Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, it is an honour to present a petition on behalf of the constituents of Saanich—Gulf Islands who are concerned with the global issue, which is also local, of the threat to our pollinators, including honeybees, which are an essential part of our food system. We know that without pollinators, agriculture would crash, yet as petitioners point out, there continue to be extreme declines in …
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Mr. Chair, I have gone through times in my life when a good salary, or any salary, could not be counted on. Sometimes I was between jobs, facing unemployment insurance, and struggling. However, as parliamentarians, we do not worry, right? We are going to get our paycheque no matter what. However, we have to earn it, and the way we earn it is to never to forget that we represent individual Canadian…
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Mr. Chair, my colleague from Lac‑Saint‑Jean is absolutely right. The fossil fuel industry and other industries are getting significant subsidies, but nothing is being done to address the concerns of the forestry sector. Why? This is unacceptable—
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Mr. Chair, it is getting late and I would like to apologize. I want to start by thanking many colleagues who have been in the take-note debate tonight. I am only participating virtually because I am simultaneously in the committee doing clause-by-clause on Bill C-12. Timing is tricky, and I know that I have only five minutes. I want to start by saying that I will be sharing my time with the hon. m…
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Mr. Speaker, it is an honour to rise this morning to present a petition from the constituents of Saanich—Gulf Islands. These petitioners want to raise an issue related to how critical it is that Canada pay attention to the educational system and improve the education of our young people around ecological and social economic crises, but particularly to focus on the environmental and sustainability …
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Mr. Speaker, I thank all my colleagues for doing me the honour of allowing me to rise today to respond to the speech by our colleague, the member for Châteauguay—Les Jardins-de-Napierville. It is an honour. This is an emotional topic for everyone here. As the other members have already said, our colleague, the member for Châteauguay—Les Jardins-de-Napierville, who is also the Secretary of State fo…
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Mr. Chair, what we experienced in British Columbia, and a lot of people in the rest of Canada may not know it, was the first really large economic impact from the climate crisis, which was the pine beetle outbreak that killed an area of lodgepole pine forest in the interior of B.C. equivalent to two times the size of Sweden. It happened because we lost the cold snaps in winter, when it used to hit…
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Mr. Speaker, it is an honour to rise to present a petition from petitioners concerned with the impact on the climate crisis of energy use in Canadian homes. Of all energy consumed in Canada, 17% is used for heating, cooling, lighting and powering our homes, which is warming the outdoors in the winter and cooling the outdoors in the summer because of the basic lack of energy efficiency infrastructu…
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Mr. Speaker, the matter of buying water bombers is long overdue. While the budget commits $381 million over four years, that would only lease four water bombers. The water bombers are oversubscribed and are all being ordered by the European Union. When will Canada buy our own water bomber fleet?
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, Canadians want to diversify trade, but we want to diversify trade with democracies that share our values and that respect human rights. Now we are cozying up to the People's Republic of China. I have not heard that it is starting to treat the Uyghurs well. I do not understand how we can want to do deals with countries like Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, which right now hav…
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Mr. Speaker, we are past Remembrance Day, but we are always thinking of our veterans. The petitioners want the House to recognize that veterans have been asking, for more than 15 years, to confront PTSD with the assistance of well-trained, life-saving animals. Trained service dogs make all the difference for veterans who are suffering from PTSD. The petitioners ask that the House ensure we have th…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, I rise to honour a beautiful young woman who died too young. I learned about her story when I ran into her father right after the Remembrance Day service in Sidney, and he told me about his deep pain from losing Joline. December 2, almost a week from now, would have been Joline Robertson's 19th birthday. She was diagnosed with a very rare form of cancer when she was only 13. Her whole…
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Mr. Speaker, yesterday in question period, and again today, we have heard allegations that are patently false that U.S. tankers are moving through the Hecate Strait, the area banned for the last 50 years under a moratorium honoured by B.C. and federal governments of all stripes. Any suggestion of what the member for Regina—Qu'Appelle said yesterday, that U.S. tankers are moving “through the exact …
Read full speech →Adjournment Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, I thank my hon. friend, and he is my friend, for his remarks tonight. I deeply hope that the Government of Canada will change its approach to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. As I said earlier, we led the way on the landmines treaty, yet we are standing aside. We may say our NATO allies are not signatories either, but they are observers. It is to our shame as Canadian…
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Mr. Speaker, I rise tonight in Adjournment Proceedings to pursue a question I asked on October 23. That day may not immediately strike all members as one of deep significance, but October 24 every year is United Nations Day, and October 24 was actually the 80th birthday of the United Nations and the 80th anniversary of the United Nations Charter. I rose and asked a question of the hon. Minister of…
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Mr. Speaker, petitioners from my community, as well as others, have petitioned the House to please, in the House, take note of the reality that the signatories and parties to the Paris Agreement, including Canada, have committed to pursuing efforts to limit temperature increase to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels and as far below 2°C as possible. They call upon the Government of Canada to take bo…
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Mr. Speaker, this has been a very difficult debate, and in the brief time I have, I want to thank members for contributing to this from all sides of the House. Canadians are crying out for bail reform, but we are still crying with a certain amount of lack of knowledge. This debate needs more evidence. Now, Bill C-14 attempts to balance things and attempts to recognize that the Charter of Rights an…
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Mr. Speaker, to my hon. colleague, this may seem slightly off topic from the current bill, but it was important for me to rise as a member of a party that has never been a recognized party in the House so that Canadians know that those of us who are not permanent members of committees are aware of what happens in committee. This is prompted by the member's comment that NDP members were not sitting…
