Government Orders
Madam Speaker, the bill, I gather, will go to the official languages committee when it is adopted at second reading, and I think it has support across the House to pass second reading. However, concurrent with that, the immigration committee, which I sit on, is doing a study of many of these issues and I believe will bring recommendations to the House for specific points of action. I think part of…
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Madam Speaker, speaking from the perspective of an Alberta MP, there is great demand for people to be able to learn French. I see that in my community, and much of that is a question of what is within our education system. In my riding, we have a number of francophone schools for the francophone community. We have a very large and very successful French immersion program as well for people of all …
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Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for his good question. It is obvious that this bill does not have enough teeth to solve the problem. I spoke about some measures that I believe we should implement. I think we need to address the problems of significant backlogs. I think people need to have clarity around the reasons refusals are given. I think we need to take the targets we have more seriously.…
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Madam Speaker, there was something very odd in the member's question, so I was just quickly researching this. The member cited Bill C-32 from the last Parliament as an achievement of the government. That bill did not pass. The bill was tabled for first reading on June 15, 2021. What happened to that bill? The government decided to call a premature election, which dissolved Parliament and, therefor…
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Madam Speaker, I am very pleased to have the opportunity to participate in this evening's debate. My French is a bit rusty so I will begin by summarizing what I want to say. After that I will give more details in English. First, the French language is very important to me. In my family, my wife and I speak a little French, but my children do not speak it at all, so it is very important for us to b…
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Madam Speaker, one of the things that I note in the bill is the section on francophone immigration. It talks about the minister creating a policy on francophone immigration, but without really any specifics. We have had a target on francophone immigration that we failed to meet, and part of the problem is there have been very high refusal rates, particularly for applicants from francophone Africa.…
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Madam Speaker, just briefly to the previous question, I think all members of the House agree that it is a terrible thing that a journalist was killed in a war zone. However, to presume, as one member of this House did, that this person was intentionally shot, execution-style, is not something that any independent investigation has concluded. It is important to have that independent investigation b…
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Madam Speaker, to the member's final comments, I serve on the foreign affairs committee and we are concurrently trying to study the issue of Taiwan, the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the question of global vaccine equity. All three are critical points of global crisis. We are putting forward the humble suggestion that the special committee on Canada-China relations, which was a multidisciplinary…
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Madam Speaker, the issue of Nuctech was discussed at certain points in the committee. More broadly, we see this trend where my party, and some members of Parliament in other parties as well, are aware of the significant risks that come with doing business with Chinese state-owned and state-affiliated companies: the risks to our security and also the risks to human rights. Notwithstanding the fact …
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Madam Speaker, I mentioned a number of items in my speech that we should address, but the member mentioned at the end of her question an important point that I did not address directly: the issue of forced labour in our supply chain. The government has been behind on action on this. We could be doing more to collaborate with other countries. There are other countries that have stronger regimes in …
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Madam Speaker, I think there are some similarities, but there are also some important differences. What we have seen in the case of the response to the Russian invasion is that by working together, the community of democratic nations can inflict serious economic consequences through sanctions. In the case of Russia, we on this side of the House believe that there is still more work to do. It is im…
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Madam Speaker, I am so pleased that our party is once again pursuing the resumption of the work of the Special Committee on Canada-China Relations. The committee was initially created in December of 2020, through a motion put forward by the then foreign affairs shadow minister, the member for Durham, and I want to recognize his leadership in bringing this initial motion forward. At the time, about…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Immigration acknowledged at the March 3 meeting of the immigration committee that he was aware that the Conservative platform commitment applied only to non-emergency situations and that he was not aware of targets. I think the minister needs to clarify whether what he said on March 3 or today was accurate. Otherwise, it is a matter of misleading—
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Mr. Speaker, it is not a point of debate. It is a point of misleading the House.
