Government Orders
Madam Speaker, the hon. member cannot be real. Conservative members of Parliament come here every day to fight for a better Canada and their constituents. What our constituents are telling us is they cannot afford more years of the government. They cannot afford skyrocketing crime. They cannot afford groceries, heat, their mortgage, their rent or to put food on the table. We have the worst inflati…
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With regard to Temporary Resident Permits (TRP), broken down by year for each of the last five years: (a) how many TRPs have been issued in total and broken down by those who applied (i) abroad prior to arriving in Canada, (ii) at a point of entry, (iii) while already in Canada; (b) for each part of (a), how many and what percentage of the applications required a police certificate or a criminal r…
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With regard to top secret security clearances provided by the government: how many employees or representatives of registered political parties currently have top secret security clearances, in total and broken down by party?
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With regard to the event named "Symposium: Building a Safe and Respectful Digital World" hosted at the Governor General's residence on April 11, 2024: (a) what were the costs associated with the event, in total and broken down by type of expenditure; (b) was this event initiated by the Governor General and her staff or officials, or by the Minister of Justice and Attorney General and his staff or …
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moved for leave to introduce Bill C-394, An Act to amend the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act (importing, exporting and producing certain substances). Mr. Speaker, today I am introducing the stronger sentences for safer streets act. Drug overdoses kill 22 Canadians per day, and 82% of those deaths involve fentanyl. Producers, importers and exporters of dangerous drugs are benefiting from Libera…
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Mr. Speaker, it is hard to know where to begin. He compares the new system to the United Kingdom. The United Kingdom requires, with regard to applicants for a wrongful conviction, for the commission to consider that there is a real possibility that a wrongful conviction occurred. In the case that he has put forward now for Canada, the new rule will be that a miscarriage of justice “may” have occur…
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Mr. Speaker, the bill, as amended from committee, is now a significant departure from what was presented by the minister's predecessor, former minister Lametti, on the miscarriage of justice bill. Originally, when the bill was presented by former minister Lametti, he noted: It is important to note that the miscarriage of justice review process is not an alternative to the justice system, nor is it…
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Mr. Speaker, it is tremendously unfortunate that before even being briefed, the minister was telling Canadians that it was all in their heads that we were experiencing a crisis in our justice system, but it is not all in Canadians' heads. The statistics tell us that violent crime has gone up tremendously. In fact, the rate of homicide has gone up 43% since 2015, the highest it has been in 30 years…
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Actually, Mr. Speaker, what the minister said was that his role was to tell Canadians that it was empirically unlikely that Canada is becoming less safe. In fact, violent crime is up 39%. Now that he has been briefed, could the minister tell us how much, according to Statistics Canada, gang-related homicides have gone up since 2015, only nine years ago?
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister's soft-on-crime agenda has led to a crime wave of motor vehicle theft, and Canadians are paying the cost. The cost of insurance claims for auto theft has skyrocketed to $1.5 billion, smashing the previous record. Not only are Canadians having their vehicles stolen, but they are also facing higher insurance premiums, thanks to the Liberal government's refusal to crac…
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Mr. Speaker, 2015 is important, because you are going to hear the number 2015 quite a bit. I will note, Minister, that when you were first appointed, one of the things you said in your new role was that for Canadians it was empirically unlikely that Canada was becoming less safe. I would say Canadians would say that is not true. I would say Statistics Canada would say that is not true. There has b…
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Mr. Speaker, it is an honour to be able to participate this evening in this important debate. I want to state at the outset that I will be splitting my time for the last five minutes with the member for Thornhill. I am going to start off with an easy question for the minister, just to get things started. What year did the Liberal Party form its majority government?
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Mr. Speaker, I notice once again that I have given the minister a lot of opportunities, and he has not answered any of my questions directly. He knows the answer to this one, and he is not going to give it, so I will have to give it on his behalf. The Victoria Police Department statement says, “Bill C-75, which came into effect nationally in 2019, legislated a 'principle of restraint' that require…
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Mr. Speaker, unfortunately, just the opposite is true. Every step the government has taken in the last nine years has made the situation worse. Can the minister tell Canadians tonight how much violent gun crime, according to Statistics Canada, has gone up since 2015?
