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Thursday, October 19, 2017 · sitting No. 218

Conservatives move supply day motion on softwood lumber

The House devoted nearly half the sitting to a Conservative opposition motion on the softwood lumber industry. Conservative MP Alain Rayes moved the motion that criticized the government's failure to secure a new agreement and highlighted foreign-funded campaigns against the sector. Debate continued through the afternoon with interventions from both sides and the motion remained before the House at adjournment.

Question Period focused on the finance minister's personal holdings. Conservative MP Pierre Poilievre asked why Bill Morneau had used numbered companies to hold Morneau Shepell shares and maintained eight other numbered companies. The minister replied that he had consulted the Ethics Commissioner and would place his assets in a blind trust while divesting from the family company.

Decided that day

  • Bill C-57 passed second reading
  • Opposition motion supporting forestry workers defeated

From the Hansard record of the sitting. Full Hansard

No CPAC Question Period upload is on file for this day. CPAC’s channel goes back to December 2019.

Who held the floor · 2017-10-19

Government (Liberal)OppositionOver the day: government 42%, opposition 58% of the words spokenGovernment businessQuestion PeriodGovernment business▲ Government side held the floor▼ Opposition held the floorOpened 10:0011:0012:0013:0014:0015:0016:0017:0018:00Last speech 19:05Time of day, Ottawa · the House sat 9 h 5 min · each dot is a stretch of debate, placed at the minute it began
68One Bill Advances, Questions Mostly DeflectedThe House spent most of its time on supply and ethics debates yet still advanced one government bill to second reading while defeating an opposition motion. Question period produced few direct answers and seven calls to order, leaving a session that mixed procedural progress with extended argument.AI-rated Score out of 100; the verdict and the answer ratings behind it are a model’s reading. How the AI rates this

AI-rated The sitting score and the rating of each answer come from a language model reading Hansard. How the AI rates this

Other moments

Pensions

NDP MP Scott Duvall said Morneau Shepell would administer the Sears Canada pension plan and asked whether the finance minister was comfortable benefiting from the liquidation.

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Supreme Court Act

Liberal MP Marc Miller said Bill C-203 on bilingual Supreme Court justices pursued a worthy goal but focused on the wrong court and that legislation was unnecessary.

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Status of Women

NDP MP Sheila Malcolmson said universities received a C-minus grade on campus sexual-assault policies and asked when the government would provide national coordination.

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International Trade

Bloc Québécois MP Mario Beaulieu asked the government to promise it would not trade away supply management in TPP talks.

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The Environment

NDP MP Linda Duncan pressed the government on repeated spills affecting Aamjiwnaang First Nation and the lack of enforcement action.

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Question Period, exchange by exchange

AI-rated Each answer’s rating (answered, partly answered, deflected, answered something else) is a model’s reading of the exchange. How the AI rates this

