Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I know that my colleagues are going to study the specific provisions of this bill in committee. We will have the opportunity to listen to witnesses and expert analysis, and I know that we will be able to respond based on this expertise and propose ideas following the discussions.
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Mr. Speaker, the Liberals are focused on the past. It is a past when, objectively, housing prices were much lower and crime, rent and unemployment were lower. We think that noting the numbers from the past is important, but so is looking to the future and casting a vision that gives young people hope once again. The reality is that many young people are concerned about what their future will be li…
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Madam Speaker, respectfully, the parliamentary secretary's response generally proved my point. She said there are changes in the workforce coming, and then she highlighted, as the government's response to those changes, the continuation of a program, the Canada summer jobs program, that has existed since the 1990s. I had barely been born when the program started. The continuation of a program that…
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Madam Speaker, during question period in the spring, I pointed out that the Liberal government had no plan when it came to the then already-metastasizing youth unemployment crisis. Things have continued to get worse and the government still has no plan. Youth unemployment, according to the latest StatsCan numbers, has jumped to 14.7%. We are now approaching half a million unemployed young people i…
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Mr. Speaker, Liberal policies are causing a deepening youth unemployment crisis, leaving the next generation in an increasing state of desperation. Today's unemployment numbers show a further spike in youth unemployment, now up to 14.7%, which is approaching half a million unemployed Canadian youth. Youth unemployment was already at recession levels before these further increases. The Liberals pro…
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Mr. Speaker, only an out-of-touch Liberal would try to congratulate themselves when we have a significant increase in youth unemployment in this country. These are the facts: Over 17,000 young people in Ontario alone lost their jobs in the last month and overall unemployment remains at 17.1%. It continues to increase in major cities, including the city the parliamentary secretary is supposed to re…
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Mr. Speaker, the parliamentary secretary said that these numbers might reflect young people leaving the workforce to go back to school. That suggests she does not actually understand how the unemployment rate is calculated, because the unemployment rate is the percentage of those in the workforce who are trying to work and are not able to. The unemployment rate has gone up. It is approaching 15%, …
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Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order. During question period, the parliamentary secretary claimed that the jobs numbers were good news for young people. I would like to request the permission of the House to table the actual jobs report—
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Mr. Speaker, tomorrow, we will see the latest job numbers from Statistics Canada. It is important to underline the magnitude of the challenge confronting people of all ages, but particularly young people. The unemployment rate has gone up to 7.1%. It has been continually increasing for years, ever since the end of COVID. Youth unemployment has hit 14.5%, which is already at recession levels. In ju…
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Mr. Speaker, I have appreciated the opportunity to work with the member on the human resources committee, where we are studying the very serious issue of youth unemployment. As the member knows, the situation is quite bad with respect not just to youth unemployment but to unemployment in general. New job numbers are coming out tomorrow. Already we know that youth unemployment is at 14.5%. There wa…
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Mr. Speaker, I happen to agree with some of the things the parliamentary secretary said. The biggest problem is that the Liberals are not doing them. It was our party that proposed significant increases in investments in the skilled trades through union-based training. The government has consistently failed on that over the last 10 years. Let me give members some numbers. The youth unemployment ra…
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Mr. Speaker, on the other hand, the minister is not a new member, so she should know her own record, which is 86,000 job losses under the Prime Minister alone, and Canada has the worst youth employment rate in over 25 years. Job numbers come out again this Friday, and the situation continues to get grimmer. Witnesses at our parliamentary public hearings on youth unemployment were very clear yester…
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Mr. Speaker, I am grateful to have this opportunity to present a number of petitions to the House today. The first petition is on a subject that is very important to my constituents, on the issue of pipelines. The petitioners are no doubt sick of the incessant teasing but failure to deliver from the members opposite. They say that the government continues to import foreign oil even though oil and …
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Mr. Speaker, the next petition highlights a private member's bill that I tabled in the last Parliament. It is Bill C-257 from the previous Parliament. This petition is in support of that bill, a bill that would add political belief or activity as prohibited grounds of discrimination in the Canadian Human Rights Act. The petitioners note that being free from political discrimination is a fundamenta…
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Mr. Speaker, as we have seen for the last 10 years, the approach of the Liberals is to not address the issues. Conservatives have a plan and a vision that support strong indigenous nations that are developing economically, that control their own resources and that control their own futures. That is why our party is proud to have a growing presence among and representation from indigenous leaders w…
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Zero. Wow. Mr. Speaker, I want to recognize that the member was willing, in his comments, to highlight the importance of modern treaties, even though recognizing their importance is probably not in his partisan interest. We have five negotiated by the Conservatives and zero negotiated by the Liberal government. The point is that we did not need a commissioner to get it done. We did not need an ext…
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Mr. Speaker, I agree that there are problems with Bill C-5. We are a responsible opposition. We tried to improve this situation. However, the fundamental problem is that we need to improve the system for assessing projects. The Liberals created major obstacles that prevented projects from moving forward. Then they said that they wanted to introduce a bill to create special and unique circumstances…
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Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the member for, perhaps unintentionally, recognizing the good work done by the previous government, that of former prime minister Stephen Harper. The member said he believes that modern treaties are important and provide value. He will then appreciate the fact that five modern treaties were negotiated under former prime minister Stephen Harper. I wonder if members coul…
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Mr. Speaker, those are great points from my colleague. What happened with the former member for Edmonton Centre, the Liberal minister who pretended to be indigenous and was not, is part of a pattern of elite people in positions of privilege who say they are trying to help those who are disadvantaged. They then seek to fraudulently appropriate for themselves benefits that were supposed to be set as…
