Parliamentary Speeches

Oral Questions

Mr. Speaker, based on news reports, the Prime Minister appears ready to sign an MOU with Alberta that could green-light a brand new pipeline to B.C.'s north coast, behind closed doors, without B.C. at the table, by carving out an exemption to the tanker ban that protects our communities and our coast. I ask the Prime Minister, will he commit today that he will not proceed with the project without …

Statements by Members

Mr. Speaker, after decades of advocacy, caregivers' dream of landed status on arrival finally came with the Canada's home care worker immigration pilot. However, the pilot never opened for intake, and it has been closed without any explanation. This is a betrayal to the people who fought so hard for respect and fairness. Meanwhile, the PR processing backlog for caregivers already in Canada stands …

Private Members' Business

moved that Bill C-233, An Act to amend the Export and Import Permits Act, be read the second time and referred to a committee. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my colleague, the member for Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie, for seconding this important bill. It is with both a heavy heart and a deep sense of purpose that I rise in the House today to speak to Bill C-233, an act to amend the Export and Import Pe…

Private Members' Business

Mr. Speaker, with Canada's current commitment, the export of arms and weaponry to every other country has to go through a permitting process. That has to be measured against risk assessments and the standards outlined in the Arms Trade Treaty, except for the United States. The vast majority of the weaponry that goes to the United States does not require a permitting process. This is what we are ta…

Private Members' Business

Mr. Speaker, the Canadian government continues to argue that Canada is not violating the Arms Trade Treaty. If that is the case, manufacturers here in Canada have nothing to worry about. All I am saying is that we need to make sure when we export to the United States that exports meet Arms Trade Treaty requirements so that we do not contribute our weaponry, parts and components to atrocities and t…

Private Members' Business

Mr. Speaker, that is exactly the point. We want Canadians to feel proud, and we want the Canadian government to take action so we can proudly stand on the international stage and say that Canada is not complicit, because as it stands right now, we are. Our arms, our components and our weaponry are ending up in some of the most brutal conflicts in this world, which are killing civilians using Canad…

Oral Questions

Mr. Speaker, there was much hype about the budget. Much had already been made public in the pre-budget announcements. My question is about what is not in the budget. The impact of the 15% cut across most departments, including the loss of 40,000 workers, is buried in buzzwords like “streamlining”, “modernizing” and “recalibrating”. Will the Prime Minister tell Canadians what programs are being cut…

Government Orders

Mr. Speaker, the NDP agrees to apply the vote and the NDP votes yes.

Oral Questions

Mr. Speaker, the NDP secured $4.3 billion in funding to address urgent unmet housing needs for first nations, Inuit and Métis people living away from their home community, and NICHI, a national indigenous-led organization, helped deliver that interim funding without a hitch. Many shovel-ready projects are desperate for the $4 billion in long-term funding to flow, and with winter fast approaching, …

Oral Questions

Mr. Speaker, deep cuts are being planned for the arts and culture sector in the upcoming budget. Festivals and events could lose $22.5 million, reducing their funding to 2007 levels. The Canada Council for the Arts could face a $50-million cut. Arts and culture not only feed our soul but are a major economic driver, contributing $65 billion to Canada's GDP in 2024 and generating $17 billion in fed…

Routine Proceedings

Mr. Speaker, I rise to table a petition signed by over 10,000 Canadians across the country. The petitioners note that the Prime Minister made the “elbows up” promise to defend Canadian sovereignty and democracy and to distinguish Canada from the dangerous politics of the United States. Bill C-2 is a gross concession to the U.S., ushering in Trump-style legislation at the expense of our well-being.…

Government Orders

With regard to the planned budgetary reductions for Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada and the Canada Border Services Agency: (a) is Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada moving forward with a Deficit Reduction Action Plan in 2024 and, if so, what it the targeted budget reduction for the Department in percentage and actual dollars broken down by (i) Immigration, Refugees and Citiz…

