Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, I rise today to celebrate the close and growing relationship between Ireland and Canada. Today, the Irish Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport, Patrick O'Donovan, and our Minister of Canadian Identity and Culture launched Canada-Ireland 180. This initiative, planned for 2027, will commemorate the 180th anniversary of the Great Famine migration in 1847, when over 100,000 Iris…
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Mr. Speaker, I became chair of the justice committee just two short days ago. I am honoured to take on that responsibility, and I take it very seriously. It quickly became very apparent to me that the committee was having a great deal of trouble, emotions were running high and the members did not have a path forward to deal with some very important legislation that was before the committee. Acting…
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Mr. Speaker, across the country, Canadians are seeing a rise in hate, threats and intimidation aimed at our communities. If the Conservatives are finally ready to put the safety of their own communities first, the combatting hate act is right in front of them. Can the Minister of Justice tell us what this legislation would mean for the safety of our neighbourhoods, schools and places of worship?
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I would encourage members to take some time to read it. Having said that, this bill does enhance the provisions in that section of the Criminal Code.
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Mr. Speaker, I also enjoy working with the hon. member on important issues like Tibet. His question was an excellent one. We are prepared to work with all parties at committee to make sure the bill would be adopted in a fashion best suited for Canadians. We are open to amendments; we are always open to amendments. That is what the committee process is for. We respect the process of committees, and…
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Madam Speaker, I have the honour of sitting on the justice committee with the member. He has referred to a defence lawyer and a police commissioner, both of whom came to committee and asked us to pass this bill. My question for him is this: Will he comply with their request to move quickly and agree to support this bill?
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Mr. Speaker, first of all, let me say how sorry I am. The heart of every member of the House, as I said earlier, goes out to people like that. I want to live in a world where that is not going to happen, just like the member does, and just like Jonny did. However, using these examples to suggest that the entirety of the system is broken is, with respect, unfair and a mis-characterization. I am not…
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Mr. Speaker, there we go. There is the rhyming. It is very productive. Bill C-14 creates a regime that is going to help our frontline police officers. It is going to help our Crown attorneys, and it is going to make sure they are properly informed on what the principle of restraint actually means so it can be applied properly. When I speak with those frontline officers, unfortunately, the rhetoric…
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Mr. Speaker, that was an excellent question. It gets to the nub of the issue, because without data we cannot make further enhancements and the provinces cannot make further enhancements. As I was saying in my previous response, we need to know the circumstances in which offences are subject to criminals' being released: how busy the courts are, what the workloads are for the Crown attorney and wha…
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Madam Speaker, first, I would like to point out that I will be sharing my time with the hon. member for Winnipeg North. I am pleased to stand on behalf of my constituents in the great riding of Etobicoke—Lakeshore, as I always am, but in particular I am pleased to speak to a bill of such importance to not only my community but also communities across the country. Bill C-14 is the result of an over…
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Madam Speaker, there is a lot of material to cover in the hon. member's words. I just want to remind him that I know he is much younger than I am, but Canada, like other countries, went away from the gold standard in 1971. Canada sold its gold reserves to diversify its portfolio into more interest-bearing types of investments. He knows that. I know that the British pensioners are coming to Ottawa …
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, I rise today to celebrate one of our country's oldest friends and allies, Ireland. The ties that bind our two countries are many; they are economic, historical, cultural and emotional. In 1866, the first transatlantic cable between Europe and North America connected Canada and Ireland. Irish Canadians helped build our country. During challenging economic times, Canada and Ireland have…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, the Department of Justice undertook a 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 require a manu…
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Mr. Speaker, with respect to legal expenses incurred by the government for outside legal counsel on work related to the invocation of the Emergencies Act in 2022, as well as any subsequent legal action, to the extent that the information that has been requested is or may be protected by any legal privileges, including solicitor-client privilege, the federal Crown asserts those privileges. In this …
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, with respect to legal proceedings involving the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society, FNCFCS, our electronic system has identified approximately 19 litigation files involving FNCFCS that date back to 2006. This total is composed of various types of legal proceedings before the Federal Court, Federal Court of Appeal and Tribunals, wherein the Attorney General of Canada is an a…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Apparently, I was right, Madam Speaker. The member just brought my point home for me. The member is my friend and I know he cares deeply about rural Canada and agriculture. I have worked with him on some of these issues and I am proud to do so. The member mentioned the Daily Bread Food Bank and talked about a number of affordability measures. He campaigned in the last election on the exact GST bre…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Madam Speaker, I was going to start by thanking my friend for his remarks, but I think his leader has some people up in the gallery with notepads, so I do not want to get him in trouble. The second thing I want to acknowledge is that I feel bad because I did not know the member was such a proponent of electoral reform, and he seems torn up by the—
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, that is an excellent question from an excellent member of the House, for whom I have a tremendous amount of respect. Mental health is an issue that is very near and dear to my heart for a variety of reasons. It is an issue that the government is committed to, but no, we are not there yet; I will concede that. There is a long way to go. When we were elected in 2015, the first thing w…
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Madam Speaker, I welcome the opportunity to discuss the important issue of drug crime, the opioid crisis and the efforts our government has taken in this respect. I want to speak specifically about the criminal law framework in place to address drug-related crime, including where it is linked to organized crime. Off the top, I want to note the inconsistencies in the motion the leader of the Conser…
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Madam Speaker, probably the best thing we could do is give a civics lesson to the Conservatives. They need to know the responsibilities of the federal government. They need to learn the responsibilities of the provincial government. If the member wants to address some of the issues he is speaking to, I would encourage him to speak to the Government of British Columbia about the enforcement it is t…
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Madam Speaker, yes, we are always advocating to find better ways and better solutions to help the very people the member is talking about. I would be more than happy to sit with the member and have a discussion. I know that the other MPs in the same geographic area are deeply committed to the issue and are working on it every day.
