Parliamentary Speeches

Oral Questions

Madam Speaker, in yesterday's report from the Special Committee on Afghanistan, the government said it agreed that applications for Afghans who served Canada must be processed immediately, yet Afghans who applied almost two years ago are still waiting for a response. To make matters worse, the Liberals are sticking to an arbitrary cap and new applications are no longer being accepted. Meanwhile, I…

Government Orders

Mr. Speaker, what we have in Bill C-31 is in fact a path for the dental plan. We are talking about giving families whose incomes are less than $90,000 and do not have access to a dental care plan, with children under 12, that support. Next year, seniors and people with disabilities will also get it. People 18 and under will also get it until we get the full realization of the plan. I am sorry, but…

Government Orders

Mr. Speaker, we are debating Bill C-31. What is Bill C-31? We are talking about providing families whose incomes are less than $90,000 the ability to access dental supports for children 12 and under as its first initiative. For those who do not have access to this, it is absolutely critical. We are also talking about providing low-income individuals and families a housing benefit of $500, although…

Government Orders

Mr. Speaker, it is a curious thing. The member actually says he wants to see families who need dental care have access to dental care. There is a simple solution to that. All he has to do is vote for the bill. It is not rocket science to figure it out, because this bill would ensure that families with incomes of less than $90,000, and that do not have access to a dental care plan, would get it, st…

Government Orders

Mr. Speaker, first, on the issue of helping municipalities move forward in getting zoning and rezoning dealt with, the NDP was able to force the government to bring forward the accelerator fund. Part of that funding is, in fact, going to be dedicated to municipalities and local governments to help with that. This work is actually going to be under way, although the program is not fully developed a…

Oral Questions

Mr. Speaker, the Liberals' 1% vacancy tax does not come close to adequately addressing the financialization of housing. It lets corporate landlords off the hook who profit from renovicting tenants and jacking up rent. Financial firms now hold up to 30% of Canada's rental housing stock. They do not care about families. Their goal is to line their own pockets, yet the Liberals continue to finance th…

Government Orders

Madam Speaker, as I indicated earlier, the delivery of health care is a shared jurisdictional issue. This is the first step. This is not the only step. This is the bottom and not the ceiling. We will continue to take action to force the government to deliver support to Canadians. That is what we are doing here. Without us, they would not even get this dental care service for those 12 and under, an…

Government Orders

Madam Speaker, I am sharing my time with my good colleague, the member for Edmonton Strathcona. What are we talking about here this morning in the House of Commons? We are debating Bill C-31. It is a bill that wants to see Canadians get the support they need. What are those supports? We are talking about ensuring that low-income families and children get access to dental care. We are talking about…

Government Orders

Madam Speaker, the member is trying to interrupt my speech with a false point of order, but that does not change the fact that the Conservatives are on the side of wealthy CEOs. It does not change the fact that they are not on the side of everyday people who need access to dental care. They are not on the side of children who face tooth decay and cannot access dental care because their families ca…

Government Orders

Madam Speaker, on the delivery of health care, it is a shared jurisdictional issue. Under the Canada Health Act, this should be afforded to all Canadians. On the dental health care plan that the NDP is pushing forward, it was something that Tommy Douglas dreamt of 60 years ago. We are trying to complete that dream with this. We want it delivered, and the federal government can and should deliver t…

Government Orders

Madam Speaker, what we are seeing in the housing crisis is this: We are losing housing stock faster than we can build it. The reality is that wealthy investors are coming in and buying up the stock, and in that process, under the real estate investment trusts, for example, they get preferential tax treatment. They do not have to pay taxes at the corporate rate, so these investors are getting a win…

Adjournment Proceedings

Madam Chair, the government needs to face the truth and acknowledge the reality of the ongoing genocide of indigenous women and girls in this country. One in 10 indigenous women were victims of a violent crime in 2019, and between 2015 and 2020, the average homicide rate involving indigenous victims was six times higher than that of non-indigenous people. A 22-year-old Inuit woman, Savanna Pikuyak…

