Government Orders
Madam Speaker, one thing my colleague's party promised in 2019 was to make sure that the CBSA had the resources it needs to detect and stop the flow of weapons at our borders. Just like the Conservatives did with Veterans Affairs when they cut a third of the staff, which has led to a backlog of over 40,000 disability applications for veterans, they cut 1,000 positions at the CBSA, which are requir…
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Mr. Speaker, I greatly appreciate the member's thoughts. As my colleague from the Liberal Party suggested, this is a time when we are in this House and we all agree on something, which is nice. I would like to see the bill fast-tracked so we can focus on really important issues. I have been talking a lot about the toxic drug crisis. I know my colleague cares deeply about this as well. The expert t…
Read full speech →Adjournment Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, it was not long ago that we had a Conservative government that removed a tariff of 25% for those who wanted to build ferries outside of our country. That money could have been used to develop shipyards in our country. We hear from Conservatives that they want faster and cheaper ships built outside of Canada. We know we can do better. Right now, the Liberals still are not investing in …
Read full speech →Adjournment Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, it is a privilege tonight to rise to talk about a project we would like to see in our riding for a floating dry dock in the Alberni Valley. We have the only deep-sea port on the west coast of Vancouver Island, and we have an incredible company, Canadian Maritime Engineering, that is working in partnership with the City of Port Alberni and first nations and that is well supported in ou…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Madam Speaker, it is a huge honour to present this petition today on behalf of constituents who are calling on the government to address the climate emergency. They are calling on the Prime Minister and the Government of Canada to enact just transition legislation that would reduce emissions by at least 60% below 2005 levels and make significant contributions to emissions reductions in countries i…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, Canada is experiencing a mental health crisis. Every day it is costing lives. The Liberals have promised time and again to address this crisis, but they have broken their promises. In their election platform, the Liberals promised $4.5 billion to expand mental health services, but there is no sign of this in the budget. They promised to fully fund a three-digit suicide prevention hotl…
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Madam Speaker, one thing we do agree on is that we need to provide relief to Canadians from skyrocketing inflation. We agree on that, but how we get there has been challenging. We have seen skyrocketing oil prices and we have seen bank fees go up and we have seen grocery costs go up. We have seen record profits for big corporations, including oil companies, grocery companies and banks. Conservativ…
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Mr. Speaker, first and foremost, it is great to see you back in the chair. I am really honoured to present this petition on behalf of constituents of mine. They are citing that Canada's electoral system, from its very inception, has been a first-past-the-post system, unfairly resulting in either a Liberal or a Conservative government, and that proportional representation is a principle that says t…
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Mr. Speaker, we proposed taxing the windfall pandemic profits of big corporations and sending them back to Canadians through the GST rebate and the Canada child benefit as a way for the federal government to provide immediate relief to Canadians and make the wealthy pay their fair share. The official leader of the opposition has put forward an extension of wanting to work with us, but this motion …
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to extend happy birthday wishes to my colleague's daughter. We know that the Conservative motion, by cutting the GST and by eliminating the carbon tax on oil and gas, will actually just lead to an increased amount on our deficit. Also, it will do nothing to stop oil and gas companies from earning skyrocketing profits on the backs of everyday Canadians. We know that specul…
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Madam Speaker, the New Democrats continue to put forward proposals to double the GST rebate and to increase the child tax credit by $500, yet the Conservatives do not support that. In fact, they continue to stand up for big oil. The member talked about the system being rigged; it is rigged, because Liberals are afraid to tax oil and gas. Who needs oil lobbyists, when we have the Conservative Party…
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Madam Speaker, we know that there are critical needs right now for wild Pacific salmon. This is in the budget, as well as really important investments for child care and for co-op housing. We have had a vacancy in investments for co-op housing. Both Conservatives and Liberals have abandoned non-market housing, and now we are finally seeing a step forward. It is not exactly what the NDP would like,…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Madam Speaker, it is now almost two years since a wonderful young Tla-o-qui-aht First Nation woman was shot and killed by a police officer in Edmundston, New Brunswick, during a wellness check. Family, friends, community members and Canadians seeking justice for Chantel Moore are currently walking to Victoria and will arrive tomorrow. I am unable to be with them. Instead, I rise today to remind th…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, the Liberal government has finally approved British Columbia's request to decriminalize simple possession of controlled substances after dragging its feet for months. This is an important step to stop the harms of failed drug policy, but we are dealing with a national crisis. There are thousands of families burying their loved ones outside of B.C. Provincial and local governments shou…
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Mr. Chair, in the confidence and supply agreement with the NDP, it was outlined that beneficial ownership would be a key priority. Will that apply to fisheries and oceans?
