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Wednesday, December 2, 2020 · sitting No. 41

Commons debates medical assistance in dying bill

The House spent nearly half the sitting on report stage of Bill C-7, which would amend the Criminal Code provisions on medical assistance in dying. Members debated the absence of a 10-day reflection period and the lack of committee-adopted safeguards before the bill proceeds further.

In Question Period, Conservative leader Erin O'Toole pressed the Prime Minister on the collapsed CanSino vaccine deal and alleged security warnings that were ignored. The Prime Minister replied that the government had secured the broadest portfolio of vaccine candidates of any country.

Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet accused Ottawa of failing to meet its obligations to Quebec, while the Prime Minister said the two governments were working together on pandemic supports.

Decided that day

  • Opposition motion supporting health care workers passed
  • Bill S-2 advanced to second reading
  • Bill C-14 introduced

From the Hansard record of the sitting. Full Hansard

Question Period – December 2, 2020. Video from CPAC. Watch on YouTube

Who held the floor · 2020-12-02

Government (Liberal)OppositionOver the day: government 28%, opposition 72% of the words spokenQuestion PeriodGovernment businessGovernment business▲ Government side held the floor▼ Opposition held the floorOpened 14:0515:0016:0017:0018:0019:0020:0021:00Last speech 22:30Time of day, Ottawa · the House sat 8 h 25 min · each dot is a stretch of debate, placed at the minute it began
59Motion passes amid Criminal Code debateThe House devoted most time to Criminal Code debate yet passed one opposition motion and advanced two bills. Question Period produced few direct answers despite high substantive content overall.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

Indigenous Affairs

NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh read the words of nine-year-old Bee Moonias of Neskantaga and asked why her community still lacks clean water; Justin Trudeau said the government had added $1.5 billion to end long-term advisories.

Read the exchange

Ethics

Conservative MP Michael Barrett asked whether the Prime Minister was aware of RCMP inquiries into illegal lobbying by Liberals; Justin Trudeau said his office knew of none and noted the lobbying commissioner does not investigate public office holders.

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Public Safety

Conservative MP Shannon Stubbs cited a CSIS report on Iranian agents using Canadian currency exchanges and asked when arrests would begin; Justin Trudeau said intelligence agencies take such threats seriously.

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Post-Secondary Education

NDP MP Lindsay Mathyssen accused the government of breaking its promise to extend the student-loan payment moratorium; Justin Trudeau listed other supports already provided to students.

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Aerospace Industry

Bloc Québécois MP Simon-Pierre Savard-Tremblay said the fall economic statement contained nothing for the aerospace sector; Justin Trudeau replied that hundreds of millions had already flowed to the industry through existing programs.

