The Blueprint: Canada's Conservative Podcast - February 15, 2022


Freedom From Mandates, and the Liberal Emergencies Act

Topics
Saskatchewan tax exemption change
Hosted by
Jamie Schmal
Mentioned
Warren Steinle Jamie Schmael Pat Kelly COVID-19 Jody Wilson-Raybould Candace Bergen Justin Trudeau Joel Lightbound Jason Kenney Bonnie Henry Theresa Tam Tom Rouser John
Mandates, Democracy and Unity The Emergencies Act

Episode Stats


Length

18 minutes

Words per minute

174.87

Word count

3,315

Sentence count

214

Harmful content

Misogyny

1

sentences flagged

Hate speech

1

sentences flagged


Summary

Summaries generated with gmurro/bart-large-finetuned-filtered-spotify-podcast-summ .

Join us as we hear from Pat Kelly and Warren Steinle as they talk about the recent victory by the Opposition in the House of Commons, the Emergencies Act, and the recent Supreme Court ruling on CP Rail.

Transcript

Transcript generated with Whisper (turbo).
Misogyny classifications generated with MilaNLProc/bert-base-uncased-ear-misogyny .
Hate speech classifications generated with facebook/roberta-hate-speech-dynabench-r4-target .
Topics generated with Qwen2.5-3B-Instruct.
Hosts, guests, and mentioned names generated with spaCy (en_core_web_sm), reconciled against Wikidata.
00:00:00.840 Hello and welcome once again to The Blueprints. This is Canada's Conservative Podcast. I'm your host, Jamie Schmael, Member of Parliament for Halliburton, for the Lex Brock, with new content for you every single Tuesday, 1.30 p.m. Eastern Time. We appreciate you joining us. There's been a lot going on in Ottawa this past week, and we want to inform you about that, but first we ask that you'd like, comment, subscribe, share this program together.
00:00:20.740 We can push back against that ever-moving liberal narrative, and of course, if you can't watch or listen to the entire program right this second, you can download it later on, listen to it on platforms like CastBox, iTunes, Google Play, Spotify, you name it, it is out there.
00:00:34.440 So, without further delay, we have great content, lots happening in Ottawa, two great hosts, both friends of the show, been on before. We have Pat Kelly, Member of Parliament for Calgary, Rocky Ridge, also the Chair of the Ethics Committee, and beside him, Warren Steinle, the Member of Parliament for Regina Luvan.
00:00:49.800 He's also the Shadow Minister for Prairie Economic Development and Interprovincial Trade. Welcome, gentlemen.
00:00:55.460 Thanks very much. Thanks, Jamie.
00:00:56.820 I don't even know where to start here, but first, let's give Warren a bit of a shout-out. He did something that's pretty amazing, something that really hasn't happened.
00:01:04.640 Warren, why don't you tell us, I'm not going to take anything for this, you tell us what happened, because it is pretty amazing.
00:01:09.820 Well, thank you very much, Jamie, and it's not just me, but my 13 colleagues from Saskatchewan. We have 14 out of 14 Conservatives in Saskatchewan, and last week, we were able to put forward
00:01:19.400 an opposition motion that actually changes the Constitution of our country. So we were the first opposition to do this, and what it does is, there's an unfair tax exemption in Section 24 of the Saskatchewan Act for CP Rail,
00:01:33.900 and it was really a handshake agreement that it was supposed to be removed back in 1966. It's currently before the court case, and we had unanimous consent from all parties across in the House of Commons to move this forward,
00:01:47.300 and it was passed unanimously at the Saskatchewan Legislature to bring it to the House of Commons, and we've done our job. Now, once the Senate moves this motion forward, which they've talked about it already, and it passes,
00:01:58.720 we will officially change the Constitution for the Saskatchewan Act and save the Saskatchewan taxpayers hopefully $341 million. So it was a big day. My colleagues from Saskatchewan did a wonderful job giving speeches,
00:02:10.580 and we're really happy that we were able to move this forward on behalf of the people of Saskatchewan.
00:02:14.880 Yeah, sadly, it kind of didn't get the publicity I think it deserved because there was a lot of other things going on, which we're going to talk about shortly.
00:02:22.600 Yeah, that's for sure, but you know, in these jobs, sometimes you get to have a really big win, and maybe not a lot of people hear about it, but in the follow-up,
