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Hon. Filomena Tassi (Minister of Public Services and Procurement, Lib.)

Dec/13/21 3:07:51 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, our government is advancing a renewed relationship with indigenous peoples, which includes creating an environment that truly supports economic growth. We are developing initiatives to increase opportunities for indigenous businesses to succeed and grow. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, PSPC has awarded 38 contracts to 30 self-identified indigenous businesses, collectively worth over $126 million. As minister, I am committed to increasing opportunities for indigenous businesses from coast to coast to coast.

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Mr. Randall Garrison (Esquimalt—Saanich—Sooke, NDP)

Dec/13/21 3:08:32 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, despite years of work by my community and years of promises from the Liberal government, gay men and trans women are still banned from donating blood in Canada. This unscientific ban serves only to promote homophobia and transphobia, and only contributes to blood shortages. Canadian Blood Services has now said it will finally be submitting a recommendation to the Minister of Health this week to lift the ban. Will the minister commit today to act quickly when he gets this recommendation, and to order lifting the ban immediately?

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Hon. Jean-Yves Duclos (Minister of Health, Lib.)

Dec/13/21 3:09:06 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague for raising this issue. I can tell him that we are waiting with great hope for the submission from Canadian Blood Services, as well as from Héma-Québec. I can assure him that when this comes, we will work quickly on it.

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Mr. Kevin Vuong (Spadina—Fort York, Ind.)

Dec/13/21 3:09:25 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Tourism and Associate Minister of Finance. My community of Spadina—Fort York is home to some of the most renowned tourist attractions, from the CN Tower, to Toronto Island, to the Distillery District and its Christmas market. Spadina—Fort York is also home to West Queen West, which Vogue magazine named the world's second-coolest neighbourhood. These attractions bring in millions of tourism dollars annually, and many of our small businesses rely on that traffic. Sadly, however, some have been forced to close due to the pandemic. Would the minister update the House on what the government is doing to support small business and the recovery of tourism?

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Hon. Randy Boissonnault (Minister of Tourism and Associate Minister of Finance, Lib.)

Dec/13/21 3:10:07 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-2

Mr. Speaker, let me outline just a few of the supports that the government has put in place for entrepreneurs and people in the tourism sector: $100 million to help Destination Canada market us around the world and in our own country, $200 million to support festivals and events, $200 million to support small festivals and large festivals, $500 million for the tourism relief fund and $1 billion in 2021. If the other side of the House would like to deliver a Christmas present to the tourism sector, they could vote for Bill C-2 and see $7.4 billion put into our economy.

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Mr. Gérard Deltell (Louis-Saint-Laurent, CPC)

Dec/13/21 3:11:04 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I have two points of order that I can do at the same time. I sincerely thank and congratulate everyone who works on facilitating the debates here and ensuring that the message gets across. Unfortunately, we are experiencing problems with the interpretation on a regular basis, almost every day. I know that this is no one's fault, but it is a nuisance for francophones in particular, since there are more often issues with the French interpretation. It is difficult for francophones to follow the debate if they are unfortunately not able to hear the interpretation. I urge you and the technical team, which has done an amazing job, especially over the past two years with COVID‑19 restrictions, to address this specific issue. It has been going on for far too long. As for my second point of order, earlier, the member for Mission—Matsqui—Fraser Canyon asked a question and the Minister of Public Safety responded. We all need to recognize that a minister speaks on behalf of the government. However, in this specific case, we were talking about agriculture, we were talking about farmers and we were talking about 2,000 farming families that were directly involved in this issue. The Minister of Agriculture was ready to answer. We hope that the next time we address this specific issue the actual Minister of Agriculture will address it and will answer clearly our member who is concerned with the issue in British Columbia.

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The Speaker

Dec/13/21 3:12:40 p.m.
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With respect to the first point, I am well aware of this. The table officers are working very hard on the interpretation and will continue their efforts to ensure that everyone has access to simultaneous interpretation. We take this situation very seriously, and the hon. member is absolutely right, we are working hard. With respect to the second point, I am not clear whether it was a comment or a point of order. It is up to the government, not the Chair, to determine who answers the questions. I cannot make that decision for the government. The hon. member for North Island—Powell River.

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Ms. Rachel Blaney

Dec/13/21 3:13:32 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, before I ask for unanimous consent to move my motion, I hope you will remind members of the House that we no longer follow colonial practices and that indigenous communities certainly do not belong to Canada. I believe that if you seek it, Mr. Speaker, I think you will find unanimous consent for the following motion: That, given that the cost of the pandemic recovery should not fall on the shoulders of Canada's poor and vulnerable, that the payment of pandemic benefits, including the Canada emergency response benefit and the Canada recovery benefit, occurred in extraordinary circumstances, the House call on the government to: (a) ensure that pandemic benefits will not be counted as income to determine eligibility for normal income support programs like the guaranteed income supplement and the Canada child benefit; (b) guarantee that the onus to deliver any solution to reverse the clawback of income-tested benefits for those who accessed income support benefits falls to government and will not be dependent on Canadians in financial distress navigating an application, and (c) recover payments under the Canada emergency wage subsidy made to companies that posted substantial profits, especially those that paid dividends to shareholders or bonuses to executives.

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The Speaker

Dec/13/21 3:14:55 p.m.
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All those opposed to the hon. member moving the motion will please say nay. Some hon. members: Nay. The hon. member for Marc-Aurèle-Fortin on a point of order.

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Mr. Yves Robillard (Marc-Aurèle-Fortin, Lib.)