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, misleading the House is a serious matter and I am aware that it requires demonstration that a member or a minister knew they were misleading the House. The Minister of Immigration today made some comments with respect to what allegedly the Conservatives' targets would have been for Afghan immigration. This was the subject of discussion at a March 3 hearing of the immigration committee…
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Madam Speaker, sadly, the critique of our motion the member advances in the speech she just read is quite disgraceful. I mean, her comment that somehow critiquing the violence being committed by the Communist Party of China and the threat that this poses to our own security is impermissible because that might expose people to prejudices is really missing the fundamental point. We have great admira…
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With regard to the reference to a "friendly foreign state" in the Foreign Enlistment Act: (a) how does the government define this term; (b) how is a citizen to know whether or not a particular state is a friendly foreign state; (c) which states are currently considered friendly foreign states; and (d) based on the answer to (c), what is the government’s rationale for determining whether (i) Russia…
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Madam Speaker, I have a number of petitions to present to the House today. The first petition is on Bill S-233, which would make it a criminal offence for people to go abroad and receive an organ taken without consent. It would also create a mechanism by which people could be deemed inadmissible to Canada if they are involved in forced organ harvesting and trafficking. Members may be interested to…
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Madam Speaker, the next petition I am tabling highlights the horrific ongoing situation in Ukraine. The petitioners note recent events, and the fact that the invasion of Ukraine started in 2014, with the invasion and occupation of Crimea and the Donbass, and we have seen the escalation of that violence in recent months. The petitioners have a number of specific asks with respect to the government'…
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Madam Speaker, the third petition I am tabling is on an issue that is very important in my riding, which is carbon capture, utilization and storage. It notes the important role of carbon capture and storage. While some politicians in this place think that carbon capture does not work, it is happening right now in my beautiful riding. The petitioners call on the Government of Canada to introduce ne…
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Madam Speaker, the next petition I am tabling is on a private member's bill that stands in my name: Bill C-257. The petition speaks to the right of people to be protected from discrimination, yet we see increasing political discrimination, which is the discrimination against people on the basis of their political views. The petitioners note that it is in the best interests of Canadian democracy to…
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Madam Speaker, the next petition is with respect to the ongoing humanitarian situation and human rights concerns in Ethiopia. The petitioners are concerned about what has happened in the Tigray region, and want to see increased and ongoing engagement by the government with the Government of Ethiopia around humanitarian access and human rights issues. They also want to see the government engage wit…
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Madam Speaker, the next petition I am tabling is one that specifically highlights the importance of Alberta's industrial heartland to Canada's national economy. Alberta's industrial heartland is in my riding: It goes into the riding of the member for Lakeland and those of a number of other members. Canada's industrial heartland is Canada's largest hydrocarbon-processing region and has 40-plus comp…
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Madam Speaker, the next petition highlights the issue of energy security and brings together a concern for foreign policy security as well as our energy sector: two significant priorities for my constituents. Petitioners want to see the Government of Canada work to immediately put in place a plan for an east-west corridor to replace foreign oil, so that Canada is the source of oil and energy for e…
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Madam Speaker, the next petition that I am tabling highlights concerns about an election platform commitment made by the Liberals to politicize charitable status. The charitable sector is concerned that the government has said explicitly that it wants to bring in a values test associated with charitable status and deny charitable status to pro-life organizations on the basis of their views. We saw…
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Madam Speaker, finally, I want to present another petition on Bill S-223, which is coming up for debate on Friday. It is a bill to make it a criminal offence for a person to go abroad and receive an organ taken without consent. I am very hopeful that debate will collapse on this bill on Friday and we will be able to move it forward. People have been working on this bill for 15 years. It is a no-br…
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Madam Speaker, I do not know why the member would object to praying for the Queen. He might want to use the prayer from Fiddler on the Roof: “May God bless and keep the czar far away from us.” That might be the kind of prayer the member would prefer. In seriousness, he made a general argument against tradition, saying that some things have changed and other things can change too. Of course things …
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Madam Speaker, I do think it is important to note, in response to the member's speech, that the traditions of this place do not emanate from the horrific orgy of violence that was the French Revolution. They emanate from the British tradition of pluralism, of accommodation, and especially here in North America, of the combination of different linguistic, faith and other communities. I am proud of …
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Madam Speaker, it certainly has been an interesting day in the House of Commons, with the Bloc Québécois defending the idea of freedom of religion and conscience. I never thought I would see the day. Members were saying it was an offence that they had to spend 30 seconds listening to something they did not agree with. Imagine all the time I spend in this House hearing things I do not agree with. N…
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Mr. Speaker, today Falun Gong practitioners are gathering on the Hill in advance of May 13, which is Falun Dafa Day. The first petition I am presenting highlights the horrific persecution of Falun Gong practitioners in China. This has been going on for decades. Various resolutions have been passed in other parliaments, such as the U.S. House of Representatives and the European Parliament. Action i…
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Mr. Speaker, the second petition is on a similar issue. The second petition is specifically to highlight Bill S-223, which is a bill that would combat forced organ harvesting and trafficking. It recognizes that this is a practice that happens in certain places around the world and it would seek to make it a criminal offence for a person to go abroad and receive an organ taken without consent. It w…
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Mr. Speaker, the next petition I am tabling is about the situation in Ukraine, in particular the Russian invasion of Ukraine. It is an invasion that, in a sense, started in 2014. Of course, we have a further invasion in recent months. This is obviously an issue that the House has been seized with at various times, and there are a number of specific asks in here. Some of them involve sanctions and …
