Parliamentary Speeches

Government Orders

Mr. Speaker, congratulations on your position. As well, I would like to offer my congratulations to the hon. minister not only on his appointment, but also for his election. I am looking forward to working with him for the first time in this upcoming Parliament. I appreciate a lot of what the minister had to say about tourism, considering that northern Ontario is home to many tourist operators and…

Statements by Members

Mr. Speaker, I congratulate you on your re-election. As this is my first opportunity to rise in the 44th Parliament, I want to thank the people of the Kenora riding for once again placing their trust in me to serve in this chamber. It is an honour to be in this position, and I am thankful to everyone who helped our team make it possible. During the last campaign, I heard from countless individuals…

Statements by Members

Mr. Speaker, my riding of Kenora is full of natural beauty that attracts visitors wishing to enjoy the great outdoors. However, the small business owners in our communities are facing a second COVID summer and their life's work has been pushed to the brink. These job creators face mountains of red tape and regulations at the best of times, and with the added failure of the Liberal government to se…

Oral Questions

Mr. Speaker, now that provinces are reopening, our top priority must be an economic recovery in all sectors and all regions of the country, but the government has done nothing to help small businesses and tourist outfitters in northwestern Ontario who are struggling to maintain operations and have now lost the better part of two summers. They need hope that they will reopen to a thriving economy. …

Government Orders

Mr. Speaker, in a previous answer the member was speaking about our mental health plan. I would like to give him an opportunity to touch on some of the details in that plan, such as the 988 hotline, and how important it is to help Canadians.

Statements By Members

Mr. Speaker, as the economy reopens, our focus must be on securing the future and supporting the families who have been impacted by the pandemic. It is vital that we have a strong recovery in all sectors and all regions of the country. That means targeted stimulus to the hardest-hit sectors and supporting the development of natural resources across northern Ontario. Recently, the first nations of …

Government Orders

Madam Chair, I think I speak for all members in the House in saying we will certainly miss the member's voice in the chamber and we wish her well in whatever she will be doing next. There are quite a few things to address in the member's question. Yes, we have to implement all the Truth and Reconciliation Commission's recommendations. When it comes down to it, the government has to decide whether,…

Government Orders

Madam Chair, I certainly agree with the Truth and Reconciliation Commission's finding that this most certainly did constitute a cultural genocide. I know there has been much discussion about this today in the chamber, and I certainly agree with the member on that.

Government Orders

Madam Chair, I certainly do not want to speak for any other members of the chamber or for other parties, but I do believe that this is the action we need to take. We have to have that transparent process. I appreciate the comments from the parliamentary secretary, and I certainly hope that through this debate we can continue to move forward with more concrete action and have all parties on board f…

Government Orders

Madam Chair, my apologies for that. As I was saying, many of these children who were victims of abuse fled the schools and died alone as they tried desperately to get back to their parents. Many know the story of Chanie Wenjack, a young Ojibway boy from Martin Falls who, at the age of 12, attempted to escape from a residential school in Kenora. He tragically succumbed to the conditions and died in…

Government Orders

Madam Chair, when a mass grave containing the remains of 215 school children was discovered in Kamloops, it sent major shock waves throughout the nation. However, for many indigenous people, although the discovery opened tremendously deep wounds, it was not a surprise. According to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, at least 3,200 children died while attending residential schools. As I under…

Government Orders

Mr. Speaker, it is great to resume my remarks. Before question period, I was talking about some of the ways the government has been spending a lot more money and getting worse results for Canadians. I used the incidence of food insecurity in the north and the government's approach with nutrition north as a good example of that. I will go into more detail about some of the concerns I have with the …

Government Orders

Mr. Speaker, I know my colleague, the member for Lac-Saint-Jean, works very hard for his region. He spoke quite a bit about seniors and the hardships they are facing, which is something I have been hearing a lot about in my riding as well. I gave a statement about this in the House earlier today. I could not agree more with the member on the fact that the Liberal government has not done enough to …

