Government Orders
Madam Speaker, this chamber, this place, is for debate. It is for expressing the opinions of my constituents, and for each and every one of our constituents. I know for a fact that my constituents want this bill to go forward. I know for a fact that each and every member across the aisle, and I have sat and listened to their speeches, have something to contribute to this bill. I would like to see …
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Madam Speaker, this bill, this proposition of having an oversight body, is really about equality of opportunity. It is about righting wrongs, regardless of what those wrongs are. It is about using our Charter of Rights and Freedoms as a baseline to ensure Canadians are protected within our country. It is about transparency. It is about openness. I am looking forward to this bill having a positive …
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Madam Speaker, our frontline service members, the ones who really get out there and provide those services at the front end, are doing our country a wonderful service. They are to be commended for their wonderful efforts. What this bill is trying to implement is a way to ensure the services being provided at that front end are objective and fair. Those who feel they have not been properly treated …
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Madam Speaker, before I begin, I just want to let members know I will be sharing my time with the member for Milton. I am rising today to speak to Bill C-20. It is a bill that would establish “an independent body, called the Public Complaints and Review Commission”, which would “review and investigate complaints concerning the conduct and level of service” of the RCMP and the CBSA and “conduct rev…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, I am honoured to be back in the House after a productive summer in my riding of Mississauga—Erin Mills. In between attending over 160 community meetings and events, visiting local businesses and bringing ministers to Erin Mills to hear directly from residents about local issues, I once again hosted my annual barbecue, where we welcomed over 4,500 residents. I joined colleagues represe…
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Mr. Speaker, I rise today on behalf of grade 8 students at Thomas Street Middle School in Mississauga-Erin Mills to highlight an important figure in our history, Mathieu Da Costa. Mathieu da Costa is said to have been the first recorded person of African descent to set foot on this land that we now call Canada. He is one of so many Canadians of African descent who have helped build this country si…
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Mr. Speaker, I absolutely, wholeheartedly agree with the example provided by the minister. That nation-to-nation connection of supporting communities and uplifting them, I think, is the only way that we can really achieve proper truth and reconciliation, really building those partnerships with communities and creating a next generation of empowered indigenous peoples who have respect for their cul…
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Madam Speaker, before I begin, I will let you know that I am sharing my time with the member for Vancouver Granville. I am pleased to stand today to speak to the work by Justice Canada to implement the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act. It is a key piece to reconciliation, ensuring the effective implementation of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indi…
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Mr. Speaker, as I said, it is really important for us to listen to indigenous communities with respect to the kinds of services they need. The secretariat will endeavour to find out the best ways to support victims who are indigenous. I know we have a lot of work to do to decrease that overrepresentation within our justice system and to provide that support to indigenous communities and those who …
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Mr. Speaker, I am on the record saying that housing is a human right. It is a basic right that all Canadians, including indigenous communities, deserve. We are prioritizing housing and ensuring that we are building and providing that culturally sensitive support to communities like the indigenous community. I look forward to working with the member opposite to ensure that we are advocating and pus…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, with a heavy heart I rise today to recognize a remarkable member of the Erin Mills community who passed away on May 30. Shirley Haslam was a constituent, a strong member of the Mississauga Erin Mills Women's Council and she was a dear friend. Shirley was a teacher for 32 years and volunteered with the Arthritis Society and Scleroderma Society for many years. She leaves behind so many …
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Mr. Speaker, I am standing here with a lot of mixed emotions. The member for Mississauga—Lakeshore is a very close personal friend. I met him in 2015. I really value the class, grace and intelligence that he has brought to the House and to each and every one of us, and the advice, level of respect and quality of debate that he has brought to this place. I will be very, very sad to see him go. It h…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, Shireen Abu Akleh spent her career as a journalist shedding light on the plight of the Palestinian people. She was fearless, inspiring and, at her core, a compassionate woman who dedicated herself to bringing a voice to the voiceless. On May 12, she was shot and killed while reporting on an Israeli military raid in the West Bank. Good journalists perform a vital role in democracies ar…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, this has been an exciting week. Budget 2021 set out our plan for affordable child care for only $10 a day. On Monday, Ontario finally signed on, which means we have deals to deliver affordable child care to every province and territory. This has been a top priority in my riding of Mississauga—Erin Mills and we delivered. That was in 2021. Next week, the Deputy Prime Minister and Minis…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, yesterday was the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. This day reminds us that, while progress is being made to fight systemic racism, hate and injustice, there is much more work to do. That work is really important, because uplifting vulnerable communities improves the health and prosperity of all Canadians, including our economy. Can the Minister of Housi…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, on March 8 we celebrate International Women's Day. This year's theme is #BreakTheBias, and what better example than Marian Coveny from Erin Mills. She was a teacher at Loyola Catholic Secondary School and a trail-blazing hockey player. She led Team Canada to undefeated victory in the first-ever women's world hockey tournament in 1987. It was the first game ever played by a Canadian wo…
