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Right Hon. Justin Trudeau (Prime Minister, Lib.)

Dec/1/21 3:06:19 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I commend the member for Outremont on getting re-elected. She has asked an excellent question. COVID-19 had a significant impact on Canadians and our small businesses across the country, but our approach to fighting the recession caused by COVID-19 is working. Canada has recovered 101% of the jobs lost, compared to only 81% in the United States. We will continue to support our workers and small businesses to finish the fight against COVID-19 and ensure a strong recovery for our economy.

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Mr. James Bezan (Selkirk—Interlake—Eastman, CPC)

Dec/1/21 3:06:57 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, when Afghanistan fell to the Taliban earlier this year, thousands of Afghans who worked alongside our troops were led to believe by the Prime Minister that Canada would keep them safe. National Defence has received over 23,000 applications from Afghan interpreters and support staff who served with us, yet Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada is only processing 14,500 applications. That means that over 9,000 Afghan interpreters and support staff have not been invited to apply. When will the Prime Minister bring to Canada the 40,000 Afghan nationals he promised?

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Right Hon. Justin Trudeau (Prime Minister, Lib.)

Dec/1/21 3:07:39 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Canada remains firm in its commitment to welcome 40,000 Afghan refugees to Canada. We are working tirelessly to stay in support and contact with those who remain in Afghanistan and wish to resettle to Canada. IRCC has mobilized its entire global network to process visas and issue them on an urgent basis. We will continue to do everything we can to help the people of Afghanistan, not because this government wants to, which we do, but because Canadians expect us to. That is exactly why we are doing it.

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Mr. James Bezan (Selkirk—Interlake—Eastman, CPC)

Dec/1/21 3:08:16 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I can tell the Prime Minister that Canada's veterans have stepped up and done more than their share to protect their Afghan friends who were left behind. They set up safe houses to protect hundreds of Afghan interpreters and their families, but when these veteran-operated safe houses came to the government and asked for $5 million, the Liberals said no. Our Afghan friends were forced to leave, and now they are trying to escape the clutches of the Taliban. I will ask the Prime Minister again: Can the Prime Minister tell the House and the 40,000 Afghan refugees exactly when they can expect to come to Canada?

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Right Hon. Justin Trudeau (Prime Minister, Lib.)

Dec/1/21 3:08:56 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the largest and most difficult hurdle in getting people out of Afghanistan remains the lack of safe and secure routes out of the country. We will continue to do everything we can for the people of Afghanistan. I want to recognize and thank all of those organizations, including veterans' organizations and NGOs that have been there to support Canadian troops on the ground, and the IRCC officials who have been there to support Afghans as they get out of the country. We will be welcoming 40,000 Afghans to Canada. We are going to keep pushing on the Taliban to ensure that people have safe access out of the country.

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Mr. James Bezan (Selkirk—Interlake—Eastman, CPC)

Dec/1/21 3:09:31 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, our veterans and all of those non-governmental organizations had to step up because this government did not. Our Afghan interpreters and support staff have been left behind to face the brutality of the Taliban who are hunting them down as we speak. Our veterans are doing everything in their power to get people out of harm's way, including chartering their own planes to take them to safe third countries, but it seems the Prime Minister only cared about this when it was happening during the election. On behalf of our veterans, on behalf of members of the Canadian Armed Forces and on behalf of the 40,000 Afghan nationals he promised to bring to Canada, on exactly what date will the Prime Minister bring these Afghans to Canada?

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Right Hon. Justin Trudeau (Prime Minister, Lib.)

Dec/1/21 3:10:15 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we are working tirelessly to bring those 40,000 Afghan refugees to Canada as quickly as possible. We are working with the international community to put pressure on the Taliban to allow for more safe routes out of the country. We have demonstrated our ability to welcome them in. I would remind the hon. member, who was around for the election of 2015, that when his government turned its back on Syrian refugees, Canadians stepped up and brought in 40,000 Syrian refugees in those first months of 2015-16. That is why we stepped up, and we will do exactly the same right now for Afghanistan. I will take no lessons from the Conservative Party.

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Mr. Sukh Dhaliwal (Surrey—Newton, Lib.)

Dec/1/21 3:11:05 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, this past summer, my province of British Columbia was hit by devastating wildfires. In recent weeks, heavy rains have brought flooding and landslides to communities across the interior and Fraser Valley. This has taken the lives of at least four people and damaged countless homes, businesses and family farms. Can the Prime Minister update the House on what our government is doing to support the people of British Columbia during this difficult time?

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Right Hon. Justin Trudeau (Prime Minister, Lib.)

Dec/1/21 3:11:44 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my hon. colleague for Surrey—Newton for the question and for his hard work in supporting his colleagues in British Columbia. British Columbians can be assured that we will always be there for them in the face of devastating natural disasters, such as the recent flooding. Canadian Armed Forces are on the ground, and we are collaborating with the B.C. government on the immediate response and eventual rebuilding. Alongside the province, we are further matching every dollar donated to the Red Cross, turning every dollar Canadians donate into three. Our government remains committed to helping the people of B.C. through the immediate response to this crisis and into recovery. We will be there for British Columbians.

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Mr. Jagmeet Singh (Burnaby South, NDP)

Dec/1/21 3:12:27 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, today is World AIDS Day, and I think about so many Canadians who have lost loved ones and people close to them to HIV/AIDS. What is worse is that we have all the tools right now to completely eradicate HIV/AIDS. What we are lacking is a plan that particularly addresses the barriers faced by the most vulnerable people. Why does Canada not have a plan to completely, once and for all, eradicate HIV/AIDS?

