Parliamentary Speeches
677 speeches by Gary Anandasangaree — Page 13 of 14
Oral Questions
Madam Speaker, as I stressed earlier, these issues are difficult and deeply personal and touch the lives of everyone across this country. We would like to thank those who have lent their voices to this important national conversation. We look forward to seeing the findings and recommendations of the special joint committee, on which the member opposite is also a very active participant, and of the…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Madam Speaker, I have been working very closely with the member who represents the NDP at committee, as well as the member for the Bloc and, as much as I can, with those in the Conservative Party. I tend not to be very partisan, but it is abundantly clear that there are games taking place today. This matter does—
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Madam Speaker, I am very perplexed as to what is happening today because this is a bill that has gone through a number of days of debate in the House as one single unit. As of today, we will have had our sixth meeting of witnesses. We have set clause-by-clause for about a week and a half from now. We have agreed, by consensus of all the parties, to have eight meetings to discuss the bill, and at t…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Madam Speaker, we have completed five meetings with around six witnesses at each meeting, so we have heard from about 30 witnesses. Another meeting started a couple of minutes ago and there are two more scheduled meetings. In total, by the end of the study, we will have heard from roughly 45 witnesses who are experts in their fields, representatives of organizations that support those in the crimi…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Madam Speaker, let me say at the outset that I am very disappointed that we are at this juncture today. Bill C-5 is a very important piece of legislation, and I can walk the House through my perspective on this. I want to confirm that I will be splitting my time with the member for Whitby. When Bill C-5 was introduced back in December, we heard from a number of different organizations and people w…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Madam Speaker, a one-hour debate on this is hardly filibustering. It is, in fact, to put on record what we are talking about, how important this bill is and why it needs to be debated in its entirety as one full unit. That is not filibustering. That is putting forward a coherent set of reasons as to why this bill should not be divided.
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Madam Speaker, these issues are difficult and deeply personal and touch the lives of everyone across this country. We would like to thank those who have lent their voices to this important national conversation. We look forward to seeing the findings and recommendations of the special joint committee as well as the expert panel, which are due imminently.
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, I am delighted to join members here and speak in favour of the budget implementation act. I would like to acknowledge that I am speaking from the unceded lands of the Algonquin people. We were elected in 2015, and I want to highlight some of the major successes in my region of Scarborough, particularly Scarborough—Rouge Park. As members are aware, we were able to support the extensi…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, I do want to pay tribute to Peter Kent, who was very important in establishing the park. Of course, as I acknowledged, this is a park that political parties of all stripes can take credit for. In terms of the wage gap, I think that one of the major ways we have been able to address it is through our agreements with the provinces on $10-a-day child care. I think it is a transformatio…
Read full speech →Adjournment Proceedings
Madam Speaker, I am pleased to have an opportunity to speak to Bill C-5, particularly to dispel some possible misunderstandings about the impact these sentencing reforms would have on the human trafficking regime in the Criminal Code. Some critics of this bill suggest the proposed reforms would allow hardened human trafficking offenders, who may be linked to organized crime or who are otherwise ob…
Read full speech →Adjournment Proceedings
Madam Speaker, Bill C-5 would provide judicial discretion to allow courts to craft proportionate sentences that consider all the relevant circumstances, including factors such as an individual's experience with systemic racism, their history of trauma or their need for community and health supports. Should Bill C-5 be enacted, the human trafficking regime would not change. Conditional sentences wo…
Read full speech →Adjournment Proceedings
Madam Speaker, the pressures created by supply chain disruptions and by the shift from buying services to buying goods are real. We are monitoring that situation very closely. As it relates to inflation, there are other structural costs that make life less affordable for Canadian families, and chief among them are housing and child care. That is why our government has a robust national housing str…
Read full speech →Adjournment Proceedings
Madam Speaker, I used to serve with the member across the floor on the heritage committee, and I am reminded of how enigmatic he can be. Let me just say that we are already hard at work to make life more affordable for Canadians and help small businesses across the country. In fact, we proposed a number of measures in budget 2022 that would do just that. I would like to remind my hon. colleague th…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, Sri Lanka is facing the most serious financial crisis in its history. The corrupt regime led by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa is in the final days of governing the failed state. The entire cabinet of ministers has resigned, save and except for Mahinda Rajapaksa. This is the beginning of the end of the Rajapaksa family. The brothers stand accused of …
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Madam Speaker, our government is committed to criminal justice system reform. It is a promise we made to Canadians and we intend to keep it. This is about criminal justice policy that actually keeps our communities safe. A justice system that unfairly targets indigenous people and Black and marginalized communities is not effective. It does not keep us safe, and it must be changed.