Government Orders

Madam Speaker, the numbers actually come from the minister's transitional binder. I would advise the member to read the bill. The bill is egregious in its violation of rights. There has been plenty wrong, with the Liberals at the helm for the last 10 years, in Canada's immigration system. I can go on for days about that. However, stripping people of their rights or putting women who face gender vi…

Government Orders

Madam Speaker, let me put this on the record for all members to hear very clearly. My mother passed away on October 4. She left China, a Communist regime that attacked her and her family. They fled to Hong Kong and eventually moved to Canada, where we established ourselves. I am not a Communist. Let us be clear about that. I am actually being persecuted right now by the Chinese government under th…

Government Orders

Madam Speaker, let me say this: Over 300 civil organizations are against the bill and are calling for the government to withdraw it. My question is this: Why should a person's claim be ineligible simply because they visited Canada sometime in the past? This is more of an attempt of the government to try to hollow out Canada's refugee determination system, the IRB, by pre-emptively stopping people …

Government Orders

Madam Speaker, perhaps the member should read the bill, Bill C-12. In fact, Bill C-12 takes away those procedural protections. It only relies on the pre-removal risk assessments because a host of people would be stripped of their right to go before the Immigration and Refugee Board to make their application. That is exactly the concern that I have. If the government were to ensure that people's ri…

Government Orders

Madam Speaker, I rise to speak today in strong opposition to Bill C-12, the so-called border security and immigration act. Let us be clear: The bill is not a new approach. It is a repackaging, a political sleight of hand. Bill C-12 is simply Bill C-2 with a fresh coat of paint. It would not fix the fundamental problems of its predecessor. It doubles down on the same anti-migrant, anti-refugee agen…

Government Orders

Madam Speaker, the member spoke about the pre-removal risk assessment process as though somehow that is a fair, due process for asylum seekers. Does the member realize that it actually lacks procedural protections, such as the right to oral hearings, the right to appeal and the right to have a decision made by an independent body? Does he not view those important measures as central for an asylum …

Oral Questions

Mr. Speaker, the Parliamentary Secretary to the Secretary of State for Combatting Crime posted on X, “On behalf of the Government of Canada I am announcing that on the advice of our officials, we have deemed the group Kneecap ineligible to enter our country.” Can the minister advise whether the parliamentary secretary was authorized to make this announcement? If yes, who authorized it? Was it the …

Routine Proceedings

Mr. Speaker, I rise to table a petition signed by close to 1,500 Canadians from coast to coast to coast. The petition is to the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship. The petitioners note that Canada has a moral and legal obligation to uphold international humanitarian law and refugee protections and that the International Court of Justice and United Nations bodies have raised grave co…

Oral Questions

Madam Speaker, the Liberals abruptly announced that they will end door-to-door mail delivery. The elderly and rural, remote and indigenous communities will have a hard time accessing their mail. Those who work nine to five will have to take time off work to get their mail. There is a better way forward. Instead of tearing down Canada Post, will the minister build it up by reintroducing postal bank…

Government Orders

Madam Speaker, yes, the bill, in the form of Bill C-26, has gone before Parliament. Some amendments were adopted, but having said that, I think more work needs to be done. I raised a series of questions in my speech. I would like answers from the government. I would like to hear experts respond to those concerns, and then we can move forward with amendments to address, truly, a bill that would bal…

Government Orders

Madam Speaker, I cannot really answer why the government is doing what it is doing. It is doing many things I do not agree with, such as what it is doing with Canada Post right now. I cannot answer for the government. What I can do, though, is to raise these concerns again and to put them forward. I expect we will hear from expert witnesses at committee. I expect amendments will be put forward, an…

Government Orders

Madam Speaker, I want to thank my colleague, the member for Bourassa, for splitting his time with me. Cybersecurity is no longer a distant concern of experts in back rooms; it is a kitchen table issue. Canadians expect their lights to come on, their paycheque to be deposited, their medical records to be private and their phone to connect them to loved ones without interruption. They expect those t…

Government Orders

Madam Speaker, it is important to respect jurisdictional authority, and I am not sure if the government actually struck the right balance in this bill. I am not sure it has struck the right balance in ensuring that respect is in place, but more importantly, to respect the privacy rights and those measures the government put forward that meet the standard of transparency and accountability. There i…