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Mr. Speaker, the next petition I am tabling deals with the issue of euthanasia. I have tabled petitions on this topic before, but this is a different petition that highlights, in particular, concerns about recommendation 21 from the 2023 report by the Special Joint Committee on Medical Assistance in Dying. Recommendation 21 deals with the issue of so-called advance requests. The petitioners note t…
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Mr. Speaker, it is a pleasure to address the House this afternoon and join the debate on Bill C-10. I thank the member for Abbotsford—South Langley, who is covering for me at committee at the moment, for assisting me so that I could be here to address the House on this important legislation. I want to acknowledge that today, October 7, is the sombre anniversary of the worst instance of anti-Semiti…
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Mr. Speaker, a member is asking that I name the individual involved. There were at least two individuals involved, and it is fair to say both of them were named Randy. The tragic and disgraceful case of the former Liberal minister from Edmonton Centre is notable, but it is also not the only case. The AFN told the government operations committee that, in its view, a majority of companies benefiting…
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Mr. Speaker, it was about a year ago now that I was on a road trip across the country, mainly focused on meeting with people in different places on this indigenous procurement issue. I had a chance to meet with the folks he mentioned in his riding, as well as with Winnipeg's Indigenous Chamber of Commerce and a number of educational institutions in western Canada. This was a great opportunity to t…
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Mr. Speaker, the last petition I will table highlights the severe challenges faced by the Hazara people in Afghanistan. The Hazaras have faces multiple genocides and waves of persecution as an often religious and certainly ethnic minority in Afghanistan. Their condition is very threatened under the Taliban at present. The petitioners draw the attention of the House to the sacrifice and investment …
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Mr. Speaker, the next petition I am tabling highlights the human rights abuses in Eritrea and calls for a stronger response from the government and the House. The petitioners note that Eritrea has been ruled by a brutal authoritarian dictator under a totalitarian system for 30 years, with no constitution, no elections, no parliament, no freedom of the press, and no freedom of movement and associat…
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Mr. Speaker, the next petition also deals with the issue of euthanasia. In particular, it highlights concerns from the disability community that proposals for the expansion of euthanasia and the existing track 2 system really undermine the experience of people with disabilities when they access the health care system and that offering medical assistance in dying as a solution for disability or chr…
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Mr. Speaker, the member spoke about many things related to international peace and security that were different from the bill, so my question will focus on those issues as opposed to the substance of Bill C-11. The member spoke about the threat to international peace and security associated with Russia's genocidal invasion of Ukraine, and about the Canadian response. I am very concerned that the g…
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Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my colleague for her excellent speech and for her important work in Parliament. A former member of the House, who was, as it happens, from the same province, former defence minister Sajjan, was given an opportunity to receive some information about very serious issues of this nature from the ombudsman and tragically chose not to deal with that information at the time. …
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for her excellent work. It is almost 10 years that we have been together in Parliament, and I think she has been involved in the work of the status of women committee for all or most of that time. One observation I would have about this debate is that the Liberals are speaking a lot about the changes they are making to military justice, in particular, bringing thi…
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Mr. Speaker, those statistics are alarming, for example, that we continue to see a very low conviction rate. That is discouraging, no doubt, to those who have been victims and might be considering coming forward or in instances in which we have perpetrators who are repeatedly released on bail, even though they are repeat violent offenders. We had an opportunity today to try to take some action on …
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Mr. Speaker, the minister loves self-congratulations, but I have a simple message for her: It is not working. Canadians are not working because Liberal policies are not working. It is simply in the numbers. We have the second-highest unemployment rate in the G7. We have effectively lost over 100,000 jobs in the last month. Youth unemployment is at its worst level in 25 years. EI claims among worki…
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Mr. Speaker, the minister is talking verifiable nonsense. She knows or should know that our platform clearly committed to significant increases in support for union-based training. The minister should listen better, because yesterday, business leaders from Toronto came to committee and ripped into the government. They described how 10 years of bad Liberal policies have created worsening structural…
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Mr. Speaker, as my colleague from Winnipeg North points out, this is a long petition. These are important issues, and I appreciate the opportunity to bring them to the House. The petitioners call on the Government of Canada to table regular reports in Parliament on the situation of human rights in North Korea, as well as their response to it, including the state of political prison camps, Kwan-li-…
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Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to present a petition today in support of Bill C-224, put forward by my colleague from Ponoka—Didsbury. This is a bill about natural health products. I tried to submit a notice to jointly second the bill, as I sometimes do with great pieces of legislation, but the bill was so popular among Conservative MPs that all of the seconding slots were quickly filled before I had a…
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Mr. Speaker, the next petition I am tabling raises concern about the government's approach to euthanasia, in particular the dangerous effects the current euthanasia regime has on Canadians living with disabilities. The petitioners observe how the government's policy, which presents facilitated dying as a so-called solution to disability or chronic illness, reduces incentives to improve treatment a…
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Mr. Speaker, finally, following an event that I had the honour of speaking at earlier this week here in Ottawa, I am tabling a petition drawing attention to the horrific human rights situation in North Korea, highlighting the human rights record of the Government of North Korea and calling for action. The petitioners note that North Korea prioritizes food distribution to those considered useful to…
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Mr. Speaker, next I would like to present a petition that references Bill C-257, which was a bill in the previous Parliament, put forward by me, that would have added political belief and activity as prohibited grounds of discrimination in the Canada Human Rights Act. Petitioners are asking the House to support the bill, or presumably a similar bill in the current Parliament. Petitioners note that…
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Mr. Speaker, I am presenting a petition about a very serious issue: the persecution of Falun Gong practitioners. Petitioners would like to see an end to that persecution, the protection of Falun Gong practitioners and an end to these human rights abuses.
