Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, I rise today in the House to pay tribute, on behalf of the Government of Canada and the Liberal caucus, to an eminent Canadian who sadly left us earlier this month, the Hon. Ed Broadbent. On January 11, Canada lost a man who for decades had been a fixture of our democratic life. For over half a century, he was one of Canada's most compassionate and respected voices. He was at the epic…
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Mr. Speaker, we obviously share the concerns of all Canadians with respect to the integrity of our borders. My colleague is suggesting that we are going to cut RCMP staff in “C” Division in Quebec to fight organized crime and secure our borders, but that is not quite true. Since the closure of Roxham Road and the changes to the safe third country agreement, the RCMP has reallocated its resources t…
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Mr. Speaker, I have obviously had a number of discussions with senior RCMP officials about the importance of strengthening our position at the border. The integrity of our borders is obviously an issue that the government takes very seriously. I have discussed this with my American counterpart, Secretary of Homeland Security Mayorkas. I can assure my colleague that the number of RCMP officers, for…
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Mr. Speaker, the RCMP, with its policing partners across the country, are very engaged with the Sikh community and other communities across the country, which understandably feel an increased threat level with respect to what the U.S. justice department filed in a court in the United States yesterday. It is obviously a source of concern. It is understandable in the Sikh community. The RCMP continu…
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Mr. Speaker, speaking of respecting the will of this House, perhaps the leader of the Conservative Party would like to talk to the Conservative senators who sit in his caucus and ask them to pass the bail reform bill that was passed by the House of Commons. The Leader of the Opposition thought it was so important that he was going to recall Parliament last summer to pass it. Conservative premiers …
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Mr. Speaker, let us keep talking about respect for democracy in the House of Commons. Unelected Conservative senators are blocking the passage of an important gun control bill that passed the House. If our friends across the aisle want to do something for democracy, they should ask the Conservative senators in their caucus to pass Bill C‑21, which was passed by the House of Commons, to protect Can…
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Mr. Speaker, once again, as they often do in the House, the Conservatives pretend to be interested in bills that protect Canadians from gun violence, for example, or ensure that bail is truly effective in keeping communities safe, like the Conservative premiers have asked. Premier Ford has asked me this a number of times. If they want to send messages to their Conservative senator friends sitting …
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Mr. Speaker, our government obviously has always taken the safety of Canadians seriously. The Conservatives seem to be laughing and find that funny, but the good news is that tomorrow morning they have a caucus meeting, where Conservative senators will be present. They should perhaps talk to their Conservative Senate parliamentary colleagues and ask them to please pass the legislation this House a…
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Mr. Speaker, again, my hon. friend is having some difficulty attaching himself to the facts. It is the Conservative senators who are blocking legislation requested by Conservative premiers and worked on by this government last spring and adopted by this House of Commons at all stages when we came back in September. Why is that legislation to strengthen bail reform and to keep Canadians safer not a…
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Mr. Speaker, I think it is important, when talking about issues as serious as a notorious killer like Mr. Bernardo, that we stick to the facts and not mislead Canadians. We saw earlier this week what happens when we talk about a sensitive, concerning matter and use language that does not respect the facts of the situation. My hon. friend knows very well that decisions around the classification of …
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Mr. Speaker, I will be very happy to get those exact details and provide them to the member. I can tell him that, as the member of Parliament for Beauséjour, when I visited the medium-security prison Dorchester Penitentiary, I met inmates and CORCAN staff who work on exactly those programs. I share his view that if we can give inmates the skills and ensure that, for example, they complete their hi…
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Mr. Speaker, I do not want to disappoint my colleague across the aisle, but no minister was responsible for those contracting practices. Those contracting practices were done by public servants. We have said if committees want to look into these issues, we welcome that examination. When the Canada Border Services Agency uncovered irregularities, it called for an independent audit and referred the …
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Mr. Speaker, my hon. friend knows very well that when any irregularity with respect to contracting practices comes to light, the responsible thing for senior public servants who administer these rules to do is to refer it to the appropriate authorities and to establish the facts from external audits. That is exactly what the Canada Border Services Agency did. If committees want to look into this m…
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Mr. Speaker, I completely agree with my colleague. We will never allow cartels to take control of our borders. However, the member must be careful not to exaggerate when asking questions. Our government is very concerned about what Radio-Canada has found. That is exactly why we are working more with our law enforcement agencies, the Canada Border Services Agency and, most importantly, our American…
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Mr. Speaker, we are going to keep fighting organized crime in a number of ways. We have invested more—$400 million more—to give our law enforcement agencies, the Canada Border Services Agency and the RCMP the tools they need to work with their partners in Quebec and the United States to fight organized crime coming into the country. My colleague is well aware that I have discussed this with Minist…
