Government Orders
Madam Speaker, I think I did quote quite a few facts and that most Canadians do not want to have medical assistance in dying for the mentally ill. I think I presented the fact that the government itself has consulted and received answers that say that this is not a good path to go down, including with regard to advance consent. This was not recommended after they had consulted. In terms of the tim…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for her question. In my view, there have to be alternatives to MAID. In the case of mental health, more help must be made available. This help is lacking in Canada, and people cannot afford these services. This is a priority. I think the government must make it a priority to actually help Canadians, not to help them die.
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, I am glad to be able to rise this evening to speak to these amendments from the Senate on the medical assistance in dying bill. It is unfortunate that we have such a short amount of time to talk about these amendments, because this is quite literally a matter of life and death. I would think the government, on something as serious as this, would want to spend some time thinking abou…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, could my colleague comment on the hypocrisy of the government to be putting money toward suicide prevention and, at the same time, deciding it is not enough to let people kill themselves, but that they will get medical professionals to help them out when they have mental illness?
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister said he spoke to President Biden about the Line 5 closure and the critical impact it will have on 50,000 jobs on both sides of the border. Could he update this House as to whether the President said he would intervene to keep Line 5 open?
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, on the same point of order, I want to add that there is a very serious difference because, from speaking with multiple returning officers locally across the country, I know they have already been trained on the proposed changes in this legislation and their understanding is that the special ballots will be locally administered, not in the national office, as is in the bill. It is wort…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Madam Speaker, I am pleased to present a petition on behalf of over 10,000 people concerning Governor Gretchen Whitmer of the state of Michigan's order to shut down Enbridge Line 5. The petitioners note that the closure would have a devastating effect on the financial well-being of Sarnia—Lambton and tens of thousands of skilled tradespeople and employees of local refineries and supporting industr…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, I am rising on a point of order with respect to the vote. The voting application showed that I was on the app. I was ready to vote for Bill C-14 and would have voted against it, but it did not give me the opportunity to vote at all. I see the vote has been counted, so I ask you to investigate that for the future.
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, after the Liberals said Line 5 was “critical to Canada's energy and economic security”, the Prime Minister did not even raise the topic with President Biden yesterday. How are we supposed to rebuild a relationship with our most important ally when the PM cannot even raise the most pressing issue, while 50,000 jobs on both sides of the border are at risk? How can Canadians believe the …
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, I would like to follow up on the comments about vaccinations. I was astounded when the health minister was asked how many people would have to be vaccinated before the lockdowns would end and we could start to reopen the economy. Her response was that they were not even sure whether someone could transmit or get COVID after having a vaccine. It is clear that the government does not …
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Madam Speaker, I want to thank my colleague for his excellent speech. There is also a border crossing in Sarnia—Lambton. We miss the tourists who generally come for the holidays and celebrations. Many businesses, such as duty-free shops, are not in a good position to succeed. What businesses have been hardest hit by the pandemic in my colleague's riding?
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. member for his speech. Which businesses in his riding are most affected by the pandemic? What does the government need to do to improve the situation?
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, I want to talk about the topic the previous speakers spoke about. We were supposed to be debating Bill C-19. With regard to an election in a pandemic, I was going to bring about 30 minutes of thoughtful comment. The only people who are a hurry to have an election are the Liberals. The majority of Canadians have said they do not want an election during a pandemic. The Liberals were in …
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, I have been asking the Prime Minister to pick up the phone and ask President Biden to keep Line 5 open to save 50,000 jobs. The Prime Minister has a meeting with him tomorrow. Considering the importance of Line 5 to our economy, will the Prime Minister ask President Biden to intervene on this issue?
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, it has been two weeks since I asked the Prime Minister to take action on the Line 5 issue. This requires a leader-to-leader interaction. Will the Prime Minister personally pick up the phone, call President Biden and ask him to intervene to keep Line 5 open?
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, my colleague rightly pointed out some of the issues and questions on free, prior and informed consent with the Wet'suwet'en, where even within the band there were people who did not agree. I have had conversations in my own riding with the leaders of various aboriginal groups. They had no expectation of having the right of veto. They agreed that no individual Canadian should be able t…
Read full speech →Private Members' Business
Mr. Speaker, it is a pleasure to rise tonight to speak to the bill on pharmacare. I want to thank the member for New Westminster—Burnaby for bringing it forward. I am sure the reason he has brought it forward is to call for action. There has been a lot of talk about pharmacare but, to be fair, there has not been a lot of action. By way of background, the Liberals have been talking about pharmacare…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the second report of the Standing Committee on the Status of Women in relation to the motion adopted on Tuesday, February 2, regarding National Human Trafficking Awareness Day.