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Right Hon. Justin Trudeau (Prime Minister, Lib.)

Dec/1/21 3:13:08 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, a number of years ago, we signed on to the global compact to eliminate HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis. We are working internationally with colleagues and partners to do just that, even as we continue to step up our efforts at home to ensure that we are supporting people living with HIV/AIDS and preventing further tragedies and challenges around that. We have come a long way as a country in fighting the stigmatization around HIV/AIDS. We have come a long way from the first time we were celebrating December 1. I am glad to see so many members of the House standing as allies alongside not just the LGBTQ2 community, but others who are suffering the impacts of HIV/AIDS.

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The Speaker

Dec/1/21 3:13:56 p.m.
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That is all the time we have for oral questions. The hon. member for Montarville on a point of order.

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Mr. Stéphane Bergeron

Dec/1/21 3:14:12 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, there have been discussions among the parties and if you seek it, I believe you would find unanimous consent to adopt the following motion: That the House congratulate Barbados on renouncing the British monarchy.

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The Speaker

Dec/1/21 3:14:29 p.m.
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This being a hybrid sitting of the House, for the sake of clarity, I will only ask those who are opposed to the request to express their disagreement. Some hon. members: Oh, oh! The Speaker: I just want to remind everyone that singing, unless it is the national anthem and it is the right time, should not be done in the chamber. Accordingly, all those opposed to the hon. member moving the motion will please say nay. Some hon. members: Nay.

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Hon. Rob Moore (Fundy Royal, CPC)

Dec/1/21 3:15:14 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-4

I am asking today for unanimous consent from the House to adopt the following motion. I move: That, notwithstanding any Standing Order or usual practices of the House, Bill C-4, an act to amend the Criminal Code (conversion therapy) be deemed to have been read a second time and referred to a Committee of the Whole, deemed considered in Committee of the Whole, deemed reported without amendment, deemed concurred in at the report stage and deemed read a third time and passed.

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All Topics

The Speaker

Dec/1/21 3:17:10 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-4

This being a hybrid sitting of the House, for the sake of clarity, I will only ask those who are opposed to the request to express their disagreement. Accordingly, all those opposed to the hon. member moving the motion will please say nay. Hearing no dissenting voice, it is agreed. The House has heard the terms of the motion. All those opposed to the motion will please say nay. There being no dissenting voice, I declare the motion carried.

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The Speaker

Dec/1/21 3:18:59 p.m.
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I have the honour to inform the House that the following members have been appointed as members of the Board of Internal Economy for the purpose and under the provisions of the Parliament of Canada Act, subsection 50(2), namely: The hon. Dominic LeBlanc and the hon. Mark Holland, members of the Queen's Privy Council; the hon. Steven MacKinnon and Ms. Ruby Sahota, representatives of the Liberal caucus; Mr. Gérard Deltell and Mr. Blake Richards, representatives of the Conservative caucus; Ms. Claude DeBellefeuille, representative of the Bloc Québécois; and Mr. Peter Julian, representative of the New Democratic caucus.

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The Speaker

Dec/1/21 3:19:58 p.m.
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It is my duty, pursuant to subsection 94(2) of the Access to Information Act and subsection 72(2) of the Privacy Act, to lay upon the table the reports of the Auditor General of Canada on the administration of these acts for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2021. Pursuant to Standing Order 108(3)(h), these reports are deemed to have been permanently referred to the Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics.

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Ms. Heather McPherson (Edmonton Strathcona, NDP)

Dec/1/21 3:21:27 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-205

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-205, An Act to amend the Impact Assessment Act. She said: Mr. Speaker, it is my great honour to stand today to table my bill, an act to amend the Impact Assessment Act. I want to thank the member for Edmonton Griesbach, my colleague in the NDP Alberta caucus, for agreeing to second this bill. I also want to thank the members for Victoria and South Okanagan—West Kootenay for assisting and supporting me with this legislation. This bill is vital and timely and I look forward to the support of all parliamentarians to pass this legislation. This bill is about protecting our cherished Rocky Mountains and fundamental protections of our water, our wild spaces and our endangered species. This bill recognizes the incredible work that indigenous leaders like Latasha Calf Robe and the Niitsítapi Water Protectors have done to defend our land. This bill is about environmental protection, activists like Kevin Van Tighem, Lorne Fitch and so many others who have fought tirelessly against corporate interests that will destroy our environment for money. Coal is not our future. When this bill becomes law, all proposed coal mines will trigger federal environmental impact assessments, regardless of size. This is vital. While I am pleased that the former minister of environment and climate change adopted this policy, we need this embedded into law so that no future government can put the beautiful Canadian Rocky Mountains and eastern slopes at risk ever again. I am going to finish with the words of my favourite Alberta artist, Corb Lund: This is my prairie, this is my homeI'll make my stand here and I'll die alone.

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Ms. Elizabeth May (Saanich—Gulf Islands, GP)

Dec/1/21 3:24:03 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I am still a bit emotional about that wonderful display of unity in this place. I stand to present a petition from petitioners in my community and elsewhere who remain concerned that the Government of Canada is not following the provisions of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. They are particularly troubled by the actions on Wet’suwet’en territory, where the Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs and other are standing to protect all of us by keeping fossil fuels in the ground. Also, parenthetically, concerns have elevated recently due to the militarized actions in arresting protectors of the land, as well as journalists. The petitioners call on the Government of Canada, the people of Canada and the House of Commons to ensure that the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples is respected across Canada, particularly on Wet’suwet’en territory.

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