Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, I really hope all members had a fantastic summer in their home communities. Mine was no different. I had some quality time with my family, especially my kids. I also had a lot of engagement with my constituents. In particular, I really took the time to listen to my constituents in terms of their views about the upcoming budget that will be tabled soon in the House. I sent a householde…
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Mr. Speaker, Global Affairs Canada delivers international assistance programming aligned with the Feminist International Assistance Policy through a diverse portfolio of bilateral and multilateral projects. These initiatives aim to advance gender equality while achieving sustainable development outcomes across sectors such as health, education, and humanitarian assistance. Furthermore, Global Affa…
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Mr. Speaker, Canada remains deeply alarmed by the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza. An immediate ceasefire, the release of all hostages and the resumption of unhindered United Nations-led humanitarian aid must be secured to alleviate this crisis. Canada is committed to supporting efforts to advance progress towards the two-state solution, the only pathway to enduring peace and security for Isra…
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Mr. Speaker, Global Affairs Canada manages an extensive network of 181 missions in 112 countries. Global Affairs Canada undertook an extensive preliminary search in order to determine the amount of information that would fall within the scope of these questions and the amount of time that would be required to prepare a comprehensive response. The department does not use object codes related to "cl…
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Mr. Speaker, the following reflects a consolidated response approved on behalf of Global Affairs Canada ministers. With regard to Bill C-202, an act to amend the Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development Act regarding supply management, it is the government’s position that the bill, upon receiving royal assent, became a law of Canada. The government is fully aware of the importance of t…
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Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 32(2), I have the honour to table, in both official languages, the annual report of the 2023-24 Canada account, as prepared by Export Development Canada.
Read full speech →Government Orders
Mr. Speaker, that is a good question. In my view, I wish we had solved this problem before. Even when I was not a member of this House, I advocated on this issue. As I mentioned, I ran an organization called the Institute for Canadian Citizenship. This is one of the policy ideas we worked on. Perhaps we could have done it, but the moment is here. It was delayed before, in the previous Parliament, …
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Mr. Speaker, this is precisely the point I was making. I thank the member for Winnipeg North for raising this point. Conservatives were trying to create two tiers of citizenship, one for those of us who are born here and one for those who have been naturalized. Somehow there are different rules for those two categories of people. Well, guess what the courts have told us: That is not constitutional…
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Mr. Speaker, I would also advise the member opposite to use his words carefully and not fall into the trap of using slogans provided by his House leader or his leader's office, who does not even have a seat here. That is essentially what is happening. I had never heard of the term “mass chain citizenship” until today in this House. Why? It is because somebody in Pierre Poilievre's office came up w…
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Mr. Speaker, let me get to the crux of the matter. I am sharing a real-life example of a family that has been impacted by an unconstitutional law the Harper government brought in. I have a good friend, somebody I have known for a long time and somebody I have been trying to help, whose parents immigrated to Canada, became Canadian citizens, worked hard in this country in pursuit of their professio…
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Mr. Speaker, thank you for giving me the opportunity to speak to Bill C-3. I will be splitting my time with the member for London West. I stand here proudly as the member for Ottawa Centre and somebody who has gone through the immigration process, somebody who is a very proud Canadian, somebody who has taken the oath of citizenship and actually has participated in hundreds of citizenship ceremonie…
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Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives are rattled by me right now because I am trying to talk substantively about the bill. They would rather debate things that are fictional in nature, so they will raise a point of order that is not a point of order. Fine, that is fair enough. I will go back. I have limited time, Mr. Speaker—
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Mr. Speaker, I really appreciate the question. It may be a better solution. That is exactly what the committee process is for. We know that bills go to committee and get amended. If Conservative members feel this does not allow for a substantial connection, then let us have that conversation at committee. That is exactly what we should do. I was also responding to what I had heard, that this 1,095…
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Mr. Speaker, as we all know, this weekend is Father's Day. I want to take this moment to celebrate my father, Anwar Abbas Naqvi, who will be turning 90 on July 14. What a remarkable life he has lived. He has always been a planner and a visionary, and he has immigrated twice in his life, first at the age of 19 from India to Pakistan and then later on to this beautiful country of Canada. He has alwa…
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Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the people of Ottawa Centre. It is a true honour to serve my community, and a responsibility I carry with deep humility and commitment. Throughout the campaign, I heard a clear call for leadership that listens and delivers. That is what I am here to do. I will keep working hard to expand access to dental care, build more affordable housing on public lands and advance a…
Read full speech →Speech from the Throne
Mr. Speaker, I love hearing my friends opposite heckle, because they do that all the time. Yes, indeed, the True North will always be strong and free. Those were the most important conversations I had with my constituents in the election campaign. I can say that almost 90% of the conversations were around the anxiety and fear that people are facing as to the future of our country. I wanted them to…
Read full speech →Speech from the Throne
