Parliamentary Speeches
151 speeches by Anthony Housefather — Page 3 of 4
Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague from Saint-Jean, who always speaks so eloquently in the House. I think that what it boils down to is that this decision was made after we saw what was happening in committee. I truly believe that, were it not for this motion, the committee would not be able to do the clause-by-clause consideration of the bill because it is always being blocked in everything i…
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Mr. Speaker, I am truly disappointed to have to be speaking to a programming motion today. I am disappointed because I truly believe in the committee process. I believe that House committees do really important work. I believe they are the heart of how bills get improved, the place where members from all parties give detailed advice to the government on studies and do detailed studies of legislati…
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Mr. Speaker, first, let me correct the hon. member: This bill has nothing to do with censorship. Freedom of speech is protected in this country under section 2, and it is very clear that freedom of speech is protected under this bill. Second, this bill would not be necessary except for the fact that members of the hon. member's party have continued to filibuster the committee, preventing us from e…
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Mr. Speaker, I will begin by stating that I am not the least bit embarrassed to speak my mother tongue in the House of Commons. As an MP, I have the right, as do all the other MPs, to speak both of Canada's official languages. There is an anglophone community in Quebec, even if the hon. member does not like it. I will always protect the rights of francophone minorities outside Quebec, Quebec franc…
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Mr. Speaker, first of all, let me thank the member for New Westminster—Burnaby for his always constructive work at committee. It is always a pleasure to work with him. Second, I want to say that I carefully avoided in my speech even referring to what political party or what people were not allowing us to move forward. I never mentioned a word about the Conservatives once in my speech. The end resu…
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Mr. Speaker, I am glad that the hon. member is going to let me speak to the question of witnesses. Originally, three of the four parties at the committee thought that a certain number of hours would be sufficient to hear from witnesses. The Conservative members then proposed 20 hours, which was more than the other parties thought needed to be given to witnesses, given that many of these witnesses …
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend from Châteauguay—Lacolle. Our government will begin negotiations with the Davie shipyard toward an umbrella agreement to become the third strategic shipbuilding partner under the NSS. Once the negotiations are complete, the Davie shipyard will build one of two polar icebreakers and six program icebreakers for the Canadian Coast Guard. This is terrific news for the ec…
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Madam Speaker, while I disagree with my hon. colleague on his framing of the bill, I always appreciate the very well-delivered speeches he gives. The member selectively quoted Jennifer Dunn in her appearance before the committee, talking about conditional sentencing. I also read what Jennifer Dunn said at committee, which is that, “Women are not protected by the law unless all mandatory minimum pe…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, Saturday is National Health and Fitness Day in Canada. I plan to swim, run and play tennis at different locations in my riding on Saturday. I will then join the Fitness Industry Council of Canada's social media challenge by posting pictures and using the hashtag #letsmovecanada. I hope that all members will join me in working out and joining the social media challenge on Saturday. We …
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Mr. Chair, I want to take this opportunity to thank the men and women of our Armed Forces, a sentiment I know is shared by all sides in the House, for the incredible work that they do. I was pleased to join with almost everybody here to vote for a motion to increase our defence spending up to 2% of our gross domestic product. We have made progress since 2015. In 2015, we were at about 1%. We are n…
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Madam Chair, our government has been working to address inequities by modernizing its procurement practices and encouraging suppliers from diverse backgrounds to be part of the federal supply chain. Budget 2021 proposed $87.4 million over five years, and $18.6 million ongoing, to modernize federal procurement and to create opportunities for specific communities such as indigenous people, women, LG…
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Madam Chair, our government is committed to renewing and strengthening its economic relationship with indigenous entrepreneurs and communities by providing increased economic opportunities to first nations, Inuit and Métis businesses through the federal procurement process. Our government announced the implementation of a mandatory requirement for federal departments and agencies to ensure that a …
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Mr. Chair, again, as I mentioned, we have invested $21 billion in the economy through the national shipbuilding strategy. Of that, the amount that has gone to Seaspan, with the spinoff effects in the member's riding, is $5.26 billion. That is not to talk about the indirect benefits that go to companies that are doing business with that shipyard. I appreciate the hon. member's interest in this issu…
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Madam Speaker, I agree that the member's comments were dynamic, as he always is, but I was also going to add they were measured and non-partisan, which shows me he can do this really well. Is the member aware if anybody has ever gone before the foreign affairs committee or the trade committee to bring forward a proposal for a study on China and some of these issues that was rejected by the other m…
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Madam Speaker, I am looking at an article entitled “Chinese firm's Canadian contracts raise security fears: Barred by the U.S. and Australia, tech giant Huawei makes inroads in Canada”. It is dated from 2012. In that article, former prime minister Stephen Harper is touting the greatness of Huawei. As the hon. member mentioned that Huawei's charter makes it subservient to the Communist Party of Chi…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for the question. We completely agree that local media needs to be supported through programs like the Canada periodical fund. As the member knows, Canada Post is a Crown corporation that is at arm's length from the government. Canada Post makes its own decisions on delivery and fees. However, the government will work with Canada Post to do what it can and also …
Read full speech →Adjournment Proceedings
Madam Speaker, I absolutely commit that we will work with the hon. member, and I know the minister shares the same view. We very much appreciate working with the hon. member. He is always ready to speak with us, voice concerns and share what he feels, and we obviously cherish that because it is a great relationship. We also treasure the innovative services that Canada Post is providing. A lot of p…