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I want to take the Minister of Justice back to 2019 when we had a round table in Scarborough with a number of different stakeholders who were directly impacted by mandatory minimum sentences, particularly members of the Black community. We know that the statistics are quite relevant here because MMPs have disproportionately impacted members of the Black community, as well as indigenou…
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Madam Speaker, I am very pleased to speak this morning with respect to Bill C-230, an act to amend the Criminal Code, intimidation of health care professionals, which was introduced by the member for Carlton Trail—Eagle Creek. I want to acknowledge that I am speaking today on the traditional unceded lands of the Algonquin people. The stated goal of Bill C-230 is to protect an important right: the …
Read full speech →Statements By Members
Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to Mrs. Kamalambikai Kandasamy, a brave mother of the Tamil nation. Throughout 2008 and until May 2009, Mrs. Kandasamy worked day and night as a pharmacist embedded with the Tamil medical team in Mullivaikal. As makeshift hospitals were targeted and bombed by the Sri Lankan armed forces, she fearlessly helped thousands of survivors. The world ignored her pl…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, I would like to get a sense from my friend opposite about the following point. There are a number of provincial Conservative governments in Canada. Could he identify any provincial government that has reduced its taxes with respect to gasoline at this time?
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, “February and Forever: Celebrating Black History today and every day” is the theme for Black History Month this year. I am proud to highlight two important initiatives from my riding that will be embedded in Canadian history this year and beyond. First, I want to highlight the work of Kwame Delfish, the artist who designed the 2022 Underground Railroad coin for the Royal Canadian Mint…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Madam Speaker, I want to ask my learned friend a very specific question with respect to the safeguards that exist within the Emergencies Act. I know it was invoked on February 14. We are debating it today. The order was presented two days after the invocation. There are other measures that are forthcoming. Can the member speak to the safeguards that are in place to ensure that we protect the right…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Mr. Speaker, I want to ask specifically about the safeguards available in the Emergencies Act. Could the member highlight some of the safeguards in place as we invoke the act?
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his acknowledgement of the illegality of the blockades. I know that he referenced the steps undertaken by the government. I am wondering if he had a chance to read the “Report to the Houses of Parliament: Emergencies Act Consultations”. It is an eight-page report that was tabled. It outlines all of the measures undertaken by the government, including the Prime…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Madam Speaker, I have a great deal of respect for my friend opposite, and we have worked well together over the years. I do want to give him some startling numbers. I know he cited some numbers. With respect to the fundraising, some 52% of the funds came from the U.S. and 1,100 of those names relate to the same donors who donated to the January 6 insurrection at Capitol Hill last year. Does it not…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Madam Speaker, I have a great deal of respect for the member opposite, and I have worked with him at the indigenous affairs committee. At the outset, I want to say that I believe Canadians are united. Over 90% of Canadians have been vaccinated, and many more are continuing to be vaccinated as we speak, with the second and booster doses. We have seen a lot of hate outside over the last several week…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Mr. Speaker, I must profoundly disagree with many of the premises of my colleague from Edmonton West's statement. I want to probe into one issue that has come forth, which is the financing of these protests. One report says that 1,100 of the donors to this protest were also donors to the January 6 Capitol Hill riot. Of course, there has been a lot written about them and the motivations there. We a…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Madam Speaker, I will be sharing my time with the member for Aurora—Oak Ridges—Richmond Hill. I rise today with a very heavy heart to speak in support of the invocation of the Emergencies Act by our government and the motion in this House to affirm the government's decision. I want to acknowledge that I am speaking from the traditional unceded lands of the Algonquin people. I want to thank the man…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Madam Speaker, this gives me an opportunity to respond to this question, which has come up a number of times. I want to specifically direct the hon. member to the Report to the Houses of Parliament: Emergencies Act Consultations. It outlines all of the measures taken by the government in respect to addressing the situation we have seen. First and foremost, I think that starting on January 31, ther…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Madam Speaker, no, that is not what this entails. We have a specific set of situations right now in a number of different areas, including Ottawa, Windsor, Coutts, Emerson and Surrey, that do pose a national emergency. This is in direct response to the situation at hand and it does mean that this should be invoked. I hope the government never has to invoke this again, but we are in a situation whe…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Madam Speaker, I appreciate the question posed by my friend opposite. This certainly does set a precedent in terms of protest. We cannot have blockades of this nature, which literally bring our economy to a halt. We have gone through the pandemic. We have serious challenges with transport across Canada right now, and we need to make sure that all of our systems are working properly. If the governm…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Mr. Speaker, I want to take this opportunity to congratulate my colleague for Burnaby South on his baby. I have seen the member engage on many occasions with protesters over the many years I have known him. This particular time he has not. The opposition has advised the Prime Minister to engage with people at the illegal blockades that are here. What are his reflections on engagement with those wh…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Mr. Speaker, my colleague's intervention was very thoughtful. I want to highlight that a number of speakers have suggested the Prime Minister meet with those who are illegally blocking Parliament Hill and engage in dialogue with them. I just want my friend opposite to reflect and maybe give us a sense of why that is not possible and why political engagement at that level is inappropriate, just giv…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend opposite for his very entertaining presentation today. I want to put on the record of the House the report to Parliament on the Emergencies Act consultations and the extensive work that was undertaken, not just by the Prime Minister, but by the whole of government. I ask the member opposite to reflect on that. He did mention a couple of things I want to probe him on,…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Madam Speaker, I want to assure my colleague that the oversight and certainty she is looking for are certainly there within the regulations. This is meant to target individuals who are breaking the law. Of course, the issue of proportionality, as well as reasonableness, is embedded in the regulations and I invite her to reflect on that. It is important to distinguish between those who may have inn…
