Routine Proceedings
Madam Speaker, I have a number of petitions to present to the House today. The first petition is on Bill S-233, which would make it a criminal offence for people to go abroad and receive an organ taken without consent. It would also create a mechanism by which people could be deemed inadmissible to Canada if they are involved in forced organ harvesting and trafficking. Members may be interested to…
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Madam Speaker, the next petition I am tabling highlights the horrific ongoing situation in Ukraine. The petitioners note recent events, and the fact that the invasion of Ukraine started in 2014, with the invasion and occupation of Crimea and the Donbass, and we have seen the escalation of that violence in recent months. The petitioners have a number of specific asks with respect to the government'…
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Madam Speaker, the third petition I am tabling is on an issue that is very important in my riding, which is carbon capture, utilization and storage. It notes the important role of carbon capture and storage. While some politicians in this place think that carbon capture does not work, it is happening right now in my beautiful riding. The petitioners call on the Government of Canada to introduce ne…
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Madam Speaker, the next petition I am tabling is on a private member's bill that stands in my name: Bill C-257. The petition speaks to the right of people to be protected from discrimination, yet we see increasing political discrimination, which is the discrimination against people on the basis of their political views. The petitioners note that it is in the best interests of Canadian democracy to…
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Madam Speaker, the next petition is with respect to the ongoing humanitarian situation and human rights concerns in Ethiopia. The petitioners are concerned about what has happened in the Tigray region, and want to see increased and ongoing engagement by the government with the Government of Ethiopia around humanitarian access and human rights issues. They also want to see the government engage wit…
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Madam Speaker, the next petition I am tabling is one that specifically highlights the importance of Alberta's industrial heartland to Canada's national economy. Alberta's industrial heartland is in my riding: It goes into the riding of the member for Lakeland and those of a number of other members. Canada's industrial heartland is Canada's largest hydrocarbon-processing region and has 40-plus comp…
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With regard to the reference to a "friendly foreign state" in the Foreign Enlistment Act: (a) how does the government define this term; (b) how is a citizen to know whether or not a particular state is a friendly foreign state; (c) which states are currently considered friendly foreign states; and (d) based on the answer to (c), what is the government’s rationale for determining whether (i) Russia…
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Madam Speaker, the next petition highlights the issue of energy security and brings together a concern for foreign policy security as well as our energy sector: two significant priorities for my constituents. Petitioners want to see the Government of Canada work to immediately put in place a plan for an east-west corridor to replace foreign oil, so that Canada is the source of oil and energy for e…
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Madam Speaker, finally, I want to present another petition on Bill S-223, which is coming up for debate on Friday. It is a bill to make it a criminal offence for a person to go abroad and receive an organ taken without consent. I am very hopeful that debate will collapse on this bill on Friday and we will be able to move it forward. People have been working on this bill for 15 years. It is a no-br…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, I do think it is important to note, in response to the member's speech, that the traditions of this place do not emanate from the horrific orgy of violence that was the French Revolution. They emanate from the British tradition of pluralism, of accommodation, and especially here in North America, of the combination of different linguistic, faith and other communities. I am proud of …
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Mr. Speaker, today Falun Gong practitioners are gathering on the Hill in advance of May 13, which is Falun Dafa Day. The first petition I am presenting highlights the horrific persecution of Falun Gong practitioners in China. This has been going on for decades. Various resolutions have been passed in other parliaments, such as the U.S. House of Representatives and the European Parliament. Action i…
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Mr. Speaker, the second petition is on a similar issue. The second petition is specifically to highlight Bill S-223, which is a bill that would combat forced organ harvesting and trafficking. It recognizes that this is a practice that happens in certain places around the world and it would seek to make it a criminal offence for a person to go abroad and receive an organ taken without consent. It w…
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Mr. Speaker, the next petition I am tabling is about the situation in Ukraine, in particular the Russian invasion of Ukraine. It is an invasion that, in a sense, started in 2014. Of course, we have a further invasion in recent months. This is obviously an issue that the House has been seized with at various times, and there are a number of specific asks in here. Some of them involve sanctions and …
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Mr. Speaker, the next petition I am tabling is with respect to the political neutrality of charitable status. Petitioners are concerned that the Liberal platform actually talked, in the last election, about politicizing charitable status and applying a values test in association with charitable status, whereby the government would deny charitable status to organizations with which they have partic…
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Mr. Speaker, the next petition that I am tabling highlights the ongoing detention of Huseyin Celil in China. Petitioners note that, as a result of various efforts undertaken, Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor were released after 1,000 days of unjust detention and are very pleased about the release of the two Michaels, but note the continuing detention in China of Canadians, including Mr. Celil, wh…
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Mr. Speaker, the next petition that I want to table highlights the human rights abuses targeting the Hazara community in Afghanistan. Petitioners note that various genocides have impacted the Hazara community over a century and a half, and the situation of the Hazaras was very challenging even prior to the Taliban takeover. Of course, it has gotten much worse. The petitioners want to see the gover…