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Mr. Speaker, the first of several petitions that I would like to present to the House highlights the ongoing tragedy of the government's failed euthanasia policy. The petitioners in this petition note ion particular the pernicious effects of the government's approach to Canadians living with disabilities. These Conservative petitioners and all major disability advocacy organizations in the country…
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Mr. Speaker, I join colleagues today in tabling a petition raising concern about a proposal from the Liberal-dominated finance committee to strip charitable status from all houses of worship. This was, in particular, recommendation 430. The removal of charitable status from houses of worship would affect churches, mosques, synagogues, temples, gurdwaras and all houses of worship by removing “promo…
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Mr. Speaker, second, I am tabling a petition that raises significant concern about the existing euthanasia laws in Canada and in particular their pernicious effect on the quality of life of Canadians living with disabilities. The petitioners observe that the existing euthanasia regime in Canada tacitly endorses the notion that life with disability is optional and by extension disposable. They note…
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Mr. Speaker, the parliamentary secretary is putting a lot of emphasis on apprenticeships, which is obviously an important discussion. However, in the meantime, the government continues to block important projects. The Prime Minister supports the legislation stemming from Bill C-69, which is blocking major projects. What is more, the government has decided not to take steps to build more homes. Pro…
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Mr. Speaker, in his excellent speech, my colleague talked about the problems of enforcement. The government is trying to suggest that there is a problem in terms of a lack of things being classed as offences, but actually there is a problem of enforcement not being effective. There is also a problem of the tone that has been set by the current government when it comes to attacks, particularly agai…
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Mr. Speaker, what a pleasure it is to have my son joining me here in Ottawa today. This country is experiencing a serious unemployment crisis. The overall unemployment rate of 7.1% is bad enough, but it is young Canadians who are suffering the most, with a disastrous rate of 15.5%. It is not just the number of unemployed people that is a problem, but also how long they remain unemployed. On averag…
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Madam Speaker, I have a number of petitions to present to the House today. The first petition comes from people in my riding, particularly those connected with Elk Island Catholic Schools, who are raising concern about changes in federal funding around Jordan's principle. They note that first nations children living off-reserve are no longer eligible to receive funding through Jordan's principle a…
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Madam Speaker, the next petition deals with the issue of euthanasia and, in particular, highlights concerns that have been raised by those living with disabilities. The petitioners are very concerned that in the context of a lack of available services and treatments for people in various situations, euthanasia does not present itself as a real choice but is offered in the absence of alternative ki…
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Madam Speaker, the next petition I am tabling is related to the worsening human rights situation in North Korea. The petitioners note many grave violations of human rights in this petition, including prioritization of food distribution to those considered useful to the survival of the current political systems, with those deemed expendable facing deprivation, and a vast security apparatus associat…
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Mr. Speaker, while the Liberals are desperate to defend their jobs, my question tonight is about the jobs of the many unemployed Canadians who are desperately looking for jobs and cannot find them. We have a serious unemployment crisis in this country that is particularly affecting young Canadians. The unemployment rate has been continuously going up over the last three years. It has now hit 7.1%,…
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Madam Speaker, the next petition I am tabling draws attention to past and ongoing abuses of human rights targeting the Hazara community in Afghanistan. The petitioners cite some of the history around the various genocides that have affected the Hazara people in Afghanistan and further describe more recent abuses. They also note the close tie between Canada and Afghanistan, shaped by the sacrifice …
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Mr. Speaker, I will try to quickly get in two questions for the member about this legislation. First, has the government engaged with the Hindu community and other communities that use symbols that look like symbols that have an association, in other contexts, with hate but are used in a very different way in their tradition? We want to protect the freedoms of those communities that understand sim…
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