Government Orders
Madam Speaker, let me begin by saying that I will be splitting my time with the member for Vancouver East. I am very pleased to rise today to speak in support of Bill C‑8, an act respecting cyber security. This critical piece of legislation will strengthen Canada's resilience against public and private cyber-threats. I believe that all of my parliamentary colleagues would agree that cyber-threats …
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my Bloc Québécois colleague and congratulate her on the relevance of the points she made. This is hardly about centralization. I am not an expert in this area, but I think we can agree that cybercriminals act quickly and nimbly. Their crimes are evolving so fast that our laws and those of other countries cannot keep up. Does she not see that the constraints she i…
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Madam Speaker, my question is for the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Housing and Infrastructure. In my riding, Bourassa, like in many parts of Canada, citizens want affordable and accessible housing. Can she inform the House on the ways her department is working together with local stakeholders, particularly municipalities, non-profits, local organizations and community organizations, …
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Mr. Speaker, I will be sharing my time with the member for Madawaska—Restigouche. I thank all members of the House for their shared commitment to food security and to Canada's farmers and food processors. Our new government is committed to ensuring that prices remain affordable for Canadians. It has made this a top priority. In the face of unprecedented and unfair trade threats, we are working har…
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Mr. Speaker, as I said earlier, many programs have been mentioned. I would like to thank my colleague for giving me another opportunity to talk about the programs we want to implement. While we do need to help farmers and recognize the importance of farmers and agri-food, I think it is very important to look at the end of the supply chain. We must ensure that food produced in Canada reaches Canadi…
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for that very relevant question. Am I aware of the situation? Yes, I am. In my riding, Bourassa, between 25% and 30% of the population is seniors. I think that is a very important point. Inflation has had a much bigger impact on seniors. I am sure of that, and I could not agree more with my colleague. Now, should we increase OAS or should we try to lower prices? I…
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague for his pertinent question, which is relevant. It is important to note that inflation has not only affected Canada. It has also affected many countries around the world. The issue of being proactive or reactive is very important in the response. I spoke about programs, which are aspects that are much more reactive. However, when we work directly with…
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Mr. Speaker, thank you for your observation. The vote was finished when—
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Mr. Speaker, I will just finish my sentence. The vote was finished.
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Mr. Speaker, I rise today to talk about a matter of crucial importance: protecting the rights and freedoms enshrined in the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Since 1982, this document has been not only a legal instrument, but also a symbol of our identity and our democracy. Canadians see the charter not only as a law, but as a living guarantee that protects everyone, regardless of their ori…
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Mr. Speaker, I will answer the question by simply saying that, for us, Quebec values include the value of diversity. When we say in the House that we represent Quebec, it is a matter of arithmetic. There are 44 Quebeckers here who will represent and defend Quebec's culture and values. There are more of us. We have more women, more diversity and more seats. We will defend Quebec values and culture …
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Mr. Speaker, I listened carefully to my Bloc Québécois colleague and I heard the term “secularism”. One of the things that really motivated me to settle in Canada and choose to live in the province of Quebec as a Quebecker was its secular nature. Here, however, we have to be tread very carefully. There is a big difference between secularism and secularization. Secularization is really about imposi…
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Mr. Speaker, I admire the Bloc Québécois member's eloquence, and I also admire the image he chose, the image of the tower of Pisa, which always leans the same way. Along the same lines, can he not see that the Bloc Québécois is also like the tower of Pisa in a way, because it always leans toward the majority? The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms protects minority rights above all. However, …
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Mr. Speaker, far be it from me to muddy the waters. I want to be specific this time, and I would like an answer from my colleague. When I speak about minorities, I do so as a Quebecker, representing Quebec here. I was referring to minorities in the province of Quebec compared to the francophone majority in Quebec. What values are we talking about? Are they values defined solely by that majority, o…
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Mr. Speaker, I have a question for my colleague, who presented a beautiful framework, a very interesting vision of the angle that the charter should take. I congratulate him on that work. My question is very simple. Can my colleague at least give us an idea of how this notwithstanding clause can also harm minority interests in Quebec, freedom of expression and freedom of religion? I want to take t…
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Mr. Speaker, once again, I really do not need any lessons from the other side of the House.