00:02:33.160 we're going to make sure that people know that we are always on the Saskatchewan side, and they have 14 strong MPs from Saskatchewan getting the job done and listening to what the people of Saskatchewan wants.
00:02:41.980 It comes down to fairness, tax fairness, and respecting provincial jurisdiction.
00:02:46.600 So we had a lot of support with that, with the Saskatchewan legislature passing this motion unanimously.
00:02:51.840 We wanted to make sure that we also respected what the province wanted as well.
00:02:55.520 Well done, especially in opposition. So well done to you and the Saskatchewan team here.
00:03:00.100 Thank you very much.
00:03:00.800 That's amazing.
00:03:01.400 So, well, let's move on to the Emergencies Act.
00:03:06.540 We know that the Prime Minister has made an announcement yesterday to give notice that the Emergency Act will be coming to effect.
00:03:14.100 The piece of legislation, which we have not seen yet, will have to be debated in Parliament.
00:03:19.000 So it does a whole bunch of other things.
00:03:20.540 It gives the police more tools at their disposal, helps them to restore, in this wording, order in places where public assemblies constitute illegal and dangerous activities, such as blockades and occupations.
00:03:33.360 It talks about border crossings, about bank accounts, and that sort of thing.
00:03:39.720 So there's a whole lot of pieces to it.
00:03:41.000 We haven't seen all the details yet.
00:03:42.340 We're still waiting for it.
00:03:43.180 That's just the quick overview, the 10-second overview.
00:03:46.300 But, Pat, maybe I'll go to you.
00:03:49.940 It's strange that we even came to this point.
00:03:52.340 Oh, it's unbelievable.
00:03:54.280 And, you know, like you said, we've had really less than a day here.
00:03:59.020 It's not quite clear yet how this is all going to play out.
00:04:04.020 So we will have to wait and see what the government actually tables and what we'll be asked to vote on.
00:04:09.000 But there's no way that this should have ever come to this.
00:04:12.220 And you look at a government that, you know, the other opposition motion that we had last week where we simply called upon the federal government to table a plan by February 28th on how they plan to eventually wind down all of the COVID restrictions.
00:04:32.660 Certainly not an unreasonable request that we could ask the government to take a plan.
00:04:36.660 We've been two years into this, right?
00:04:37.920 Well, absolutely.
00:04:38.820 And not the first time we've asked either.
00:04:40.840 I mean, we've asked on behalf of small business owners for really for well over a year to just take us through and show us some light at the end of the tunnel.
00:04:50.620 So, you know, and the federal government hasn't been effective in managing any of the crisis that this has come to with the tools and powers that they already had.
00:05:06.880 And, you know, my concern is that, you know, this is just also yet another example of liberals when it comes to posturing and appearing to do something rather than actually doing something.
00:05:20.200 And, you know, we're going to have to see what they actually put in front of Canadians in the parliament for us to vote on in the days to come.
00:05:28.200 Absolutely.
00:05:28.860 And like Pat just said, Warren, we had a motion to talk about just give us a plan.
00:05:33.900 And even our interim leader, Candace Bergen, talked about it.
00:05:36.520 Like, what is the thresholds you want Canadians to meet?
00:05:39.660 We have a high rate of vaccinations.
00:05:41.920 We have countries around the world with lower rates that are opening up.
00:05:45.600 And we don't seem to be moving on the federal side, at least a number of provinces have.
00:05:50.840 But that seemed reasonable.
00:05:52.340 We're two years plus into this.
00:05:53.960 Well, for us, being from Saskatchewan, Premier Mo has laid out a plan of first we're going to limit and get rid of the vaccine passports and then masking at the end of February. 0.98
00:06:04.380 So he laid out a plan of how Saskatchewan residents can get back to normal.
00:06:08.600 And Jason Kenney has done the same in Manitoba and now Ontario have also laid out a plan in Quebec.
00:06:15.420 So I think it's incumbent to ask for that.
00:06:17.460 Like Pat said, we had a motion similar to this in March of 2021 asking for a plan.
00:06:23.120 And now what we see in Ottawa, I think, is a reaction from Canadians that this government just has not said what's their end goal.
