Government Orders
Madam Speaker, this is not surprising coming from the member. We are talking about violence against indigenous people, and it is clear that there are residential school denialists in his party. I am assuming he is one of them. One of the last speeches he gave—
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Mr. Speaker, this is an example of what I was talking about. I am glad of it, because I am going to put it on the record that the Conservatives do not care that people are starving. They certainly do not care about people in my riding, who are some of the poorest people in Canada. In fact, the Conservatives are trying to stop a debate on fighting for the human rights and dignity of the most margin…
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Mr. Speaker, I find it really, I guess, peculiar that the member is worried about that. He represents a riding, Winnipeg North, that has tons of small local grocery stores owned by very diverse communities. It is where I shop. I actually go to shop there because I find that the food prices are better. I went to, for example, a local place on the weekend to buy my vegetables. I go to a local meat m…
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Mr. Speaker, it is just so nice to be here again this evening. I know the Conservatives have tried to adjourn the House, calling quorum time and time again, because they really do not want to talk about the fact that people are starving, even though very often in the House they demean folks living in tent cities in poverty, folks who happen to live in my riding, actual human beings who are often s…
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That's the problem, Mr. Speaker. Although I have enjoyed working with my colleague throughout the years, the Conservatives do not have a climate plan. If we want to talk about the rising cost of food, then we need to deal with the climate emergency. I mentioned what is happening in Manitoba. Manitoba farmers are speaking up because they are concerned about the climate emergency. What is happening …
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Mr. Speaker, we have heard a lot about common sense in opposition to this bill from the Conservatives. Meanwhile, I see a lack of common sense. We know that there are places in B.C. that are being evacuated. I know that in northern Manitoba, there are places that are being evacuated as a result of catastrophic climate change. Every time there is a bill put forward that even attempts to address the…
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Mr. Speaker, I get concerned every time I hear the Conservatives speak, especially right now, hearing the news. There are communities in B.C. that are being evacuated. Any time we talk about a plan to deal with the climate emergency, the Conservatives have a problem with it. I am not saying that the bill is perfect, but what I am saying is that the Conservatives are consistent in their climate den…
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Mr. Speaker, while Winnipeg Centre has one of the highest rates of youth poverty in Canada, Resource Assistance for Youth, Inc.'s level up job placement and education program has been placed at risk by the Liberals' funding delays. After seven months of waiting, this has forced RaY to discontinue vital programming for youth and lay off staff. It is shameful. Will the minister restore the funding, …
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Mr. Speaker, many youth in Winnipeg Centre face unimaginable hurdles to success. We have one of the highest rates of child poverty in the country, at almost 40%, but Winnipeg's frontline organizations are leading the way and rising to this challenge. This includes Resource Assistance for Youth Incorporated, otherwise known as RaY, which provides support, services and training programs to youth who…
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Mr. Speaker, abortion rights are human rights, but the Liberals continue to deny equal access to that right. In New Brunswick, the Prime Minister has done nothing to address the total absence of abortion clinics throughout the province, and in Manitoba, we are at risk of losing our only abortion clinic. A right is only as good as the ability to access it, but this is merely a dream in many rural a…
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Mr. Speaker, one of those ideas is a guaranteed livable basic income. This has been researched and studied, and it is something that is being facilitated in some of the happiest countries in the world right now. We know that, when we look after people, it is good economics. I hope that my hon. colleague across the way supports good economics, supports ensuring that people can live in human rights …
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Mr. Speaker, it is an honour to have an opportunity to speak to the budget today. I would like to start with the positives. I know that my NDP colleagues and I achieved a number of good things in the budget. Certainly, the national school food program is an absolutely historic shift. It is something that the NDP has fought for and that we pushed to make sure was part of the budget. We are ensuring…
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Mr. Speaker, I love working with my colleague from New Westminster—Burnaby. He is such a wonderful House leader and colleague. In saying that, he is absolutely right. The Liberals are talking about fairness. They need to go after offshore tax havens and rich CEOs, and they need to take that money and spread it out to those who are being left behind. Every day, I have to sit in the House of Commons…
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Mr. Speaker, I love working with the member from King—Vaughan. My answer to that is no, I will not vote against the school meal program, dental care, pharmacare and a national child care program. These are things that have been moved along and that the NDP fought for. I will not vote against a red dress alert, something that I got in, along with advocates, with the support of the leadership of the…
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Mr. Speaker, like my colleague, I did have some concerns about the budget. We know that currently there is an attack on trans kids. We know that currently, certainly according to what I have seen in the House of Commons, there is an attack on the right to choose to have access to safe, trauma-informed abortion care. I am wondering whether my colleague supports me and millions of Canadians around t…
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Mr. Speaker, reproductive rights are under attack, including by Conservatives who voted against free contraceptives, have pushed back-door legislation and tabled petitions attempting to violate abortion rights. However, the Liberals are no better. They failed to uphold access to abortion care, including in New Brunswick, where there is not a single abortion clinic. When will the government enforce…