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Mr. Speaker, the next petition I am tabling is with respect to the political neutrality of charitable status. Petitioners are concerned that the Liberal platform actually talked, in the last election, about politicizing charitable status and applying a values test in association with charitable status, whereby the government would deny charitable status to organizations with which they have partic…
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Mr. Speaker, the next petition that I am tabling highlights the ongoing detention of Huseyin Celil in China. Petitioners note that, as a result of various efforts undertaken, Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor were released after 1,000 days of unjust detention and are very pleased about the release of the two Michaels, but note the continuing detention in China of Canadians, including Mr. Celil, wh…
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Mr. Speaker, the next petition that I want to table highlights the human rights abuses targeting the Hazara community in Afghanistan. Petitioners note that various genocides have impacted the Hazara community over a century and a half, and the situation of the Hazaras was very challenging even prior to the Taliban takeover. Of course, it has gotten much worse. The petitioners want to see the gover…
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Madam Speaker, the next petition that I am tabling is on the issue of vitamin D and its benefits, as well as the data that exists with respect to its beneficial effects in the context of COVID. It highlights a number of detailed studies that have shown that higher levels of vitamin D are associated with more favourable outcomes for individuals who get COVID-19. It cites those studies and notes tha…
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Madam Speaker, I want to focus my question on the issue of freedom of conscience. The member spoke as if a member listening to somebody else deliver a prayer would be an attack on their freedom of conscience, if they did not agree with the prayer. Respectfully, it is an absurd understanding of freedom of conscience to say that my conscience is violated by listening to somebody else pray. I have at…
Read full speech →Adjournment Proceedings
Madam Speaker, I am honoured to represent the riding of Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan in this place. Two things in particular about my riding are that it is very involved in the energy sector and it has a large Ukrainian community. People in this riding are asking me what we can do to support Ukraine in the midst of this horrific invasion by Russia. I think they understand just how critical ener…
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Madam Speaker, respectfully, the parliamentary secretary framed her comments as if there was sort of wide agreement in the House on this issue. Certainly there is wide agreement on some aspects of our response to the horrific invasion of Ukraine, but there are clear differences in that the government does not seem to support the development of the critical infrastructure that is necessary to actua…
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Mr. Speaker, I have a number of petitions to present today. I am not sure of the exact number. The first petition deals with a commitment that was in the Liberals' 2021 election platform. It was a commitment to essentially politicize the application of charitable status. The petitioners, including a broad range of stakeholders, are opposed to the politicization of charitable status, the adding of …
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Mr. Speaker, the next petition I am tabling is in support of Bill S-223, a bill that will be debated on Friday. It is a bill that would make it a criminal offence for a person to go abroad and receive an organ taken without consent. It would also create a mechanism by which someone could be deemed inadmissible to Canada if they were involved in forced organ harvesting and trafficking. Bills on thi…
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Mr. Speaker, in a similar vein, this is a petition that highlights the persecution of Falun Gong practitioners, in particular, in China. They note that it has been decades since the Chinese Communist regime began its campaign, attempting to eradicate Falun Gong as a spiritual practice that simply centres on advancing the ideas of truthfulness, compassion and forbearance. Many resolutions have been…
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Mr. Speaker, the next petition I am tabling highlights the human rights situation in the Tigray region of Ethiopia. The petitioners are very concerned about the ongoing conflict, as well as the humanitarian challenges that have been unfolding, and they call for greater engagement by the Government of Canada in the context of this situation. They want to see the government engaging with the Governm…
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Mr. Speaker, they normally call me last, so I thought I was the only one when I was called. I will table one more for now, and if members agree I will return at the end of other members' presentations. For now, I will table one more petition respecting Bill C-257: a private member's bill I have also put forward in the House. The petition recognizes concerns about increasing political discriminatio…
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Madam Speaker, with respect to the budget implementation act, I know one issue that I have been following very closely is the issue of direction and control. Unreasonable regulations exist in the context of charities law. The budget finally recognized there was a problem with this, but at the same time there are some concerns about whether the solution offered is adequate. We need to fix these reg…
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Madam Speaker, NDP members keep referring to carbon capture and storage. Carbon capture and storage is happening right now. It is happening in my constituency and in other places. There is an existing project that received a substantial amount of public funds, but there is a new project that is being developed, the Polaris project, built entirely with private funds, taking advantage of carbon cred…
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Madam Speaker, the Conservatives have been talking for a very long time about the need for action on money laundering. It is a regular concern I hear from Canadians. It is a particular concern I hear from Canadians from diaspora communities, actually. They raise the fact that money in other countries is taken by corrupt dictatorial regimes and then brought to and used in Canada. In that vein, I wa…
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Madam Speaker, I request that the vote be adopted on division.
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Madam Speaker, I agree with many of the things my friend and colleague said, at least with respect to our needed engagement in the world. Respectfully, the government was a little behind. I recall the first throne speech the government came out with in 2015 talked about the need for “a leaner military.” We have been pushing the government, prior to this invasion, to do more in terms of sanctions a…
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Madam Chair, hearing members in the House speak about their parents reminds us of how imminent some of the things are that we hear about: As younger members, they feel further away, yet they are not so far away. They are within living memory of so many people still alive: parents and members of the House. I want to ask the member a question with respect to the dialogue that has happened between hi…
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