Government Orders
Madam Speaker, like my colleague, I genuinely believe in sustainable development. The development opportunities are there; for example, the technology that our oil industry brings forward is fairly world-leading. I think the EV industry and the potential for the manufacturing of electric vehicles continues to grow. There are many ways we can grow our economy and be respectful of the environment; t…
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Madam Speaker, the member asked if I would say that the country is not doing well. No, I believe the country is doing well. I do not believe what the Conservatives say when they try to mislead people. They travel the country saying that Canada is broken. Canada is not broken; it is a very healthy nation with great opportunities and capabilities. I am not looking at the glass as being half empty; I…
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Madam Speaker, it would have been better if the member had asked about the demand and the price points for our oil, which are greatest in Asia. That means we want a pipeline that goes to Asia, to tidewaters. The answer to the member's question is “absolutely zero”; not one inch of pipeline, in over 10 years of governance, took oil directly to the west coast. All the Conservatives' pipeline activit…
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Madam Speaker, the Conservatives are trying to raise the issue of affordability with this motion. The Prime Minister, along with the Minister of Finance, made a wonderful announcement yesterday, introducing the grocery and essentials benefit for Canadians, which will take effect on July 1. This is an initiative that is ultimately going to see hundreds of dollars going into the pockets of Canadians…
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Mr. Speaker, I want to acknowledge the efforts that my good friend has made in Manitoba, in particular with the whole concept of the Churchill port. Recently, we were at a press conference at the Manitoba legislature where we saw three important entities coming together to advance the interest of the Port of Churchill, which has a profound, positive impact on all of Canada. Could the member provid…
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Mr. Speaker, let us be really clear. What we have before us today is nothing more than the Conservative election platform from last year. Canadians made a decision back then that the Conservative platform would not build a stronger, healthier Canada. We have a Prime Minister who has taken a number of initiatives, along with the government, to build the country and build Canada strong. The member m…
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Madam Speaker, the motion today is in essence the Conservative platform from the last election. We know how Canadians voted in the last election. Could the member give his thoughts on a comparison of the Liberal platform versus the Conservative platform?
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Madam Speaker, obviously, I would disagree wholeheartedly on most of the points the member has expressed. What she just finished talking about was a Conservative election platform that Canadians rejected outright in the last election. Contrary to the misinformation, we have a Prime Minister who has been aggressively looking at expanding trade opportunities and exports for Canadian businesses, smal…
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Madam Speaker, I know the member does not necessarily want to talk about the past, but sometimes the past is a reflection of the current leader of the Conservative Party and what his mentality is. The Conservative Party, back in the day, did not progress the Canadian economy to the degree of recognizing that government involvement can make a positive difference and a positive outcome. Can the memb…
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Mr. Speaker, it is a pleasure to rise to speak to my colleague's legislation. This type of legislation is very difficult at times, as we all know. It is done through a draw, and my colleague has been provided the opportunity to bring forward an important piece of legislation, which he has identified as something that not only is important to his constituents but also deals with the national perspe…
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Mr. Speaker, I ask that all remaining questions be allowed to stand.
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Madam Speaker, one of the things we need to recognize is that the federal government plays a critical role, obviously. That is why we have come together with a crime package, a series of bills. Bill C-16 is one of them. It also involves and incorporates the need for provinces, which are often appointing the judges and providing the funds for courts. There are police and law enforcement agencies th…
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Mr. Speaker, I respect the position the Bloc has taken on Bill C-16, recognizing that, in principle, it is legislation they would like to see go to committee. I believe the Minister of Justice was open to listening to the critic from the Bloc in regard to listening and potentially taking action. We look forward to the committee actually dealing with those four core elements of the legislation. The…
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Mr. Speaker, the far right has spoken. At the end of the day, if there is an issue with any law, they have no problem bringing in the notwithstanding clause. Does the member know that no prime minister has actually used the notwithstanding clause, and it has been there for decades? Now we have the current leader of the Conservative Party saying not to worry and that we can use it any time we want.…
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Mr. Speaker, I rise with a very heavy heart to share with members on all sides that our dear friend, Kirsty Duncan, has passed. I thought it would be most appropriate for the House to have a moment of silence, in love and prayers, and to offer our condolences.
