Kody Blois

Mr. Chair, it is a privilege to be able to join today's debate on the estimates and be able to put good questions on behalf of the good people of Kings—Hants to the Minister of Finance. I want to start by saying, having served for seven years as a member of Parliament, I appreciate the work of the hon. member from Shawinigan. I appreciate his work in his capacity in a variety of files. I have [more]

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member is one I would put in the camp of the good ones whom I have a lot of respect for. I know he is framing this around $1,200. We are looking at a comprehensive view around affordability. We have already reduced gas taxes in Canada by 28¢ a litre. We believe that is important. The hon. member talked about, and I would reject the premise of his question, how the [more]

Mr. Chair, I am sorry I had to cut the minister off. He is great, but I have to get in one last question. South Shore—St. Margarets Labrador Avalon I see the hon. member for, who has done great work on China, on the file around lobsters and working with the government to remove tariffs. I see the hon. member forand the member for. I can say that it is fisheries that matter in Atlantic Canada. [more]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to commend my colleague for being such a strong advocate in Parliament for farmers across the country and especially in Quebec. With regard to the clean fuel regulations, there are a lot of options available to the affected parties to ensure compliance, and that includes the use of biofuels. There are farmers in western Canada and Quebec who grow corn and who have the [more]

Peterborough Compton—Stanstead Mr. Chair, I agree with the hon. minister. He may have been referencing the hon. member forand her experience in working in the agriculture sector. Let me go on the record in seconding the minister's belief that the member for Peterborough is a great champion in this House, along with the hon. member for. We have a whole host of leaders in that agricultural space. [more]

Saanich—Gulf Islands Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my hon. colleague fromfor ensuring that we have proper decorum. I believe that my remarks here today have value, and I really look forward to engaging with my colleagues, particularly when we get to questions after the speech. Perhaps people were just excited to be able to see the parliamentary secretary and the hon. member for Kings—Hants, [more]

Mr. Speaker, I want to say, first of all, on the record that I am proud of the work of the member for Sarnia—Lambton. Even when she sat on that side of the House, the opposition side of the House, I thought she litigated in a way that was respectful. She would engage respectfully. We are very happy to see her on the government benches helping to support the public policy of the government. Prime [more]

Waterloo Mr. Chair, the hon. member foris a great colleague. She and I have talked a lot about Canada's fiscal position. We have a AAA credit rating. We have the lowest net debt-to-GDP ratio in the G7. We have a strong fiscal position. I do not want the minister to take a whole lot of time, because I only have two minutes, but does he have quick comments on Canada's fiscal position and how he [more]

Mr. Speaker, that is a difficult question, and one that is difficult to answer in 20 seconds. With regard to price regulation, there are definitely certain regulators in the Atlantic provinces, in Quebec and elsewhere in Canada. I believe that we actually do have a model, and it is up to the provinces and territories to determine the necessary retail price.

Mr. Speaker, what I would say is that this differential existed when Stephen Harper was the prime minister as well. There are a number of factors in the way in which Canadians create the revenue that supports social programs. At the end of the day, what the hon. member is suggesting in today's motion is to take away the funding of GST that supports broad government programs in that member's [more]

Mr. Chair, I appreciate the attention to that matter from the minister. Yes, we do have a great working relationship, and I know that will continue. We have a lot of small businesses in Kings—Hants. When we talked today in the House about affordability, I chastised some of the Conservative positions in the opposition day motion as being too narrow and not looking at broader affordability [more]

Mr. Speaker, naturally I cannot explain the political views of the Conservative Party. However, as far as our government is concerned, I am very proud of the work we are doing with the Government of Quebec, particularly on major projects like the Contrecœur project and the Nouveau Monde Graphite project, as well as the investments that are being made. There is some good news for Airbus and [more]

Mr. Chair, I represent the largest agricultural riding in Atlantic Canada. Kings—Hants is home to a whole series of different commodity groups and one is the wine sector. We have an emerging grape and wine sector in Kings—Hants. The hon. minister had an opportunity to visit the riding. I know he is a great friend to the agricultural community across the country. One program that is of deep [more]

Mr. Speaker, I know that the crowd is in high anticipation for my remarks today on the opposition day motion. I will remind the hon. chair of the House of Commons agriculture committee that I look forward to his questions after my 20-minute remark here. Mr. Speaker, you will know from my seven years as a parliamentarian that I thoroughly enjoy opposition day motions. Obviously I have had the [more]