Parliamentary Speeches
1,100 speeches by Andréanne Larouche — Page 16 of 22
Government Orders
Madam Speaker, I find that interesting. All parties seem to recognize that there is already a provision in this bill stating that this content will not be regulated. When someone gets to the point where they feel like everyone else is wrong and they are the only one who is right, it may be time for them to do some soul searching. Are they contributing to disinformation? Have they properly done the…
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Mr. Speaker, June 15 is World Elder Abuse Awareness Day. It is a time to remember the importance of paying attention to the suffering that some seniors are experiencing. Elder abuse is insidious and unacceptable, but it is unfortunately still all too common, whether it is a slap on the face, belittling comments, or financial fraud. We need to raise awareness of this social problem, and encourage p…
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Madam Speaker, as I rise today to speak at third reading of Bill C-5, my mind is once again filled with questions and confusion. As critic for status of women and gender equality, I have observed an uptick in the number of femicides and incidents involving gender-based violence. Like my colleague from Rivière-du-Nord, whom I commend for his speech and for sharing his time with me, I wonder about t…
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Madam Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague for giving me a chance to reiterate our position, although our position has been clear. On the one hand, this bill deals with diversion for certain drug offences. This is essential, because it is a public health issue. We need to get this done. This approach has had very a positive impact in Portugal, for example. For this to work, however, the government n…
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Madam Speaker, I repeat that studies show that mandatory minimum penalties do not work in every case. My colleague is correct. However, in the case of certain serious crimes, such as discharging a firearm and crimes against women, it might be better if we allowed judges to depart from MMPs, like we did in response to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission's call to action, so that they can take i…
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Madam Speaker, my colleague talked about crimes committed against women. That issue certainly was discussed at length at the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. In the case of call to action 32, the Liberal government proposed allowing judges to depart from mandatory minimum sentences in some circumstances of crimes against indigenous women. In this case, it gave judges the choice to impose such …
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Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague. I have had the chance to talk with her at the Standing Committee on the Status of Women, and even at the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security when I have had to replace my colleague at times. We agree. As far as mandatory minimum sentences are concerned, we know and see that there are more indigenous women in prison, as I mentioned in my sp…
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Madam Speaker, my colleague and I do agree on one thing, which is that the government needs to go back to the drawing board with this bill. We would like to split the bill and separate the diversion measures, which are most important, from the provisions regarding mandatory minimum penalties. It is awkward timing to be debating those mandatory minimums, given all of the gun incidents we have been …
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Madam Speaker, I think my colleague is conflating Bill C-21 and Bill C-5. I think we need to come back to Bill C‑5, the bill we are discussing today. As I said, we have stated our position. We agree with the introduction of diversion measures, but since this is an omnibus bill, it contains two confusing and intertwined items. We certainly have the right to ask questions about minimum sentences. Ho…
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for her speech. She mentioned examples of what is being done internationally. We know, for example, that the tough‑on‑crime approach did not work. It has not worked in Switzerland. Portugal, however, has a model for decriminalizing drugs that has worked well. As my colleague surely knows, in the case of Portugal, what has worked is that the whole system has really…
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Madam Speaker, as this evening's debate draws to a close, our interventions in the House demonstrate that we need to set partisanship aside and work together to move forward on the issue of gun control. In that regard, I know that the member for Avignon—La Mitis—Matane—Matapédia, who is a member of the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security, will work very hard to improve Bill C…
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Madam Speaker, my colleague briefly touched on why this bill is important for cases relating to intimate partner violence. As the status of women critic, I am participating in the committee's study of a report on what goes on in certain intimate partner violence situations. The goal is to figure out how to reduce intimate partner violence. One aspect of the bill I want to focus on is the immediate…
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Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for his speech. As my colleague already said, the issue is with when this bill was introduced. There is an increase in gun crimes. Yesterday we learned that 173 women and girls were killed in Canada in 2021 alone. That is a lot. People are conflating Bill C‑21, which has to do with firearms, with this one. They are conflating serious gun crimes with simple drug …
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Madam Speaker, my colleague's speech really resonated with me, particularly because she spoke at length about femicide and crimes related to domestic violence, an issue that is currently being studied by the Standing Committee on the Status of Women. Generally speaking, the Bloc Québécois has expressed some reservations and concerns about abolishing certain mandatory minimum sentences, particularl…
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Madam Speaker, my colleague spoke about the border. I know that this is an important aspect of this debate. I was formerly the assistant to an MP whose riding was on the U.S. border, and I know that people can get very creative when they want to bring all kinds of things across the border. This evening's debate reminds us that guns are obviously getting across the border. I am not referring to leg…
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Mr. Speaker, as my colleague said, jury service is mandatory, but people are not always ready to hear all the horrific details in the testimony. I find it interesting that former jurors could also benefit from assistance and support in recognition of all that they saw and experienced. That was another proposal. We are all well aware of the long-term negative effects that PTSD can have on jurors. T…