Mr. Speaker, it is with a profound honour that I rise for the first time in the 45th Parliament to speak to my colleagues about the Speech from the Throne. Let me start by congratulating every single member on having been elected to Canada's Parliament. It is a momentous occasion for all of us in our personal journeys and our journeys on behalf of our families and our community. My profound congra…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, with regard to part (a), as Canada’s federal pesticide regulator, Health Canada’s Pest Management Regulatory Agency, PMRA, published the information note, “Vertical farming and pest control products” on May 1, 2024, in order to ensure the health and safety of Canadians and the environment. Due to rising confusion within the user industry surrounding whether they could use pesticides l…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, it has been one year since the Liberal government launched the Canada dental care plan. The results are nothing short of remarkable. In just 12 months, three million Canadians have been approved for coverage, and over 1.2 million people have access to affordable dental care in all our communities across Canada. That is 1.2 million brighter smiles, 1.2 million healthier families and 1.…
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Mr. Speaker, today, on Human Rights Day, I am pleased to recognize the important work of the Scholars at Risk at Carleton University, the University of Ottawa and around the country. This is a vital initiative that champions academic freedom, human rights and the protection of scholars facing threats worldwide. This program provides a safe haven at Canadian universities for hundreds of academics f…
Read full speech →Government Orders
Madam Speaker, I will say that we have a big challenge right now in terms of building housing across this country, and we need all three orders of government working together. The hon. member is absolutely right, of course. Rules around how housing is built, the actual housing, are a provincial and municipal issue, but we are working with provincial and municipal governments to create those incent…
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Madam Speaker, I enjoy working with the member opposite, and I appreciate his public service. There are a lot of examples, and I can take him on a tour of my riding one of these weekends, if he likes. I mentioned Gladstone Village, which is right at Somerset and Preston. We can see that the cranes are up. That affordable housing is being build because of the housing accelerator fund. We can go to …
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Mr. Speaker, the member for Kingston and the Islands is absolutely right, and he cited Kingston as an example. I can cite Ottawa as an example. In fact, the Leader of the Opposition, the member for Carleton, and I share the same city as home. I wonder whether he has spoken with our mayor, Mark Sutcliffe, about this issue and what the mayor's response would be. A very small part of the money that w…
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Madam Speaker, I am glad we are having a debate on a substantive motion, and I will talk a little more about it. I will be splitting my time on this important issue with the hon. member for Kings—Hants. I am glad we are having a debate on the substantive issue of how we build more homes in Canada. We have that challenge because of the fact that Canada is growing in size. We are at 40 million peopl…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, Health Canada undertook a preliminary search in order to determine the amount of information that would fall within the scope of the question. Health Canada concluded that without a list of products that contain lipid nanoparticles, or LNPs, Health Canada is unable to search and validate the information requested.
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Madam Speaker, as the member of Parliament for Ottawa Centre, the revitalization of downtown Ottawa is a big priority for me. The pandemic and the occupation of downtown Ottawa has taken a significant toll on the core of our city. That is why I worked with businesses and the community to establish a downtown Ottawa revitalization task force, which has produced a lot of recommendations for all thre…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, Canadians deserve good public health care across the country. That is why we, as a government, support a publicly funded health care system. That is why we are making unprecedented investments in our health care system, $200 billion over 10 years, across the country, to every province and territory, with the sole purpose of ensuring that primary health care is available to all Canadia…
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Mr. Speaker, with regard to part (a), $45,477,174.55 was spent. All advertising costs reported include agency of record, AOR, and ad tech fees. Costs do not include HST, to align with the advertising costs reported in the Annual Report on Government of Canada Advertising Activities. Total costs reported include media placement costs that were submitted for the Government of Canada annual advertisi…
Read full speech →Statements By Members
Mr. Speaker, today I rise to remember Robert Smythe, a true pillar of Centretown who passed away on November 15. For over 50 years, Robert dedicated his life to preserving the character and history of our community. As the founding editor of the Centretown BUZZ, Robert captured the stories and struggles of our neighbourhood with passion and care. He shared downtown Ottawa's history and architectur…
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Mr. Speaker, with regard to parts (a) to (j), as part of the standard regulatory process for drugs and vaccines, when a new drug or vaccine is authorized by Health Canada, a drug identification number, DIN, is issued. The product DIN is a unique number that identifies the following product characteristics: manufacturer, product name, active ingredients, strengths of active ingredients, pharmaceuti…
Read full speech →Statements By Members
Mr. Speaker, as the member of Parliament for Ottawa Centre, it is my great privilege to speak to my constituents on a regular basis. I knock on doors almost every week in my community, and I have been hearing from my constituents, who tell me that the cost of living is real. They have seen the hardships of rising inflation, and even though inflation is coming down, they are seeing their budget str…
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Madam Speaker, today, on the eve of Remembrance Day, I rise to pay tribute to Canada's past and present veterans, who have sacrificed so much. Across our great country, we pause to reflect on the extraordinary courage, commitment and selflessness of the men and women who have served and continue to serve to protect our freedom and democracy. Today, we also mark Indigenous Veterans Day. We recogniz…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, last week was Media Literacy Week, dedicated to showcasing the power of digital literacy across Canada. In my riding of Ottawa Centre, MediaSmarts led an inspiring effort with its outstanding Break the Fake campaign, reviving the iconic house hippo to confront the rise of AI-generated deepfakes. This playful yet powerful symbol reminds us all to stay vigilant online. Supported by the …