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Mr. Speaker, we keep referring to the charter, and as somebody who actually thinks Bill C-14 is important because we do need bail reform, I think we need to reflect on the principles of our entire body of law, from the Commonwealth through to Canada. It starts with Blackstone's principle from 1760, which is a hard one to hear right now, but it is foundational. The principle is that it is better th…
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Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Prime Minister. Can the Prime Minister agree that it is a deficiency in the budget that our legally binding Paris commitments are not mentioned? Can he confirm here on the floor of the House that in passing this budget, the government is committed to holding to as far below the 2°C limit as possible, to funding climate adaptation, to delivering on the nature str…
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Mr. Speaker, while many Canadians are looking at the $78-billion deficit number in the budget, many others, while concerned about that deficit, are also wondering about our children and grandchildren and the growing ecological deficit from lack of action on climate and lack of action to protect nature. We look at this budget and want to weep. Those of us who are grandparents and seniors right acro…
Read full speech →Adjournment Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, I am rising in debate this evening to raise a question that I initially raised a number of months ago about a decision that is somewhat murky in its content. I have been trying to determine from the government for some time exactly if a decision was made to ban the band Kneecap. This is a question that I think some Canadians will have seen in the media. It attracted a lot of controver…
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Mr. Speaker, in this week of remembrance, as we think of our veterans, this petition is particularly appropriate. Members of the public have asked their members of Parliament to bring forward the following for the House of Commons to consider. In 1948, Canada signed and also led the drafting of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. We pledged to achieve, in conjunction with the United Nations…
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Mr. Speaker, I noted the hon. member's comments about poverty, and I wondered if he had seen the new report from the commissioner of the environment and sustainable development. There is no surprise if he has not, as it was just released this morning. It points out that Canada is off track in meeting its sustainable development goals to reduce poverty. The most recent numbers show that since 2020,…
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Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the hon. parliamentary secretary for such kind words; they are appreciated. I will take his advice and pursue it, but I thought that without asking about a specific case, we could at least have clarity on whether there was a case. I do not think that trespasses into discussing a particular case, because at this point, I still do not know, and I do not think any Canadia…
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Mr. Speaker, a lot of Canadians do not seem to know that between the day a budget is tabled and when it is voted on, the government can make changes to it. I desperately hope the answer will be “yes” to this question: Are the Prime Minister and the Minister of Finance prepared to be flexible, work in the spirit of the national interest and be prepared to make changes to the budget before it comes …
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Madam Speaker, I am rising to present an e-petition that has garnered over 1,424 signatures from concerned Canadians. The petitioners are asking this House to look to our obligations under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, consider the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the context of the rights and freedoms of the 2SLGBTQIA+ community and consider that the targeting of this group …
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Madam Speaker, it is so rare to have this opportunity. The leader of the official opposition gave a sufficiently long speech that the questions got around to me. I want to thank him for that from the bottom of my heart. I do want to say that I will probably be voting the same way that he will be on the budget unless changes are made. I wanted to ask a question, because I know that he is a reader a…
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Madam Speaker, I want to thank the leader of the Bloc Québécois because, after the Green Party, the Bloc Québécois is the party most committed to taking action against the climate crisis. I am not just talking about the leader. I would also like to say a big thank you to the Bloc Québécois members who have never wavered in their commitment. They have never forgotten that we are going through a cli…
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Madam Speaker, I wonder if Canadians realize how much many of us as MPs want to be team Canada. We want to be united. We know we need to put Canada first, but the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board Act requires that we ignore whether Canada is put first when it decides where billions of dollars of our pensions are invested. Will the government update the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board Act …
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Madam Speaker, it is an honour to rise virtually today to present a petition of deep concern to constituents who are looking at the health of Canada's watersheds, waterways and wetlands. They are asking that the House examine our antiquated laws relating to protecting our waters and watersheds to ensure that they meet the challenges of the 21st century. They ask that the government review, update,…
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Madam Speaker, I have long been troubled by the fact that sureties, and the member raised this issue, do not have to put forward the money themselves, and people do not go after them. It happens that my stepson is a criminal prosecutor for the Province of British Columbia. One thing that is maddening is that, if someone got their mother to put up the bail money, she could lose her house because, a…
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Mr. Speaker, I am saying this from the bottom of my non-partisan heart: The last exchange was unfortunate. I have been in Bill C-14 debates; the hon. Minister of Justice spoke yesterday, and there have been some really respectful exchanges. I want to mention something said yesterday by the hon. member for Brantford—Brant South—Six Nations, himself a criminal prosecutor with lots of experience. He …
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Madam Speaker, I note that at the Canadian Civil Liberties Association, the director of the criminal justice program has pointed out that three successive ministers of justice have noted that we do not have any standardized approach to collecting data about how many people who apply for bail get it. The vast majority do not, and without standardized data, we are making reforms without necessarily …
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Mr. Speaker, it is an honour to rise today to present petition e-6563, which more than 1,160 Canadians have signed. It speaks to the issue of private sponsorship refugee applications, which were paused until December 31 of this year, but many approved privately sponsored refugee applicants are experiencing significant delays, some waiting for over a year for interviews at the Canadian embassy in A…
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Madam Speaker, the member's take on the legislation is fascinating. I know how hard he has worked in this area. I would be very grateful to share ideas for reasonable amendments. My sense from the minister is that he and the government are open to amendments. My question to my hon. colleague is this: Has he also been asking to see how open the Liberals are to improve the bill through amendments?
