the government to adopt these suggestions. What we saw in the last fiscal update is a plan on the part of the government to increase EI premiums, which is again going in the opposite direction from what the Canadian Federation of Independent Business wants. My question tonight for the parliamentary secretary is this: When will we see a concrete plan to address the youth unemployment crisis that responds to these realities and recommendations by different stakeholders?

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Statements by Members

Religious Persecution

2026-06-04

“I want Canada to push other countries to protect religious minority women and girls. The government should train its public service on this. We need to talk about this more in Parliament.”

Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, persecution based on religious belief is a significant and growing problem around the world. Women and girls from religious minority communities are increasingly at risk of a kind of double persecution known as gender-specific religious persecution, where they are targeted for both their faith and their gender. Gender-specific religious persecution can include abduction, sexual assault, forced marriage and forced conversion, along with other abuses. Maria Shahbaz, a 13-year-old Pakistani Christian girl, was abducted, forcibly converted and subjected to so-called forced marriage. The Pakistani court ruled that the marriage was legal. Amany, an 18-year-old Coptic Christian woman living in upper Egypt, was kidnapped on her way to school as part of a coordinated effort to have her forcibly converted and married outside her community. The often hidden plight of women and girls who face this double persecution must not be ignored. Canada's government should push legal and practical reforms in partner countries to address this issue and ensure that our public service has the knowledge and capacity to address gender-specific religious persecution. There is a need and an opportunity for our government and our Parliament to champion a response to this issue.

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Statements by Members

The Economy

2026-06-03

“The economy is bad and it's the other party's fault. I don't like their spending. We should spend less.”

Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, we are seeing the tragic effects of Liberal policies on the economy. Liberals want to be judged by their intentions, announcements, illusions and gimmicks, but Canadians will see the effects of Liberal policies in the grocery store aisle, at the gas pump, in the pink slips that are piling up and in the real numbers reported by Statistics Canada. The reports are in: Canada is the only G20 country in a recession. We have had recession levels of unemployment for months, with youth unemployment approaching 15%. One in four Canadians is food-insecure, and food bank use has doubled since 2020. The Prime Minister is not working, and he certainly is not working for Canadians. Canadians want jobs, homes and hope. There is hope for this great country, but Liberals need to stop pretending that everything is fine. It is not. Canadians want a government that leaves behind the illusions and instead focuses on delivering results.

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Government Orders

Budget 2025 Implementation Act, No. 2

2026-06-01

“You don't know what you're talking about. Conservatives brought in trades grants first in 2006. Liberals cancelled those grants. Now you're taking credit for bringing back the same program you cancelled. That's rich.”

“I want more time to talk about this huge bill. The other party is using their majority to shut down debate. We got more done when they didn't have a majority. The other party is using their majority to gut good work done at committee, like protecting victims of sexual assault in the military. They're using their majority to undermine collaboration.”

Official Hansard

Madam Speaker, I would have been happy to speak for three and a half hours on the bill myself, there is so much in it. I am sure members across the way would have enjoyed that opportunity. The government is using its majority in pernicious ways right now, and we have seen it. The previous reality of a minority Parliament was forced negotiation among parties, and we got a lot done under minority conditions. There were many cases in which Conservatives agreed to expedite certain ideas. We saw a lot of productive action at committees as well as in the House, but it required some back-and-forth. Then the government took its majority through admittedly unscrupulous means, twisting the arms of various people to get them to completely abandon all of their previous convictions. Now the Liberals are using this majority to shut down debate. They are using this majority to gut the good work done at committee. For instance, the Liberals' first action as a majority was to undo good work done at committee on protecting victims of sexual assault and sexual harassment in the military. Great work was done across parties at committee, and then the government immediately undid all of that work to make things less safe for those victims. It failed to respond to what they asked for. Now we have this massive budget implementation act where, again, the government is bringing down its fist of a majority to undermine the good, collaborative work that could have happened, which used to happen in this place.

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