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Madam Speaker, I would like to follow up on what my colleague just said about Bill C‑5 in terms of helping people who have addiction problems, among others. This is a public health problem, so it is important to increase health transfers. It seems to be hard for the federal government to understand what its responsibility is and what it needs to do. The same thing is happening at the Standing Comm…
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague from Mégantic—L'Érable for his speech. As my colleague from Jonquière has said, and we saw again this morning, oil companies are making record profits, and so are the banks. With that in mind, I wonder how today's Conservative motion responds to an important notion of tax fairness. Do we really want the oil companies and the banks to keep getting richer? That…
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Mr. Speaker, in June we celebrate pride and what a well-earned feeling for the entire LGBTQ+ community. They have come a long way and accomplished a lot. From fighting for decriminalization to fighting for equality, all these battles were fought with determination, courage and love and have made members of the LGBTQ+ community role models in the art of peaceful protest at a time of positive advoca…
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Madam Speaker, what worries me about this Conservative motion is the tax that could benefit oil companies. If we truly want to be free from the rising cost of oil, then we need to be less dependent on oil overall. My colleague from Saint-Hyacinthe—Bagot illustrated this quite well. Right now, we need to be talking about investing in a green energy transition and divesting ourselves of oil. How doe…
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Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague, who spoke at length about agriculture, which is near and dear to my heart because there are a lot of farmers in my riding of Shefford. The Bloc agrees with the Conservatives on the fertilizer issue. However, I would like to talk to my colleague about drought, which is causing problems for a lot of farmers. Climate change is a crucial issue. My colleague talked …
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Madam Speaker, I think we have a number of rules to review today. I would like to ask my colleague from Winnipeg North about prorogation, a topic we have often talked about together, and about this amendment that could help prevent this tool from being misused. The 2020 prorogation had huge consequences. Some committees, which had been urgently recalled in the middle of a pandemic, were studying r…
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Madam Speaker, while listening to my colleague from Montcalm, I realized that in my speech, I dealt too quickly with Ottawa's paternalism and with the fact that it does not recognize our distinctiveness as a nation, our feelings and our desire to achieve equal opportunity for all. Once again, we are told by know-it-all Ottawa that we are not doing things correctly and that it will impose new condi…
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Madam Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague for his speech, in which he spoke of equality of opportunity, a value that I hold dear. As status of women critic, I would like to bring a very feminist perspective to today’s debate. We have done a lot of work in Quebec to integrate more women into our research chairs. It is very exciting. My colleague from La Prairie spoke of the importance of wo…
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Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague from Mirabel for his speech. I remind members that this is yet another example of Ottawa's paternalistic approach with Quebec. That is not what my question is about, however, because my colleague did a great job explaining what the federal government is doing. This morning I explained that if we want to get more women in academia and in other fields, we should b…
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Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague from Berthier—Maskinongé for agreeing to share his time with me. I am pleased to speak to the Bloc Québécois motion concerning post-secondary studies and research chairs, even though this is a jurisdiction of Quebec and the provinces. As the critic for status of women, I am perfectly aware that this group is still under-represented and that more work needs to be…
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Madam Speaker, actually, listening to today's speeches, I get the impression that we are searching for a cosmetic fix to a problem. We have so much work to do to deal with the causes, and imposing these targets and quotas is not the appropriate way to deal with the problem. I will give my colleague an example. During the pandemic, the numbers showed that women were impeded in their research, that …
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Madam Speaker, as the Bloc Québécois critic for the status of women and the vice-chair of the Standing Committee on the Status of Women, I rise today to speak to Bill C-233 yet again. The bill is now at report stage. It amends the Criminal Code to require a justice, before making a release order in respect of an accused who is charged with an offence against their intimate partner, to consider whe…
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Madam Speaker, the passing of former Bloc Québécois MP Christian Ouellet will be marked in Bromont this Saturday, May 21. He was first elected in 2006 in the riding of Brome—Missisquoi at the venerable age of 72 and was re-elected in 2008. He decided to take his well-deserved retirement in 2011. His love for Quebec always guided his choices and his commitment. He was my political mentor. He starte…
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Mr. Speaker, as a new member representing the Bloc Québécois in the Inter-Parliamentary Union, and on behalf of all my colleagues, I would like to wish him the very best in his new endeavours at the United Nations. In a world context that reminds us that we must work as much as possible across party lines to promote peace, I sincerely wish him good luck and thank him, on behalf of the Bloc Québéco…
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Madam Speaker, I agree with my colleague from Kingston and the Islands that my colleague from Jonquière gives good speeches. I also agree that there is a dangerous tendency towards populism and easy solutions to false problems on the Conservative side. On that we agree. I would like to talk about the tourism and cultural businesses that are so integral to the economy in my riding of Shefford. It i…
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague from Ottawa Centre for his speech. I would like to hear what he has to say about the amendment proposed by the Bloc Québécois. We want to replace “immediately revert” to prepandemic rules with “gradually revert” to them. During the pandemic, I consulted with cultural and tourism organizations in Shefford on various emergency committees. They were calling for predi…
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Madam Speaker, the interpreter said that she did not receive the member's amendment, so it is harder for her to provide an interpretation of it.