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Madam Speaker, I want to take this opportunity to thank my friend for Saskatoon—Grasswood for putting forward this bill. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. Whether this bill comes to fruition as a private member's bill or as government legislation, the hon. member can take solace in the fact that he put this forward and is the driving force behind it. On behalf of, I am sure, the vast ma…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, Vladimir Kara-Murza has emerged as one of Russia's most respected democratic opposition leaders, a noted public intellectual and a voice of conscience. He is also a senior fellow with the Raoul Wallenberg Centre for Human Rights in my riding. He is no stranger to many of us in this Canadian Parliament. He has testified before us and was instrumental in our unanimous adoption of Magnit…
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Madam Speaker, I want to thank my hon. colleague for putting forward this bill. Rarely has a date ever been so apt to debate legislation, as this evening is the beginning of Yom HaShoah. Yom HaShoah is a sacred day. It is a day when we remember with reverence the over six million Jews who were slaughtered by the Nazis in the Holocaust. It is a day when we remember all of the victims of the Holocau…
Read full speech →Adjournment Proceedings
Madam Speaker, I want to thank the hon. member for Courtenay—Alberni for giving me the opportunity to address this important issue. Canada Post has been connecting Canadians for more than 250 years, and it plays a vital role in our economy today. Our government fully understands that the services Canada Post provides for Canadians and businesses are essential, and we have always been committed to …
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Madam Speaker, I believe that was in the 2019 mandate letters. I do not believe it was in the 2021 mandate letters, so I cannot speak to that issue. What I can speak to is that everybody needs to work across departments as best as possible to make sure that procurement happens in a timely way. I know that all of these departments are committed to doing that.
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, I very much appreciate the opportunity to speak in today's debate and I want to thank my colleague for South Surrey—White Rock for having put forward this very important motion. It is a very timely motion that I will support. I have been calling for quite a long time for defence spending to be increased. I believe that it is something we owe to the men and women of our Armed Forces,…
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Madam Speaker, let us be very clear that there should be no politicization of the procurement process. We have heard that from every side, and there should not be. No party should take credit for procurements. We should all be working together as best as possible across party lines to make sure procurement happens with all of the different trade-offs that we agree on. There are things that we coul…
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Madam Speaker, I thank one of my favourite members on that side of the House for raising this issue. I completely agree with her. The labour shortage is a problem not only in Quebec, but across Canada. We need to find ways to get employees. We have to make the immigration process easier since that seems to be an excellent solution to this problem. Training people is another excellent solution. Par…
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Madam Speaker, I will refer to the Wales Summit Declaration, which does not exactly give 2% but targets 2%. I think the Wales Summit Declaration is self-explanatory and I encourage the member to read it.
Read full speech →Statements By Members
Madam Speaker, the use of the term “apartheid” to depict the state of Israel is offensive and absurd. Israel is Canada's close friend and ally. It is a vibrant democracy with members of its minority communities serving in Parliament, the judiciary and in all professions. However, on Canadian college campuses, Jewish students have to deal with manifestations of intolerance raging from pro-BDS motio…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, the national shipbuilding strategy, or NSS, is a long-term initiative to renew the fleets of the Royal Canadian Navy and the Canadian Coast Guard, build our marine industry and create sustainable jobs in Canada. Consistent with a commitment to transparency, PSPC continues to seek opportunities to communicate openly and regularly about this important initiative to make Canadians aware …
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Madam Speaker, I think this is the first time the Crimean War has been referenced in this chamber in a very long time. One of the things that has been the most gratifying for me over the course of this debate has been the unanimity, where this House has found total agreement in terms of support for Ukraine. I worry that in this motion we have two propositions that are clearly supporting Ukraine an…
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Mr. Chair, as the hon. member knows, I do not speak for the government on this issue. However, in my view, that would depend on whether or not we believe the Canadian ambassador in Russia, who would clearly be expelled if we expelled the Russian ambassador, is able to find things out on the ground that we need to know. I have no personal objection to strongly considering the expulsion of the ambas…
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Mr. Chair, I thank my hon. colleague for his question. Yes, the government is prepared. The Minister of National Defence answered a question today about cybersecurity. We absolutely recognize that we must protect government bodies but also all bodies and institutions across the country. Russia is absolutely engaging in cyber-attacks and we must be prepared. That is why, yesterday, I proposed incre…
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Mr. Chair, we need to make sure that platforms are held accountable for driving traffic to disinformation. We have seen, over and over, that platforms seek to monetize and make revenue and make sure that people stay on platforms for as long as possible. Hate is driven to hate, and people who believe in one world theory are driven to other conspiracy theories that they would agree with, keeping the…
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Mr. Speaker, I will be sharing my time with the member for Kings—Hants. My time is short, so I will make some quick points. Over the last week, the world around us has changed and we need to adapt. We need to change with it. Last week, people across the world were treated to two horrifying events that occurred at exactly the same time. The first is what we have been talking about tonight: Russian …
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Mr. Chair, I think it would be appropriate to thank Poland and all the neighbouring countries around Ukraine for taking in so many refugees. We certainly have to make it easy for Ukrainians who are seeking a temporary or permanent solution to come to Canada. I am certainly open to any suggestions that would make it easier for Ukrainians to come to Canada.