Read full speech →Adjournment Proceedings
Madam Speaker, I want to start by acknowledging that I am speaking to members from the traditional lands of the Algonquin people. I am pleased to have an opportunity to speak to Bill C-5. I intend to focus on some areas where there appears to be some misunderstanding about the impact that repealing mandatory minimum penalties from the Criminal Code will have on our justice system and society more …
Read full speech →Adjournment Proceedings
Madam Speaker, I appreciate the opportunity to ensure that the idea behind Bill C-5 is put forward this evening. Bill C-5 advances an evidence-based approach to sentencing policies in Canada. It proposes to repeal MMPs for certain firearm offences and all those in the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act in order to address unjust outcomes for indigenous peoples, Black Canadians and marginalized Ca…
Read full speech →Statements By Members
Madam Speaker, I rise today to honour Dr. Nagula Tharma Sangary, a Tamil-Canadian scientist and educator. He obtained an electrical engineering degree from Texas A&M University, masters and doctoral degrees from McMaster University and an MBA from Oxford. He was a pioneer in wireless technology and served as a principal scientist at BlackBerry. He was an adjunct professor at both McMaster Universi…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, at the outset, let me acknowledge that I am speaking to you from the traditional lands of the Algonquin people. I also want to acknowledge the lands from which our colleagues are joining us today. It is a solemn honour and pleasure for me to rise in this debate to speak on the proposed constitutional amendment in relation to Saskatchewan. It is not every day a motion for a resolutio…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, I cannot speak for the Senate. The Senate is independent of our government, but we certainly will be supporting members throughout the passage of the motion in the House of Commons today, as well as supporting it through the process in the Senate.
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, today's subject is a constitutional amendment that would essentially give Saskatchewan a right that it should have had to tax CPR. That is the fundamental issue. Previously, without this amendment, that would have been limited. I therefore submit that this is moving toward fairness, and it is up to the Government of Saskatchewan to impose a tax policy that is appropriate.
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, obviously, my friend has not known my politics long enough to understand that I have always said it is important to tax corporations. Of course, as a party we believe that and have acted on it consistently. We look forward to working with all parties on issues of importance, particularly in this case to ensure that Saskatchewan has all the tools available to it so we do not differen…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, I thank my friend from Milton for his leadership and for ensuring that Canada's team does very well in Beijing. I really look forward to the medals they bring home. To his point, this allows Saskatchewan a number of important things. First, it equalizes the tax playing field for all businesses so there is no unfair advantage and no unfair burden on other corporations that do not hav…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, I know our not supporting the ratification of this motion by way of unanimous consent was noted by the member for Carlton Trail—Eagle Creek. As the member knows, we get a number of unanimous consent motions, and something of this nature, with the magnitude of amending the Constitution, requires debate, and it is the type of debate we are having today. It allowed the government a num…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, I appreciate my friend's very important speech today. I want to delve a bit into the UC motion in question that came about in December. As my friend knows, the Province of Saskatchewan passed this legislation on November 21. The UC motion came to Parliament in December, and this is the first time we are having a debate. I know the member has been a parliamentarian for many years. In…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, I want to assure the hon. member for Saskatoon—Grasswood that the Saskatchewan caucus in our party is absolutely supportive of this motion, and of course, our government is supporting this going forward. I do want to ask the member about the Senate. I know there is an independent group of senators in the Senate. What kind of measures and discussions has the opposition had with senat…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, I rise to honour the extraordinary life of Archbishop Desmond Tutu. Archbishop Tutu was a shining light for hope and justice around the world. He risked his life to champion human rights and advocate for peace and racial equality in his beloved South Africa, and was instrumental in the fight to end apartheid. As chair of the truth and reconciliation commission in a post-apartheid Sout…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, the Department of Justice undertook an extensive preliminary search in order to determine the number of litigation files and quantity of information that could fall within the scope of the question, as well as the amount of time that would be required to prepare a comprehensive response. It was concluded that producing and validating a comprehensive response to this question would req…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, I want to pick up on my friend opposite's last comment respecting the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act, or CDSA. The amendments to the CDSA would allow prosecutors to also offer diversion. So, there is pre-charge, as well as post-charge, diversion in the bill. I also want to speak about his reflections on the CSOs provided for here and whether he can give us some insight into how…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, my colleague's intervention was very thoughtful and I agree with most of what he said. I want to assure him that the issue of gun violence is something we are very concerned about, and our government will take decisive action in that regard. With respect to Bill C-5, I wonder if the member could speak about conditional sentencing orders and how they will impact the criminal justice sy…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, concerning the conditional sentencing orders, what are the member's reflections on the provisions that allow for the expanded use of these orders for inmates?
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