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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. deflected
    HealthErin O'Toole (Conservative) asked Justin Trudeau (Liberal). loaded question.Answer promotes vaccine portfolio without addressing the claimed five-month delay from CanSino.We actually signed and announced deals with Moderna and Pfizer in early August, well before the CanSino project fell through.
  2. deflected
    HealthErin O'Toole (Conservative) asked Justin Trudeau (Liberal). loaded question.Answer claims no delay but ignores the CSIS warning and CanSino risk question.the answer is not at all, not delayed at all.
  3. deflected
    HealthErin O'Toole (Conservative) asked Justin Trudeau (Liberal). loaded question.Answer dismisses the question as made up and pivots to portfolio success without addressing national security concerns.once again, the Conservative Party is just making things up.
  4. partly answered
    HealthErin O'Toole (Conservative) asked Justin Trudeau (Liberal). substantive question.Answer addresses vaccine safety focus and doses secured but does not explain the September timeline difference.Health Canada is currently fast-tracking its study of four different vaccines, and we have obtained tens of millions of doses of all those vaccines for Canadians.
  5. deflected
    HealthErin O'Toole (Conservative) asked Justin Trudeau (Liberal). loaded question.Answer shifts to economic statement and past Conservative record instead of detailing a rapid vaccine plan.We all remember the damage caused by the Conservatives when they pushed austerity too quickly after 2008-09.
  6. answered
    HealthMr. Yves-François Blanchet (Bloc) asked Justin Trudeau (Liberal). substantive question.Answer directly lists federal health funding transfers and commitments to provinces.We gave the provinces and territories $19 billion to help them restart their economies safely while dealing with the pandemic.
  7. deflected
    HealthMr. Yves-François Blanchet (Bloc) asked Justin Trudeau (Liberal). loaded question.Answer lists existing transfers but avoids the Quebec National Assembly motion and constitutional funding question.We have continued to transfer additional money to help the provinces and territories shoulder the additional costs of the health care system and the school system.
  8. answered
    HealthMr. Jagmeet Singh (NDP) asked Justin Trudeau (Liberal). substantive question.Answer outlines work with provinces on distribution, priority lists, and annual flu vaccine precedent.since the spring, we have been working with the provinces and territories to distribute vaccines across the country.
  9. deflected
    Indigenous AffairsMr. Jagmeet Singh (NDP) asked Justin Trudeau (Liberal). loaded question.Answer begins but immediately avoids the specific commitment and personal challenge.
  10. partly answered
    HealthMichelle Rempel Garner (Conservative) asked Justin Trudeau (Liberal). substantive question.Answer addresses vaccine procurement and experts but not the exact rollout details or UK comparison requested.We have worked closely with the provinces and territories and we will continue to.
  11. deflected
    HealthMichelle Rempel Garner (Conservative) asked Justin Trudeau (Liberal). substantive question.Answer shifts to general support for Manitoba and portfolio size without addressing the contradiction or timelines.We are there to support Manitoba, like we are there to support premiers right across the country who are facing a rise in cases.
  12. deflected
    Foreign AffairsMr. Pierre Paul-Hus (Conservative) asked Justin Trudeau (Liberal). loaded question.Answer defends past Ebola work and portfolio but sidesteps the security and IP concerns raised about CanSinoBIO.That is why we considered CanSinoBIO among all the other vaccine candidates we studied.
  13. misdirected
    Foreign AffairsMr. Pierre Paul-Hus (Conservative) asked Justin Trudeau (Liberal). loaded question.Answer attacks Conservatives' ideology instead of addressing ongoing work with the regime or security risks.The Conservatives are saying that they would not have worked with China.
  14. deflected
    HealthMr. James Bezan (Conservative) asked Justin Trudeau (Liberal). substantive question.Answer gives no numbers, dates or troop details and pivots to general vaccine access.We are going to ensure that we have vaccines for Canadians and we are counting on the Armed Forces to help.
  15. deflected
    HealthErin O'Toole (Conservative) asked Justin Trudeau (Liberal). substantive question.Answer emphasizes collaboration but provides none of the requested plan details or spoilage information.We have worked with provinces and territories, municipalities and all Canadians to get through this pandemic and we will continue to.
  16. deflected
    Intergovernmental RelationsMr. Yves-François Blanchet (Bloc) asked Justin Trudeau (Liberal). substantive question.Answer accuses Bloc of seeking conflict and lists past actions without addressing current obligations or tensions with Quebec.I understand that the Bloc Québécois's raison d'être is to create conflict between Ottawa and Quebec.
  17. deflected
    Intergovernmental RelationsMr. Yves-François Blanchet (Bloc) asked Justin Trudeau (Liberal). loaded question.The answer ignores the question on Quebec jurisdiction and pivots to pandemic cooperation.We are in a pandemic where people are working together, where we are fighting this virus every day and where we are working on delivering personal protective equipment, rapid testing and vaccines.
  18. answered
    EthicsMr. Michael Barrett (Conservative) asked Justin Trudeau (Liberal). substantive question.The answer directly states unawareness of investigations and corrects the premise about the lobbying commissioner.I can answer directly on that question that we are unaware of any such investigations, and as a reminder to our colleagues, the lobbying commissioner does not investigate public office holders.
  19. answered
    EthicsMr. Michael Barrett (Conservative) asked Justin Trudeau (Liberal). substantive question.The answer again directly addresses the query by stating unawareness and reiterating the commissioner's role.again, my office and I are entirely unaware of any such investigations, and I remind members that the lobbying commissioner does not look into the actions of public office holders.
  20. partly answered