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Mr. Speaker, if it was not so serious, it would be laughable. The minister is talking about steps his government has taken, but I will answer the question. Violent gun crime is up 101% since 2015 alone, when the Liberals took office. We are hearing from the minister about what he is doing, but, unfortunately, the statistics tell us that everything they are doing, every step of the way, has been to…
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Mr. Speaker, I will answer the question. Sexual assaults are up 71% since 2015, when the Liberals took government, nine years ago. It is beyond ironic that the minister questions why Conservatives on this side would not support their agenda. Of course we do not support their agenda. We want to make Canada a safe place, where kids can play in playgrounds and parents can send their kids to school an…
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Madam Speaker, after listening to my colleague's remarks, there is no doubt in my mind or in Canadians' minds why crime is absolutely out of control after nine years of the Liberal-NDP government. Liberals simply do not get it. They talk about resources for police; I will share one story we heard recently. Police in Victoria arrested the same man three times in three days for stealing vehicles and…
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Mr. Speaker, I guess the truth hurts. The hon. member who just protested was proclaiming that he has all the answers and that, in British Columbia, auto theft is not an issue. Did colleagues know that in Victoria, British Columbia, an individual was arrested for auto theft? He was let out on April 21. On April 22, he was arrested for auto theft and let out again. Then, on April 23, he was arrested…
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Mr. Speaker, first of all, I would like to congratulate the member for Prince Albert for what is a fantastic and timely bill, one that is focused on the real issue of auto theft and on the criminals who are conducting auto theft throughout our country. I listened to the Liberal and NDP speeches very intently, hoping to hear some measure of common sense. If it were not such a serious issue, it woul…
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Madam Speaker, we know we are in this situation because a radical justice minister and a radical government have pushed this agenda. I want to get the member's thoughts on this quote from 32 law professors. They state: We disagree as law professors that providing access to MAiD for persons whose sole underlying medical condition is mental illness is constitutionally required...as Minister Lametti …
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Madam Speaker, my colleague is quite right. With Bill C-7, but for the passage of Bill C-62, the impact would be profound on our health care system, on individuals suffering with mental illness and on the message we send Canadians suffering with mental illness. I can say only that the government has moved forward in this dangerous direction while ignoring at every turn the advice of experts, inclu…
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Madam Speaker, Canadians would be forgiven for thinking they have seen this movie before, because they have. It was only last year that we debated Bill C-39, which provided an extension of the coming into force of this dangerous legislation. Now we are debating Bill C-62, which was introduced two weeks ago thanks to consistent pressure from Conservatives, advocates, experts, organizations and indi…
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Madam Speaker, my hon. colleague is quite right. The government and the minister have been all too eager to lose. When they had a constitutional responsibility to defend their laws, they did not appeal decisions that would protect vulnerable Canadians, and when the then minister appeared at the justice committee on Bill C-7, which expanded medical assistance in dying, he assured us it was quite co…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, the justice minister has spent the last week arguing with Conservatives and telling Canadians that strengthening penalties for auto theft will not work. We all know that the Prime Minister has a habit of throwing his justice ministers under the bus. Earlier today, the Prime Minister finally admitted that stronger penalties are required to tackle the auto theft crisis that he created. …
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Mr. Speaker, an auto summit is not what Canadians are calling for. They are calling for action. Auto theft is up 300% in Toronto and 120% in New Brunswick. These are the Liberals' own numbers since they took office. Only Conservatives will do what is necessary to stop the crime with a proven approach of jail, not bail, for repeat offenders; ending house arrest for auto theft; and bringing in manda…
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Madam Speaker, the arrogance and incompetence of the members opposite on this issue is truly alarming and frightening. Are they not aware that 30 legal experts wrote a letter to the former justice minister and cabinet saying, “Parliament is not forced by the courts to legalize MAID”. What does the hon. member make of this argument, from the minister who spoke earlier, that somehow, in her words, t…
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Madam Speaker, the arrogance of the government knows no bounds. In its brief, based on a “review of evidence, the Board of Directors of the Society of Canadian Psychiatry believes the process leading to the planned 2024 MAID for mental illness expansion was flawed, insufficiently responsive to evidence-based cautions, and resulted in a lack of safeguards.” It is calling on this expansion not to be…
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With regard to departments and agencies lowering performance targets in order to claim that more targets are being met: (a) which targets have been lowered, or otherwise adjusted in a manner to make it easier to meet, since 2016; and (b) for each target in (a), (i) on what date was it adjusted, (ii) what was the previous target, (iii) what is the new target, (iv) what is the rationale for adjustin…
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With regard to podcasts sponsored by government departments or agencies, since January 1, 2016: what are the details of all such sponsorship agreements, including, for each, the (i) name of the podcast, (ii) subject matter, (iii) date the sponsorship began, (iv) date the sponsorship ended, if the agreement has concluded, (v) total amount paid to date, (vi) terms of the sponsorship, if the agreemen…
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With regard to podcasts run by government departments or agencies, since January 1, 2016: (a) what are the details of each such podcast, including the (i) name of the podcast, (ii) subject matter, (iii) date the podcast started, (iv) uploading schedule or how often new episodes are uploaded, (v) number of employees or full-time equivalents assigned to the podcast, (vi) expenditures to date related…
Read full speech →Statements By Members
Mr. Speaker, the NDP-Liberal government is not worth the cost to Canadians' freedom. In a landmark victory for the freedoms of all Canadians, the federal court has just confirmed what most Canadians already knew, that the use of the Emergencies Act in 2022 was illegal and unconstitutional. Two years ago, the Prime Minister decided to violate the charter rights of Canadians to deal with a political…
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Madam Speaker, I rise on a point of order. Due to multiple technical issues, I was unable to vote in the vote that took place after question period. I would like to seek unanimous consent to have my vote counted as yea.