00:06:30.720 How did we get through this pandemic to an endemic and learning to live with COVID-19?
00:06:35.400 And I believe medical health officers across the country have talked about living with it, from Bonnie Henry to Dr. Theresa Tam.
00:06:42.360 They've talked about learning to live with COVID.
00:06:44.240 And the government now and the true liberals just have refused to put forward that plan.
00:06:48.360 So this protest really lies at the feet of this prime minister and his cabinet.
00:06:51.720 And there's an unwillingness to tell Canadians how we're going to move past COVID-19.
00:06:56.940 I think we're all sick of it.
00:06:58.000 You're seeing in Alberta, you're seeing a lot of the restrictions being lifted.
00:07:01.540 There must be people just upset.
00:07:03.240 They just want to see a path.
00:07:04.120 As Warren has said, jurisdictions all over the world, including in Canada, are tabling their plans.
00:07:10.720 And this government is refusing to table one of their own.
00:07:13.940 But part of what has really created the crisis of anger and just people with a variety of opinions on what restrictions should be and whether they should be eliminated completely immediately or not,
00:07:32.180 But what the true government has done is turned up the heat by stigmatizing, chastising, name-calling, resorting to sort of the lowest ways in which to divide Canadians quite cynically, seemingly for his own political agenda.
00:07:54.740 And it's unbecoming of a prime minister to come out and say, these people over here are, you know, to name-call as he has done.
00:08:05.820 It's certainly not going to help Canadians come together and help people to respect one another.
00:08:13.920 And certainly all of that in the absence of any kind of plan to show people how we might come out of this.
00:08:20.420 And Pat's right.
00:08:21.920 We even see this from his own caucus, from members of Joe Lightbomb and Yves Robillard saying, you use the pandemic to divide Canadians for political gain during a federal election.
00:08:32.580 And we saw that.
00:08:33.360 And we saw that.
00:08:34.020 So when you know two or three or four of his own caucus members are coming out, you know that there's another 20 that feel the same way but just haven't got to the point where they want to speak out against the prime minister for fear of retribution.
00:08:46.460 We know how decisive he can be when someone comes out against him.
00:08:50.280 We saw that with Jody Wilson-Raybould and in the past of how really he can take down his own people.
00:08:55.760 So I think when you hear caucus members speak about how divisive Justin Trudeau has been with Canadians, it really should strike home with a lot of people that that is his modus operandi is really trying to divide Canadians and not bring people together, which is true leadership.
00:09:11.920 I'm going to get to the issue about the potential trucker interprovincial vaccine mandate that the transport minister refuses to answer a straight question.
00:09:22.480 I'll get to that in a second before I go to that.
00:09:24.620 I just want to talk about the fact that the government might be saying something very soon, potentially later on this afternoon, about PCR tests and traveling.
00:09:33.080 Like this kind of stuff that we've called for a path to end the mandates.
00:09:37.040 I don't think we really need the PCR test now, especially for Canadians returning, for international travelers.
00:09:43.520 Like at this point, I don't see why these measures have been allowed to continue as long as they have.
00:09:51.740 Yeah, we've seen Canada really acting kind of reactively and behind what many other peer countries have done.
00:09:58.560 And, you know, I think that we all get, I think, quite a bit of hear from many constituents about the frustrations around this and lack of clarity and lack of understanding of what's required.
00:10:12.780 And the PCR test on travel has been a real irritant for many travelers.
00:10:19.920 And, you know, I think the onus is on the government to confirm or show that their policy has had a meaningful effect on transmission.
00:10:31.020 And, you know, the other peer countries are going the other way on this.
00:10:34.780 And it's just one concludes that our government is just sort of reactively stumbling along on this and not really following any kind of proper plan.