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Madam Speaker, the next petition that I am tabling is on the issue of vitamin D and its benefits, as well as the data that exists with respect to its beneficial effects in the context of COVID. It highlights a number of detailed studies that have shown that higher levels of vitamin D are associated with more favourable outcomes for individuals who get COVID-19. It cites those studies and notes tha…
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Madam Speaker, I want to focus my question on the issue of freedom of conscience. The member spoke as if a member listening to somebody else deliver a prayer would be an attack on their freedom of conscience, if they did not agree with the prayer. Respectfully, it is an absurd understanding of freedom of conscience to say that my conscience is violated by listening to somebody else pray. I have at…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, as the grandson of a Holocaust survivor, I appreciate the opportunity to mark in the House of Commons the 107th anniversary of the Armenian genocide. The Armenian genocide was the first genocide of the 20th century. Well over a million Armenian Christians and members of other communities of the Ottoman Empire were systematically and brutally killed. This genocide was barely recognized…
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Mr. Speaker, NDP members have repeatedly said that carbon capture and storage is unproven or does not work. I want to take this opportunity to invite the NDP leader to come to my riding. I will pay for his hotel. He could see carbon capture and storage happening right now. There is the Shell Quest project in my riding. Last week I went to an open house for the Polaris project, an entirely private …
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Madam Speaker, I have a brief follow-up to my earlier exchange with the member. I think it is clear there are a variety of government policies at the fiscal level that are impacting inflation, and that impact is especially strong at this point as we are seeing the highest level of inflation in decades. This is at a point when we have very much come out of the depths of the pandemic. There is also …
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Madam Speaker, there is a lot I disagree with in my hon. friend's speech. I found, in particular, her denunciation of Airbnbs to be a little bit odd. They are a great, affordable opportunity, especially for families to travel, and they have more flexibility than hotels. I want to focus on the issue of carbon capture and storage, because the NDP, speaking previously, said that carbon capture and st…
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Madam Speaker, respectfully, the hon. member makes a fairly obvious error in his economic analysis. He is talking about the fact that the Bank of Canada controls monetary policy, but he misses the fact that fiscal policy can impact inflation as well. It is fairly well established. The first-year economics professor he spoke about at the beginning of his speech could, I am sure, confirm the fact th…
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Madam Speaker, it was encouraging to hear the member talk about how oil production is going up in this country. I think one of the greatest solutions to the challenges we face in energy would be to support the development of liquefied natural gas products in Quebec. I think once those products were on stream, we would see the Bloc supporting the energy sector. There are some hopeful opportunities …
Read full speech →Adjournment Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives have been advocating for a very long time on the issue of direction and control. Direction and control are regulations that severely limit the ability of the charitable sector to do its job. They require that any charitable activities be fully under the direction and control of the charitable organization. This creates problems and needless red tape for organizations…
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Mr. Speaker, I am tabling one petition today in support of Bill S-223, which is aimed at combatting forced organ harvesting and trafficking. I surely hope that we will be able to get this bill passed as soon as possible.
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Mr. Speaker, I have many concerns about the budgetary policy of the government. I wonder if the member could comment specifically, though, on the issues around the government's intention with respect to direction and control regulations. The government has finally recognized that there is a problem with direction and control, but there is still a lot of concern among stakeholders about what remedy…
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Madam Speaker, it is not entirely surprising that a Liberal member from Ontario would use a speech in the House of Commons to engage in politicking related to the provincial election that is going on in Ontario. The member did actually use the term “crimes against humanity” to refer to a policy of the Ford government. That is quite a serious accusation to be making. I would encourage the member, e…
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Madam Speaker, we have talked a lot in the House about supporting the people of Ukraine and the need to increase investments in our military. One of the critical things that I think we can do to stand with our partners and allies around the world is to supply them with a surer, clearer supply of Canadian energy resources to displace dependence on Russian oil and gas. We can play that role in Canad…
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Madam Speaker, the hon. member spoke about certain actions with respect to anti-Semitism and Islamophobia and the appointment of special envoys. Certainly, in the Conservative caucus, we are very supportive of action on those issues. Last summer, dozens of churches were either burned down or vandalized in western Canada, including the complete destruction of a Coptic church in Surrey, for example,…
Read full speech →Adjournment Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, certainly the requirement for alignment with a charitable purpose is very important. It is also important that we do more to address the red tape that charitable organizations face across the board. I was very proud of the work done by the previous Conservative government around red tape reduction for business. I think we need a similar, broad red-tape reduction initiative around char…
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Madam Speaker, my read of the bill is that it advances a form of stakeholder capitalism. It is the idea that government should seek to promote the idea of corporations advancing green or other sorts of non-economic objectives through the marketplace. I wonder, as a matter of description, if the member agrees that the bill is advancing a form of stakeholder capitalism and if she believes that we sh…
