SoVote

Decentralized Democracy

House Hansard - 19

44th Parl. 1st Sess.
December 16, 2021 10:00AM
Context: House Hansard - 19 - Dec/16/21
Mr. Alain Therrien
  • Dec/16/21 2:59:49 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we cannot hear the French interpretation.
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The Speaker
  • Dec/16/21 2:59:53 p.m.
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The translation is now going through. I would ask the hon. minister to start over again so she can be heard in both official languages. The hon. minister.
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Hon. Mary Ng
  • Dec/16/21 3:00:09 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, let me be clear that our government has always been and will always be a strong advocate for vaccine equity everywhere around the world. Canada is taking leadership at the WTO and working with the international community to ensure the global trading system can contribute to removing barriers to vaccine access. I just had a meeting with the Ottawa group members this morning. We are advancing issues that not only include IP, but also supply chain, production and export restrictions. Our government is going to continue to do this very important work with the international community—
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The Speaker
  • Dec/16/21 3:00:48 p.m.
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The hon. member for Bruce—Grey—Owen Sound.
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Mr. Alex Ruff (Bruce—Grey—Owen Sound, CPC)
  • Dec/16/21 3:00:53 p.m.
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  • Re: Bill C-5 
Mr. Speaker, I had the privilege of speaking to students in a grade 10 civics class this morning in my riding of Bruce—Grey—Owen Sound. I asked for their feedback on Bill C-5. They would like to know if the government is willing to amend the bill and keep mandatory minimums for extortion with a firearm; importing, exporting or possession of drugs for the purpose of exporting; and the production of hard drugs; that is heroin, cocaine, fentanyl and crystal meth. In their opinion, these serious crimes make sense with mandatory minimums. If these kids get it, why does the government not get it?
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Hon. David Lametti (Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, Lib.)
  • Dec/16/21 3:01:30 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, what this government does get is that mandatory minimum penalties have been an abject failure in all regards. They do not work to decrease criminality. They do not work to decrease recidivism. All they do is clog up the criminal justice system, cause delays and have a serious disproportionate impact on systemic racism. Serious crimes in our system will always carry serious consequences. All of the crimes named where the situation is serious will carry a serious maximum sentence.
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Hon. Rob Moore (Fundy Royal, CPC)
  • Dec/16/21 3:02:16 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, according to the Public Health Agency of Canada, the supply of fentanyl is a key factor in its just-released projections of the rising number of opioid-related deaths that Canadians should expect to see over the next six months. At the very same time, the Liberal government is trying to eliminate jail time for the very people charged with producing, importing and trafficking fentanyl. Can the Minister of Justice tell Canadians why his government is trying to make life easier for the drug producers and traffickers fuelling the opioid crisis?
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Hon. David Lametti (Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, Lib.)
  • Dec/16/21 3:02:52 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, once again, I would ask the opposition to stop misleading Canadians. Serious drug traffickers— Some hon. members: Oh, oh!
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The Speaker
  • Dec/16/21 3:03:00 p.m.
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Order. The hon. Minister of Justice.
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Hon. David Lametti
  • Dec/16/21 3:03:11 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, people charged with serious drug crimes, with trafficking and importing, will always face serious consequences in our criminal justice system. That is simply the case. All the mandatory minimum penalties do is clog up the system, and increase systemic racism and the impact of systemic racism within the system. The statistics show the opposition's policy of “tough on crime” is an abject failure and we are going to move beyond it and treat health problems as health problems and criminal justice problems as criminal justice problems.
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Hon. Rob Moore (Fundy Royal, CPC)
  • Dec/16/21 3:03:54 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Liberals are doing just the opposite; 4,000 opioid-related deaths by June is the projection just announced yesterday by the government's own agency. That is not just a number, that is 4,000 Canadians who have families, friends and plans for the future. The opioid crisis has affected communities of every single member of this House. Will the government finally consider the victims of this crisis over its efforts to eliminate jail time for the criminals importing, producing and trafficking these deadly drugs?
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Hon. Jean-Yves Duclos (Minister of Health, Lib.)
  • Dec/16/21 3:04:36 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, my colleague is right; the opioid crisis is a terrible crisis. On average, about 20 people die of it every day. That is why we need to do things that take into account all sorts of measures that will be helpful to save lives. We are putting into place, in collaboration with provinces, territories and municipalities, measures to reduce harm, reduce risk, and provide safe provisions and access to safe drugs. We will also work with provinces and territories to make sure they have access to services—
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The Speaker
  • Dec/16/21 3:05:11 p.m.
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The hon. member for Vancouver Granville.
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Mr. Taleeb Noormohamed (Vancouver Granville, Lib.)
  • Dec/16/21 3:05:15 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the constituents of my riding of Vancouver Granville felt the effects of COVID-19 in all aspects of their lives. Thanks to this government's prudent financial management, however, we have seen a strong economic recovery. Could the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance tell the House about some of the measures included in the recent financial update that will continue to support this recovery?
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Hon. Chrystia Freeland (Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, Lib.)
  • Dec/16/21 3:05:44 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, what we learned over the past 21 months is that the most important economic policy is a strong health policy. In the economic and fiscal update, I announced $2 billion for therapeutics, $1.7 billion for rapid tests and $7.3 billion for vaccines and boosters. That is what we are doing.
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Mr. Frank Caputo (Kamloops—Thompson—Cariboo, CPC)
  • Dec/16/21 3:06:30 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Veterans Affairs Canada is cutting case workers in March, despite veterans and their families waiting up to two years for the benefits to which they are entitled. Last year alone, the department left over $635 million unspent. This is not helping veterans. When will the government take action and address the veterans' care crisis?
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Hon. Lawrence MacAulay (Minister of Veterans Affairs and Associate Minister of National Defence, Lib.)
  • Dec/16/21 3:07:04 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I appreciate my hon. colleague's question and concern. As he is well aware, we have made a number of investments in Veterans Affairs and we have hired over 400 case workers. As we indicated in our platform, we will make more—
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The Speaker
  • Dec/16/21 3:07:15 p.m.
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I am just going to ask the minister if he has a headset handy. It appears he does not have one. The government House leader.
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Hon. Mark Holland (Leader of the Government in the House of Commons, Lib.)
  • Dec/16/21 3:07:47 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, on this side of the House we know how important it is to invest in veterans. That is why we reversed the cuts that we saw in veterans officers right across this country, as we watched the essential services that veterans were getting be cut—
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The Speaker
  • Dec/16/21 3:08:02 p.m.
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One moment, I believe the interpretation has stopped. I will ask the hon. government House leader to start from the beginning and answer that question, please.
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