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Mr. Speaker, we fully share our colleague's concerns about the exploitation of these individuals. The Prime Minister raised the issue of irregular migration with the President of Mexico. My colleague, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, is also in discussion with her counterparts in the United States and Mexico. I myself have had this discussion with the U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security, precisely…
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Mr. Speaker, what I am happy to explain to the House is how seriously our government takes allegations of inappropriate behaviour with taxpayers' money and contracting or subcontracting. We are obviously very pleased that the committee is looking into this matter. We are pleased that the Auditor General is also seized with this question. We are also pleased that the Canada Border Services Agency, …
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Mr. Speaker, we obviously share the concerns of all Canadians when it comes to the integrity of our borders. That is precisely why we have invested additional funds in strengthening our border security posture. This is why I visited Washington a month and a half ago. I spoke with the U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security about specific ways that we could collaborate more. I also had an important dis…
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Mr. Speaker, I do not want to disagree with my colleague, but we have not lost control of our borders. On the contrary, we are working with Canada's intelligence and security services. We share as much intelligence as possible under Canadian law so that our partners, whether American, Mexican or Canadian, including those in Quebec, can explore what more we can do to secure the border. I look forwa…
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Mr. Speaker, as I said a few moments ago, as a government, we have been taking action since the first months of our term to ensure the integrity of our borders. We have spoken with our partners in the U.S. and Mexico about the importance of controlling irregular migration. We have invested more in border security and in our intelligence services so we could do whatever it takes to keep our borders…
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Mr. Speaker, we have said repeatedly that we expect all public officials responsible for contracting to follow the appropriate rules. In this case, the Canada Border Services Agency identified irregularities during a routine audit and referred the matter to the appropriate authorities, who are investigating. People who did not follow the appropriate contracting rules will face consequences accordi…
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Mr. Speaker, just because our colleague repeats the same silly premise to the question does not make it accurate. She knows very well that the authorities in these contracting matters are in the hands of public servants, and we have said very clearly that the committee can investigate and should investigate these matters. The Canada Border Services Agency uncovered the contracting challenge in an …
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Mr. Speaker, we are far from being silent. Our government has condemned all incitements to violence, all expressions of hate. I regularly talk to federal law enforcement authorities, such as the RCMP and CSIS, to understand what they are doing with provincial, territorial and municipal partners to keep all communities safe. Today, I announced enhancements to the security infrastructure program to …
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Mr. Speaker, as colleagues know very well, we expect public servants, at all times, to follow the appropriate Treasury Board contracting practices. My colleague would know that, in this case, the Canada Border Services Agency, as part of its internal audit, uncovered information that it subsequently referred to the appropriate police authorities. That is exactly what has to happen in these cases. …
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Mr. Speaker, the RCMP has been clear in this matter. There is no criminal investigation. It has closed the case. That is the independent decision taken by Canada's national police force, and the commissioner, in his public comments yesterday, said he was very comfortable with that decision.
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Mr. Speaker, at the beginning of his question, my hon. colleague pointed out the importance of protecting Canadians who are understandably worried about their safety and the safety of their community and meeting places. I agree with him on that. Last week, I had discussions with Minister Bonnardel from Quebec and with other provincial and territorial ministers. These discussions focused specifical…
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Mr. Speaker, as the RCMP have confirmed, there is no active investigation. The case is closed, and authorities did not pursue any charges. My hon. friend knows very well the RCMP operations are conducted independently from government. If he has operational questions for them, I would suggest he contact the RCMP.
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Mr. Speaker, it is well known that Iran is a state sponsor of terrorism. We share the understandable concern of many Canadians with regard to Iran's role in the state sponsorship of terrorism. As my colleague knows, decisions around listing terrorist entities are based on the advice of our security professionals. I have obviously asked them to update this advice for the government and we will take…
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Mr. Speaker, my hon. colleague knows very well that committees make their own decisions in terms of the work they want to do. What we have said is that, at all times, we expect people to comply with the contracting policies of the Government of Canada, and those that decide to do something that is worthy of a criminal investigation will obviously be investigated by the appropriate authorities. We …
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Mr. Speaker, as I told my colleague, we expect everyone who works for the Government of Canada to comply with the Treasury Board's contracting rules and any other rules that apply. If any allegations involve criminal activity, we expect the appropriate authorities to investigate. This is exactly what our government is going to let them do.
