Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I tremendously respect the member opposite's experience here, and she said something really interesting. She said that she has never seen anything like the current government for moving fast. A year ago, Canadians elected a serious and pragmatic government in a time of tremendous uncertainty, and I would say that what we were exactly elected to do is to move fast and with purpose. Wou…
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Mr. Speaker, I am absolutely beside myself right now. I heard the member opposite defending the use of the noose as a symbol of hatred. It is absolutely disgusting. Withdraw those comments. That is beyond the pale, sir. There are white supremacist rallies in communities across this country, including in Hamilton, and for a member of this legislature to defend the use of a noose as a symbol of hatr…
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Mr. Speaker, I really appreciate the hon. secretary of state bringing forth closure on this very important legislation, it being a key campaign promise. I happen to represent the majority of the Hamilton Jewish community, who are extremely supportive of the bill and the protections it would offer for their places of worship, their synagogues, and the places where they gather and deserve to be safe…
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Mr. Speaker, it is good to hear from the member opposite and to see him back here in Ottawa. Our government is working collaboratively with the Province of Ontario to cut the HST on new homes and cut development charges. We are working with Premier Ford, municipalities and affordable housing providers. There has been a very favourable response from the homebuilding industry. Premier Ford said, “Ou…
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Mr. Speaker, Canada led the invention of modern artificial intelligence, and now AI is used by millions of Canadians every day. Canadians want AI to strengthen our economy, to enhance job opportunities, to deliver new research and innovation, to protect our communities and our national sovereignty and to always prioritize people. Can the Minister of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Innovation u…
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Mr. Speaker, I want to point out that there is a difference between good faith, constructive criticism and whatever it is the member does on a regular basis. Everything is a conspiracy and everything is division, fear, anger and hyperbolic nonsense. Frankly, it is sad and it is embarrassing. Would the member acknowledge that Canada is not broken and that, in fact, our government is doing exactly w…
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Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the member opposite. I think she did a great job of highlighting and reiterating a number of government announcements, so I want to thank her for reannouncing that good news here in the House. She mentioned new announcements and new commitments every few weeks, and I concur. That is exactly what we are doing. I think there is a fundamental difference, though, between o…
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Mr. Speaker, there is wide support from communities for this bill to strengthen bail reform and sentencing across Canada. I wonder if the member could also talk about how the provinces and municipal police forces would also be involved and do their part.
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Madam Speaker, we have heard the “Canada is broken” rhetoric over and over from Conservative members, in which they stand up and gleefully cheer for any downturn in the Canadian economy as an opportunity to score cheap political points. It is a sad reflection, and it is insulting to Canadians. It is insulting to businesses and to Canadian workers. Recently, the May job report showed 88,000 new job…
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Madam Speaker, it is absolutely shocking and very disappointing to hear the member opposite disparage our government's $10-a-day child care program. This is such an important program for families and for women to be involved in the workforce. Hearing Conservatives talk about private options being preferable just shows how out of touch they are. The American president caused a global war against Ir…
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Mr. Speaker, as a structural engineer, I spent a lot of time with the building code, so it was interesting to hear the member's speech, which focused quite a bit on the building code across Canada, the national code. One of the issues in Canada is that we have individual building codes for each province. There is no standardized code, which really impacts our ability to standardize housing design …
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Mr. Speaker, when the member and several others opposite stand up, it is often the same string of hyperbole and cynicism that we hear over and over again. I often think about how sad it would be to live in a world that is that cynical all the time about everything. I grew up in Canada's steel city, Hamilton. My family worked in the steel industry. Steel is in our blood. I want to give the member o…
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Mr. Speaker, the member opposite spoke about her real concern for the affordability concerns that her residents are facing. She spoke a lot, in particular, about the increase in fuel prices and how that impacts farmers, as well as the increased costs of fertilizer. I just want to give the member an opportunity. This has been caused by a unilateral war by the Trump administration against Iran, whic…
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Mr. Speaker, it is important to recognize that part of the build Canada strong fund, that $51-billion build communities strong fund, also includes investment in community infrastructure, recreation infrastructure and sport infrastructure. On top of that is a specific $775 million to build up sport across Canada, as I said, from house league level all the way up to Olympic level athletes. I complet…
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Mr. Speaker, it is fascinating to hear the anti-capitalist rhetoric from the NDP, the party that is supposed to be representing workers. Will the member opposite acknowledge that there are thousands of workers who work in the private sector and in the oil and gas industry, who make the steel and the components that go into that industry and who are benefiting from the government's investments?
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Mr. Speaker, I did not get to that in my speech, but I am glad I get to answer it here. As we are investing $51 billion to build Canada strong and $13 billion in the affordable homes plan, or Build Canada Homes, we need to make sure that we have the next generation of workers in the skilled trades available to work on those projects. I spent 20 years working in heavy civil construction, working wi…
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Mr. Speaker, the International Monetary Fund said straight up that Canada is in the best fiscal position of the G7. I am wondering if the member opposite understands the difference between investment and spending, because Canadians sure do.