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Madam Speaker, first let me welcome everyone and wish them the very best in the new year. We have an exciting time ahead of us; I really and truly believe that. The number of Canadians, whether in Liberal-held ridings or Conservative-held ridings, who see we are on the right track amazes me. They see that we have a Prime Minister who truly understands and is prepared to meet the times, as well as …
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Madam Speaker, I am somewhat disappointed in a number of the comments that the member put on the record today. I took, in good faith, what the leader of the Conservative Party indicated. On the importance of the crime agenda, the member knows full well what happened back in December. Canadians could have had bail reform. We could have had better bail laws had the Conservative Party taken a differe…
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Madam Speaker, I really appreciate the feedback we have been hearing from the Bloc. I know the minister responded relatively positively to the idea that we should try to get it to committee and have the healthy discussion. Hopefully, we will see some legislation ultimately pass in a form that would make all Canadians proud. The member made reference to intimate images. It is currently an offence f…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 36(8)(a) I have the honour to table, in both official languages, the government's responses to 152 petitions. These returns will be tabled in an electronic format.
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, pursuant to subsection 49(1) of the Official Languages Act and Standing Order 111.1, I have the honour to table, in both official languages, the certificate of nomination and biographical notes for the proposed appointment of Kelly Burke as the Commissioner of Official Languages for a term of seven years. I request that the nomination and biographical notes be referred to the Standing…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, if the government's responses to Questions Nos. 536, 537, 538, 539, 540, 541, 542, 543, 544, 545, 546, 547, 548, 549, 550, 551, 552, 553, 554, 555, 556, 557, 558, 559, 560, 561, 562, 563, 564, 565, 566, 567, 568, 569, 570, 571, 572, 573, 574, 575, 576, 577, 578, 579, 580, 581, 582, 583, 584, 585, 586, 587, 588, 589, 590, 591, 592, 593, 594, 595, 596, 597, 598, 599, 600, 601, 602, 603,…
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First, Mr. Speaker, I want to be very clear. We do not have the new bail laws because the Conservatives refused to pass the bill last year. That is the reason we do not have the new bail laws today. Let us go on to mandatory minimums. This is what the member opposite says we need more of. That is exactly what this legislation would do. It would put in additional mandatory minimum laws. The safety …
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Mr. Speaker, I disagree with a lot of what the member across the way has said. In good part, it is very misleading to Canadians. If we take a look at the crime agenda that the Prime Minister and this government have brought in since the last election, I would challenge her to tell me when the last time was that we had such substantial legislation. We have not one, two or three pieces of legislatio…
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Mr. Speaker, I wonder if the member could share her thoughts with the House as to what she believes the provincial and municipal governments' role is with respect to crime, or does she assert that all of the blame should go to Ottawa?
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Mr. Speaker, someone said, “hear, hear.” If they were to use the notwithstanding clause every time there was an issue related to a mandatory minimum penalty, they would have used it 12, 15 or 20 times, no problem. Actually, there is a difference and this is the contrast between the government and the opposition. If I were to use the words of the Conservative member opposite, it is having that safe…
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Mr. Speaker, I find it truly amazing at times. I question whether the Conservative Party of Canada today, which is so far to the right, has any shame at all, with the types of things its members say and how far away from reality they actually are. Back in December, which was not that long ago, I challenged the Conservative Party to pass Bill C-14, the bail reform legislation. I virtually pleaded w…
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Oh, did they moved him back? Mr. Speaker, at the end of the day, from the Conservative perspective, this debate is about allowing judges in certain situations to not have to apply the mandatory minimum. This is the biggest problem. This is the issue that Conservative after Conservative after Conservative has stood up to speak to. Before we tabled this legislation, what did the Conservative member …
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Mr. Speaker, I want to reflect on the last federal election, where Canadians elected a new Prime Minister and at least 60, I believe, Liberal members of Parliament. Canadians want parties to work together in this chamber to deal with the important issues that they want action on. This Prime Minister and every member of this Liberal caucus understand what Canadians want to see. Bill C-16 is a refle…
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Mr. Speaker, I am not a lawyer by profession, but I genuinely believe that by having a safety valve, which is what the Conservative member across the way called it, we would be able to see mandatory minimums in our law not only stay within the law books but that it would take away the unconstitutionality of bringing in a mandatory minimum. The legislation would reinstate many aspects of mandatory …
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Mr. Speaker, the best example I could give my friend and colleague is to reflect back a few weeks ago to December, when we were talking about bail reform legislation. My colleague knows full well that we had wide support for the legislation. Provinces, municipalities, law enforcement agencies and all the different stakeholders wanted bail reform legislation. I remember standing up and saying to me…
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Mr. Speaker, that is a gross way to try to describe it, in such a fashion where a judge would actually just decide to throw it out. There is a parliamentary mandate that is given through the passage of laws. I have confidence that decisions are being made. I want our laws to be constitutional. I recognize this and the Supreme Court of Canada has recognized it; it has thrown out mandatory minimum s…
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Mr. Speaker, I am glad to hear from the Conservative member that they are going to prioritize bail and that we will finally get the bail reform legislation passed. It is something that should have passed last year, but I am glad the Conservatives are finally letting loose on that particular aspect. Now we are on Bill C-16. Even the member who represents Kamloops in British Columbia says that a saf…
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Mr. Speaker, just to be very clear on the issue, does the member believe that the second reading of the legislation should allow it to go to committee sooner as opposed to later so Canadians would be able to see it and the member would be able to present his arguments at the committee stage?