00:10:53.080 Yeah, I would agree. And that's what we're trying to ask them.
00:10:56.200 So the transport minister refuses to answer a question.
00:11:00.260 And the question is pretty simple.
00:11:01.360 What about the conversation around trucker vaccine mandates for interprovincial travel?
00:11:07.700 And you're the critic for that.
00:11:09.480 Have we got a clear answer? I don't think the answer is yes on that.
00:11:12.320 No, we haven't got a clear answer.
00:11:13.600 In the Ag Committee, we talked to Deputy Minister Tom Roser, and he said they've had conversations within different departments about bringing forward an interprovincial vaccine mandate for truckers since December.
00:11:26.400 So, first of all, they're being dishonest about how long they've talked about bringing forward this possible policy.
00:11:32.400 But the thing I want to know is truckers have been essential for two years.
00:11:36.140 At the height of the pandemic, they're able to cross international and provincial borders.
00:11:40.040 So why the timing now? Why, when it seems to be lightening up, would they bring forward a proposal, a vaccine mandate for interprovincial trucking when they never even thought about it for the last two years?
00:11:51.800 So I think that's the question I get from a lot of my constituents, from John and Louvain, from a lot of people, is the timing seems a little bit off.
00:11:59.080 And show us some of the scientific data.
00:12:01.320 The Liberals always talk about science and evidence-based policy.
00:12:04.920 Well, we've seen no data, no research that suggests bringing in an interprovincial trucking vaccine mandate where a trucker's in a cab by themselves, why that would be lower transmission of COVID-19.
00:12:18.000 So I've asked the Minister many times, please show us any scientific data that this is a necessary policy.
00:12:24.500 And as usual, we just get the liberal word salad and it's really disappointing.
00:12:30.880 So if truckers are 90% vaccinated, according to the Prime Minister and the Trucking Alliance, then the question is, show us the data that points to this direction.
00:12:40.380 Why not?
00:12:40.700 We haven't got it.
00:12:41.660 So something else that came and went during the pandemic was, well, you're dealing with an ethics committee.
00:12:47.240 You're dealing with cell phone data.
00:12:49.560 But that was, like, what was it, 33 million devices were tracked without permission during the pandemic?
00:12:54.400 Well, yeah, this news was reported just before Christmas.
00:12:58.600 It was right after we had risen for Christmas.
00:13:02.080 There was suddenly a request for proposal for a contract to extend a data collection program that nobody knew was happening and extend it for another five years.
00:13:15.080 And it was reported that the federal government had received de-identified mobility data taken from, it was reported, 33 million mobile devices.
00:13:28.700 Well, that's a lot of devices.
00:13:29.540 That's pretty much everybody with a phone.
00:13:31.080 Yes.
00:13:31.600 So the government has insisted that nobody's privacy has been violated because the information they receive is de-identified.
00:13:43.360 But our committee is really concerned about the method around whether or not it can be as simple as that.
00:13:53.260 And experts have said it is actually, in many cases, easy to re-identify data and that there has been no transparency around how this data has been secured.
00:14:06.200 The privacy commissioner was not consulted.
00:14:08.360 The privacy commissioner was informed, but not because his opinion was not sought.
00:14:14.820 The privacy commissioner is investigating this data collection in response to complaints.
00:14:21.080 And we've had some very strong testimony at our committee around the concerns about an absence of transparency and an absence of information about just what safeguards are in place to ensure that Canadians are not being surveilled or that their private information has not been compromised.
00:14:47.880 So the committee was unanimous in this, including Liberal government side members were unanimous in proposing this study.
00:14:58.580 We also unanimously, as a committee, called upon the government to suspend this request or proposal until we have completed our study, heard from experts, and can confirm and report back to the House that Canadians' privacy is being adequately protected.
00:15:16.880 And it was unfortunate.