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Mr. Speaker, I was really disappointed in the budget. As I have said very clearly, I think auto theft is an issue in this country, but the government put $45 million toward auto theft and $22 million toward the issue of murdered and missing indigenous women and girls. That sends a really strong message that this country values cars more than it values indigenous peoples. I am hoping that the gover…
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Madam Speaker, I would like to correct the record, because that is not factual. The fact is that the NDP government was in power and it was then taken over by the Conservative Party, which cancelled the program. It is not that the Manitoba government did not want it go forward at the time. Unfortunately, it was stopped by a Conservative government. I would like to remind the member that it is an N…
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moved that Bill C-223, An Act to develop a national framework for a guaranteed livable basic income, be read the second time and referred to a committee. Madam Speaker, I rise today to urge my colleagues to support Bill C-223, an act to develop a national framework for a guaranteed livable basic income. This bill, in fact, addresses many of the critical issues that we are facing today, and I hope …
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Madam Speaker, this bill is very clear that a guaranteed livable basic income would be in addition to other supports and services meant to meet specific and special needs. That would include things like extra supports that may be required by certain communities. The disability community often has higher expenses. Their cost of living is often much higher than for other folks, so we cannot get rid …
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Madam Speaker, I would like to frame it a little. I certainly agree that the ultrarich are not paying their fair share in this country, and I would point to things like tax havens and tax loopholes for the ultrarich. In this discussion, we often forget about those who do not work. People with complex mental health and addiction issues might be able to work two days a week, not five. There are many…
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Mr. Speaker, Canadians will not have free diabetes medication and birth control if it is up to the Conservative leader, and the Liberals keep delaying protecting women's rights. Reproductive rights are human rights, which include barrier-free access to birth control. Unfortunately the Conservative leader once again is attacking reproductive rights by blocking access to free contraception. Will the…
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I fully acknowledge that I said the leader's name, but I also know that we cannot say things like saving “butts”. That is my understanding, and I am just pointing that out. If he could take that out—
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Mr. Speaker, I would also like to apologize for my misreading when I was reading the article. I do apologize. I was not trying to be cheeky, but I was reading directly from an article. We know that certain provinces, provinces his colleague called “communist”, are providing free contraception care—
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Madam Speaker, it is a pleasure to work with my hon. colleague across the way at the Standing Committee on the Status of Women. There are other folks on the committee and I really enjoy working with all of them, even across party lines, believe it or not. The Conservatives are talking about voting against free contraception in this plan. There is no question that they are anti-choice. All the memb…
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Mr. Speaker, I find it really funny that the Conservatives are talking about health care plans. Clearly, their lives have been marred with privilege, especially because every member in the House has a pharmacare plan that is paid for by taxpayer dollars, including the member for Carleton, who has had this for over 20 years. In saying that, I have a feeling about why the Conservatives are stalling …
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Mr. Speaker, the federal government is responsible and obliged to uphold national standards. We know that Quebec is ahead of the game on a number of issues. I will give the hon. member a couple of examples. On child care, Quebec is decades ahead, as well as on social programs, certainly. Absolutely, when we are talking about provinces, the federal government is obliged to provide provinces with wh…
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Mr. Speaker, that is exactly it. If one looks at access to reproductive rights, they vary throughout the country. We need to change that to ensure that if this country is actually doing what it says, which is protecting the reproductive rights of those people who can get pregnant, then they need to start doing that. That means access to safe, trauma-informed abortion care or access to contraceptio…
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Mr. Speaker, my apologies, but I am actually reading, and my understanding in the House is that we are allowed to read from notes. The article states, “The Abortion Rights Coalition of Canada (ARCC) keeps a list of anti-choice members of Parliament and has always rated Pierre Poilievre as anti-choice and continues to do—
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Mr. Speaker, the member for Carleton. I am so sorry. That is totally my fault, and I take responsibility. My apologies, but I am reading verbatim. The article reads that the coalition has always rated the member as “anti-choice and continues to do so.” It continues to say, “he has consistently voted in favour of anti-choice private member bills and motions, with just one exception”. Here are some …
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Mr. Speaker, I certainly was not saying that he called provinces communist. I said that some of his colleagues have called them communist. Certainly, provinces do not act alone in health care. The federal government works with provinces to provide services. We have pushed the federal government to ensure provinces have what they need to provide, as a starting point, free diabetes medication and al…
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Mr. Speaker, on a point of order, the member of Parliament probably could have finished eating his taxpayer-paid supper before coming in here. However, I would appreciate—
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Mr. Speaker, as I have heard in the House tonight, I know the Conservatives think providing free contraception is communist, but I would like to say this to the hon. member across the way: They talk about reproductive rights, but in New Brunswick, one cannot even access a trauma-informed abortion at care. We have a Canada Health Act that they have to uphold, and I am glad that the member supports …
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Mr. Speaker, I am proud to rise today to support what the NDP has fought for. It is the beginning of a pharmacare plan that will start with one of the things the NDP has championed for years: the reproductive rights of women and people who menstruate. It is a significant step forward to promote reproductive rights for women and gender-diverse people in Canada; we know, for far too long, leaders ha…