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Madam Speaker, as I join colleagues today from the national capital region, I respectfully acknowledge that the land on which I am located today is the traditional ancestral and unceded territory of the Algonquin Anishinabe people. The online streaming act is about updating the Canadian broadcasting system so that it better reflects our current environment. Our environment has changed drastically …
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Madam Speaker, I will be splitting my time with the member for Fredericton. I have listened quite intently to the debate that has been ongoing on the question of the emergency measures act. While I am sometimes disappointed in the partisan and petty level of debate coming from the opposition benches, I think there are some things we can agree on as a House. We can agree that all Canadians are prot…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Madam Speaker, the Emergencies Act that is being invoked now has a sunset clause of 30 days. Not only that, but members in the House can revoke it at any time. Those are the powers within the House. On a consensus basis and a majority basis, we can continue to debate and continue to keep ourselves apprised of the fluid situation to ensure that everything we are doing is within the limits. In fact,…
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Madam Speaker, in the incident that has occurred over the past number of weeks and months, we saw how much foreign interference there was in the funding of the convoy and occupation. I think we need to be very strict with how we approach this to ensure that Canadians are protected, that our borders are protected and that we are making our own decisions as citizens. As I mentioned in my speech, the…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Madam Speaker, what we need to do is take swift action to ensure that we are protecting rules-based laws and the lives we live very peacefully here in Canada. Through this, we are also seeing some of the gaps that exist within our current FINTRAC laws, for example. As we go through the process, it will be a great learning experience for all members of the House to see how we can strengthen our law…
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Madam Speaker, I would love for all members in the House to back up their statements with facts. That would be wonderful. I will ask a brief question for the parliamentary secretary. Why is it so important for us to protect the rule of law? What value does bringing the totality of lived experiences have for Parliament? Why is that so important for us here in Canada?
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Madam Speaker, the member had a very passionate speech. Throughout the past couple of days, I have heard members from the opposition benches say that they do not feel threatened walking through the convoy. They do not feel that their security and safety are at risk. However, we have seen young women being attacked. We have had police reports filed by young women who have had hot coffee thrown at t…
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Madam Speaker, I appreciate that my colleague has outlined the implications of this measure. We have seen throughout this debate and over the past number of years how misinformation feeds into confusion and a lack of understanding. I have talked with a number of my constituents about what this convoy is about, and there seems to be a lot of misinformation. Therefore, I would ask the member this. W…
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Mr. Speaker, the member asked if anyone on the other side had talked to any of the protesters. I did speak to one of my constituents when she came back from Ottawa, and we had a very good conversation. Is it okay, based on his speech, that a couple of hundred people can take over a city that inhabits tens and thousands of people and terrorize them, inconvenience their lives and harass their moveme…
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Mr. Speaker, I have noticed not only this morning but over the past couple of years a very targeted, divisive approach to get to this government, and not on any merit. I will ask the member why he is blurring jurisdiction lines. I know we have heard from Bloc Québécois members about the importance of jurisdiction and from other members about the importance of ensuring that the rule of law and our …
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Mr. Speaker, supporting our seniors is one issue I think all parliamentarians have been quite unanimous on. We saw our seniors throughout all communities, rural and urban, struggle so much during this pandemic. We as the Liberal government put in those measures to provide extra support, and now seniors should not be penalized for taking that extra support. That is really what the crux of this deba…
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Mr. Speaker, that is exactly the point. If we are trying to move this legislation forward and if the member opposite agrees that seniors need that support, then why is he not supporting the expedient passage of the bill? Over the past six years, we have lowered the threshold for people to qualify for benefits from 67 to 65, we have increased GIS by 10% and we fixed CPP for future seniors. We have …
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Mr. Speaker, I have been in the House for six years representing the wonderful people of Mississauga—Erin Mills. Over the past year I listened to the parties opposite rant and rave about how they have no faith in this government and that they do not support it. The government put the test to Canadians and Canadians told us that we had to work together in this place as a minority in a co-operative …
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Mr. Speaker, in the past six years, the member has done phenomenal work for her community and in this House. I look forward to engaging in conversation with her about a guaranteed livable income as we continue to do better to support seniors and all Canadians through these difficult times.