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Mr. Speaker, the member has been a very powerful advocate through the women's caucus, and I applaud that. In terms of femicide being elevated to first-degree murder, that is something relatively unique here in Canada. Could the member provide her thoughts on how Canada could play an important role, setting an example?
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Pursuant to Standing Order 36(8)(a), I have the honour of tabling, in both official languages, the government's responses to three petitions. These returns will be tabled in an electronic format.
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Mr. Speaker, I would ask that all questions be allowed to stand at this time.
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Mr. Speaker, I will add to that. The member asks about the 1,000 new border control CBSA officers' being added, which the Prime Minister committed to. There has been a substantial commitment to Canadians to deal with the issue of border security, along with crime. There are a number of pieces of legislation before the House dealing with things such as bail reform and securing the border. Yes, it i…
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Mr. Speaker, just to be factually correct, the government has, actually, had a summit on the issue of extortion, in Vancouver. There is another one being planned in Ontario. At the end of the day, we do take the issue of extortion very seriously. That said, in the spirit of Christmas, I want to acknowledge that with Bill C-12, we have seen a great deal of co-operation, to the degree that we are go…
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Mr. Speaker, I would argue that the right thing to do is to recognize that things change over time and that situations allow us to modernize aspects of our immigration and refugee policy. This legislation fits that. It absolutely makes Canada stronger and secures our borders even more. At the end of the day, we are talking about hundreds of thousands of people who are here under temporary visas. T…
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Mr. Speaker, I have to recognize that there has been a much higher sense of co-operation coming from all sides of the House with Bill C-12. That is encouraging because the bill would make our borders that much more secure. Even though many of us would like to see other government legislation pass, I do recognize the sense of co-operation that has taken place here. The member made reference at the …
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Mr. Speaker, whether it is the Prime Minister or the government as a whole, we have provided for the Conservatives to do better, because we have provided substantial legislation, not only to enhance Canada's borders and provide more security there, and not only to stabilize our immigration system. There is a number of commitments that the Prime Minister has made to Canadians that Canadians want to…
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Mr. Speaker, would the House give unanimous consent to allow Bill C-14 to pass committee and come to debate for third reading today?
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Mr. Speaker, I might be somewhat biased, but I would ultimately argue that Canada is one of the greatest countries, if not the greatest, when it comes to democracy and our fundamental principles. None of that would be possible if we did not have the incredible people who support Parliament. The member made reference to a wide spectrum of individuals. Whether it is the people in Hansard, security, …
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Mr. Speaker, I suspect that, if you were to canvass the House, you would find unanimous consent to suspend until 2 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, earlier this year, Canada elected a new prime minister. Since then, we have seen substantial change take place. We have bail reform legislation. We have anti-hate legislation. We have secure border legislation. We have a number of pieces of legislation and a budget that supports Canadians. We have build Canada strong legislation. All this has happened in the number of months following…
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Mr. Speaker, we request a recorded vote, please.
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Mr. Speaker, let me join my colleagues in supporting a wonderful piece of legislation. The member for York South—Weston—Etobicoke has done all of us a favour by working with the Senate to present this bill. I think it is really important to recognize that, in Canada, when it comes to people of Arab heritage, we are probably talking about somewhere in the neighbourhood of just over a million people…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 36(8)(a), I have the honour to table, in both official languages, the government's response to five petitions. These petitions will be tabled in an electronic format.
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, if the government's responses to Questions Nos. 523, 524, 525, 526, 527, 528, 529, 530, 531, 532, 533, 534 and 535 could be made orders for return, these returns would be tabled in electronic format immediately.
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, I would ask that all remaining questions be allowed to stand.
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