SoVote

Decentralized Democracy

House Hansard - 71

44th Parl. 1st Sess.
May 13, 2022 10:00AM
Context: House Hansard - 71 - May/13/22
Mr. Jamie Schmale (Haliburton—Kawartha Lakes—Brock, CPC)
  • May/13/22 11:51:31 a.m.
  • Watch
Mr. Speaker, accountability means taking responsibility when one fails, but the government would rather blame Canadians. The Minister of Transport blames Canadian families wanting to vacation for passport delays and long lines at airports. The Minister of Public Safety blames Canadians for his failure to tackle gang violence on law-abiding Canadians. What is next: blaming inflation on taxpayers, who are paying more for everything? It is unbelievable. When will the government stop its persecution of law-abiding Canadians and go after the real menace: the dangerous criminals and the illegal cross-border firearms trade?
95 words
  • Hear!
  • Rabble!
  • star_border
Context: House Hansard - 71 - May/13/22
Mr. Alexandre Boulerice (Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie, NDP)
  • May/13/22 1:01:56 p.m.
  • Watch
  • Re: Bill C-18 
Mr. Speaker, I listened intently to my colleague's speech, and I have to say I completely agree with him. My colleague emphasized how important local media is to democracy. I would like to hear his thoughts on the sound management of public funds and accountability requirements. Maybe he could tell us about the Laval region, where there was virtually no local media. Mayor Gilles Vaillancourt took advantage of that situation to bend the rules for years. Here is what I would like my colleague to comment on. Journalists who ask local and regional elected representatives questions improve both our democracy and the sound management of public funds.
108 words
  • Hear!
  • Rabble!
  • star_border
Context: House Hansard - 71 - May/13/22
Mr. Sébastien Lemire
  • May/13/22 1:02:36 p.m.
  • Watch
  • Re: Bill C-18 
Mr. Speaker, that is the key right there. Journalists are democracy watchdogs. A lot of elected representatives do not like interacting with journalists. They are afraid of them. I think the primary responsibility of elected representatives is to be accountable and to inform the people. We are lucky that accountability requirements exist. There are other scandals too, such as the sponsorship scandal and the WE scandal. Fortunately, journalists work very hard to cover the work we do in the House. I see this in the House. How could we raise all the issues in our speeches and our committee work? Ultimately, if we really want to pressure the government to change things, we will need help from journalists and the platform they have. Media organizations evolve. Podcasts are a good example. Fortunately, or unfortunately, meaningful changes in our Parliament are often the result of ideas that come from journalists. Consider the example of the prayer in the House of Commons, which we have debated. Is reciting a prayer to just any God still relevant? Obviously, the answer is no, but journalists covered the issue, and this social debate affirms these steps towards secularism, a fundamental issue. There are so many examples showing that journalists help move our society forward. Our society needs journalists. I thank them for their work.
219 words
  • Hear!
  • Rabble!
  • star_border