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Madam Speaker, the hon. member asked me to repeat the last line, which was to ask my colleague if he had indications, as I feel I have, that the government will consider helpful amendments that would allow us to support the bill. I know that he has criticisms, and I have criticisms. Maybe we can compromise and get a better bill.
Read full speech →Adjournment Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, I want to share with Canadians how much respect and affection I have for the hon. parliamentary secretary, who, as a medical doctor, was the public health officer for Yukon during COVID. That is no small thing, and now he serves as a member of Parliament. The fact that I think he may have picked the wrong party does not really make any difference at this point. We are in a common disc…
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Mr. Speaker, the Green Party also agrees to apply the vote and will be voting yes.
Read full speech →Adjournment Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, it is an honour to rise this evening in Adjournment Proceedings to pursue a matter I raised on October 8. It is an unusual question I want to pursue tonight because it is not a “gotcha” moment. It is not about how I wish the government had done this but failed to. I was very impressed and, I must say, inspired by a piece written in The Globe and Mail on October 3 by a Canadian profess…
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Madam Speaker, this is really a question of privilege, because what the hon. member just said leaves on the record something that could affect my ability to do my job. I do not give anyone here direction, not even Green Party members when I have some with me. Because I respect enormously the hon. member for Lanark—Frontenac, I just wanted him to be properly acknowledged in this place as the member…
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Mr. Speaker, it is an honour to rise in this place, as always, representing the people of Saanich—Gulf Islands from the traditional territory of the W_SÁNEC nation. Hych’ka Siam. The petitioners are concerned about the export of thermal coal from Canadian ports. This coal generally comes up from the United States, is shipped to the port of Vancouver and leaves from our port. Colleagues might ask w…
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Mr. Speaker, tomorrow is the 80th anniversary of the creation of the United Nations. Canada has an enviable reputation, but it is from long ago, when we were leaders in fighting for human rights and leaders in peacekeeping. I would like to ask the hon. Minister of Foreign Affairs if Canada is rethinking our current position. Will we continue to ignore the work of the Treaty on the Prohibition of N…
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Mr. Speaker, it is a small matter, but just so the technical people know and the Speaker's office knows, an erroneous message was sent to all members that we were going to have a vote and that the bells were ringing. I know that the IT people do a spectacular job for us in this place, but I wanted to make sure that it was noted, so that the problem could be corrected.
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Mr. Speaker, I rise to present a petition that is timely as we approach Remembrance Day, on behalf of constituents in Saanich—Gulf Islands, Canadian Forces members and veterans who are looking at the compensation act and some implicit unfairness in the compensation act that requires veterans who have suffered injuries to remain inadequately compensated. They point out that Veterans Affairs Canada …
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Mr. Speaker, yes, we certainly support the CBSA. We have felt for some time that to the extent that our border was in any way porous, it was not because of the risk of fentanyl coming from Canada into the U.S., as Mr. Trump seems to believe, but rather the opposite. In particular, it is because of other drugs, precursors of other drugs and illegal weapons coming from the U.S. into Canada. CBSA off…
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Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to rise today to speak to Bill C-12, which is what is listed today under Government Orders. We have a very strange situation at the moment in that the bill is substantially similar, with the same title and almost all the same sections, to Bill C-2, which remains on the Order Paper. I draw attention to that as I go over the rules only because this is, to me, an unprec…
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague from Kamloops, who practises law there. Parenthetically, I think we could use more lawyers in this place. We could use people who understand how to read legislation and can say, “Ah, this seems to have something funny about it. We don't want warrantless access to our private information.” I agree with my friend from Kamloops that it is concerning that the gov…
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Mr. Speaker, I have a lot of concerns for the residents of northern Manitoba. They face many issues, and we should certainly pay attention to the Port of Churchill. There are many things that need to be done, but no one needs to open our mail to protect us from fentanyl. I have talked to the Minister of Justice about this. Many accommodations could be made. Mail, unlike many other objects that may…
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Mr. Speaker, petitioners have asked me to speak on their behalf as constituents of Saanich—Gulf Islands concerned about a new and emerging industry, believe it or not, of cephalopod farming. That is, in fact, octopus and squid farming. The animals are bred in captivity, slaughtered for human consumption. Canada currently has no legislation to regulate or govern this emerging potential industry, an…
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