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Mr. Speaker, that is a great quote. I think that protecting minorities is very important, especially when it comes to fundamental rights such as access to employment. I will give just one example. The people most affected by unemployment in Quebec are people of different racial backgrounds. These are people who, unfortunately, do not have access to employment because they wear a religious symbol. …
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Mr. Speaker, that is what I was saying earlier. Unfortunately, listening to the Bloc Québécois members, it is as though there are two sorts of Quebecker. He asks me where I was in 1982. I know the history of Quebec. I had the choice to go to other provinces when I immigrated, but I decided to settle in Quebec because I believe in Quebec's values, in the values of diversity and the French language.…
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Mr. Speaker, first, our government is tackling unemployment, developing employability and creating plenty of job opportunities. It is building a very strong economy. However, I would simply like to point out that there may have been a misunderstanding with my message. The fact is that in Quebec, a woman who wears a veil cannot teach. A woman who wears a veil cannot really work in a day care. Many …
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Mr. Speaker, I see that my remarks shocked the members on the other side of the House. That was not my intention. I simply want to say that, while they do not really have the exclusive right to speak on behalf of Quebeckers, neither do we, but we were still elected by Quebeckers who sent us here. I do, however, want to point out one thing on which we agree. There is at least one. It is that we nee…
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Mr. Speaker, there has been a lot of talk about minority issues. There is a lot of talk about the court and the 125 MNAs in Quebec. It is also important to note that what is happening now is that this law was imposed on a minority in Quebec, and it is this minority that is turning to the courts. My question is simple. Do these people have the right to challenge the law in this way and to turn to C…
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Mr. Speaker, the NBA's Larry O'Brien trophy weighs more than 20 pounds. How do I know that? It is because the trophy was brought home to my riding of Bourassa. Luguentz Dort, who faced off against his childhood friend Bennedict Mathurin, brought the trophy home to Bourassa. We really had it back home in Bourassa. He also brought back hope. He brought back pride for young people in Bourassa. He als…
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Mr. Speaker, first, I want to thank my colleague from the Bloc Québécois. It seems like we wrote our comments at the same time, at the same place, in the same way. I agree with my colleague on several points, including oversimplification, which is what this motion does. The term “common sense” is being used, but people have to be very careful. There is common sense, and there is oversimplification…
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Mr. Speaker, I really like that question. We really need to do more work on prevention. There are more indicators and warning signs that we need to work on as a government and as a society. Here are two examples. Consider youth crime. Young people need more sports infrastructure, more community centres and more access to arts and culture, which is not the case across the country. That is very impo…
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague, but I heard her say several times that, sadly, gun violence and the rise in crime are really a result of Bill C‑75. Is her assessment based on any studies, or is it as simplistic as what we heard from her colleague earlier? Is she aware of any analyses that might show that these types of issues could also be related to other social or health-related determinants,…
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Mr. Speaker, we have heard quite a few speeches today. Many people have spoken on the subject. I would like to reiterate that we all agree on the fact that Canadians always have the right and obviously deserve to feel safe and secure when they are out and about regardless of their gender. That is very important. We obviously agree with the opposition members that serious action must urgently be ta…
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Mr. Speaker, that is not a record to be proud of. Once again, and this is very important, let us not focus on lagging indicators. We agree on these points. However, when it comes to contributing factors, at no point did I hear anyone on the other side of the House talk about determinants of health, determinants of housing or social determinants. These are the determinants that create vulnerability…
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Mr. Speaker, quite simply, I disagree with the Conservatives' comments and their proposal, which would remove judicial discretion. I agree with my Bloc Québécois colleague on this point because it is very important. He expressed it quite well earlier today. Removing this discretionary power from judges really infringes on their power. When the Crown and Crown attorneys look at the history of the c…
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his speech. His explanations were truly comprehensive and he presented some very interesting ideas. It is a very interesting and different angle from what can be gleaned from the cursory reading that the opposition obviously did. I have a very clear question for my colleague. We know that there is a major fentanyl crisis going on. Public safety and any other o…
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Mr. Speaker, first of all, I would like to explain that our government implemented border measures in early 2020 in response to widespread and growing concern in the international community about reports of a new virus identified in China. This was followed by an unprecedented international response to the pandemic. Throughout the COVID‑19 pandemic, we took a comprehensive and layered approach to …
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Mr. Speaker, it is very important that our government remain committed to strengthening the mechanism of integrity in public administration. We need to work together across party lines, in a non-partisan way, to make sure that something like this never happens again. It is very important that this issue be addressed in a non-partisan way and that it not be politicized.
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Mr. Speaker, I really want to put on the record that the government has not turned a blind eye and has acted very responsibly. The government has already taken concrete action to address the concerns raised. An investigation has been launched by the Office of the Auditor General of Canada, and we are co-operating fully with the authorities to get to the bottom of this matter. The government has al…
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Mr. Speaker, that is absolutely true, whether in this case or any other case where people find that administrative processes take a really long time or genuinely harm their financial situation. I would just like to come back to the subject to say one thing. What matters to this government in terms of administrative processes is integrating AI and making Canadians our primary concern. I would also …
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Mr. Speaker, last weekend in Bourassa, as across the country, we celebrated Fête des voisins, or neighbours day, which is a special opportunity to get to know our neighbours, share a smile and build stronger communities. Bourassa is also buzzing with excitement for the NBA finals. Two basketball players from Montreal, Canada, Quebec—but most importantly, from the riding of Bourassa—are facing off …
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Mr. Speaker, one thing to remember is that this is not something the government is doing in isolation. It is not just a single initiative, but rather an integrated approach. This will obviously include more border measures. I hope that the work will be done upstream not just with respect to the borders, but also to drugs.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for her welcoming message. She was correct in saying that we need to listen, but this has to go both ways. That is really important. The Bloc Québécois is known for its proposals on prevention. As I said, this is a much more integrated approach to public safety. It is an approach that includes not only police response, but also a social and humanitarian response r…
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Mr. Speaker, before I begin, I want to share some really good news. Two athletes from my riding, Bennedict Mathurin and Luguentz Dort, have made it to the NBA finals. We are bursting with pride in these young Quebeckers from Montreal North. They are of Haitian descent, were born and trained here, on our streets, in our schools and in our parks. This is a great response to people who, like the pres…
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Mr. Speaker, I am simply inviting my colleague to read the document carefully, because the goal is to give our police forces more resources and to facilitate their work and operations. I would also invite her to look at how this bill can be managed in a much more integrated way, rather than seeing it from a silo perspective or from the point of view of a single framework. That is the problem with …
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Madam Speaker, I would like to thank the opposition member for his speech and his challenge to us on this matter. I listened to him carefully. We agree on a number of points. What we want is for all Canadians to feel safe and secure. That being said, we must not mislead Canadians. We are talking about a bill that will be discussed and debated. There are a number of elements that I hope will lead t…
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