Private Members' Business

Madam Speaker, this private member's bill, in my view, is an attempt to override the patient's right to access information about, and to have access to, a legally provided medical service based on the personal beliefs of the service provider. It is not about intimidation of health care professionals. Health care professionals already have that protection. No one who objects for conscience reasons …

Adjournment Proceedings

Madam Speaker, on May 5, I rose to ask the Prime Minister if he would take immediate action to deliver a dedicated housing strategy for indigenous women, girls and two-spirit people and end the ongoing genocide against indigenous women and girls. The final report of the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls cites housing and homelessness over 200 times. This is the …

Oral Questions

Mr. Speaker, Canadians are struggling to find places they can afford to call home. The Liberal government is siding with wealthy investors to hurt families by treating housing as a stock market. It is letting corporate landlords kick tenants out so they can jack up their rent to turn a bigger profit. The financialization of housing is also pricing young people out of the market, shattering their d…

Oral Questions

Mr. Speaker, an Inuit woman who travelled to Ottawa to be a nurse died after just four days in the city. She was a victim of violence, who had no access to safe, affordable housing. The missing and murdered indigenous women and girls inquiry's final report cites housing 299 times. The minister was asked about it today and he said, “words fail me.” His words and inaction are failing indigenous, Inu…

Government Orders

Madam Speaker, the reality is that the oil and gas companies are making record profits. In fact, in the last quarter, they have made over $12 billion. Meanwhile, they are continuing to lobby for more subsidies, and the government is giving them more subsidies. Around the globe, windfall taxes are being put in place. The NDP has been advocating for an excess profit tax. Will the government finally …

Government Orders

Madam Speaker, corporate profits are rising twice as fast as inflation. Meanwhile, wages for workers are rising only half as quickly. The government insists on saying that it is there for workers, yet it will not impose the excess profit tax on big CEOs who are profiting. Other countries are doing that. Why will the Liberals not do the same thing and be on the side of workers?

Government Orders

Madam Speaker, at the UN General Assembly last week, the UN Secretary-General actually called on the countries to tax the windfall profits of fossil fuel companies. In fact, they are making a record profit as we speak: $147 billion just this year alone. Will the member support the call of the UN Secretary-General to impose a windfall tax, as the NDP has been calling on the government to do?

Emergency Debate

Mr. Speaker, we are gathered here tonight of course to send our support to our friends from coast to coast to coast who are faced with the aftermath of these natural disasters. We are talking about the importance of taking action now, and there is no question that needs to be done. There is also a question about what investment needs to be made and whether the government should be making investmen…

Government Orders

Mr. Speaker, I am really glad to hear the Liberal member's speech. The Liberals have finally seen the light: the importance of a national dental care program, something they did not see when they voted with the Conservatives against the motion that the NDP put forward just a year ago. With that being said, we are looking forward to getting this program delivered for the people who need dental care…

Government Orders

Madam Speaker, I thank the minister for this bill. I am glad the NDP was able to force the government to take action to ensure that dental coverage would be provided to Canadians, starting first with coverage for children under 12 and subsequently for seniors and people with disabilities, and so on. With that being said, it is, of course, important to make sure that indigenous children who get den…

Government Orders

Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order. I asked legitimate questions of the member and for her to insinuate that the tone I am using is somehow going to cause me to have a heart attack is deplorable. It is patronizing and it is unacceptable. I would ask for an apology.

Oral Questions

Mr. Speaker, it is a disgrace that indigenous peoples are 11 times more likely to use a shelter. One in five Canadians cannot find housing they can afford, and home ownership is out of reach for too many young people. The Liberals continue to allow corporate landlords to treat housing as a stock market and not a basic human right. The government should not be in the business of financing corporate…

Private Members' Business

Madam Speaker, I am happy to rise and speak to Bill C-242. The heart of the issue of Bill C-242 is reuniting families. It is about ensuring that parents and grandparents can come to Canada to be with their loved ones. We know the value of that and cherish it as individuals. Like other people with children, I value the moments that my daughter and son spend with their grandmother and grandfather. O…