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister keeps sidestepping the question about what he will personally do to support Line 5. We know of efforts by others in the government to keep Line 5 open, but we need the Prime Minister to show direct leadership here. Does he not understand the impact this will for jobs in Sarnia—Lambton, Ontario, Quebec and Alberta? When will the Prime Minister pick up the phone and c…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, it is clear that the natural resources minister supports Line 5, but the Prime Minister is abdicating his responsibility here. He is not answering questions. He is not taking personal accountability. When will the Prime Minister pick up the phone and ask President Biden to intervene to keep Line 5 open?
Read full speech →Statements By Members
Mr. Speaker, I rise today with great concern over Michigan Governor Whitmer’s attempt to shut down Enbridge Line 5 in violation of the transit pipelines treaty. If this important line is shut down, more than 20,000 jobs would be impacted in my riding alone. Thousands more would be in jeopardy across Ontario and Quebec’s energy industries. Line 5 supplies fuel to both the Pearson and Detroit airpor…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Madam Speaker, it is a pleasure to talk about the Standing Orders. This is always a debate that I very much enjoy. The rules of the House govern how we do our work in the House of Commons, and so, before we talk about the rules and how we might want to change them, I think it is important to talk about why we have these rules and what we are hoping to achieve with them. I would offer that the rule…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Madam Speaker, intelligent heckling with intelligent points would be good, especially when we have seen over time that the practice of the House is not to mislead Canadians: not to lie. That is why it was improper, during parliamentary procedure, to say that someone was lying. It was built on the premise that someone was not going to lie. I have seen a big departure from that. Intelligent heckling…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Madam Speaker, I think that if we respect the work that is being done here in the House, if an opposition day motion is brought up on a subject under a minister's control, that that minister should want to hear about the issue. Do they have to be here the whole day? Some representative, either the minister or their parliamentary secretary, should definitely be here to hear the full comments that a…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, 50,000 jobs, that is 50,000 jobs on both sides of the border, are at risk if the Prime Minister does not take serious action to save Line 5. Enbridge has even been issued new permits by the Michigan government to make a safe project even safer by encasing the existing pipe in a tunnel along the bottom of the Straits of Mackinac. The natural resources minister has pledged his support. …
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Madam Speaker, I want to talk a little more about the S. O. 31s because I noticed that it seems that there are some individuals in the House who never get up on an S. O. 31, or very rarely. I wonder what the member thinks of an idea similar to the lottery that we have for Private Members' Business at the beginning of each Parliament. Every member would get a number and be placed in the order of pr…
Read full speech →Orders of the Day
Madam Speaker, when my private member's bill passed, I was surprised to find that fewer than 300 people had ever passed one in the House. I think there is not enough training, especially for new members, to understand that the legislative clerks have to check all of the other bills and acts in the House to make sure that everything is allowable and everything is in the bill that needs to be. I thi…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, because of the Prime Minister's failure, the Canadian taxpayer is on the hook for $350,000 a year in pension and expense account costs for the former Governor General. How is the Prime Minister going to show Canadians that his continual lack of good judgment will not have to keep being paid for by their hard work?
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, a unanimous consent motion was moved yesterday to strike an advisory committee to select the next Governor General. The Liberals refused the motion. Does the Prime Minister think that the screening process he used for Julie Payette was better?
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, I think if you seek it you will find unanimous consent for the following motion: That for the consideration of the appointment of the next Governor General of Canada, the House call on the Prime Minister to re-establish the advisory committee on viceregal appointments that led to the appointment of former Governor General His Excellency the Right Honourable David Johnston.
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, the government ignored the viceregal appointments committee so it could hand-pick the Governor General. It had, as John Ivison of the National Post quoted sources, a candidate “too spectacular to say no to.” It turns out that the only thing spectacular was the damage the Prime Minister caused with this decision. Will the Prime Minister commit to consulting the opposition in using the …
Read full speech →