Routine Proceedings

Madam Speaker, I rise to table a petition with over 7,500 signatures from people across the country. At the time of the signing of the petition, the petitioners noted that the Israeli government's blockade of food and medicines to Gaza had continued for more than 90 days since its commencement on March 2, 2025; that, according to the food security analysis released on May 12, 2025, by the Integrat…

Oral Questions

Mr. Speaker, the NDP fought tooth and nail for the $4-billion investment in the for indigenous, by indigenous urban, rural and northern housing strategy, yet two years later, the money still has not flowed. Shovel-ready projects are stalled while the housing crisis for indigenous, Inuit and Métis peoples continues to escalate. In creating “build Canada homes”, the Prime Minister is admitting that …

Oral Questions

Mr. Speaker, the Liberal government abused its power one too many times by invoking section 107 of the Canada Labour Code as a back door to order striking workers back to work. It did it with rail, port and postal workers and tried to do it with Air Canada flight attendants. CUPE national fought back and defied the back-to-work order. Trade unions across the country stood firmly on the side of fli…

Routine Proceedings

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-233, An Act to amend the Export and Import Permits Act. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to introduce my private member's bill, an act to amend the Export and Import Permits Act, otherwise known as the no more loopholes act. I want to thank my colleague, the member for Winnipeg Centre, for seconding this bill. Canada signed on to the Arms Trade Treaty with the promise …

Oral Questions

Mr. Speaker, on behalf of the NDP, I too rise to pay tribute to the late Hon. John McCallum. It has already been said in this place that he had many accomplishments. He was a recognized and respected economist; he was a recognized academic; he was a recognized parliamentarian; and of course he was a recognized diplomat. In the face of all that work and all that effort, though, before all of it, he…

Government Orders

Madam Speaker, not all people with a visa who are here in Canada want to claim refugee status. Some of them are actually seeking permanent resident status. Some of them are having their permits extended. What has happened with our immigration system is the mismanagement of the system by the Liberal government. In fact, I remember that both the Liberals and Conservatives called for an expansion of …

Government Orders

Madam Speaker, the NDP's view of the bill is that it should actually be scrapped entirely. The government is trying to shove through a whole variety of different things in an omnibus bill, a 140-page bill, stripping Canadians of their basic charter rights and stripping due process, all in the name of border security. If the government wants to tackle safer borders, it should bring forward a bill t…

Government Orders

Madam Speaker, the NDP believes that the bill should be scrapped. We do not support the bill, because it is not what it purports to be. There might be some provisions in it that are good, but they should not be in a giant bill with more than 11 acts all shoved into one bill—

Government Orders

Madam Speaker, Bill C-2, the strong borders act, was introduced in June by the public safety minister. Framed as legislation to strengthen border security, fight fentanyl trafficking and address U.S. irritants, the 140-page omnibus bill would make sweeping changes across more than 11 existing acts, and it proposes a new framework for digital surveillance of Canadians. Many aspects of the bill have…

Routine Proceedings

With regard to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada's pathway for Colombian, Haitian and Venezuelan nationals: (a) how many individuals have been admitted to Canada under this special immigration measure to date, broken down by nationality; (b) what are the initial settlement locations of individuals admitted under the special immigration measure, broken down by province and territory; (c)…

Routine Proceedings

With regard to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada's settlement and resettlement services: (a) what is the national budget for settlement services for each fiscal year starting from 2024-25 and the subsequent three years to 2027-28, aligned with the three-year Immigration Levels Plan, broken down by (i) category or type of service (i.e. language training, information and referrals, integr…

Routine Proceedings

With regard to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada's Special Immigration Measure to facilitate temporary resident visas for certain extended family of citizens and permanent residents in Gaza, which began on January 9, 2024: (a) how many applications have been received under the Special Immigration Measure and how many individuals are accounted for in total among these applications; (b) h…