Adjournment Proceedings

Madam Speaker, I do not know what rock this member has been living under. The truth of the matter is this: It was the Liberals who cancelled the national affordable housing program back in 1993. The NDP called for the government to build 500,000 units of true affordable housing to meet that need, a gap that the Liberals created when they cancelled the national affordable housing program. The membe…

Adjournment Proceedings

Madam Speaker, on April 8, 2022, I rose to ask the government when it would invest in a “for indigenous, by indigenous” urban, rural and northern housing strategy, which it has promised since 2017 but has failed to deliver. After the NDP pushed for action, the Liberals proposed just $300 million to initiate a strategy over five years. This is hardly a drop in the bucket and is not good enough. We …

Private Members' Business

Madam Speaker, I thank the member for tabling this private member's bill, as it brings to the forefront the importance of parents and grandparents in this country. With that being said, one of the issues I raised at committee was around the appeal process, or lack thereof. In fact, there is no appeal process for super visas that are rejected. The only option is for people to go to judicial review.…

Routine Proceedings

With regard to the estimated 3,700 evacuees that Canada transported or facilitated the transport of from Afghanistan in August 2021: (a) how many evacuees were Afghan nationals who have been validated by the Department of National Defence as having an enduring relationship with the Canadian Armed Forces; (b) how many Afghan nationals who have been validated by the Department of National Defence as…

Routine Proceedings

With regard to the National Housing Strategy: (a) how many applications have been received under the (i) National Housing Co-Investment Fund, (ii) Rental Construction Financing Initiative, (iii) Rapid Housing Initiative, broken down by program, stream (e.g. new construction, housing repair and renewal), stage of the application, year of submission, province, number of units and dollar amount for e…

Routine Proceedings

With regard to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation's (CMHC) Rental Construction Financing Initiative: (a) what is the current dollar value of monthly rent used by CMHC to qualify a project for the 30% median total income affordability requirement for at least 20% of units, broken down by region; and (b) what would be the dollar value of monthly rent for those regions if the affordability requi…

Routine Proceedings

With regard to the Afghans who were validated by the Department of National Defence (DND) or Global Affairs Canada (GAC) and referred to Immigration, Refugee and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), in response to the 2021 crisis in Afghanistan, broken down by the department that referred the file: (a) how many of these referrals have been received by IRCC; (b) how many referrals resulted in the creation of…

Madam Speaker, today we are here to commemorate Britain’s longest-reigning monarch and Canada’s longest-serving head of state, Queen Elizabeth II. The Queen lived a long life of duty, stability and public service and was an enduring and steadfast presence on the world stage throughout her seven decades as Queen. I rise today to express my deepest condolences to the royal family as they mourn the l…

Government Orders

Madam Speaker, the member mentioned the red flag provision, which is an important provision. Community members are saying, though, that the process the bill outlines is an onerous one because people have to petition the courts to put it in place. How would the government address this issue? We need quick action when it comes to saving lives.

Government Orders

Madam Speaker, this is an issue that should be of concern for all of us in this House, and that is the use of firearms in the case of intimate partner violence. In fact, in 2018, over 500 cases involved firearms in the case of intimate partner violence. What do the Conservatives think should be done to address the use of firearms in the case of intimate partner violence? I do believe this bill is …

Government Orders

Mr. Speaker, in Vancouver East on a per-capita basis, we actually have the largest number of artists in our community. They are actually very much looking forward to the passage of Bill C-11. Can the member explain to the Conservative members why this bill is so important to artists?