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Madam Speaker, it is a great question. I am proud to be part of a government that takes the issue incredibly seriously. I am proud to serve with my colleague who is the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Indigenous Services. Just this past week, the Prime Minister spoke before the AFN here in Ottawa and addressed the very issue of indigenous policing. Indigenous policing is an issue that i…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, the Department of Justice, including the Attorney General of Canada, did not receive any reports concerning potential offences under federal or provincial laws under subsection 63(2) of the Access to Information Act from the Information Commissioner between January 1, 2024, and October 17, 2024.
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, I want to begin by thanking members of the standing committee for their examination of the issue of the adaptation of CBC/Radio-Canada's audiovisual content for the international market. I would also like to thank the representatives of CBC/Radio-Canada, Ms. Catherine Tait, president and CEO, and Mr. Marco Dubé, chief transformation officer and executive vice-president for people and …
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Mr. Speaker, I do not know if that was a question, but I will thank the member anyway. If he is looking for an argument, he is not going to get one from me. We all know why we are having this discussion in the House of Commons today. It is another opportunity for the Conservatives to attack the CBC, as they do day in and day out. As my friend rightly pointed out, their attack on media, public or p…
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Mr. Speaker, I have a great deal of respect for the member, as he knows. He is from Manitoba and I grew up in northwestern Ontario. We have a kindred relationship. The answer is no, obviously. My reaction when I heard the news was, I am sure, identical to his own. At a time when employees are being laid off or having to take pay cuts, there is no place for bonuses and the type of behaviour that to…
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Mr. Speaker, it sends the wrong message. Everybody I have heard speak today agrees with that. It was the wrong thing to do and the CBC agrees. It should not have done it. It apologized, the apology has been accepted and it is being rectified. I can stand here and say I agree with the member, but I think she knows that already. The CBC said many times, in many appearances at committee and elsewhere…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, on November 30, 1874, one of the world's greatest statesmen, Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill, was born. He was an accomplished officer in the British army but caught the political bug, rising to become democracy's greatest defender in the 20th century. His leadership during World War II saved Britain and the world from Nazi tyranny and preserved the very foundations of the freed…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Mr. Speaker, I have spent almost the entire day listening to the member speak. He talked about accountability. I just spent three hours in the justice committee listening to him filibuster, trying to block his own colleague from Peace River—Westlock because he had a very compelling argument that Bill C-270 should come to the House as soon as possible to be debated. Now I come to the House and I am…
Read full speech →Adjournment Proceedings
Madam Speaker, since we are determined to talk about family tonight, I will remind the member that his aunt not only lives in my riding but has my sign on her lawn and is a big supporter of mine. She will not agree with anything he just said, just to be perfectly clear, but I will leave that there. The government takes its responsibility with respect to procurement very seriously. The government t…
Read full speech →Adjournment Proceedings
Madam Speaker, the hon. member for Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan talks about common sense. My mother used to say that common sense is not all that common, and every time I hear him speak, I realize how right my mother was. Our government takes its responsibility as stewards of the public purse very seriously, and we are committed to making sure that government spending stands up to the highest l…
Read full speech →Adjournment Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the member for Saanich—Gulf Islands for her ongoing advocacy for environmental causes in Canada. Countries around the world are taking decisive action toward combatting climate change and protecting the environment, and Canada is no different. Tackling the climate crisis requires many innovative solutions, and one of the tools in the tool box is achieving a healthy env…
Read full speech →Adjournment Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, last October, the Supreme Court of Canada issued an opinion regarding the constitutionality of the Impact Assessment Act, stating that we needed to clearly focus on the areas of federal jurisdiction and underscoring that we work with provinces “in the spirit of cooperative federalism.” More specifically, the Supreme Court of Canada stated that decisions under the act must be tied excl…
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Mr. Speaker, I am not trying to be cute. This is a very serious issue. I live in Toronto. The price of gas at the pumps in Toronto is lower now than it was a year ago. It is about the same price as it was when carbon pricing was introduced a number of years ago. The notion that it costs more to get in the car and travel is pure fallacy. It is political rhetoric to score some political points to he…
Read full speech →Adjournment Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, I admire this member, and I admire her passion. She is baiting me to defend the Harper government, and there is no chance I am going to do that, of course. I will defend the Liberal government's record on the environment. I will defend the former environment minister Catherine McKenna. We have taken every step along the way to make sure that the assessment process works, that it satis…
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Mr. Speaker, my immediate reaction is that James should check his mail and look at the carbon rebate, but the Conservative Party seems to be obsessed with the idea of attacking the carbon pricing mechanism. Carbon pricing is a proven, effective method of reducing emissions in Canada. Whether someone lives in Toronto, in Manitoba, in Saskatchewan or in Nova Scotia, the fact remains that carbon pric…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Madam Speaker, Conservative rhetoric is up, Conservative nonsense is up, rhyming is certainly up and Canadians are getting fed up. My intention is to do what I have always done: keep my head down and work on the issues with my colleagues. They can keep working on bumper-sticker slogans all day long.