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Mr. Chair, other industries, such as forestry and agriculture, have also faced massive upheavals for the same reasons that fisheries are being forced to restructure, such as climate events and newly developed conservation policies, yet workers and owner-operators in these resource-adjacent industries have been heavily supported both federally and provincially with funding to withstand the transiti…
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Mr. Chair, we had the Hanjin Seattle, and we have seen the Zim Kingston. We have seen some marine debris spills on our coast. I have talked to the minister about creating the ecosystem service fee on trans cargo shipment units coming into Canada. Has she spoken to the transport minister about creating a fund that can go to coastal and indigenous communities to have a tactical response plan in plac…
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Mr. Chair, I was just at French Creek Marina, which the minister knows quite well as she travels to Lasqueti Island. They are bursting at capacity. They cannot find enough slips for boats. It is impacting our economy, our culture and our access to food security. Will the minister meet with marinas like that and look at ways she can invest in infrastructure to support those working harbours?
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Mr. Chair, does the minister actually believe super trawlers should be able to process at sea instead of our Pacific exclusive economic zone? There is a current proposal right now to the department to allow this to happen. This would shutter shore processing plants and rendering facilities and actually impact communities, such as Ucluelet in my riding.
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Mr. Chair, why are super trawlers given access to our exclusive economic zone when small independent owner-operators are shut down? In the Pacific, super trawlers had access to our Pacific north coast in 2021, when almost all of the small-boat salmon fleet was shut down. Maybe the minister can explain.
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Mr. Chair, gathering facts is really important, and ensuring there is a public registry of who owns the quota is critical to being able to making decisions. Will the minister bring back limits on corporate and foreign ownership-backed Pacific fisheries? The limit was 12% from the 1960s up until the 1990s.
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Mr. Chair, I think it is clear in the report that they do not want any more transfers of foreign ownership and they want to know who the beneficial owners are. Does the minister agree that we should have limits on corporate foreign ownership of our fisheries?
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Mr. Chair, I mean all negotiations. In terms of corporate foreign ownership, I have been here a lot talking about sharing risks and benefits, and the report from FOPO, which we are still waiting for action from the government on. Does the minister believe that our harvesters and coastal communities should be the primary beneficiaries of Canadian fisheries?
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Mr. Chair, when does the department intend to advise non-indigenous stakeholders of the amount of access being sought in the latest round of negotiations?
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Mr. Chair, has the department worked with indigenous stakeholders to see if there are any other means by which to satisfy the right?
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Mr. Chair, does the department intend to continue to expropriate access to areas where there are no expressions of interest through “willing buyer, willing seller”?
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Mr. Chair, we have not seen the numbers in the budget dedicated and committed to that, but we are encouraged to hear that, especially when we are asking the minister to get to the table immediately with the crab fishers I mentioned. Does the department fully understand the social and economic considerations for all parties when access is being sought?
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Mr. Chair, how long does the department intend to exclusively continue to use the fisheries to satisfy treaty rights? I have spoken to the minister repeatedly, asking her to ask the minister of CIRNAC to supply funds for reconciliation so that reconciliation does not fall on the backs of a small group of fishers and it is shared by all Canadians. Maybe she can speak to that. We have talked about i…
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Mr. Chair, that is not a commitment. I am hoping the minister can commit to that. In terms of reconciliation, how long does the department intend to exclusively continue using the fishery to satisfy treaty rights?
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Mr. Chair, does the minister intend to include owner-operators in the blue economy strategy?
