Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, we are nearing the ninth anniversary of the imprisonment of human rights advocate, Raif Badawi. Mr. Badawi and his wife fell under a fraudulent investigation in Saudi Arabia by Saudi authorities. These types of investigations occur as part of a crackdown on political prisoners in Saudi Arabia. This is not the first time that I have raised Mr. Badawi's case. Canada has stood firmly in …
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, every three days someone dies a preventable death waiting for an organ transplant. We celebrate Be A Donor Month in April here in Ontario to raise awareness for organ and tissue donation. By registering to become donors, we have the power to save lives. In fact, one organ donor has the potential to save eight lives and enhance 75 more through tissue donation. Although a little more th…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to be able to present the fifth report of the Standing Committee on International Trade, “Main Estimates 2021-2022: Vote 1 under Invest in Canada Hub”. In accordance with this order of reference of Thursday, February 25, the committee has considered vote 1 under Invest in Canada Hub in the main estimates for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2022, and reports the same.
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, yes, I will be sharing my time with the great member for Outremont. As I indicated, my constituents are struggling. I want to take this opportunity to speak directly to the communities in my riding. Many of their residents have lined up in very long lines in pop-up spots today at clinics that are quickly being put together. I want them to know that the light at the end of the tunnel…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, we have transferred an additional $4.3 billion to the provinces, another $1.2 billion to support health care capacity in a variety of areas, and $740 million to address the immediate needs in supportive care and to provide health and social supports for other groups and organizations. We have transferred millions of dollars to the provinces specifically for health care and health ca…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, we have continued, since the beginning of this pandemic, to help many seniors, recognizing their struggles. I believe there was a total of $1,500 or $1,800 in additional bonuses that went to seniors over the last year, since the beginning of this pandemic, to help many of them. We have again invested in the budget in the area of long-term care and a lot of the areas that affect seni…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to be able to participate via Zoom today. As a female parliamentarian, it is a great honour for me to rise today and respond to this exciting 2021 budget. It is the first budget delivered by a female Minister of Finance and it really reflects that. It is a truly momentous occasion in our Canadian history. I am very proud of my hon. colleague. She carries many titles: Depu…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, I very much enjoy working with my hon. colleague and hope she and her family are staying well. The reality is that it is a tremendous amount of money. As much as we all would have loved to see a 10% increase to everyone, the practicality is that there is a cost factor. I would hope that, as we move forward, we will have additional resources and opportunities to help many of those se…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Madam Speaker, this petition notes that in April 2020, Taiwan announced the donation of 500,000 medical masks to Canada to be distributed to front-line workers and first nations peoples. The petitioners, citizens and residents of Canada call upon the House of Commons to publicly thank the Taiwanese government for its gift of medical masks; publicly congratulate the Taiwanese people on having succe…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, Anne was born on April 14, 1921, in Portland, Ontario, on a farm that remains in her family today. As a student in a one-room school house, she proudly earned good grades and school prizes. She places an importance on education, clearly, as her three daughters and one of her granddaughters are education professionals. A dedicated pre-war and post-war DND employee, Anne married Françoi…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, March 21 to 27 was National Impaired Driving Prevention Week. As we encourage Canadians to drive responsibly and avoid distractions and impairment behind the wheel, we also take time to reflect on those we have tragically lost to impaired driving. We have to demonstrate a zero-tolerance attitude for impaired, distracted and dangerous driving to ensure that all Canadians can use our st…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, my colleague and I have worked together for many years. I am sure that all of us in the House share the same feelings when it comes to the issues of pornography. We do not want to see it in our country or anywhere else. Whatever steps are necessary to clamp down on anyone who engages in it are steps that I believe all of us as parliamentarians want to see happen. I know the Liberal …
