Statements By Members
Madam Speaker, tomorrow is the third national day of observance for COVID-19. It is hard to imagine that it has been three years since the first COVID death in Canada and all of the suffering that has happened since and still does. I want to first acknowledge all those who have lost a loved one to or because of COVID-19. Their grief is compounded by how their loved one died, especially for those w…
Read full speech →Statements By Members
Mr. Speaker, 32 years ago this week was the end of the first Gulf War, in which over 4,000 Canadian Armed Forces members served. It was also the first conflict in which Canadian women played an active combat role. I joined with the Persian Gulf Veterans of Canada to lay a wreath on the National War Memorial last week to recognize their service. The war began in 1990 when Iraq invaded neighbouring …
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I did not realize until I was grown how special it was that I had a Montessori teacher as a mother, because we did get that quality kind of engagement. That is why I said that this is not just about babysitting. This is not just about making sure children have someone to look after them. It is about the formation, the development, sparking that creativity, the learning, and making sur…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague for raising that issue because this is very much an economic policy as well. The fact is I have heard the same thing. Businesses in my riding have told me they are struggling. Some who are nearing retirement are saying they are just going to close the doors because they cannot find people to work in their businesses. This is one of the greatest ways that we c…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I think my colleague will recall that in my speech I addressed the fact that this is a bill that is not going to necessarily solve forever every single complex problem about caregiving in our society. First of all, I hope it is going to have an enormous impact on many families, in the member's constituency as well as mine. However, we need to rethink caregiving in our society. We need…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased today to be speaking on Bill C-35, an act respecting early learning and child care in Canada. This bill is one of the most significant pieces of legislation before this Parliament. It is something that I have been working on since I was first elected. It is one of the key issues that I have heard from my constituents. I have spoken with mothers who wanted to return t…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, the following reflects a consolidated response approved on behalf of Global Affairs Canada ministers. Global Affairs Canada tracks and publishes predefined service standards annually for the delivery of grants and contributions, precisely for funding under the international development assistance program. This can be found at https://www.international.gc.ca/world-monde/funding-finance…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, the following reflects a consolidated response approved on behalf of Global Affairs Canada’s ministers. With regard to parts (a) and (b), in processing parliamentary returns, the government applies the principles set out in the Access to Information Act. Information has been withheld on the grounds that the disclosure of certain information is subject to solicitor-client privilege. Wi…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, we must address the current affordability pressures while concurrently continuing to address the threat of climate change and building a prosperous low-carbon future. A price on pollution is an efficient market-based approach to reducing pollution, an approach that squarely addresses affordability. Under our plan, eight out of 10 Canadians receive more than what they pay, and that is …
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased today to speak to Bill C-32, the fall economic statement implementation act, 2022. I hope that we will pass it quickly through the House because it includes much-needed supports for Canadians during these challenging times. The last few years have not been easy. We have gone through a global pandemic. Many of us have lost loved ones. The economy shut down overnight. …
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I am very glad to hear the hon. member opposite talk about support for housing, because in the fall economic statement we are including a $500 top-up for low-income renters through the Canada housing benefit, which is one of the benefits from our $70-billion national housing strategy. I would add that this is very tangible. Right in my riding, at Michele Heights we have been able to b…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, housing is necessary. The budget for housing is $70 billion. I would add that right in my riding, with the CMHC's help, we were able to build a new women's shelter. There was an old shelter in a house that was basically falling down, and now we have Nelson House, which not only is a women's shelter for women and their families, but is accessible and modular. Opposition members say the…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I have too short a time to talk about all of the initiatives, but in the fall economic statement, there is the $500 top-up for housing for the people receiving the Canada housing benefit. I am very pleased that the member mentioned mental health, because our status of women committee right now is doing an incredibly important study on the mental health of young women and girls. I know…