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Mr. Speaker, I know that it was the NDP who pushed for the beginning stages of this pharmacare plan. I am very proud that the NDP government in Manitoba already has free contraception in place. I am glad that the Liberals are finally coming on board, after a lot of coaxing. However, despite the Liberals saying they support the right to choose, they have not done their due diligence in ensuring acc…
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Mr. Speaker, I will give some examples. We are talking about facts, so I am going to give some examples. This is from rabble.ca. It is entitled, “The inconvenient anti-choice record of 'pro-choice' Pierre Poilievre”. The Abortion Rights Coalition—
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Madam Speaker, I find it hilarious that the Conservatives are protecting big insurance companies. I find it particularly entertaining that the member and his party, which would not be affected by this, including with contraception, fight so diligently against the reproductive rights of people. I find it funny. Does the member support access to trauma-informed abortion care and access to reproducti…
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Mr. Speaker, I am not sure if my hon. colleague was as shocked as I was by the comments of praise given to his own government by the member for Winnipeg North. I want to build on what the member was saying about how the word indigenous was not even mentioned once by the finance minister. The fact that the government gave more money to deal with auto theft in this budget than it did to finding murd…
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Madam Speaker, I had the opportunity to listen to the speech by the member for Carleton, the leader of the Conservative Party. Particularly there were a couple of areas I found really shocking. In one he was talking about federal lands. The Conservative leader clearly does not understand indigenous rights, in terms of the right of first refusal, particularly around resource extraction. He also has…
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Mr. Speaker, while the finance minister celebrates so-called feminist policies in this year's budget, in rural Manitoba, the Liberals have cut all funding for counselling and legal services for survivors of sexual violence at the Survivor's Hope Crisis Centre. Time and time again, the Prime Minister shows that he is a fake feminist. Meanwhile, the Conservative leader undermines women's rights at e…
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Mr. Speaker, the Liberals' child care plan forgets child care workers, 96% of whom are women, and many are facing a burnout crisis. The recent Liberal announcement falls short of what experts are calling for. Childhood educators need better wages and working conditions to improve retention and recruitment. Meanwhile, the Conservatives are pushing privatized child care, which would hurt workers eve…
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With regard to funding included in the National Action Plan to End Gender-Based Violence, broken down by province or territory since the program was initiated: (a) how much of the allocated $539.3 million in funding has been committed to date; (b) how much of the allocated $539.3 million in funding has been spent to date; (c) which organizations have received funding from this program; (d) how muc…
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With regard to Reaching Home: Canada's Homelessness Strategy, broken down by province and territory from its inception in 2019 to present: (a) how much of the funding allocated to the program has been committed to date, broken down by its four funding streams, the (i) Designated Communities stream, (ii) Rural and Remote Homelessness stream, (iii) Territorial Homelessness stream, (iv) Indigenous Ho…
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With regard to childcare workers spanning from 2017 to present, broken down by province and territory: (a) what was the total number of childcare workers, broken down by (i) self-identified gender, (ii) self-identified racial background, (iii) self-identified status as Indigenous, (iv) status as immigrant or refugee, (v) self-identified Two-Spirit, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Inter…
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With regard to access to abortion care funded under the Canada Health Act, broken down by province or territory from 2015 to present: (a) how many hospitals provide safe abortion care services funded by the federal government; (b) how many clinics provide safe abortion care services funded by the federal government; (c) which municipalities with a population of 50,000 or more (i) did not have acce…
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Madam Speaker, it was funny for me to listen to my colleague across the way talking about Conservative scandals. It is like they are in competition. The Conservatives are not even elected yet and they have Jenni Byrne already caught up in the scandals as a lobbyist. However, I want to get to a really important question, because this is a total mockery of the House. I know that an ice cream cone fr…
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Madam Speaker, I actually find this really disingenuous from both sides. The Auditor General just spoke out about the Liberals' not investing enough in indigenous housing, calling the situation deplorable. On Monday I was in committee, and we were talking about child welfare. The Conservatives were in the committee trying to obstruct the study of Bill C-92 on reconciliation, on providing and uphol…
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Mr. Speaker, the Liberal government continues to fail women, including care workers in women's shelters. The cuts to women's shelters have impacted not only women fleeing violence but also shelter workers, who are facing a burnout crisis, consistently overworked and underpaid. Seventy-five percent of the care economy is women. This is a gender equality issue. Why do the so-called feminist Liberals…
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Madam Speaker, my hon. colleague just mentioned Bill C-15. I know that one of the first steps in Bill C-15 was actually to put in place an action plan. We are now very far out from the deadline of that, and I am wondering where the action plan is. I ask because every time I try to apply Bill C-15 to current legislation, the government keeps talking about an action plan, yet that should have been o…
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Mr. Speaker, I have to say, as a Jew, listening to my colleague across the way talk about our view as Jews as universal, in terms of our position on Israel, is extremely painful. I know that his position comes from a place of deep intergenerational trauma and the experience of genocide, including what my family went through. I acknowledge that, but I want to ask the member across the way this: Whe…
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