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, it is leaving the flexibility in the hands of judges to bring down a sentence that reflects the seriousness of the crime. That flexibility is there regardless of whether it is a kidnapping issue or whatever. Our justice system needs additional tools. Bill C-22 would provide it with the means to move forward to help the very people we are talking about, to give options in our justice…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, as a government, we are taking steps to try to address systemic racism that is pervasive in our institutions and Bill C-22 is a step forward in the right direction, especially for my riding of Humber River—Black Creek. With this legislation, we are advancing a policy that is truly about keeping communities safe. We have seen throughout history how certain criminal justice policies h…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, my colleague and I do not always agree on things, clearly not on his desire for decriminalization, even though I very much support harm reduction in a variety of ways. Since we have gone ahead with the legalization of marijuana, and we have certainly helped a tremendous number of young people avoid incarceration, what has he seen during this period as to the implications, negative o…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, my hon. colleague talked about all of the good things we have done and the challenges that all of us as a country are going to be facing in the future. However, I want to ask about pharmacare in particular, which the Liberals care very much about, and the challenges of it that face us all. I know my colleague supports it as well. I would like to hear suggestions from the member on h…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, doing everything we can to protect society and protect our communities, I believe, is extremely important for all of us. The minimum penalties we are referring to here, in many cases, are designed to make communities safer, but also to provide flexibility to our judges, our prosecutors and so on. They can use that flexibility to not destroy a young person's life. At the same time we…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, let me congratulate the Minister of Justice for bringing forward this bill. I know he has put a tremendous amount of work into it. It is extremely important that we look for more diversion programs, more opportunities to decrease the number of people throughout our cities who are in jail for miscellaneous things and who have criminal records that will prevent them from getting viabl…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, I want to congratulate Panino Cappuccino, a Humber River—Black Creek institution, for being awarded Top Choice for the best Italian restaurant in Toronto in 2021. Anyone who has had the pleasure of visiting Panino Cappuccino for lunch or dinner knows that this prestigious award is thoroughly deserved. This family business has been a staple in the community for over a decade, and it br…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Madam Speaker, happy International Women's Day. I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the fourth report of the Standing Committee on International Trade in relation to Bill C-18, an act to implement the agreement on trade continuity between Canada and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. The committee has studied the bill and has decided to report the bill …
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Madam Speaker, I rise today with a very heavy heart. Our community in Humber River—Black Creek has lost an important and influential individual, Father Amedeo Nardone, the beloved pastor of St. Jane Frances Church. Father Nardone had a passion for life and a love for telling famous jokes to get a laugh. He will be remembered for the beautiful memories he has left behind, as well as his dedication,…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 107(3), it is my pleasure to present, in both official languages, the third report of the Liaison Committee, entitled “Committee Activities and Expenditures—April 1, 2020 - December 31, 2020”. This report highlights the work and accomplishments of each one of our committees, as well as details the budgets that fund the activities approved by all committee me…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, I stand today, again, regarding another tragedy in my riding of Humber River—Black Creek. A 14-year-old girl was struck by a bullet in the head, and she is fighting for her life because of a gun that should never have been on the street. How many more young lives will be ruined before we find a way to say that enough is enough? Could the government please elaborate on exactly what its…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, it was important before COVID-19 for us to provide opportunities through trade agreements such as CETA and the trade continuity agreement. These were really important before COVID-19, but since that has hit, and it has taken such a big hit on our businesses, it is even more important for us to be personally reaching out to everyone and letting them know the opportunities that are th…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, I will be splitting my time with my colleague from Vaughan—Woodbridge. It is great to have an opportunity to speak to Bill C-18. As the chair of the international trade committee, I think we have a great group of colleagues to continue working on a variety of things. Of course, Bill C-18 is one of them. For the information of my colleague from Elmwood—Transcona, I had the pleasure o…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, I wish a happy new year to everyone who is watching. Small businesses throughout Canada, as I had indicated in my comments, are critically important. Small companies, whether in manufacturing or elsewhere, have a desire to grow but are struggling every day to find different ways to access funds and get help navigating international opportunities. I find an awful lot of them are unaw…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the third report of the Standing Committee on International Trade, entitled “Good Friday Accord”.
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, while the COVID-19 pandemic has caused tremendous hardship in our communities, it has also presented an opportunity for our Canadian spirit of kindness and generosity to shine through. In my wonderful riding of Humber River—Black Creek, Dennis Keshinro is one of those wonderful individuals. Dennis and his great team of volunteers have been heroes in our community, delivering bundles o…
Read full speech →