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Mr. Chair, when will the minister share what information will be public? She says she will get that to me. When will she get that to me?
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Mr. Chair, will the minister tell us how many cases are under review of those that are in violation?
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Mr. Chair, if so, is its compliance being monitored?
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Mr. Chair, does the minister support owner-operator?
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Mr. Chair, will the minister commit to taking a whole-of-ecosystem management-based approach? She has heard me talk about this endlessly, because we see harvests of some species impacting other species. Will she gear her department to take a whole-of-ecosystem management approach, especially with the blue economy?
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Chair, how will the minister ensure that the PSSI Pacific salmon commercial licence retirement program supports coastal communities and owner-operator fishers, avoids further corporate consolidation of the fishing fleet and holds industry participants responsible for supporting sustainable harvest transformation?
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Mr. Chair, it has been a year since the Department of Fisheries and Oceans announced the $647-million Pacific salmon strategy initiative. In that time, there has been really no genuine engagement with first nations. The Nuu-chah-nulth nations especially are saying to me that to implement the PSSI on the west coast of Vancouver Island, they need to be engaged clearly. Indeed, all the evidence to da…
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Mr. Chair, how many licences is the minister committed to buying back to ensure that there is no net loss of traps and that the “willing buyer, willing seller” policy is adhered to?
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Mr. Chair, first I want to thank the minister and her team, and you, Mr. Chair, for being here tonight. It has been four hours. Crab harvesters in area E, Tofino, have been at a continued significant economic loss since the April 1 trap reallocation. The government still has not responded to their requests for an independently facilitated negotiation process, a process that is imperative to help s…
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Mr. Chair, the installation of intensive subtidal geoduck aquaculture is proposed for the herring spawning grounds in Lambert Channel which, according to Department of Fisheries and Oceans records, are the source of 38% of all the herring spawn that has ever occurred on the B.C. coast and would support the whole Strait of Georgia marine ecosystem. Will the minister put the protection of the spawni…
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Madam Speaker, I request that the motion be adopted on division.
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Madam Speaker, people across the country are dying from the toxic drug supply. Instead of receiving help, they are being punished. A recent media report found that Black and indigenous people continue to be disproportionately arrested on drug possession charges. This echoes what Health Canada's expert task force on substance use told the government over a year ago. Decriminalization will help Cana…
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Madam Speaker, at the conclusion of this stage of debate on Bill C-216, I first want to thank the members who have spoken today. Canadians deserve a debate on how to respond to a public health emergency that has been raging for more than six years and has cost more than 27,000 lives. Bill C-216 is the first piece of comprehensive legislation aimed at addressing this crisis debated in this House. W…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, there are things I truly appreciated in my colleague's speech and things I do not agree with. One thing he touched on were the wait times at the airports. When we see the wait times at airports or passport services, we know the government has not adequately staffed the resources to respond to the increase in the amount of travel. We have constantly heard complaints like these from C…
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Madam Chair, is disaggregated data being collected, and have contracts been awarded to organizations that fail to meet their obligations on employment equity?
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Madam Chair, has the minister heard of the expert task force on substance use?
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Madam Chair, that sounds like a no. This is a group of experts who were convened by Health Canada to make recommendations to the government on federal drug policy. The expert task force had five key messages related to Canada's substance use strategy. One message was, “Bold actions are urgently needed, including...the expansion of safer supply.” I asked the minister at the Standing Committee on Go…
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Madam Chair, here is a quote. It is something the minister wrote in the PSPC 2022-23 departmental plan. It says: Nearly two years into the COVID-19 pandemic, protecting the health and safety of Canadians remains a priority for the Government of Canada. PSPC will continue to play a central role in our response by procuring critical supplies, including vaccines, tests and therapeutics. It has now be…
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Madam Chair, is the minister saying she did not procure for any COVID response needs without direction completely from the provinces?
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Madam Chair, 20 people a day are dying in this country because of a toxic overdose, and 20 families are getting the call. If the government had the political will, how quickly could a national safe supply program be established in this country?
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