Read full speech →Statements By Members
Mr. Speaker, last week I attended Rise Up Ottawa, where we heard from students as young as 12 years old about unacceptable acts of hatred they experience just because they are Jewish. Many of them said they are hiding their Jewish identity to avoid being targeted. A brave teacher, Lisa Levitan, coordinated the event to give these youth a voice. Nobody should feel scared to go to school because of …
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, Canada is committed to tackling the concurrent crises of global energy security and climate change, but we will do so in a manner that accounts for and works to minimize domestic emissions. We will also do so in a manner that ensures that any resulting emissions fit within Canada's climate plan. LNG is one of the tools in our tool box, and our government is committed to supporting the…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, when we are talking about transition, we are not only talking about the future of the industry and sustainable jobs, we are talking about economic opportunities for communities across our country. Those enormous economic opportunities will be enabled through the transition to a low-carbon future. Those opportunities will vary by region, with a presence particularly in Alberta, and the…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Madam Speaker, I want to thank my colleague for mentioning the visit to Ottawa of Evgenia Kara-Murza, the wife of Vladimir Kara-Murza, who we had an opportunity to meet with last night. I had the chance to meet Vladimir Kara-Murza a few years ago through the World Movement for Democracy. I found him to be a man of conviction, a man of courage, a man who is an inspiration to all those in Russia who…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honour Savanna Pikuyak, a young Inuk woman who was murdered just weeks after arriving in Ottawa to study nursing at Algonquin College in my riding. Before coming to Ottawa, Savanna studied pre-health at Nunavut Arctic College and worked at the health centre in her home community in Nunavut. All she wanted was to help people, but on September 11, at 22 years old, Savann…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, it is my pleasure to present petition e-3978 that calls on the Friday before Mother's Day to be henceforth known as civilian spouse or partner of a military member appreciation day. We know there are over 50,000 civilian spouses of serving military members and reservists and this is a way to ensure that we are properly recognizing those who serve alongside the serving military member.…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, with regard to parts (a) to (c), Global Affairs Canada manages an extensive network of 178 missions in 110 countries. The department undertook an extensive preliminary search in order to determine the amount of information that would fall within the scope of the question and the amount of time that would be required to prepare a comprehensive response. The level of detail of the infor…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, the following reflects a consolidated response approved on behalf of Global Affairs Canada ministers. In response to part (a), in accordance with the principles of good corporate citizenship, good global citizenship, and the rule of law, Canada is necessarily expected to abide by all applicable laws, both in Canada and abroad, and as such does not use development assistance to support…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Madam Speaker, I want to draw the attention of the House to the dire situation in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. We are seeing renewed violence on the part of M23 fighters and other terrorist militias, which has resulted in egregious human rights abuses. Tens of thousands of people have been driven from their homes. UN peacekeepers have been targeted, and there have been allegations…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Chair, I want to thank my colleague for her passion and her important work in this regard. She and I have very similar backgrounds in international development. In fact, our feminist international assistance policy and our national action plan on that have been in place. We are celebrating the fifth anniversary this year, and it is actually creating a change on the ground. Those very women w…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Chair, I want to thank my hon. colleague for Edmonton Strathcona for her dedicated commitment to this issue. I think we share a lot of the same commitment and passion for what really is an absolute crisis in the world. One thing I would ask my colleague is about the $250 million a year figure she cited. I know the minister earlier pointed to $514 million just for this current crisis, plus the …
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Chair, I am very happy that we are having this debate this evening. It could be one of the most important debates that we have in this House. We know that Russia's unjustifiable and unprovoked invasion of Ukraine has had an immediate impact on the food security and nutrition of the world's most vulnerable people. This is adding to the existing food crisis caused by the pandemic and by climate …