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Mr. Speaker, as the representative for Hamilton West—Ancaster—Dundas, I want to take this moment to congratulate the Ancaster Lions Volleyball Club. The 18U rep team won a gold medal at nationals this past weekend in Calgary. The adage in sports is that we want to win the last game we play, and for many of these players, this was their last game of competitive volleyball. It was just amazing to go…
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Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives just love their conspiracy theories. Our government is investing in affordable housing.
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It is 1686 Main Street West, unit 3, where it has always been. Mr. Speaker, our government is making generational investments to make sure that residents have the opportunities they deserve in Hamilton and communities across Canada.
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Mr. Speaker, the member spoke about his time serving in Canada's Armed Forces. Just recently, I had the opportunity to spend some time at the HMCS Star in Hamilton speaking with recruits, reservists, veterans and cadets, the young men and women in Canada's military who are so proud of their country and their service. I spoke with the commander who talked about the increase in recruiting and intere…
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Mr. Speaker, I, too, was at the commemoration of the Battle of the Atlantic over the weekend, at HMCS Star, speaking to the commander about the generational investments our government is making in the military, increasing recruiting, and seeing the youth, the recruits, the men and women in the reserves and the veterans. This bill is all about supporting those in the military and ensuring that the …
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Mr. Speaker, our government is making generational investments in major infrastructure projects that will support Canada's economic future. Within eight years, Canada will need more than 1.4 million additional workers—
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Mr. Speaker, I do not know why they are so afraid of good news. Our government is making generational investments in major infrastructure projects that will support Canada's economic future. Within eight years, Canada will need more than 1.4 million additional workers in the trades to build these projects. Canada needs more than 20,000 trades—
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Mr. Speaker, listen to that noise. It is so disrespectful to Canadians. Canada needs more—
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Mr. Speaker, my question to the member for St. Catharines is, how important is it to have Canadian unity and stability to move forward in these uncertain times?
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Mr. Speaker, it is fascinating to watch members of the opposition perform in this place for their social media accounts, for their Conservative propaganda networks. That is what we are seeing here. This is just complete nonsense. It would be nice if, for once, the members opposite would actually work with the government, work together to do what Canadians are asking our government to do, which is …
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Mr. Speaker, Canada is part of a dangerous and divided world. We are seeing a lot of uncertainty throughout the geopolitical sphere, a war in the Middle East causing unprecedented gas hikes at home, and just ongoing chaos. How important does the member think it is to have stability here at home in Canada? We are seeing the Prime Minister continuing to be recognized as a global leader, bringing tha…
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Mr. Speaker, on June 6, we are going to be commemorating the Battle of Stoney Creek, a tremendous victory by British regulars, indigenous warriors and Canadian militia over a hostile American government. Of course, just down the QEW, past St. Catharines, we have Queenston Heights, where Major General Isaac Brock fell defending Canada against another hostile American government. The member for St. …
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Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the member opposite raising the issue of privacy concerns and the right of Canadians to maintain access to their data and know it is secure. However, as has been noted, law enforcement across the country has been overwhelmingly in favour of this bill. We have been talking to members of the Hamilton Police Service and the Hamilton Police Association. This is their number o…
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Mr. Speaker, Hamilton is Canada's steel city. Hamilton industry and Hamilton workers built Canada, and our industrial base continues to power Canada's economy. Today Hamilton has one of the most diverse economies in Canada. We are a national leader in advanced manufacturing, technology, pharmaceuticals, construction and the skilled trades. Life sciences and health care are currently Hamilton's lar…
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Mr. Speaker, the comments from the member for Parkland were a very thoughtful review of the legislation that is before us. He brought up some really important points on the rights of privacy and freedoms, as well as the issue of cross-border data, which is something that could require additional investigation. Of course, the purpose of the legislation is to identify, investigate and prosecute thre…
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Mr. Speaker, I have been fortunate to have a good working relationship with Hamilton police and the Hamilton Police Association. One of the things they bring up on a regular basis is the need for the tools that are in this bill to properly investigate crimes. The secretary of state mentioned in her speech the discussions that she has had with OPP and law enforcement. I was wondering if she could e…
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Mr. Speaker, as a member from Hamilton, I know it has a very strong activist community that pushed the boundary on a number of issues, as it has every right to do, and I appreciate its contributions. However, in this context, I want to focus in on the member's comments about white nationalists and white supremacy movements growing in Canada. That is something that we have seen in Hamilton. There h…
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Mr. Speaker, again, we just have this ongoing misinformation here in the House of Commons. The purpose of the combatting hate act is to protect vulnerable communities from what we are seeing on the ground in municipalities across the country, such as acts of growing anti-Semitism, intimidation and targeted harassment, and white supremacist rallies on the streets, with hate symbols and the enacting…