Read full speech →Statements By Members
Mr. Speaker, “I am Canadian and I am triple vaxxed. For my family, my neighbours, my co-workers, our healthcare workers, for my country. I will not be bullied.” These words, written by Ms. Jean Yoon and countless Canadians over the past few days, have become a rallying cry. Make no mistake: After two years, we are all tired of this pandemic. We are tired of not being with our loved ones, tired of …
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Mr. Chair, I thank the member for his very impassioned speech. There are a number of different schools of thought about how justice should be conducted and how we should conduct our society. I wonder if the member can share some of his thoughts around how mandatory minimum sentences impact those who are suffering, those who are going through the opioid crisis and are in need of support. Perhaps th…
Read full speech →Emergency Debate
Madam Speaker, the member said in his speech that the Prime Minister's job is to unite, as is everyone's in this place. Over the past two years we have seen 34,000 Canadians die from COVID and five million across the world. People in Ottawa have had to file injunctions, as the member said himself, in order to get a bit of peace and quiet. When we see members from the opposite side going and joinin…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, five years ago, an act of hate took the lives of Ibrahima, Mamadou, Khaled, Aboubaker, Abdelkrim and Azzeddine in Quebec City. Seven months ago, another act of hate took the lives of the Afzaal family in London, Ontario. On Saturday, the first National Day of Remembrance and Action Against Islamophobia, we recognize that prejudice is the link between these attacks and more. When every…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, since my Motion No. 103 in 2017, we have changed the conversation so that no federal leader could ever pretend that Islamophobia is not a threat. We have made progress since then, including a national summit earlier this year, but as long as Muslim Canadians fear for their safety in the workplace or walking down the street, we have to do more. Could the Minister of Housing and Diversi…
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Mr. Speaker, the winter holidays are precious moments that we spend with family, faith and community. It is a season of giving, and residents in my riding of Mississauga—Erin Mills are some of the most generous people in all of Canada. They have been raising donations for food, toys and warm clothing for our neighbours who need a bit of extra help this time of year. Before we break for the holiday…
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Madam Speaker, in the last Parliament, the member for Coquitlam—Port Coquitlam's private member's bill addressed the issue of decriminalizing those who were seeking those safe injection sites, and good on him for doing that. One bill is not an answer to addressing a systemic problem. There needs to be a lot more cognizant effort by our government and by all parties in the House to ensure we addres…
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Madam Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague for her question. My colleague is absolutely right. What we need to understand is that with Bill C-5 and with the removal of mandatory minimums, providing punishment and mandatory minimums is not enough to create the equitable justice we are looking for. We need to find and build that proper framework around society to provide supports for victims of, for e…
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Madam Speaker, I have to remind the member that it is up to the judges, and the removal of mandatory minimums gives them the discretion to say that these are the circumstances in which a crime has occurred and that they will ensure the penalties are fitting to the crime. That discretion to the judge helps to build that pillar of equitable justice, which we are seeking through this bill.
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Madam Speaker, I am really pleased to participate today in the continuing debate on Bill C-5, an act to amend the Criminal Code and the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act. A great deal of time has already been spent describing the objectives of the bill, its proposed reforms and the expected impacts of it. I support these changes and really believe they will make a significant, positive contribut…
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Mr. Speaker, before I begin, I would like to take a moment to recognize the passing of bell hooks today. She was a trail-blazing Black feminist author who brought the intersectionality of race, gender and class into the public consciousness, and really helped shape the conversations that we continue to have today. My condolences go out to her family and to countless people across the world, especi…
Read full speech →Speech from the Throne
Mr. Speaker, I could not agree more with the member opposite on his call to action on connectivity across the country. I had the privilege to travel to Newfoundland and Labrador earlier this year and really got to see first-hand the issues rural communities face with respect to connectivity. This government has made significant investments in ensuring that Canada is connected. We saw just how impo…
Read full speech →Speech from the Throne
Mr. Speaker, it is an honour and a privilege to rise in the House today to speak in response to the Speech from the Throne. Last week our government outlined a comprehensive plan to move our country forward and finish the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. Over the last 20 months, our federal government has remained focused on doing whatever it takes to support Canadians. In an unprecedented cri…
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Mr. Speaker, I have been on the justice committee for the past six years, and we have done significant work on access to justice. We know that there is institutionalized racism. That is exactly why we introduced Bill C-3: to ensure that judges had that training. It is why we continue to make those investments within the police force and within our justice system to ensure that access is there. The…
Read full speech →Speech from the Throne
Mr. Speaker, over the past 20 months, we saw just how critical investments in health care really are. We have to work together with provinces and territories to ensure that Canadians have access to that health care. In our campaign, we made the commitment that we would continue to invest in health care, not only creating new hospital beds but also ensuring that we fill the labour shortage and hire…
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Madam Speaker, I congratulate the member on his election to this Parliament. Over the past year, I witnessed the opposition parties continuing to hinder the work and the supports that we as a Liberal government tried to hand out to Canadians.
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Madam Speaker, it is an honour to rise in the House in this 44th Parliament. Early on in the pandemic, when the provinces first went into lockdown, a constituent reached out to me for help. She could not work because of public health lockdowns and she was worried about how she would take care of her children without an income. When we introduced CERB and enhanced the Canada child benefit early on,…
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Madam Speaker, I watched them filibuster for hours and hours in the House and also in committees. We know what Canadians want and we are very committed to getting that done.
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, I am honoured to rise in the House as the representative for my riding of Mississauga—Erin Mills in this 44th Parliament. I am so proud of my team of volunteers and my family and friends, who have marched with me from door to door receiving support and feedback from residents. I would not be here without them, and they have my profound thanks for their faith and their dedication. My j…
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Madam Speaker, I am not sure if I can give a brief answer to this question. It is something that is very close to my heart. However, Bill C-2 does commit to continue to provide support. I really respect our restaurant owners and all the hoteliers in the tourism industry, understanding just how gendered that impact is within the tourism industry, and how much more support we need to provide. I look…
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