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Madam Speaker, sadly, what else is up? It is character assassination. It is unacceptable to come into this chamber and time after time go after individuals' character. It undermines the integrity of this institution and Canadians are fed up. I would have thought the member of all people would have learned that lesson some time ago, but apparently I was wrong.
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, with regard to the April 7, 2021, decision of the former Minister of Justice ordering a new trial for Jacques Delisle, the details of all legal advice received by the former minister regarding the holding of a new trial, including the identity of the person who provided the advice, the mandate conferred by the minister and the evidence reviewed, is subject to solicitor-client privileg…
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Mr. Speaker, Canadian Development Consultants International Inc., CDCI, provided services to the Department of Justice for the purpose of litigation. The litigation is ongoing, as the terms and deliverables under the settlement of the class action lawsuit have not yet concluded. Therefore, the reports and related details, such as the mandate and scope of the research, the terms of reference and th…
Read full speech →Statements By Members
Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honour a distinguished diplomat, an accomplished historian, a great Irishman and, most of all, a wonderful friend to Canada. His Excellency Dr. Eamonn McKee and his wife Mary McGillis-McKee came to Canada four years ago. For anyone else, coming during a pandemic would have caused many hardships to make a mark. For Eamonn, he dove into what he called a journey of discov…
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Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 32(2), I have the honour to table, in both official languages, the 2023-24 departmental plan for the Law Commission of Canada.
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 32(2), I have the honour to table, in both official languages, the 2021-22 annual report from the Office of the Federal Ombudsperson for Victims of Crime. In addition, pursuant to Standing Order 32(2), I have the honour to table, in both official languages, the 2022-23 annual report from the Office of the Federal Ombudsperson for Victims of Crime.
Read full speech →Statements By Members
Speaker, I rise today to highlight a special event that took place last week on Parliament Hill: the second annual Cutest Pets on Parliament Hill contest. I thank the Canadian Animal Health Institute for organizing this contest, and I congratulate all the nominees and winners. Of course, I would like to congratulate my Walnut, who won cutest dog; I would also like to recognize the runner-up, owned…
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Madam Speaker. I am very pleased to speak tonight to Bill C-40, the miscarriage of justice review commission act, David and Joyce Milgaard's law. This legislation would transform the process for identifying and remedying wrongful convictions in Canada. This change is overdue and would be a monumental improvement to justice in our country. As a member of the Standing Committee on Justice and Human …
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Madam Speaker, flattery will get my colleague everywhere, but I do not profess to be an expert on anything, frankly. On this issue, he raised a very important point. There are many cases where people do not have the ability or the means to exercise their right of appeal, or there are many more cases where facts come up later, long after their ability to appeal has expired. It is only in exceptiona…
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Madam Speaker, the premise of the member's question is that it is unfair and that it is wrong. This is not about trampling over rights. In fact, it is about expanding rights. The whole purpose of this commission is to make access to justice easier for the wrongfully convicted. The member wants people to have access to this body in both official languages, full stop. She also wants the best people …
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Madam Speaker, the answer to the last part of the question is that I do not think anybody can. The Conservatives are playing politics with the bill, pure and simple. They supported it at second reading. They filibustered the bill for 40 hours at committee. They hauled out the name of David and Joyce Milgaard here tonight; it is shameful. This commission would be set up to be independent and effici…
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Madam Speaker, the member is very thoughtful and I enjoy working with him, as I said earlier. I do not believe this would lower the threshold. It would change the nature of the equation that the commission has to calculate when reviewing the circumstances in each case. It is up to the courts to determine innocence or guilt. It would be up to the commission to determine whether maybe there has been…
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Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the member opposite for his remarks tonight. I serve on the justice committee with him now, as I did at the time we reviewed the bill, and he has a great deal of compassion. He brings a level of fairness to the job that is admirable. However, the member started his speech by saying that Canadians need to have faith in the justice system; they also need to have faith in…
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