Government Orders

Mr. Speaker, I am very interested in seeing the report and the work the member's committee has done. It is a very good point. I could probably talk for 10 minutes about that, which I am not allowed to, but the point the member made about the difference in services between urban and rural I could not have said better myself, to be quite honest. The government needs to do a lot more to support rural…

Government Orders

Mr. Speaker, unfortunately, my friend from the Bloc and I disagree on this issue quite a bit. I and many members of my party believe that we need to be working with our oil and gas and natural resource industries to ensure we are helping them be a part of getting to net zero and reaching our climate goals, not demonizing and attacking them in the way the Liberal government has. I respect the quest…

Government Orders

Madam Speaker, I appreciate the opportunity to be back physically in the chamber. It is great to be back after participating virtually for quite some time. I think all my colleagues would agree that we hope this becomes to norm once again in the not too distant future. With the limited time I have before question period, I would like to emphasize, as many of my colleagues have raised already today…

Statements by Members

Mr. Speaker, seniors across northern Ontario and across the country are struggling. I have heard from many in my riding who have shared their difficulties living on a fixed income and dealing with the health and mobility challenges that come with age, while they are not getting the supports they need and deserve. On top of that, seniors have had to cope with the pandemic during which they have bee…

Government Orders

Mr. Speaker, I agree with the member for Saanich—Gulf Islands. That is why I noted that I was cautiously optimistic about the funding that has been allocated in this budget. I am happy to see it, but we know that tourism operators are really hurting and they need a lot of support. To the member's question, what I have been hearing across my riding is that there is only so far that these programs a…

Oral Questions

Madam Speaker, Canadians have been shocked by the housing crisis in Nunavut, where thousands of families are on wait-lists and many homes are overcrowded, in poor condition or riddled with mould. Yet, somehow Nunavut's housing needs have been completely overlooked under the rapid housing program and are once again underfunded in the latest Liberal budget. Why is the government so reluctant to supp…

Government Orders

Madam Speaker, working on the INAN committee, we heard testimony from a lot of witnesses, a lot of indigenous people and organizations that did not feel they were adequately consulted in the process of this bill. That is very concerning for me and should be concerning for a lot of people. I wonder if the minister would agree that pushing through legislation that would greatly impact indigenous peo…

Government Orders

Madam Speaker, I will answer in English, because my colleague will probably actually understand me better than if I tried my French. It is important to note, as I have said in my speech, that the current Prime Minister talks a very good game on climate change, but when it comes to delivering, he has really been absent. I do believe the government needs to do more to work with our industries and to…

Government Orders

Madam Speaker, I believe there need to be binding targets on the government. I am not looking at 2030 or 2050. We need to ensure that we are doing our job to hold the government to account. Right now, I believe that is an important step, and I would add as well that we need to make sure the advisory body that is working with the government on this needs to have representatives from our energy indu…

Government Orders

Madam Speaker, I always appreciate the member for Kingston and the Islands asking me questions and participating in the debate. We know he has a lot of thoughts and a lot of opinions he likes to share. I would just say, with respect to the member, that we clearly disagree on the substance of the low-carbon savings account he was talking about. We know this is a measure that would keep more money i…

Government Orders

Madam Speaker, it is an honour to join the discussion today on Bill C-12. This is an issue of great importance for me as climate change is an urgent issue for me and for many of my constituents across the Kenora riding and of course, many Canadians from coast to coast to coast. In northwestern Ontario, we have seen many environmental changes and challenges in recent years. There have been shorter …

Government Orders

Madam Speaker, the member for Calgary Midnapore did a really good job of highlighting a lot of the concerns we have and a lot of the issues we have seen come up when it comes to the Liberal government's inaction. It has failed to move quickly on a number of concerns, and that is where I would like to pick up my question. Obviously, the government has truly failed to facilitate a negotiated settlem…

Madam Speaker, the member for Dauphin—Swan River—Neepawa did a good job of emphasizing the importance of this issue and what it means to those in the agricultural sector. I am wondering this. Does he want to expand on that a bit more? Maybe he could share specific concerns or things he has heard from folks in his riding about the impact this will have on the agricultural sector.