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Mr. Speaker, I want to commend the member for not insulting any other party or any other member of the House. Today, we have been talking a lot about division in Canada, yet the people complaining about division are making speeches that are equally divisive. I have been very concerned that in Canada, we are starting to live in two different realities. I would like the member to talk, if he can, ab…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Madam Speaker, that is exactly the type of question that, in my view, is part of the problem. I asked everybody on all sides to tone down the rhetoric. That is on my side and the other side. We all have that responsibility, all 338 of us. To single out one member when all of us have an equal responsibility is wrong. I personally want to say that I deeply appreciate the member for Thornhill. I enjo…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Madam Speaker, I am always inspired by the member for Saanich—Gulf Islands. I listened to her very thoughtful speech earlier today, and I am sure many others did as well. I would be very happy to speak to her off-line about the questions she raised.
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Madam Speaker, I want to thank the hon. member, who always speaks so intelligently in this chamber. Yes, I think there are such people, and I think the member for Fleetwood—Port Kells gave a great description in his speech of what was happening.
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Madam Speaker, I will be sharing my time with the member for Nepean. Being a member of Parliament is an awesome responsibility. In our system, the 338 of us have enormous power to establish the laws of this nation and oversee the activities of our government. Each and every debate we have and each and every vote we take is important, but there are still some debates and votes that are more importa…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Madam Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague, who is always very reasonable. As I think I said in my speech, we are all extremely disappointed by what has happened in Ottawa. For various reasons, the Ottawa police were unable to adequately address the situation. The federal government does have obligations, and it has taken action to increase resources in Ottawa. However, getting RCMP officers from al…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Madam Speaker, from coast to coast, Canadians rely on Canada Post and its employees. Canada Post works to ensure its services are available to every Canadian in a timely manner. As the member said, we imposed a moratorium on removing home delivery back in 2017. We are going to continue to provide excellent services to all Canadians through Canada Post.
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, no, I was trying to make a point in my speech that we should not be partisan but substantive on this issue. That was, unfortunately, a very partisan question. Attacking the Prime Minister and making allegations about the Prime Minister seeking to divide the country and Liberal caucus is equally as egregious as what the hon. member claims to have occurred. There is no basis to believ…
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Madam Speaker, I agree completely with everything my colleague said.
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, I very much appreciate the opportunity to speak today to my constituents and to Canadians on this issue and to share my thoughts. This is an important issue and worthy of serious, substantive debate. There has been far too much partisanship on this issue, including today, on all sides. Like most issues before us, this is a grey issue. It is not black and it is not white. There are C…
Read full speech →Emergency Debate
Madam Speaker, first, if somebody had an adverse reaction to the vaccine, there is an exemption they can procure to not be fully vaccinated. I do not know the situation exactly of the member's constituent, but if she truly had a negative reaction to the vaccine and her physician advises her against it, then she can procure an exemption in most provinces. Second, as I stated, I believe that vaccine…
Read full speech →Emergency Debate
Madam Speaker, I could not agree more with my hon. colleague. In my speech, I suggested, as did she, that we not only have a liaison between the three levels of government, but that these three levels hold daily briefings where they would communicate about what actions they are taking with police to bring this situation to an end. These people must leave Ottawa as soon as possible, and we must wor…
Read full speech →Emergency Debate
Madam Speaker, I thank the leader of the NDP for proposing this debate. I want to start by saying how sorry I am to the people of Ottawa and the businesses of Ottawa for what they have experienced over the last 10 days. Nobody deserves to experience what they have experienced. There are those who say this convoy is about freedom. I certainly agree that after two years of a pandemic, most Canadians…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, there have been consultations among the parties, and if you seek it, I believe you will find unanimous consent for the following motion. I move: That the House deplore the use of Nazi and antisemitic symbols in demonstrations on Parliament Hill and denounce their use at all times.
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, the Government of Canada has committed over $9 billion to procure vaccines and therapeutics and to provide international support. As part of our commitment to transparency, Public Services and Procurement Canada has worked with its vaccine suppliers to secure their agreement on publicly releasable versions of Canada’s vaccine contracts. These documents, which were provided to the Stan…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, Twas the last sitting week before Christmas and because of omicron, I am playing to a half-empty House. So, instead of hearing riotous laughter, I am afraid it may be quiet as a mouse. We just had an election, spending and effort galore, yet when it ended, the House of Commons was the same as before. Nobody got what they wanted. For the Liberals, hopes of a majority dashed. And for th…
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