    Public SafetyMrs. Shannon Stubbs (Conservative) asked Justin Trudeau (Liberal). substantive question.The answer affirms agencies take threats seriously but does not address arrests or deportations specifically.We will continue to ensure that they have all the tools necessary to keep Canadians safe, to protect our democracy and to continue to uphold the values that we all hold dear in this country.
  21. misdirected
    Public SafetyMrs. Shannon Stubbs (Conservative) asked Justin Trudeau (Liberal). loaded question.The answer refers the question to the member rather than addressing the Prime Minister's actions or the caucus connection.the member in question has addressed this issue.
  22. deflected
    EmploymentMr. Scott Duvall (NDP) asked Justin Trudeau (Liberal). substantive question.The answer discusses general pandemic support without addressing the minimum wage promise or timeline.our priority in this FES and in all the actions we take is to help Canadians through this pandemic.
  23. partly answered
    Post-Secondary EducationMs. Lindsay Mathyssen (NDP) asked Justin Trudeau (Liberal). substantive question.The answer lists past and new supports for students but does not address the moratorium reversal or the minister's tweet.We paused Canada student loan repayments. We doubled Canada student grants. We introduced the Canada emergency student benefit, which provided support to more than 700,000 post-secondary students and recent graduates.
  24. deflected
    TelecommunicationsMr. John Williamson (Conservative) asked Justin Trudeau (Liberal). substantive question.The answer highlights the broadband investment and targets but does not explain why municipalities must correct the maps or address the 75-day deadline.That is why we announced an investment of $1.75 billion to help connect Canadians to high-speed Internet across the country, grow businesses and create jobs.
  25. deflected
    TelecommunicationsErin O'Toole (Conservative) asked Justin Trudeau (Liberal). loaded question.Response boasts about past spending instead of addressing specific funding map errors or Atlantic communities.Over the past five years, we have invested 10 times more than the Conservatives invested in 10 years in government, in supporting rural Canadians and getting Internet to them.
  26. deflected
    HealthMr. Jeremy Patzer (Conservative) asked Justin Trudeau (Liberal). substantive question.Response discusses MAID legislation process but ignores the palliative care versus MAID essential service disparity raised.medical assistance in dying is a difficult, complex and deeply personal issue.
  27. partly answered
    HealthErin O'Toole (Conservative) asked Justin Trudeau (Liberal). substantive question.Response addresses balance and safeguards in Bill C-7 but does not commit to specific changes requested.The proposed legislation contains revised safeguards to protect vulnerable persons from pressure and coercion and to ensure that medical assistance in dying is always an informed and voluntary choice.
  28. answered
    Aerospace IndustryMr. Simon-Pierre Savard-Tremblay (Bloc) asked Justin Trudeau (Liberal). substantive question.Response directly states hundreds of millions in aerospace support and pandemic measures for the sector.The fact is that we have sent hundreds of millions of dollars in support to the aerospace industry because it is a key industry for Montreal, for Quebec and even for Canada.
  29. deflected
    Aerospace IndustryMr. Simon-Pierre Savard-Tremblay (Bloc) asked Justin Trudeau (Liberal). loaded question.Response highlights general support and subsidies but avoids the absence of a dedicated aerospace policy.our government has always been proud to support the aerospace industry in Montreal, in Quebec and across Canada with record investments, support for companies, and above all, support for the workers, for training, for the assistance and research that will foster economic growth in this sector.
  30. misdirected
    Official LanguagesMr. Luc Berthold (Conservative) asked Justin Trudeau (Liberal). substantive question.Response pivots to youth supports and French defense without addressing Treasury Board minister's responsibilities on official languages analysis.We will be there to protect young people. We will be there to defend French across the country.
  31. misdirected
    Official LanguagesMr. Luc Berthold (Conservative) asked Justin Trudeau (Liberal). substantive question.Response attacks Conservative record on French instead of addressing reprimand for the Treasury Board minister.we have no lessons to learn from the Conservative Party about protecting the French language.
  32. misdirected
    Official LanguagesErin O'Toole (Conservative) asked Justin Trudeau (Liberal). loaded question.Response defends Liberal record then attacks opposition leader on judges rather than explaining Liberal members' actions on French.I have given the leader of the official opposition plenty of opportunities to do so, but he has never committed to appointing only bilingual judges to the Supreme Court. Why?
  33. deflected
    InfrastructureMs. Leona Alleslev (Conservative) asked Justin Trudeau (Liberal). substantive question.The answer restates general transit investments and shifts blame to the province without addressing the specific request for the Yonge extension.We are waiting on more clarity from them.
  34. deflected
    InfrastructureMs. Leona Alleslev (Conservative) asked Justin Trudeau (Liberal). substantive question.The answer again emphasizes partnership and waiting on a provincial plan rather than committing to the project as asked.We are waiting on the provincial government in Ontario to move forward with its plans on the York subway extension because we are there to be partners and invest, but we need to see the plan.
  35. misdirected
    InfrastructureErin O'Toole (Conservative) asked Justin Trudeau (Liberal). substantive question.The answer turns to attacking the opposition leader and his provincial allies instead of answering the funding question.We simply need the member opposite, the Leader of the Opposition , to give a nudge to his friends at Queen's Park to move forward with a plan that we can support and deliver for the people in York Region.
  36. partly answered
    The EnvironmentMr. Alexandre Boulerice (NDP) asked Justin Trudeau (Liberal). loaded question.The answer lists past environmental actions and promises a future plan but does not directly address the specific criticisms in the question.We introduced legislation to achieve net-zero emissions, we put a price on pollution across the country, we invested in clean energy, we banned plastics, and we protected 14% of our marine areas.