Statements by Members

Mr. Speaker, without question this pandemic has been difficult for constituents in my riding of Kenora, and indeed all Canadians. This past year has made clear the mental health crisis that we face. That is why, as we work to secure our future, Canada’s Conservatives will ensure that supporting mental health would be a key pillar of our recovery from COVID-19. We would restructure how we support a…

Government Orders

Mr. Speaker, my colleague had great comments about the importance of the supply chain and the jobs, and the impacts this would have across the country, the grand scale of the things that are hinging on this situation. He also mentioned a few folks from his riding. I am wondering if he would have any more comments on some of the concerns he has heard from those in his riding who are obviously watch…

Government Orders

Madam Speaker, I know this is a topic my friend from Avignon—La Mitis—Matane—Matapédia is very passionate about. However, I will note to her that it is Canadian industry that in many ways is leading the way in the fight against climate change. Whether it is energy, forestry, mining or cement, we are seeing Canadian industry reducing GHG emissions by measures the government can only dream of right …

Government Orders

Madam Speaker, I know there is a lot that my colleague from the Bloc and I do not agree on, but I believe we can likely both agree that one-size-fits-all, Ottawa-knows-best solutions are not the most efficient and not the most ideal for Canadians. Given that the Liberals have moved forward with a very big bureaucratic solution to child care, I wonder if my friend from the Bloc has any more comment…

Adjournment Proceedings

Mr. Speaker, unfortunately, the parliamentary secretary once again used those terms, “military style” and “assault style”, without a clear definition of what those are. He claims that the firearms that the government has moved to ban are not used for hunting or sports shooting. However, in my riding, many people are seeing the guns that they do use for hunting and sports shooting on the Liberals' …

Government Orders

Madam Speaker, the member spoke about a lot of spending. Obviously, this budget is big on spending, which is par for the course for the government. However, one thing that concerns me with all of the spending is that there is no path back to a balanced budget. As the youngest member of the House and the first member to be elected from generation Z, I am quite concerned about what this spending wil…

Government Orders

Madam Speaker, I thank the parliamentary secretary for the work she does to support indigenous communities across the country, which is a very important issue for me and many in my riding. One of the things she mentioned was child care. The Liberals have committed $30 billion over five years for child care in the budget, as I understand. Also, as I understand, we would be paying nearly $40 billion…

Government Orders

Madam Speaker, I share some of the frustrations my colleague has with the Liberal government. In speaking with business owners, workers and people across my riding of Kenora, there are a lot of concerns about the slow pace of the vaccine rollout and the government's mishandling of the procurement process. We were hoping to see more details on that in the budget, but it is very short on those. I wo…

Adjournment Proceedings

Mr. Speaker, in March I asked the public safety minister why his government is moving to confiscate legally purchased firearms from hunters and sport shooters instead of getting tough on real criminals. In response, the minister claimed that his government is putting “Canadians' safety first.” However, if the Liberals were trying to put safety first, they would not have voted against a Conservativ…

Adjournment Proceedings

Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the comments from the parliamentary secretary, but unfortunately they once again did not answer my questions. We know that public health officials and experts are guiding a lot of the decisions on safe reopening but, what I am asking for is transparency from the government. We are asking for clear answers based on the public health advice it is getting on how we might be …

Oral Questions

Mr. Speaker, yesterday I spoke to the chief of the Pikangikum First Nation in my riding about the urgent need for policing resources in the community. This issue had previously put the health of residents in jeopardy and continues to pose a safety risk for residents. Chief Owen has told me that RCMP officers would be welcome in the community as an interim measure until an alternative policing solu…

Adjournment Proceedings

Mr. Speaker, I would like to talk today about the tourism communities in the riding of Kenora. We know that many tourism communities have been very hard hit by COVID-19, and my riding is no exception. The livelihoods of many tourist outfitters, camp and hotel owners and guides, as well as businesses such as restaurants and retail stores, are all reliant on visitors from outside of our region. Cana…

