QP: Panic at the passport office

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While the prime minster was in town, he was not present for QP, though his deputy was. No other leader was present either, for what it’s worth, and we did learn later in the day that Candice Bergen tested positive for COVID earlier in the week, and has been isolating. Before things got started, the Deputy Speaker returned to what happened yesterday regarding unparliamentary language, and said that reviewing the tapes found no definitive proof if the prime minister actually said anything amidst the noise, but he did hear unparliamentary things on both sides, and he cautioned MPs that it was not acceptable. He also noted that the question on abortion from Sophie Chatel did not have to do with the administrative responsibilities of the government, and such questions will be disallowed in the future. (Famous last words…) He also asserted that for those whose blood pressure is running a little high, it was a beautiful day outside and they should go take a walk.

Luc Berthold led off, worrying about delays at passport offices, and asserted the solution was to have civil servants back at work in their offices. Chrystia Freeland noted that they understand their responsibilities to Canadians, but she could not agree that everything was going wrong in Canada, and the IMF praised our growth. Berthold carried on with the complaints about delays, and again demanded civil servants go back to their offices. Freeland thanked civil servants for their efforts, and that she knew they worked diligently. Berthold insisted that Canadians expected service from civil servants, and once again demanded that civil servants return to their offices. Freeland again repeated that civil servants do exceptional work. Michael Chong took over in English, and worried about another court challenge against Line 5 in Michigan—ignoring that the challenge is coming from Indigenous groups—to which Freeland assured him that they understand the importance of Line 5 and that the government was standing up for our rights including treaty rights with the US. Chong wondered why Canada was in court to fight this challenge, and Freeland repeated the assurances that the government was on the case.

Claude DeBellefeuille led for the Bloc, and she repeated this week’s demand that the federal government turn over the responsibility for immigration to Quebec. Freeland recited the government’s lines that Quebec sets their own targets and that the federal government supports them. DeBellefeuille was not mollified, and repeated the demand, and Freeland repeated her assurances, with a few added figures to quote.

Jenny Kwan rose for the NDP, and she cited the MMIW inquiry listing housing as a contributing factor, blasting the government for not having a dedicated housing strategy for Indigenous women and two-spirit people. Freeland first recognised that today is Red Dress day, and that they agreed that housing is a problem and part of the solution, which is why it was a central part of the budget. Niki Ashton took over, and demanded immediate action in the MMIW inquiry’s calls to justice, and insisted it wasn’t in the budget. Freeland repeated her initial acknowledgment of the day in French, before returning to English to correct that there were investments in this budget.

Round two, and Dan Albas worried that the ban on foreign ownership had language in the bill around discretion on enactment (Hussen: Here is what we are doing about housing), Randy Hoback asked if a particular tax issue violated the New NAFTA (Virani: He knows the deputy minister has worked hard on these trade irritants), Dominique Vien worried about inflation (Freeland: You keep denigrating the economy with a false discourse), Matt Jeneroux worried that an expecting couple can’t find a bigger home (Gould: We have reduced child care costs in Alberta), and Adam Chambers railed about the Infrastructure Bank (O’Connell: Here are a list of his investments it made, and Patrick Brown praised it).

Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe again returned to the demand that Quebec gets immigration powers devolved to it (Lalonde: Quebec sets its levels and we could process more files if they actually met their targets), and Sébastien Lemire worried that temporary foreign workers aren’t getting processed fast enough (Lalonde: We do prioritise priority sectors, and we processed double number of work permits processed last year).

Brad Vis railed that inmates have a choice about getting a COVID vaccine but correctional officers and civil servants didn’t (Fortier: We are reviewing our mandates every six months), Chris Lewis complained that federal mandates were “vindictive” (Fortier: Having a fully vaccinated workforce makes our workplaces safer, and 99 percent of civil servants stepped up), and Tony Baldinelli worried that use of the ArriveCan app would cause too many delays at the border (Mendicino: We work with public health experts be the CBSA).

Leah Gazan decried that the government has not acted on then MMIW calls to justice (Miller: We are taking targeted measures but the results are trailing), and worried about the over-incarceration of Indigenous women (Mendicino: We are implementing cultural sensitive training and legislation to repeal mandatory minimums).

Round three saw questions on a dedicated mental health transfer (Bennett: We are negotiating with provinces, but have to build it bottom-up; That question was despicable), the allegations of bullying at the CRA (Lebouthillier: I denounce all forms of intimidation, and the minister cannot interfere with the administration of the CRA), passport delays (Gould: We added staff and they are working around the clock), concerns about pesticide regulations (Bibeau: We are committed to helping farmers), labour shortages especially for francophones (Lalonde: We are processing more work permit requests and immigration is the solution to labour shortages), the Winnipeg Lab documents (Holland: The documents were made available to NSICOP, and then were created a new process, and the Conservatives don’t want to participate), UNDRIP implementation (Lametti: It is a foundational document, and my predecessor implemented a directive on litigation), and what came out of the arts summit (Bittle: We have supported artists through the pandemic, and we will find long-term solutions to strengthening the sector).

https://twitter.com/journo_dale/status/1522291134734684161

Overall, there was less rancour and acrimony in the air than yesterday, whether that was because Trudeau wasn’t there and everyone was being less theatrical as a result, or because everyone wasn’t fresh out of a caucus meeting or not, it doesn’t much matter. But the Speaker did give that warning ahead of time today, so perhaps a few people chose to be a bit more judicious. It was also particularly curious that they decided the theme today was going to be about the passport delays, probably because they think they can get some traction by using the clips on social media, because it has to do with services people receive. I get why, but after some of the more heated topics and accusations being hurled earlier in the week, this was a very different change of pace.

The questions around mental health funding were also done in somewhat poor taste, because they are all well aware that there are negotiations ongoing with the provinces. And while I give Carolyn Bennett points for trying to explain how that negotiation was happening—building the national standards that the federal transfers will be based upon—she had trouble getting to the point, and by the time you had Mike Lake insinuating that the NDP somehow killed the promised transfer as part of their supply and confidence agreement, it was really beyond the pale, and Bennett did somewhat lose it. Once again, it would be great if they could be adults about this, and ask these questions in an adult manner, but that seems beyond too many MPs. 

Sartorial speaking, snaps go out to Arielle Kayabaga for a long black jacket and slacks over a black top, and Peter Fragiskatos for a navy suit and tie with a lavender shirt and pocket square. Style citations go out to Bernard Généroux for a dark blue jacket and tie with a light blue shirt and tan slacks, and to Mona Fortier for a black suit with a black top with bright red florals.