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Mr. Speaker, I have a number of petitions to table today. The first petition is in support of Bill S-223, a bill that would make it a criminal offence for a person to go abroad and receive an organ taken without consent. I want to assure members that there will be no more petitions tabled on the bill as soon as it is passed. Maybe that will help light a fire under some members to support the speed…
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Mr. Speaker, the next petition that I am tabling is in support of the energy sector, which is very important in my constituency. Petitioners note that there is a great need for oil and gas from Canada, that Alberta and western Canada produce the most environmental oil and gas with high labour standards compared with other countries, and that Canada should only be using oil and gas from Canada rath…
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Mr. Speaker, the next petition highlights the ongoing human rights and humanitarian challenges in the Tigray region of Ethiopia. The petitioners note various credible reports that war crimes have occurred including extrajudicial killings, large-scale massacres, looting and sexual violence. The petitioners want to see increased engagement from the House and the government with respect to the situat…
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Mr. Speaker, the next petition is seeking to bring more attention to the situation of Mr. Huseyin Celil. He is a Canadian citizen who has been detained in China for well over a decade now. The petitioners note, and are pleased by, the release of Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor. They want to see the government really confront the Huseyin Celil case at the same level, and with the same level of en…
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Mr. Speaker, the next petition I am tabling is about the COVID-19 pandemic, specifically drawing the attention of the House to the various evidence and scientific literature about the connection between low vitamin D levels and higher risk of COVID-19. The petitioners cite various medical analyses that have been done and note further that people get vitamin D from sunlight exposure. Increased awar…
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Mr. Speaker, the next petition specifically highlights the situation of the Hazara ethnic minority in Afghanistan. Hazaras are a minority community, specifically a religious minority as well as an ethnic minority. They come from the Shia Muslim community, as opposed to Sunni, and they faced various challenges and various violations of human rights even prior to the Taliban takeover. Of course, the…
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Mr. Speaker, the next petition is about a Liberal Party election platform commitment. In the 2021 election platform, the Liberals committed to politicizing charitable status and removing charitable status from organizations that do not share the government's views with respect to abortion. This politicization of charitable status could jeopardize the status and the good work being done by hospital…
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Mr. Speaker, the next petition I am tabling is with respect to the continuing detention of Armenian prisoners of war in Azeri custody following the end of hostilities. The petitioners note that this continuing detention is a violation of international law, and petitioners are concerned by recent events. Petitioners would like to see the Azeri government abide by the 2020 ceasefire commitment and a…
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Madam Speaker, I appreciate the opportunity this debate provides to discuss the important issue of stakeholder capitalism. Fundamental to our current economic system has been the idea of shareholder capitalism, the idea that corporations exist for the specific and narrow purpose of maximizing value for their shareholders. I think it is important to acknowledge that there are legitimate criticisms …
Read full speech →Adjournment Proceedings
Madam Speaker, I appreciate the opportunity to speak today about some of the challenges we have seen with donation matching programs launched by governments in response to crises around the world. When there is some singular event causing massive destruction elsewhere in the world, one way that governments have provided assistance is through matching programs that match private donations up to a c…
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With regard to direction and control regulations as it relates to the Income Tax Act: (a) what is the government’s position regarding direction and control regulations; (b) does the government support Bill S-216, An Act to amend the Income Tax Act (use of resources of a registered charity); (c) have government ministers met with individuals or organizations advocating for changes to direction and …
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With regard to the government listing Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a terrorist entity: (a) is the government reviewing whether or not to list the IRGC as a whole as a terrorist entity, and not just the Quds Force; (b) has the government reached a decision about whether or not to list the IRGC as a whole; (c) if the government has reached a decision, what is it; and (d) if the…
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With regard to the requirement for federal public servants to be vaccinated against COVID-19: (a) how many public servants have been placed on unpaid leave as a result of their vaccination status; (b) how many public servants have received health exemptions; (c) does the government gather information regarding the nature of individual health exemptions, such as the condition causing the need for t…
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Madam Speaker, the member opposite clearly understands the importance of making vital investments in our national defence to get up to our NATO commitments. It is also clear from the debate today that the government's partners in the NDP simply do not. They have an ideological opposition to making the investments that are required in defence and they do not understand that investing in our securit…
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Madam Speaker, I thank the parliamentary secretary for her response. She did confirm the policy that I identified, and it is one that I think should be revisited. That is the policy of emphasizing partnerships with large multilaterals. It is not that working with these organizations is unimportant, but including small Canadian diaspora-led organizations as well as larger Canadian diaspora-led orga…
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Madam Speaker, the next petition I am tabling is with respect to the ongoing Uighur genocide. Petitioners highlight various news items about the horrific treatment of Uighurs, including forced sterilization, forced abortion, coordinated suppression of birth rates, organ harvesting, invasive surveillance, separation of children from families, forced labour, destruction of cultural sites and many ot…
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