00:15:17.880 And it was unfortunate when this was put to a vote in the House of Commons last week.
00:15:21.880 Both of you would have been there for the vote on that, and the government voted against that motion.
00:15:31.720 And we remain concerned that they're just plowing ahead with this request to extend this mobility data collection for up to five years before our committee has even been able to report back to the Commons with expert testimony to assure that privacy is going to be protected.
00:15:50.420 That's a severe breach.
00:15:51.420 That's a severe breach.
00:15:52.420 That's a severe breach.
00:15:53.420 What were they looking for?
00:15:54.420 Just where people were going?
00:15:55.420 Were they staying home?
00:15:56.420 Oh, this was for the public health agency.
00:15:57.420 They wanted to, and this is mobility data they're looking for, for where people travel.
00:16:02.420 And, I mean, there are just more questions than answers, I guess, around this.
00:16:07.420 It would seem, to me, premature to plow ahead with the contract.
00:16:14.420 They've actually, they initially had a deadline for this RFP before Parliament even resumes.
00:16:20.420 So it was like Parliament rises for winter.
00:16:22.420 That's convenient.
00:16:23.420 They put out the request for proposal with a deadline before Parliament resumes.
00:16:28.420 They wanted to have this contract all done and have this program continue on for five years before there was any opportunity for parliamentary scrutiny.
00:16:35.420 They have postponed the RFP a couple of times, but they won't rescind it.
00:16:40.420 And it seems that the postponement now might have more to do with whether or not they've actually got a bidder on the contract.
00:16:47.420 So just for our viewers, Pat, are you saying the same Liberals have voted for it unanimously at committee, then voted against it in the House of Commons?
00:16:57.420 Well, it would seem so, yes.
00:17:00.420 They changed their mind, I guess, between the committee meeting and the vote in Parliament.
00:17:06.420 Well, we have to get out of here. Sadly, I want to continue on. There's so many other topics I want to talk about.
00:17:10.420 As you both know, you both have been on the show before. I always give the guests the last word.
00:17:15.420 Pat, why don't we start with you? Take it away. 0.95
00:17:17.420 Well, just thanks for having me on the program.
00:17:20.420 And I hope that maybe there will be a little more.
00:17:23.420 And thanks for getting us into the discussion on the data collections.
00:17:27.420 I think that that's really important. And I hope that amid all of the other things that people are talking about, there's a lot, no shortage of news right now, that this will be good information for people that are concerned about privacy.
00:17:42.420 Warren?
00:17:43.420 Well, just thank you, Jamie, for having us on once again. And it's just a pleasure to be a guest. And we're going to keep fighting to make sure Canadians can start getting back to their everyday lives.
00:17:52.420 So that's what the Conservatives are going to do. We're going to fight to get rid of the mandates and restrictions so that Canadians can once again take back the only decision making they have in their day to day lives.
00:18:01.420 Absolutely. Well, thank you very much, Pat Kelly, Member of Parliament for Calgary, Rocker Ridge, also the Chair of the Ethics Committee.
00:18:07.420 And Warren Steinle, the Member of Parliament for Regina Luvan in the beautiful province of Saskatchewan.
00:18:12.420 Also the Shadow Minister for Prairie Economic Development and the Shadow Minister for Interprovincial Trade.
00:18:18.420 That is a mouthful. I know there is a lot more topics we needed to get into. There is a lot happening in Ottawa.
00:18:24.420 Unfortunately, we are limited due to time. We have a question period coming up in about 10 minutes or so.
00:18:29.420 We need to get back to the Chamber. Also, we need to clear this channel so that question period can be broadcast live.
00:18:35.420 So we do appreciate you joining us. We will be back next Tuesday, 1.30 p.m. Eastern Time with new content for you.
00:18:41.420 Ask that you like, comment, subscribe, share this program. Together we can push back against the ever-moving Liberal agenda.
00:18:47.420 And of course, it's available on platforms like CastBox, iTunes, Google Play and Spotify.
00:18:52.420 As always, remember, low taxes, less government, more freedom. That is The Blueprint.