Private Members' Business

Madam Speaker, it is great to see you in the chair again. I hope to join you in Ottawa very soon. It is an honour to join the debate today on Bill C-230, which deals with a national strategy to redress environmental racism. Preserving our natural environment is one of the most important issues of our time as is building a more just society and supporting Canadians of all races and from all walks o…

Government Orders

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his comments and for the opportunity to practise my French a bit. I appreciate a lot of the comments my colleague made. Obviously the pandemic has had a devastating toll from an economic point of view, and it speaks to the importance of having a plan for getting our economy back on track and a plan for reopening. I am wondering if my colleague has any thoughts…

Government Orders

Madam Speaker, I would like to pick up on some of the frustration that the member clearly showed in terms of how the government has managed itself, on this issue and many others, throughout the pandemic. It seems like the Liberals talk a lot about team Canada, and they want to see a team Canada approach, but their version of that is for all the opposition members, without question, to follow what …

Oral Questions

Mr. Speaker, Conservatives support common sense measures to stop gun violence. The Liberal government claims to, but its actions show that it would rather criminalize regular Canadians than get tough on real criminals. Right now, it is moving to confiscate legally purchased guns from responsible hunters and sport shooters, while just a few weeks ago it voted against increasing sentences for crimin…

Routine Proceedings

With regard to the $4.03 million in funding announced in 2017 by the government to bring high-speed Internet upgrades to Madsen, Iskatewizaagegan #39 Independent First Nation, Stratton, Minahico, the Nigigoonsiminikaaning First Nation, and the Anishinaabeg of Naongashiing: (a) what is the current status of each of these upgrade projects, including what specific work has been completed on each proj…

Statements by Members

Mr. Speaker, firearms owners in my riding and across the country are deeply concerned about the Liberals' misguided gun confiscation scheme. This latest attack on lawful gun owners is just another way the Liberals are proving to be out of touch with rural and northern Canada. This plan will be costly to the Canadian government, it will create more hoops for hunters and sports shooters to jump thro…

Government Orders

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague for Calgary Midnapore for her comments and for her great work raising issues pertaining to the airline sector. In northwestern Ontario, obviously this is a very important sector not just for tourism, but to service many remote communities and the vast majority of the 42 first nations that I represent. I am wondering if the member could speak more to …

Government Orders

Madam Speaker, what struck me about the comments of my friend from Winnipeg North was that after speaking about what he calls misinformation, he proceeded to say that the government has supposedly done such a great job supporting small businesses throughout the course of the pandemic. I know many small business owners, particularly in the tourism and hospitality sectors, who would very much disagr…

Adjournment Proceedings

Mr. Speaker, in 2017 the government announced a partnership with Bell Canada to upgrade the Internet in northwestern Ontario. Over $4 million in funding was announced to bring this high-speed connection to a number of communities, including Madsen and Shoal Lake 39 in the Kenora riding. These communities were explicitly promised a high-speed connection by the Liberal government. Now, four years la…

Adjournment Proceedings

Mr. Speaker, the parliamentary secretary seemed like she was about to answer my question, but then was not quite able to get there, so I will try again. I am happy to know that this is, in her words, “progressing well”, but at the same time it has been four years. This promise was made quite some time ago and many residents in my communities, again Madsen and Shoal Lake 39, which I do not believe …

Statements by Members

Madam Speaker, temperatures in my riding and across northern Ontario have been around -30°C, or even colder very recently. This is especially dangerous for the homeless population. It is no exaggeration to say that this can be a life-or-death situation. Volunteers with groups like Compassionate Kenora and Kenora Moving Forward have set up warming centres to shelter the homeless from this extreme c…

Statements by Members

Mr. Speaker, I want to take this opportunity to thank all of the front-line workers across the riding of Kenora and all of northwestern Ontario who have stepped up to keep us safe during this pandemic. As we approach the one-year mark of COVID-19 lockdowns, we are all greatly appreciative of their work and their sacrifice. They have truly done an amazing job. Unfortunately, the federal government …