Dec/13/21 3:15:16 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, you reminded members that the dress code applies whether we are in the House in person or virtually. Is there a way to ensure that members all follow the same rules, regardless of physical location?

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The Speaker

Dec/13/21 3:15:49 p.m.
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I thank the hon. member. The rules are clear. Men must wear a jacket and tie if they wish to speak, or a jacket if they are in the House. There are no rules for women. The rules are the same whether we are in the House in person or virtually.

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Hon. Mary Ng (Minister of International Trade, Export Promotion, Small Business and Economic Development, Lib.)

Dec/13/21 3:16:24 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 32(2) and in accordance with the enhanced transparency requirements set out in the amended policy on tabling of treaties in Parliament, I am pleased to notify the House of Commons of the government's intent to initiate negotiations for a Canada-United Kingdom free trade agreement. The Government of Canada intends to commence negotiations by holding a first round of negotiations with the United Kingdom no earlier than 90 days from the date of this notice.

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Hon. Lawrence MacAulay (Minister of Veterans Affairs and Associate Minister of National Defence, Lib.)

Dec/13/21 3:17:06 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 32(2), I have the honour to table, in both official languages, the Veterans Ombudsman Annual Report, 2020-21.

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Mr. Terry Duguid (Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Environment and Climate Change, Lib.)

Dec/13/21 3:17:32 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 34(1) I have the honour to present to the House, in both official languages, the report of the Canadian Branch of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association respecting its participation at the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association United Kingdom Virtual Forum on Climate Change, March 22 to 24.

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Mr. Taylor Bachrach (Skeena—Bulkley Valley, NDP)

Dec/13/21 3:18:27 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-210

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-210, An Act to amend the Canada Elections Act (voting age). He said: Mr. Speaker, I rise today to introduce the right to vote at 16 act, which would amend the Canada Elections Act and lower the voting age to 16. This legislation is about giving young people a voice at a time when our government faces some of the most consequential decisions in our country's history and on no issue is this more true than that of climate change, the impacts of which today's young people will inherit. This legislation is also about strengthening our democracy, which we can see around the world is fragile. We should all be concerned that voter turnout in Canada continues to be lowest among the youngest voters and this bill seeks to improve that by forming voting habits while young people are still in school. This bill is also about recognizing the rights of young people to participate in democracy. I want to dedicate the bill to the courageous young people who are currently taking the government to court on this very issue and to my daughter, who is celebrating her 17th birthday today. I wish Ella a happy birthday. Finally, I want to recognize others in this place who have tabled similar bills over the years. I thank the member for Victoria for seconding the bill. Lowering the voting age is not a new idea, but an idea whose time has come. I hope it will find majority support in the House.

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The Speaker

Dec/13/21 3:19:47 p.m.
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I would remind hon. members that concise is a word they should remember.

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Mr. Tom Kmiec (Calgary Shepard, CPC)

Dec/13/21 3:20:30 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-211

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-211, An Act to amend the Canada Labour Code (bereavement leave). He said: Mr. Speaker, there is a Yiddish proverb that says, “Everything ends in weeping.” I will not say it in Yiddish. I want to thank the member for Bay of Quinte for seconding the bill. This private member's bill is like Bill C-307 from the last Parliament. It would introduce six weeks of leave for parents who are weeping for the children they lost. It would also introduce five days of leave for miscarriages, three paid days and two unpaid.

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Mr. Garnett Genuis (Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, CPC)

Dec/13/21 3:21:50 p.m.
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Re: Bill S-223

Madam Speaker, the third petition I am tabling is with respect to organ harvesting and trafficking. We have Bill S-223, which the Senate has now adopted unanimously. It is the third time the Senate has unanimously passed a bill on organ harvesting and trafficking and has sent it to us in the House. Hopefully this Parliament will be the one that gets it done. The petitioners want to see the government make it a criminal offence for a person to go abroad and receive an organ taken without consent.

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Mr. Garnett Genuis (Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, CPC)

Dec/13/21 3:21:50 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I have a number of petitions to present in the House today, and I appreciate the opportunity. The first petition, and I know these are greatly anticipated by my colleagues, especially the Minister of Justice, who will want to listen carefully to this one, because it pertains to people from Hong Kong who are seeking to come to Canada. They are concerned about a criminal conviction that is not, by any standards, a real criminal conviction, which is that they have been persecuted as a result of being involved in democratic activism and protests that are not a criminal offence in Canada. They are concerned that if they were convicted of offences that are unrelated to the national security law but are still related to pro-democracy activism, they will be barred from entry to Canada. The petitioners call on the government to take appropriate steps to create mechanisms whereby people who have been involved in a democracy movement and have been convicted on trumped-up charges in Hong Kong would still be able to make applications to Canada. I know the petition will have the support of many members.

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Mr. Garnett Genuis (Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, CPC)

Dec/13/21 3:21:50 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, the final petition I am tabling today highlights the persecution of other minority communities in Afghanistan specifically. This petition focuses on the plight of the Sikh and Hindu minority in Afghanistan. This follows six years of activism from the Conservative Party as well as other opposition parties, calling on the government to create a special program to help minorities that are vulnerable to persecution to be privately sponsored to come to Canada, as well as calling on the government to advocate for the human rights situation of minorities. Sadly, following the Taliban takeover, circumstances have become considerably worse from an already challenging situation, and the government needs to do all it can to help Sikhs, Hindus, Christians, Hazaras and other minorities in Afghanistan as well as the people of Afghanistan more broadly.

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