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Chair, I would disagree with the premise of my hon. colleague's question. Anyone who looked on the ground and talked to our partners, including our multilateral partners, would see that Canada is very much present. In fact, we are leading. As I mentioned, we are the fourth-largest donor to the World Food Programme. We continue to lead, particularly on innovation. The very farmers whom my hon. …
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Chair, it is what I said previously about innovation and Canadian farmers and Canadian NGOs that are on the ground. I spoke recently with the Humanitarian Coalition, whose partners are doing incredibly important innovative work around the world, using Canadian expertise, and also listening to the small-scale farmers internationally. We have projects looking at women farmers who are building …
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Chair, I think we all agree in the House about the illegal and egregious genocide that is happening against the Ukrainian people. Yevheniya Kravchuk is one of the MPs who was here from Ukraine this week. In her remarks, she said that Putin was relying on democracies thinking that democracies are weak because we are under pressure when our populations have inflation, increased food prices and…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Chair, I want to thank my friend from Saanich—Gulf Islands for making the incredibly crucial link that all of this is interconnected, whether it is climate change, the COVID-19 pandemic or the conflicts around the world, not just what is happening in Ukraine. The fact is that all of these things are creating a perfect storm that is leading not just to this incredible food crisis, but to a cr…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Chair, I want to compliment my hon. colleague for talking about the demining that is needed in Ukraine. I wonder if he is aware that Canada has provided over $450 million in the last two decades to demining. I also wonder if he is aware of the importance of the assistance we are also providing to Ukraine and the fact that, through DND, we have tremendous expertise in this regard.
Read full speech →Statements By Members
Mr. Speaker, today I would like to draw the attention of the House to the humanitarian crisis in Haiti. Political instability and violence are exacerbating the humanitarian situation. That has had a significant impact on the Haitian community in my riding. Canada has committed $70 million for projects in Haiti that will improve health services for Haitians, address food insecurity and build securi…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, I would like to ask my colleague about David Daubney, who was a predecessor of mine in my riding. He was a Conservative MP in the Mulroney years. He was actually chair of the justice committee during that time. He said that during the Harper years, the “departmental distaste for research and recommendations is the opposite of the situation under administrations such as those of Cons…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, the following reflects a consolidated response approved on behalf of Global Affairs Canada ministers. In response to part (a) of the question, Canada is a steward of the unique ecosystems and wealth of biodiversity that exists in the ocean and understands that, despite often harsh conditions, offshore and deep-sea marine environments host a diversity of habitats that support many orga…
Read full speech →Statements By Members
Mr. Speaker, Sunday, May 1, marked First Responders Day, a day we reflect on the selfless contributions of countless women and men in the fulfillment of their duties. Today, I would like to draw the attention of the House to the often unsung heroes of Ottawa, the members of the Ottawa Fire Services, whose unrelenting work keeps us safe every day. In particular, I congratulate my constituent, John …
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, the following reflects a consolidated response approved on behalf of Global Affairs Canada ministers. In response to part (a) of the question, Canada is actively engaged internationally to advance marine conservation. This includes ensuring that the regulations for seabed mineral mining under development at the International Seabed Authority, ISA, provide effective protection of the m…
Read full speech →Adjournment Proceedings
Madam Speaker, Canada is deeply concerned about the worsening humanitarian impact of Russia's unjustifiable invasion of Ukraine. We stand strong in our unwavering commitment to provide life-saving humanitarian assistance to those affected by the conflict. Canada responds to complex humanitarian crises through an established international humanitarian response system, comprised of United Nations ag…
Read full speech →Adjournment Proceedings
Madam Speaker, I would say to my hon. colleague that it is not either/or, and certainly we are constantly re-evaluating. Since the onset of the crisis in 2014, Canada has supported the humanitarian response in Ukraine with over $194 million in humanitarian assistance through experienced humanitarian partners. Their unparalleled access to affected populations and their ability to provide neutral, i…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Madam Speaker, I would like to thank my hon. colleague for Richmond Centre for his advocacy. Our government recognizes that more support is needed for women and girls who are disproportionately affected by the impacts of climate change, natural disasters and biodiversity loss. That is why we announced $67.5 million in international assistance funding that will provide support to eight projects. Th…