  1. partly answered
    EthicsPierre Poilievre (Conservative) asked Bill Morneau (Liberal). loaded question.Answer explains disclosure process and extra steps but does not address the specific numbered companies mentioned.I worked with the Ethics Commissioner to make sure I disclosed all of my assets.
  2. deflected
    EthicsPierre Poilievre (Conservative) asked Bill Morneau (Liberal). loaded question.Answer ignores the hypocrisy claim and pivots to unrelated government work.there are two separate issues there, so let us start with what we have actually been working with on behalf of Canadians.
  3. deflected
    EthicsPierre Poilievre (Conservative) asked Bill Morneau (Liberal). substantive question.Answer restates disclosure and divestment but never states how many times recusal occurred.I disclosed all of my assets to the Ethics Commissioner, to meet the high standards of integrity that our government wants to continue to uphold.
  4. partly answered
    EthicsMr. Alain Rayes (Conservative) asked Bill Morneau (Liberal). loaded question.Answer addresses working with the commissioner but does not say when the Prime Minister was informed.I did so at the start with the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner, who gave me her advice, and whose recommendations I have followed this whole time.
  5. misdirected
    EthicsMr. Alain Rayes (Conservative) asked Bill Morneau (Liberal). loaded question.Answer attacks the question as slander instead of stating when the Prime Minister was informed.I do not think the distractions, the slander, and the things that were being said across the hall are in any way helpful to our economy or to Canadians.
  6. partly answered
    EthicsMr. Guy Caron (NDP) asked Bill Morneau (Liberal). loaded question.Answer explains the commissioner process but does not address why statements to media and colleagues differed for two years.The way it works with the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner is we explain our situation, we ask for her advice, and we act on her recommendations.
  7. deflected
    EthicsMr. Guy Caron (NDP) asked Bill Morneau (Liberal). loaded question.Answer repeats commissioner steps and divestment but ignores the stock profit and perceived conflict from Bill C-27.I took her recommendations and made sure that I moved forward with them to not have a conflict of interest.
  8. deflected
    EthicsMr. Nathan Cullen (NDP) asked Bill Morneau (Liberal). loaded question.Answer discusses commissioner recommendations and blind trust but does not address profiting from the bill.I have taken all of her recommendations because I respect the Office of the Ethics Commissioner and I believe that what she is doing is trying to ensure that we do not have conflicts of interest.
  9. deflected
    EthicsMr. Nathan Cullen (NDP) asked Bill Morneau (Liberal). loaded question.The answer avoids the demand for an apology by pivoting to the Ethics Commissioner and implying the questioner is attacking her.What the member opposite knows is that I fully disclosed my assets to the Ethics Commissioner.
  10. partly answered
    EthicsMaxime Bernier (Conservative) asked Bill Morneau (Liberal). substantive question.The answer states he followed the Ethics Commissioner but does not specify when he informed the Prime Minister or recused himself.I explained my situation to her.
  11. misdirected
    EthicsMaxime Bernier (Conservative) asked Bill Morneau (Liberal). loaded question.The answer ignores the recusal question entirely and shifts to listing government achievements while dismissing the issue.I am going to continue to work for Canadian families and for Canada's middle class, because I know that is vital.
  12. deflected
    EthicsCandice Bergen (Conservative) asked Bill Morneau (Liberal). substantive question.The answer restates the general process with the Ethics Commissioner but does not address why he did not recuse himself from Bill C-27.What I did was I took the advice, I respected the officer of Parliament, and I moved forward with the conflict of interest screen
  13. answered
    EthicsCandice Bergen (Conservative) asked Bill Morneau (Liberal). substantive question.The answer directly responds to the specific question about discussions with Morneau Shepell.
  14. deflected
    EthicsMr. John Brassard (Conservative) asked Bill Morneau (Liberal). loaded question.The answer avoids admitting any breach by restating the standard disclosure process and cutting off mid-sentence.That is exactly the approach that I have taken, so my—
  15. deflected
    EthicsMrs. Stephanie Kusie (Conservative) asked Bill Morneau (Liberal). rhetorical question.The answer does not address the interruption but continues defending the disclosure process without engaging the prior accusation.Putting in place a blind trust and making sure that I or my family no longer have shares in Morneau Shepell I think will help with the confidence, allowing us to do our job.
  16. partly answered
    EthicsMr. John Brassard (Conservative) asked Bill Morneau (Liberal). loaded question.The answer admits an administrative error but does not concede breaking the law or hiding assets as alleged.We did in fact find out later that there was one administrative error, which was not substantive, so we corrected that problem.
  17. deflected
    PensionsMr. Scott Duvall (NDP) asked Navdeep Bains (Liberal). loaded question.The answer discusses assistance to workers but ignores the direct accusation about the minister's personal financial benefit.We also understand that current Sears Canada pension funds are held in trust and must be used solely for the benefit of the pensioners.
  18. deflected
    PensionsMs. Marjolaine Boutin-Sweet (NDP) asked Navdeep Bains (Liberal). loaded question.The answer focuses on Service Canada sessions but sidesteps the claim that the minister benefits personally from the bankruptcy.Across the country, there have been 80 sessions that have taken place.
  19. misdirected
    EthicsMr. Jacques Gourde (Conservative) asked Bill Morneau (Liberal). loaded question.The answer attacks the opposition's focus instead of addressing whether the minister recused himself from the tax treaty.while the opposition is focused on me and my personal finances, I will tell the House what we are going to focus on.
  20. partly answered
    EthicsMrs. Sylvie Boucher (Conservative) asked Bill Morneau (Liberal). loaded question.The answer states the minister followed the Ethics Commissioner's advice and took extra steps but does not confirm recusal from specific discussions.I acted on the recommendations of the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner.
  21. deflected