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Madam Speaker, it is an honour to speak today. I will be splitting my time with the member for Calgary Forest Lawn. The motion we are debating today is, “That, given that the government has announced a 'temporary, three-year pause' to the federal carbon tax on home heating oil, the House call on the government to extend that pause to all forms of home heating.” What could be more fair? This is a r…
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Mr. Speaker, after eight years, the out-of-touch NDP-Liberal government does not even know what a rural community is. In a totally transparent effort to save seats in Atlantic Canada, Liberals will be giving a rural rebate to downtown residents of the city of Fredericton, but not to someone who commutes 100 kilometres a day for work from the actual rural community of St. Martins, which has a popul…
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Madam Speaker, I want to ask my colleague a question about Bill S-12. As was said, when we were in government, we brought in changes to have a mandatory listing of all convicted sex offenders put in the registry. We had to respond to a Supreme Court decision, and the government's response has been tepid. One of the amendments that Conservatives put forward at committee would be to require the mand…
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Mr. Speaker, I want to commend the work of My Voice, My Choice and its appearance at our justice committee. As Conservatives, we initiated a study on the federal government's obligation to victims of crime. One of the many issues we heard around publication bans was about victims having the right to have their voice heard and taking back their agency, especially in the context of publication bans.…
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Mr. Speaker, I will take this opportunity to congratulate you on your election as Speaker. I would also like to say that I will be splitting my time with the member for Langley—Aldergrove. The last eight years have not been kind to Canadians, since the Liberal government took power, when it comes to safe streets, safe communities and crime. One only needs to look at the recent StatsCan release to …
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Mr. Speaker, I welcome the hon. member to the justice committee. When we are seized with Bill C-21, we will look at those amendments, as I do share a concern around some of them. It is one thing to say that we want Canadians to be safe. It is another thing to put in place the legislative measures to make sure that happens. I am committed to working with all parliamentarians, including the hon. mem…
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Mr. Speaker, this legislation was a needed response to a Supreme Court decision, but I feel it could have gone further. It could have been tighter. There are a number of offences now that will not meet the threshold for inclusion in the registry, and there will be people who should have been included who will not be with the passage of this legislation. Absolutely what happened with the issue arou…
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Yes, Madam Speaker, I consent to the amendment's being moved.
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, doing the bare minimum, tokenism is not enough. It is not enough in light of the challenges that our police face. It is not enough when 13 premiers unanimously call for fundamental change to Canada's broken bail system. Under this legislation, repeat violent criminals charged with weapons trafficking, attempted murder and robbery are all still eligible for bail under this Liberal catc…
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Mr. Speaker, the only bail reform in Bill C-48 is in its name. Violent repeat offenders could still count on the Liberal government for its catch-and-release system to get them back out on the street, sometimes within hours of their arrest. This bill does not substantially improve public safety. In fact, the man who killed Constable Pierzchala would still have been out on release even if this legi…
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Mr. Speaker, one thing that stood out to me very strongly was the member's statement that he does not believe Canadians should own guns. That is a view that he says his constituents share. I represent a rural riding where people enjoy hunting and sport shooting. Generations of my constituents have passed down firearms to their relatives who enjoy hunting and sport shooting. They would take great i…
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Madam Speaker, it is an honour to close out debate this evening on Bill C-21, and it is an honour, as always, to stand in this House and represent the constituents from the great riding of Fundy Royal who elected me. Many of those constituents enjoy hunting, farming and sport shooting and maybe have inherited a firearm from a relative. Hunting in my riding certainly is something many people like t…
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Mr. Speaker, the Liberals' Bill C-75 entrenched the catch-and-release bail system that is devastating Canadian communities. Violent crime has shot up 32% under the Prime Minister's watch. Premiers, police officers and victims groups have been desperately calling on the government to fix their broken bail system, but the bill they introduced today is nothing more than a slap in the face. It will no…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, as we mark Victims and Survivors of Crime Week, we are reminded that individuals and families often feel the fallout long after a crime is committed. Victims and survivors of crime can carry undue burdens, such as physical or psychological trauma, financial loss or property damage. The federal government has a critical role to play when it comes to protecting victims and survivors of …
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Mr. Speaker, there is just so much wrong with this presentation. Under the Liberals, violent crime has gone up 32%; gang crime has gone up almost 100%. The minister just spoke about registered firearms, yet the experts who appeared at the justice committee, the police chiefs, said that illegal firearms coming in from the United States are the cause of this problem. Would the minister acknowledge t…
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With regard to consultations by the Minister of Justice related to the future of the sex offender registry: what are the details of all consultations on the future of the registry which have occurred since October 28, 2022, including, for each, the (i) date, (ii) type of consultation, (iii) names of individuals and organizations consulted?
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Mr. Speaker, today we are seeing an admission of a process that was far too rushed. Just two years ago, the Minister of Justice appeared at a justice committee one morning and said that there was not a consensus on how to move forward with expanding medical assistance in dying to those whose sole underlying condition is mental illness. However, later that day, after the Senate had amended the legi…
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Madam Speaker, I appreciate the opportunity to speak here today to an important bill. We have to ask ourselves: why are we here this evening debating Bill C-39? What brought us to this place? What brought us to this place was a government, once again, that had acted completely irresponsibly and with great overreach, ignoring the experts, ignoring Parliament and ignoring the most vulnerable. We wil…
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