Read full speech →Adjournment Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, my hon. colleague for Spadina—Fort York has raised an incredibly important question. We continue unequivocally to condemn President Putin's unprovoked and unjustifiable invasion of Ukraine. Our hearts break as we hear about untold suffering, particularly in cities such as Mariupol, where thousands of people are trapped without electricity, water, gas or a way of communicating with the…
Read full speech →Adjournment Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, Canada remains steadfast in its commitment to address the humanitarian needs in Ukraine as well as the needs of those who have fled to neighbouring countries. We reiterate our deep concern for the increasing number of civilian casualties as well as for the growing number of people crossing the border into neighbouring countries in search of safety, and we continue to call for safe pas…
Read full speech →Statements By Members
Mr. Speaker, Tuesday is International Women's Day, when we pay tribute not only to the amazing women in our communities but even more so to those on whose shoulders we stand. I rise today to pay tribute to such a woman: Dr. Elizabeth Betsy McGregor. Betsy was recently appointed to the Order of Canada for her national and international championing of women in STEM and politics. Her tenacity, coachi…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, we all thank the Ukrainian Canadian Congress for the incredible work it is doing. I would note that the $10-million matching fund program for the Canadian Red Cross is just one part of what we are providing. There is also $50 million in humanitarian aid already announced, plus the UN flash appeal of $100 million, where Canada is leading the world in terms of what we are providing. Thi…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Chair, I agree 100% with my colleague. We have already created the matching fund with the Canadian Red Cross of $10 million. That is just a start. We have already provided $35 million in development aid and another $15 million in humanitarian aid. We are working with other countries, not just for Canada to step up further but for other countries to also step up. We are taking a leadership role…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Chair, we have been working in very close coordination with our allies and with like-minded countries to make sure we are standing united in making sure that Putin, the oligarchs and the banking system will be completely isolated in the world. We heard the Prime Minister very clearly say that we want to remove Russia from the SWIFT system. We have a number of other measures, and we are working…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Chair, I want to thank the member for Etobicoke Centre for his incredible advocacy on this and for his untiring and unwavering work in this area. I would like to assure the member that in addition to what I mentioned previously, the $10-million matching fund, which I encourage all Canadians to take advantage of, and the $50 million we recently announced, which is in addition to over $240 milli…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Chair, it is with sadness, alarm and great resolve that I stand in the House today to speak at a moment in history when our words and actions will have great impact. I had hoped to never be in a position to speak about war in the chamber, but in the face of open aggression by Putin's Russia, which is undermining decades of peace brought about the post-World War II international rules-based ord…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Chair, yes, we are extending visas for those Ukrainians who are here in Canada on temporary visas. We are expediting all immigration visas. We are creating corridors for Canadians, for permanent residents and their families to be able to come here. I thank the hon. member for his advocacy because these are incredibly important moments to be able to bring as many people as we can to safety, and…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Madam Speaker, we did not head directly to the Emergencies Act. In fact, members will recall that we provided the City of Ottawa with supplemental police officers three times, as well as intelligence capabilities and command capabilities. However, the fact remains that the city and the province have declared states of emergency. They were unable to deal with the extent of this and the entrenchment…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Madam Speaker, I will be sharing my time with the member for Argenteuil—La Petite-Nation. As elected officials, our most important responsibility is to protect our citizens and keep them safe. In the past three weeks in Ottawa, I have heard first-hand the many unacceptable, dangerous and threatening situations that the people of Ottawa have faced as a result of illegal blockades and occupation in …
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Madam Speaker, I note that the member she referenced, the member for Peace River—Westlock, also called this a “so-called emergency”. He can tell that to the people of Ottawa. Yes, I do agree with my hon. colleague that there will have to be a really serious rethinking of how policing is done in this country. We have to look at the unconscious biases and the differential ways in which different gro…
Read full speech →