Government Orders

Mr. Speaker, I am delighted to join the discussion and the debate about Bill C-3. This morning the bill was debated, and I listened intently to the debate back and forth, which was primarily from Conservative members. I actually did not even hear, from the members who stood, about the purpose of the bill, why we are here and the remedy that Bill C-3 is proposing. Let me start with that. Why are we…

Government Orders

Mr. Speaker, in fact, I have been championing the work of the government and want to say to the government that we need to make sure Canada's immigration and citizenship laws are charter-compliant. I have carried this file for more than a decade. The Conservatives first brought it forward in 2006, so it has been 16 years that our charter rights have been violated. I am asking the government and ur…

Government Orders

Mr. Speaker, I think that is exactly the kind of politics and approach that Canadians rejected. That is why the Conservatives are sitting on that side of the House, and that is why their leader lost his own seat. There had to be a by-election for him to win his seat back. However, I am not here for any of that. It does not matter that the NDP has only seven seats in the House. I am going to do wha…

Government Orders

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the member for his question; he is absolutely right. The NDP work collaboratively with the Bloc, and they are absolutely onside to respect the constitutional rights of all Canadians, particularly women. We have debated this matter. In fact, this very issue went before committee for 30 hours. We debated the matter at committee at length. We already debated it in the Hou…

Government Orders

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for her ever-diligent and vociferous attention to the rights of indigenous peoples and holding the government to account. The government, and particularly the member for Winnipeg North, seems to claim that under this bill, part 2 of the bill, it actually respects indigenous rights through its consultation provisions. The Liberals seem to be oblivious about the UN …

Government Orders

Mr. Speaker, I wonder if the member could elaborate. In rushing through Bill C-5, not only does it, of course, violate indigenous rights, as we have heard, but what are the implications for the environment of overriding environmental standards?

Mr. Speaker, I rise today on a point of order regarding the government's Bill C-5, an act to enact the free trade and labour mobility in Canada act and the building Canada act. Standing Order 69.1(1) states: In the case where a government bill seeks to repeal, amend or enact more than one act, and where there is not a common element connecting the various provisions or where unrelated matters are …

Oral Questions

Mr. Speaker, the Liberal and Conservative coalition joined hands to fast-track Bill C-5 to bypass environmental reviews, ignore provincial jurisdiction and trample on the constitutional rights of indigenous peoples. Ontario chiefs are rejecting Bill C-5. UBCIC Grand Chief Stewart Phillip called it a “complete betrayal of Canada’s commitments under the UN Declaration [on the Rights of Indigenous Pe…

Government Orders

Mr. Speaker, I too worked well with my hon. colleague on the immigration committee in previous Parliaments. With this particular bill, Bill C-3, which is substantively the same as Bill C-71, Canada will finally be charter-compliant with the gender discrimination components of the Citizenship Act. Is that not something we should actually act on? On the question around substantial connections, there…

Government Orders

Mr. Speaker, I thank the minister for tabling this bill. A similar bill was before the last Parliament, and the Conservatives filibustered the House, preventing it from getting to third reading, prompting the courts to yet again extend another extension to get the law passed so that Canada's immigration Citizenship Act would be charter-compliant. What are the minister's thoughts about the Conserva…

Government Orders

Mr. Speaker, the member talked about the private member's bill from Senator Yonah Martin. Of course, that bill was amended, which Conservatives opposed and filibustered at committee. The government then tabled Bill C-71, to which the Conservatives said it needed to be a government bill with all those changes. The government did, in fact, belatedly table Bill C-71 in the House. Conservatives then f…

Government Orders

Mr. Speaker, the bill is purported to be a measure to address border security, fentanyl, car theft and so on, yet the Conservatives, of course, cancelled the port police, which caused part of the problem. The Liberals have been in government for 10 years, and they have not restored the port police. In my riding of Vancouver East, we see the drugs coming in and see the crime, which are impacting ou…

Routine Proceedings

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-212, An Act to establish the Office of the Ombud for the Department of Citizenship and Immigration and to make related and consequential amendments to other Acts. Mr. Speaker, I rise to introduce a private member's bill to establish an independent ombud office for Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, with a mandate to examine the department's practices …