    EthicsMrs. Shannon Stubbs (Conservative) asked Diane Lebouthillier (Liberal). loaded question.The answer pivots to general government efforts against tax evasion without addressing the recusal question.the government is firmly committed to combatting tax evasion and aggressive tax avoidance.
  22. partly answered
    EthicsMrs. Shannon Stubbs (Conservative) asked Bill Morneau (Liberal). loaded question.The answer explains following the Ethics Commissioner but avoids confirming whether recusal occurred from all treaty discussions.When we look at conflicts of interest, the way we work toward ensuring we do not have them in our system is by working with the Ethics Commissioner.
  23. partly answered
    Status of WomenMs. Sheila Malcolmson (NDP) asked Maryam Monsef (Liberal). substantive question.The answer outlines funding and strategy for gender-based violence but does not commit to national coordination of campus policies.Our government is committed to ensuring that our daughters, mothers, and sisters live free from all forms of violence, which is why we put aside $100.9 million in the first federal strategy to address and prevent gender-based violence
  24. partly answered
    Status of WomenMs. Anne Minh-Thu Quach (NDP) asked Maryam Monsef (Liberal). substantive question.The answer notes coordination with provinces and funding but does not pledge new national guidelines for campus sexual assault.We are working to coordinate our efforts with provinces and territories.
  25. deflected
    EthicsEd Fast (Conservative) asked Bill Morneau (Liberal). loaded question.The answer corrects alleged inaccuracies and discusses disclosure instead of addressing the conflict of interest admission requested.there are numerous inaccuracies in that question. Let us start with the very first fact that I disclosed all of my assets to the Ethics Commissioner.
  26. deflected
    EthicsEd Fast (Conservative) asked Bill Morneau (Liberal). loaded question.The answer ignores the ethics and disclosure questions entirely and shifts to small business tax policy.For small businesses across the country, we are moving forward to lower their tax rate.
  27. deflected
    EthicsMr. Mark Strahl (Conservative) asked Bill Morneau (Liberal). loaded question.The answer reframes the question as an attack on the Ethics Commissioner rather than addressing the conflict of interest actions taken.based on that question, I can only assume the member opposite is questioning the advice of the Ethics Commissioner.
  28. deflected
    EthicsMr. Mark Strahl (Conservative) asked Bill Morneau (Liberal). loaded question.The answer explicitly refuses to discuss personal finances and pivots to general economic accomplishments.as I have said, we are going to move on from the discussion around my personal finances.
  29. partly answered
    The EnvironmentMs. Linda Duncan (NDP) asked Catherine McKenna (Liberal). substantive question.The answer acknowledges the concern and references ongoing work with Ontario and regulatory strengthening but provides no specific actions or excuses for past inaction.We are working very closely with it. This is exactly why we need to ensure we always have strong regulations for clean air and to protect human health.
  30. answered
    Food LabellingMr. François Choquette (NDP) asked Mr. Bill Blair (Liberal). substantive question.The answer directly addresses transparency and safety concerns by explaining the science-based regulatory assessment process for GM foods.Health Canada scientists conduct a rigorous pre-market safety assessment of all genetically modified foods prior to allowing their sale on the Canadian market.
  31. deflected
    EthicsMrs. Cathy McLeod (Conservative) asked Bill Morneau (Liberal). loaded question.The answer defends the Prime Minister's standards and the Ethics Commissioner process without addressing when the Prime Minister knew of the arrangements.That was exactly what I did with the Ethics Commissioner. That is the way the system works.
  32. deflected
    EthicsMrs. Karen Vecchio (Conservative) asked Bill Morneau (Liberal). loaded question.The answer reiterates following Ethics Commissioner recommendations and avoids confirming any communication or hiding from the Prime Minister.He expects us to work with the Ethics Commissioner. He expects us to take the recommendations of the Ethics Commissioner and put them into place.
  33. deflected
    EthicsMr. Ted Falk (Conservative) asked Bill Morneau (Liberal). substantive question.The answer explains compliance with the Ethics Commissioner instead of stating when the Prime Minister was informed about not using a blind trust.I gave all my assets to the Ethics Commissioner so she could determine the best way to avoid conflicts of interest.
  34. deflected
    Softwood LumberMr. Luc Berthold (Conservative) asked Chrystia Freeland (Liberal). substantive question.The answer affirms priority and ongoing work but avoids any commitment to supporting the opposition motion.softwood lumber is indeed a priority for me and our government.
  35. partly answered
    Canadian HeritageMr. Pierre Nantel (NDP) asked Mr. Sean Casey (Liberal). loaded question.The answer thanks the member and outlines principles but does not address the demand for immediate action.Our approach is based on the following two principles: healthy democracy depends on trustworthy journalistic content, and government measures must respect media independence.
  36. partly answered
    EthicsPeter Kent (Conservative) asked Bill Morneau (Liberal). loaded question.The answer covers disclosure and correction of an oversight but does not confirm whether notice of violation was received.I disclosed all of my assets to the Ethics Commissioner.
  37. deflected
    International TradeMr. Mario Beaulieu (Bloc) asked Lawrence MacAulay (Liberal). substantive question.The answer highlights a compensation package rather than addressing the requested message on supply management in negotiations.I announced in the House that the Government of Canada has put in place a $350-million package for the dairy industry
  38. answered
    International TradeMr. Mario Beaulieu (Bloc) asked François-Philippe Champagne (Liberal). substantive question.The answer directly promises to defend supply management and not use it as a bargaining chip.we will always defend supply management.
  39. answered
    Business of the HouseCandice Bergen (Conservative) asked Bardish Chagger (Liberal). substantive question.The answer lists the specific agenda items planned for the remainder of the week and the next week.this afternoon, we will continue the debate we began this morning on the Conservative Party's opposition motion.