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Decentralized Democracy

House Hansard - 33

44th Parl. 1st Sess.
February 17, 2022 10:00AM
Context: House Hansard - 33 - Feb/17/22
Mr. Jagmeet Singh
  • Feb/17/22 11:59:14 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I want to be clear to Canadians that we take this step with a lot of reluctance. We are not in any way proud that we are at a point in our country's history where the Emergencies Act has to be implemented. We think a failure of leadership got us to this point. It was a failure of taking the convoy seriously. People were abandoned. Workers were abandoned and residents of Ottawa were abandoned. As a result, we are in this crisis. We are going to support this measure, but we are going to do so with a lot of vigilance. We are going to pay close attention to the implementation of the Emergencies Act, and we are prepared to withdraw our support at any moment that it becomes clear that there is an abuse of power. We have the power to do so. There are a number of tools at our disposal, and we will be paying very close attention to the way the Emergencies Act is used. We want to make sure it is used only for the goal of dealing with the convoy and the national crisis, so that Canadians can have restored confidence in the ability of this country to function properly, to protect them and to keep them safe.
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Context: House Hansard - 33 - Feb/17/22
Mr. Alexandre Boulerice (Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie, NDP)
  • Feb/17/22 1:28:54 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I would first like to say that I hold the Liberal government responsible for letting convoys organized by the far right take over Parliament and illegally occupy downtown. I would like to look at this from another angle. The War Measures Act is a painful and traumatizing event stamped in the collective memory of Quebeckers. However, it cannot be compared to the Emergencies Act, which was drafted by Mulroney's Conservative government. There are huge differences: fundamental rights and freedoms are protected, its application is time-limited, and members can call for a vote at any time to put an end to the application of the act. Do these guarantees as to the authority given to all parliamentarians to exercise vigilance reassure my colleague?
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