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Madam Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague from New Westminster—Burnaby for his speech. I really feel for the people of British Columbia who have had to deal with the terrible, direct effects of climate change. The member says he wants to go the extra mile to protect our environment, so how can he support a budget and a government that continue to perpetuate greenwashing, trying to convince…
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Mr. Speaker, the couple was on their way home from a breakfast out: croissants, yogourt and lattes. Smiling, the first woman said to the other, “I love you, my darling.” Her girlfriend smiled while taking a sip of coffee and responded, “I love you too.” They left the small café. The sun was shining as they walked along happily, hand in hand. Behind them someone yelled, “Hey lesbians, aren't you as…
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Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for his speech. The committee in question existed before the election was called. That is another consequence of the snap election that was held last year. As far as I know, the situation in China has not changed since then. As the critic for status of women, I am particularly concerned about what is happening to Uighur women. My colleague talked a lot about hum…
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Mr. Speaker, as the pandemic is coming to an end, the annual pro-life demonstration has returned to Parliament Hill. People who oppose women's rights and safe abortions of course have the right to demonstrate, and Parliament Hill is the most appropriate place to do so. It is certainly more appropriate than intimidating young women outside clinics. The Bloc Québécois has no problem with the religio…
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his speech on the bill. As he mentioned, this week, we are highlighting the importance of jurors' work within our justice system. Jury duty is an obligation. Because it is an obligation, the government has to help jurors as best it can by making their task less arduous. The testimony in certain trials can be difficult to listen to. Would recognizing the possib…
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Madam Speaker, it is with great interest that I rise today to speak to Bill C-11, the online streaming act, which follows on Bill C‑10, an act to amend the Broadcasting Act. First, as a student of journalism, media arts and technology at the Cégep de Jonquière, which I would like to give a shout-out to, then as a politics and communications student at Université de Sherbrooke and even recently as …
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Madam Speaker, I hear so many things from the Conservatives. I have to believe we will achieve something with this, especially if it is enshrined in law. I am not concerned. I think we have proven that the bill must go ahead. The last time the Broadcasting Act was reviewed was in 1991. It is high time that we moved forward on this. In any case, all of these issues will be resolved. There has been …
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Madam Speaker, I began addressing this when I answered the previous question from my Conservative colleague. I find it hard to understand. There is a lot of disinformation. Legal opinions have shown that the Conservatives' arguments are unfounded. The committee's study will address that. Furthermore, I do not understands the attacks on artists. It is said that the bill responds to the representati…
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Madam Speaker, discoverability applies to French-language content. My colleague from Beauport—Limoilou pointed out in her speech that she has a hard time finding French-language content on these platforms. This also applies to our indigenous peoples, who need visibility. Last week we had a debate on missing and murdered indigenous women and girls. There are all kinds of stories in the news that sh…
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Madam Speaker, Russia and Canada are fighting the same fight. It is not me saying it, I have heard it from people on the Conservative benches. Some people compare this bill and its threat of dictatorship to the disinformation campaign in Russia. That is serious. That is going pretty far. My colleague talked about violating freedom of expression and pointed to one of the committee witnesses as an e…
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Madam Speaker, Camille Laurin, father of the Charter of the French Language, would have turned 100 today. To mark the occasion, every minister responsible for the French language over three decades paid tribute to him in an open letter. They reiterated the importance of constantly taking action to enhance and promote our national language. On behalf of the Bloc Québécois, I am taking this opportun…
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Madam Speaker, my colleague spoke a great deal about the importance of dealing with disinformation. One of the ways to do that is through our local media, which is interested in what is happening in the community and reports on local events in a factual way. Local media is essential. Back home in Quebec, these local, independent and community media outlets are calling for this bill. Obviously we m…
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Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for her speech. There is a lot of talk about this bill and she is asking that it be reworked. Is she prepared to work with us? She quickly touched on the issue of local news, something that is important to me. Back home, local media outlets got in touch with me about this bill. The Bloc Québécois really wants to ensure that the bill is in line with our proposals…
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Madam Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague, the dean of the House, for his speech. It was interesting to hear him talk about the time when he first got into politics. Here we are in 2022 still having to demand that our areas of jurisdiction be respected. This week I attended a summit on the dignity of seniors. I asked a question in the House yesterday about the importance of increasing their purchas…
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Madam Chair, my colleague mentioned various solutions, such as housing. For indigenous women to escape the cycle of violence, they must have the means to regain power over their own lives. However, some communities have truly appalling housing, others do not even have water and some do not even have electricity. How can we give these women a safe and adequate environment so that they have what the…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, I was in Quebec City yesterday to attend a conference on seniors' living conditions. It was hosted by the Coalition for the Dignity of Seniors, which represents 150,000 people. All the attendees were unanimous in denouncing the Prime Minister for creating two classes of seniors. Everyone sees that the skyrocketing price of food and housing does not affect 74-year-olds differently than…
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Mr. Speaker, obviously that is not enough. Continuing to be there for seniors does not simply involve telling people between the ages of 65 and 74 to go back to work if they need more money. That is not helpful; it is insulting. What would be helpful is to give every senior $110 more a month, every month. That would keep their purchasing power from eroding and help them cope with unforeseen situat…
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