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Mr. Speaker, first of all, congratulations on your election as Speaker. As far as my colleague's question goes, the answer is yes. Our government is constantly taking measures to make sure that federal government agencies meet their obligations under the Official Languages Act. That is what we expect of the RCMP. I will be meeting with the RCMP commissioner tomorrow. I will definitely raise this i…
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Mr. Speaker, the government House leader has made clear the government's disappointment with the events of Friday. All parliamentarians were taken by surprise with this particular individual's being invited to the gallery. The opposition whip knows very well that the Parliamentary Protective Service reports to the two Speakers, the Speaker of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Commons. To …
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Mr. Speaker, I thank our colleague, the member for Kings—Hants, for raising this important issue and for his leadership on energy issues in Atlantic Canada. This legislation is supported by both the premier of Newfoundland and Labrador, and the premier of Nova Scotia, because it makes economic and energy sense for Atlantic Canada. By not supporting this law, the Conservatives are standing in the w…
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Mr. Speaker, it is important when we are discussing issues as important as public safety to not put in the minds of Canadians that dangerous offenders simply walk away from federal penitentiaries. My colleague on the other side knows that is not the case. These are among the most serious offenders in our federal correctional system, and this government will do everything necessary to ensure the sa…
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Mr. Speaker, just because our colleague on the other side repeats the same silly phrase does not make it true. Our government has never been asleep when it comes to community safety, when it comes to investing in police services, border security and undoing some of the cuts of the Harper government to our border services particularly to keep guns and drugs out of Canadian streets. Our government i…
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Mr. Speaker, again, just because our friend on the other side continually asserts something does not make it real. My responsibility is to ensure that the Correctional Service, by law and according to regulations, treats the most serious offenders in our prison system with the appropriate level of security. The decision to transfer inmates from one correctional institution to another is in the han…
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Mr. Speaker, what our government is choosing to do is to invest in all the necessary instruments to ensure that our communities remain safe. We are investing in the Correctional Service of Canada precisely to ensure that these most dangerous criminals serve their time in the appropriate facilities. We are investing in border services, something the Conservatives gutted, to keep illegal guns and dr…
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Mr. Speaker, Canada Border Services Agency, CBSA, officials are legally required to apply legislation, including the membership provisions of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, IRPA, passed by Parliament. They do so in an equal, impartial and consistent manner, in line with the law and the guidance of the courts, as well as based on comprehensive national guidance and management oversight…
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Mr. Speaker, the CBSA has not incurred any spending on settlement services for immigrants, refugees, asylum claimants and other individuals in the indicated time frame.
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Mr. Speaker, the Royal Prerogative of Mercy, or RPM, also known as clemency, is the discretionary power of the Crown to grant pardons, remit sentences, and exercise other forms of clemency. Clemency can be exercised either by the Governor in Council under sections 748 and 748.1 of the Criminal Code, or by the Governor General under the Letters Patent, which is the document that bestows power to th…
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Mr. Speaker, since January 1, 2019, the Minister of Public Safety or the Minister’s office has not received any memorandums or briefing notes from Public Safety branches concerning prisoner transfers. The Correctional Service of Canada has a process in place to provide advanced notification to the Minister’s office about transfers involving high profile offenders. While this can include verbal bri…
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Mr. Speaker, the data was obtained using the CBSA's Corporate Administrative System, or CAS, and covers the period from January 1, 2012, to June 27, 2023. With regard to (a), in 2012, 161 recruits became border services officers, or BSOs, and since the introduction of the Officer Induction Training Program, or OITP, the CBSA has trained 3,269 recruits. Therefore, the CBSA has had a total of 3,430 …
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his question. I share the interest of all parliamentarians in finding the right process and, as I have said, a public inquiry has never been ruled out. However, it is a matter of finding the right way to do the work in a respectful manner, while taking into account the importance of protecting highly confidential security information, in order to rebuild Canad…
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Mr. Speaker, as I mentioned yesterday, the letter we received from the Bloc Québécois is an important step towards building a consensus about the right way to move forward. Our colleague put forward the idea of an independent public inquiry. Perhaps he did not hear when I clearly said that it is an option the government is considering. However, the process for this public inquiry must be properly …
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Mr. Speaker, I am happy to repeat the answers I gave to my Bloc colleague a few moments ago. As we have always said, the country, Canadians and parliamentarians will benefit from a public process that will follow up on Mr. Johnston's reports and recommendations. This is an opportunity to collaborate on what kind of process will be launched, what kind of people will lead that process and what the m…
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Mr. Speaker, once again, I share our colleague's opinion on the need for swift action. I said it publicly and I repeat it now: Ideally, the opposition parties and the government will agree on a process by the end of next week. This work is being done in the interest of Canadians. I deeply appreciated the letter I received yesterday from the Bloc Québécois. I have had encouraging conversations with…
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Mr. Speaker, what we are focused on is working collaboratively with the NDP. The member's colleague and I have had a number of meetings to talk about how we can implement the agreements in the supply and confidence agreement to make voting more accessible, exactly as our colleague identified. This is to ensure the greatest number of Canadians can participate in the democratic process, to deal with…
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Mr. Speaker, on the issue of sharing information when a member of Parliament is being threatened as part of foreign interference, we acknowledged the problem and rectified it. The Minister of Public Safety has given instructions that, from now on, this kind of information and intelligence must be shared not only with the minister responsible but also with the parliamentarian concerned. We have mad…
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Mr. Speaker, it is a bit rich for the Conservatives to talk about partisanship in their question. It was the Conservatives who decided to turn an issue as important as protecting our democratic institutions from foreign interference into a partisan issue. Moreover, when they were in government, they did nothing to counter the interference threatening our institutions at the time. We have taken act…
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Mr. Speaker, I think the Prime Minister was clear in his response to a previous question today. Our government is looking to collaborate in a constructive way with opposition parties, to hear from experts and other professionals in this space, to design precisely those next steps forward since Mr. Johnston has decided to leave his position as special rapporteur. We think that Canadians would benef…
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