Private Members' Business

Madam Speaker, environmental racism runs deep in Canada and is a direct result of Canada’s historic and ongoing colonization. Environmental racism causes severe harm to people’s health, threatens culture and destroys the natural environment. Discrimination and systemic racism in Canada’s laws and policies, in addition to uneven enforcement of regulations and laws, have created patterns where margi…

Oral Questions

Madam Speaker, rents will continue to rise and things will only get worse for people already struggling to pay for groceries. Rent for a one-bedroom unit in Vancouver is over $2,300 a month, in Toronto over $2,100, and in Halifax almost $1,700. The Liberals' response to struggling Canadians is an extra $7 on GST cheques. The government is so out of touch with reality. Will the Liberals double the …

Statements by Members

Mr. Speaker, migrant care workers are primarily women who come to Canada, leaving behind their families, to take care of children, the sick and the elderly. The Conservatives unfairly imposed high requirements for permanent residency for caregivers, such as passing the English language test at level 5, which is higher than what is required to obtain citizenship; a 24-month work requirement; and ad…

Oral Questions

Mr. Speaker, one in four homeowners believes they will lose their house because they cannot keep up with the rising interest rates. The Liberals' failure to help struggling Canadians is going to result in people being homeless, and no doubt corporate landlords are rubbing their hands together at the prospect of being able to sweep up these distressed properties. The Liberals cannot just stand by a…

Routine Proceedings

Madam Speaker, in the last petition, my constituents are noting that persons with psychosocial and other disabilities continue to be at grave risk of being detained in facilities and/or otherwise subjected to limitations on freedom of movement, including the use of physical restraints, chemical restrains and isolation, and being forcibly administered drugs, which frequently cause toxic and damagin…

Routine Proceedings

Madam Speaker, in the second petition, the petitioners are noting the Government of Israel's designation of six prominent Palestinian human rights and civil society groups as terrorist organizations on October 19, 2021. They are concerned that the six prominent Palestinian human rights and civil society organizations in question are being criminalized for critical human rights work. They point to …

Routine Proceedings

Madam Speaker, I have three petitions to present today. In the first one, the petitioners note that applicants for many processes and documents at IRCC, including citizenship applications and PR cards, face prolonged delays in processing. Many have received no response or details from IRCC on the status of their application or expected timelines, which prevents them from being able to plan importa…

Oral Questions

Mr. Speaker, while families struggle to afford groceries, rent and gas for their cars, the Liberals shrug and say that things are better here than elsewhere. Since they like comparisons so much, I have one for them. Under the Liberals, the cost of a home in Canada has increased faster than it has in any other country in the G7. Canadians cannot find a home they can afford, and they want solutions,…

Government Orders

Mr. Speaker, one of the issues the member raised is affordability and the cost of living for Canadians. Many Canadians are, in fact, struggling and are trying to recover from the COVID pandemic. The reality is that big banks are making billions of dollars. In fact, Scotiabank netted $10.1 billion in profit and gave out billions of dollars in dividends to its shareholders. For BMO, it is the same t…

Adjournment Proceedings

Mr. Speaker, the parliamentary secretary knows as well as I do that the reality is that the Department of National Defence had referred 3,800 applications to IRCC and only 900 of them have been confirmed. The rest of the 2,900 applications files are lost somewhere in the system. The same applies to the GAC referrals. IRCC cannot seem to find these files. As much as the parliamentary secretary and …

Adjournment Proceedings

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to enter into the adjournment debate on a question that I raised with the government on March 4 related to Afghans who were fleeing Putin's war and other minorities who are trying to get to safety. I ask members to imagine this: We have an individual who fled the Taliban and made it safely to Russia. They were in the refugee camp when the war broke out. It is an unprovoke…

Government Orders

Madam Speaker, the hon. member is correct in the sense that urgent action is needed to address the climate crisis. The IPCC, scientists and, more broadly, Canadians already know that. However, what we saw, as the member has mentioned, is the government and, more specifically, the Prime Minister decide to buy a pipeline, one that is actually not economical at that. They are being particularly secre…

Adjournment Proceedings

Madam Speaker, in question period on March 21, I asked the government why 90% of the funding under the rental construction financing initiative went to for-profit developers and why the units being built often ended up being 30% to 120% above the average market rent. I called on the government to change the requirements to ensure that housing units built under this program are substantially below …

Adjournment Proceedings

Madam Speaker, Canada is faced with a housing crisis and we have to address this issue, which in no small part was a result of the federal Liberal government walking away from the national housing program in 1993. Soon after that, we saw the financialization of the housing market take root. This is when corporations and wealthy investors make big money by putting people out of homes. They buy up r…