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Mr. Speaker, some days I do not even know where to start, given the string of conspiracy theories. I am learning so much about this whole other world that most of Canada and most of the world has no idea even exists. It is a whole other language that apparently people need to be plugged into the freedom convoy network to even understand. We have heard about activist networks, ideological enforceme…
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Mr. Speaker, I appreciate your evaluation of the points of order here. As I was saying, my understanding of what the members opposite are actually advocating for is freedom from accountability. When I talk to clergy and religious leaders in my community, I basically ask them a simple question: Do you advocate for hate crimes on behalf of your religion? They say, “No,” and there is no further discu…
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Mr. Speaker, for the record, the bill was introduced over six months ago. It spent over 33 hours of debate in committee. The Conservatives have just engaged, in that entire time, in a countrywide campaign of misinformation and grift. At its core, the bill codifies the definition of hatred as extreme detestation or vilification, and a hate crime as a public incitement of hate or hate against an ide…
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Mr. Speaker, throughout this discussion this afternoon, I have been trying to understand what the Conservative objection to the combatting hate act actually is. The best I can tell is that they are asking for freedom from accountability, basically. In the bill, hate is defined as detestation or vilification. We have seen white nationalist rallies, public symbols of hate, the growth of white suprem…
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Mr. Speaker, I am honoured to rise as the member of Parliament for Hamilton West—Ancaster—Dundas. In less than a year, our government is delivering for Canadians. We have cut income taxes. We have delivered affordable child care and affordability tax credits. We are strengthening buy-Canadian procurement to support Canadian workers and Canadian industry, and we are investing in the infrastructure …
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Mr. Speaker, the despicable behaviour from the members opposite continues. We have had six months of debate on this topic, and the members opposite are now bemoaning the fact that we are finally calling the question on this. It is ridiculous. As for the impact on communities in Hamilton West—Ancaster—Dundas, we have seen an unprecedented rise in anti-Semitism. There have been white nationalist ral…
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Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the comments from the member opposite, especially those drawing on his experience in policing and the need for clear laws and enforceable rules. These are exactly the requests that the Hamilton police have made in our consultations about the combatting hate act. There has been a 35% increase in hate-related crimes in Hamilton, primarily against Black, Jewish and LGBTQ ind…
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Mr. Speaker, I find it embarrassing that the members opposite continuously bring up conspiracy theories in the House of Commons, so I am not going to acknowledge the premise of that question. Suffice it to say, we are taking tangible action to build more housing that Canadians need.
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Madam Speaker, I am listening closely to the discussion this morning on the combatting hate act here in the House of Commons, and I have to say that the comments and the approach in the talking points of the Conservative members are absolutely shameful, from the countrywide circus, the show that they are putting on, to the mobilization of communities of faith and the division and hatred. My questi…
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Mr. Speaker, it always astounds me when members stand up in the House and have absolutely no clue about what they are talking about on the ground. The member opposite talked about past housing projects. Through the housing accelerator fund, $93.5 million went to the City of Hamilton. That was used to build nearly 3,000 additional homes and housing units and for building growth-related infrastructu…
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Mr. Speaker, I heard the member say that the Conservatives would cut the HST off all new homes, cut development charges and give tax breaks, 35% of the cost of new housing being government fees. It is easy to make those kinds of comments from the opposition benches when you have no plan, but how would you actually pay for that?
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Mr. Speaker, the member opposite quoted some lyrics from The Offspring, which I really appreciated. It is also a band from my youth. I am going to quote some lyrics from another band, a hometown band from Hamilton called the Arkells, and its song about cynical people. It goes: If you're the kind with nothing to say, You heard about this party, But you're praying for rain. Now, if you want me to bo…
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Mr. Speaker, I will be sharing my time with the member for Sherbrooke. Housing affordability is one of the defining challenges that Canadians face today. Across this country and in my community of Hamilton West—Ancaster—Dundas, families are really concerned about the cost of housing and whether their children are going to be able to afford a home in their community. Build Canada Homes is an import…
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Madam Speaker, I apologize that my question is not in French, but I really appreciated the speech from the member opposite. The combatting hate act was developed in close consultation with impacted communities, with faith communities and with police across Canada. The member made some important points, including that the show, the performance, we are seeing from the members opposite is extremely u…
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Mr. Speaker, I see the Build Canada Homes Crown corporation as similar to the approach that the City of Hamilton took with its housing secretariat. It would be an oversight agency, to make sure that $13 billion of funding is flowed through to the areas across the country where it is needed most. On top of that, there is another $51 billion in infrastructure, which would offset a lot of those costs…
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