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, the number of the day is one million. That is one million Canadians who now have received oral health care through the Canadian dental care plan. That is one million Canadians, many of whom are seniors living in our communities, who visited a dental hygienist, a dentist or a denturist, many for the very first time. They are now getting access to dental care, as they should, so their h…
Read full speech →Routine Proceedings
Mr. Speaker, with regard to parts (a) to (k), the health and safety of Canadians are Health Canada’s top priority and the department exercises stringent regulatory oversight over biologics, including vaccines. Before any of the COVID-19 vaccines were approved in Canada, the department conducted rigorous scientific review of the extensive data regarding the vaccines’ safety, efficacy and quality, i…
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Mr. Speaker, without a comprehensive list of children’s illnesses, it is not possible to determine how much Canadian Institutes of Health Research, or CIHR, funding has been allocated in this area since 2015. Additionally, CIHR has concluded that identifying projects and then producing and validating a comprehensive response to this question would require a manual collection and validation of info…
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Mr. Speaker, in response to parts (a) to (q) of the question, the health and safety of Canadians are the utmost priority for Health Canada. Health Canada has a rigorous scientific review system in place to ensure vaccines are safe and effective in preventing the diseases they target. More information on these standards and how Health Canada regulates vaccines for human use in Canada can be found a…
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Mr. Speaker, the health and safety of Canadians is Health Canada’s top priority, and the department exercises stringent regulatory oversight over vaccines, including the COVID-19 vaccines. Before a vaccine is approved in Canada, the department conducts a rigorous scientific review of its safety, efficacy and quality. Submissions filed by vaccine manufacturers typically contain extensive data regar…
Read full speech →Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, we are committed to ensuring that pesticides used in Canada are safe for human health and the environment. All pesticides undergo a rigorous scientific review process prior to being approved for sale in Canada, and they are regularly reviewed to ensure they continue to meet health and safety standards. We take the concerns raised in the research by Dr. Christy Morrissey seriously, and…
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Mr. Speaker, ensuring the vitality of francophone communities outside Quebec is a priority for our government. Under our new plan, francophone permanent residents will represent 8.5% of the overall permanent resident admission targets in 2025, rising to 9.5% in 2026 and 10% in 2027. These targets demonstrate our commitment to ensuring the growth of francophone communities outside Quebec and are co…
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Mr. Speaker, given the complexity of this issue, we are going to take the time to review the details of the Quebec government's announcement. We remain committed to working with Quebec and all provinces and territories to carefully evaluate the next step.
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Mr. Speaker, MAID is a complex and deeply personal issue, especially when it comes to advance requests. The possibility of expanding MAID eligibility to include advance requests is a very momentous decision. It requires collaboration with physicians, experts and health professionals nationwide.
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Mr. Speaker, we will always defend immigration and make sure that immigration remains an integral part of the Canadian success story. We will also always defend a woman's freedom and right to choose. What I have not heard from any members on the Conservative benches is an affirmation that they will also defend a woman's right to choose. We know, after hearing from one of their former members, that…
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Mr. Speaker, after the pandemic, we had to increase our immigration levels to help our economy and businesses recover. Our postpandemic measures reflected what Canada needed at the time. The new plan reflects what Canada needs today. By slowing down demographic growth in the short term, we will achieve growth and prosperity in the long term.
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Mr. Speaker, the new immigration levels plan is a transition plan that responds directly to our country's changing needs. That is what Canadians want and that is what they asked us to do. These reductions are needed to enhance our economic and social prosperity, while ensuring that newcomers are able to succeed.
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Mr. Speaker, it is always rich to hear from the Conservatives when they talk about fake colleges. I hope the member opposite is calling her premier, Danielle Smith, to make sure that fake colleges are not getting credentials. I hope the members from Ontario are calling Doug Ford to let him know that he should not be accrediting fake colleges. On this side of the House, we will always make sure to …
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Mr. Speaker, immigration is key to the economic growth of Canada. This country is full of incredible stories of immigrants, one of whom is speaking right now. They are of a country that has welcomed people from around the world. The government has always taken a very responsible approach to immigration to make sure that Canada continues to grow. That is exactly the kind of responsible approach we …
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Mr. Speaker, on this side of the House, we will always stand up for a publicly funded health care system. That is why we are making unprecedented investment in our system, working with provinces and territories, with over $200 billion over 10 years. We have never seen that kind of investment. That is not to mention investments in dental care and pharmacare. These are the kinds of things we are doi…
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Mr. Speaker, I have always worked with the Province of Quebec. Immigration is necessary to grow our economy and strengthen our communities. Canadians want a strong, sustainable immigration system that allows Canada and all those who come here to succeed. That is exactly what we are doing with the announcement we made yesterday about the immigration levels plan. We are reducing the number of tempor…
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Mr. Speaker, Quebec has more power over its immigration system than all the other provinces and all the other territories in the country since it controls more than half of the immigration of temporary residents. We asked Quebec for its plan to reduce temporary immigration and we are still waiting for that plan.
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