44th Parl. 1st Sess.
November 28, 2022 11:00AM
- Nov/28/22 3:16:15 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, on the same point of order, there may have been a particular problem with the audio, because the question from the member for Edmonton Strathcona was intended to be heard in the legislature in Alberta and the—
Some hon. members: Oh, oh!
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- Nov/28/22 3:16:26 p.m.
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Excuse my language. That is not a point of order, and I apologize for using language that is not parliamentary. That was my slip.
Now we will continue, if that is okay. Do we have any other points of order?
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- Nov/28/22 3:16:55 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the 18th report of the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs concerning the list of members of committees of the House, pursuant to Standing Orders 104 and 114.
If the House gives its consent, I intend to move concurrence in the 18th report later this day.
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moved for leave to introduce Bill C-308, An Act respecting the National Strategy to Combat Human Trafficking.
He said: Mr. Speaker, human trafficking is a major problem here in Canada. It is very profitable; it is brutal and it is growing.
Fighting human trafficking must always be a priority for the Canadian government, and the bill I am introducing would introduce a national strategy to combat human trafficking. The bill would ensure that Canada undertakes a long-term approach to ending human trafficking and centres on the voices of survivors, providing robust supports, putting more traffickers in jail and empowering Canadians to tackle this crime in their own communities.
The national strategy to combat human trafficking act would require that the Government of Canada maintain a national strategy to combat human trafficking, that this strategy have clear objectives and timelines, that there would be a review every five years, and that there would be an annual report that would be tabled on behalf of the government to Parliament on the government's progress in combatting human trafficking. The Minister of Public Safety would have to make every reasonable effort to fulfill these obligations under the key international conventions that we have signed relating to human trafficking.
I am honoured to have the support of victims and victims' groups from across the country, anti-human trafficking organizations and frontline service providers, including Timea's Cause, the Canadian Centre to End Human Trafficking, the Joy Smith Foundation, #NotInMyCity, BridgeNorth, Next Step Ministries, the Allard School of Law International Justice and Human Rights Clinic, and the All-Party Parliamentary Group to End Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking.
Canada must take a zero-tolerance approach to human trafficking and prioritize the voices of survivors, and this bill hopes to do so.
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- Nov/28/22 3:19:58 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, if the House gives its consent, I move that the 18th report of the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs, presented to the House earlier this day, be concurred in.
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- Nov/28/22 3:20:10 p.m.
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All those opposed to the hon. member's moving the motion will please say nay.
Hearing none, it is agreed.
The House has heard the terms of the motion. All those opposed to the motion will please say nay.
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- Nov/28/22 3:20:38 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, it is an honour to table this petition on behalf of my constituents.
This was brought to my attention by one of my constituents. We have dozens of signatures from people in Calgary Rocky Ridge who are concerned about the ongoing situation with trafficking in organs obtained without consent, the scourge of organ transplant tourism and the need to deal with this in Canada by way of creating a law to criminalize such behaviour.
On behalf of my constituents, I am happy to table this petition.
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- Nov/28/22 3:21:26 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, it is an honour to rise in the House and present a petition concerning many of my constituents and other Canadians from coast to coast to coast on the ongoing threat to pollinators, particularly honeybees.
The petitioners call on the Government to Canada to catch up with the European Union and follow its lead in adhering to the precautionary principle and banning the use of neonicotinoid pesticides in Canada to protect our pollinators and our food.
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- Nov/28/22 3:22:03 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I am presenting a petition signed by dozens of petitioners who are concerned about the international trafficking in human organs that are being removed from victims without their consent.
Senate Bill S-223 is currently being studied by the House of Commons standing committee, and petitioners are urging Parliament to move quickly on the bill, which would prohibit Canadians from travelling abroad to acquire or receive such an organ. International investigations conclude that the Chinese communist regime has been committing mass killings of Falun Gong prisoners of conscience for their organs, which are sold for profit, many to international organ tourists.
Legal experts say crimes against humanity have occurred, and they would generally encourage support for Bill S-223. They would like Parliament to move quickly on that.
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- Nov/28/22 3:23:10 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to present a number of petitions in the House today.
The first petition is raising concern about a commitment made in the Liberals' last election platform. They said that they plan to politicize charitable status determination, effectively denying charitable status to organizations that do not share the Liberal Party's views on abortion. This politicization of the charitable status would jeopardize the good work being done by hospitals, houses of worship, schools, homeless shelters and other charitable organizations that happen to have a different perspective from the Liberal Party on these issues.
This would involve the application of another values test, similar to the Canada summer jobs program values test that was previously put in place by the government and roundly criticized. Petitioners note that all Canadians who are involved in charitable activities should not face discrimination on the basis of their deeply held personal convictions. Petitioners call on the House and the government to protect and preserve the application of charitable status rules on a politically and ideologically neutral basis without discrimination on the basis of political or religious values and without the imposition of a values test. Petitioners also want to see the government reaffirm the right to freedom of expression.
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Mr. Speaker, the next petition I am tabling raises concerns about Bill C-21. This is a bill that would make things much more difficult for law-abiding firearms owners, and it would not effectively tackle the real problems of crime in this country. Petitioners are concerned that the government is moving forward with amendments that would, in effect, ban hunting rifles and about the extreme overreach by the government while it fails to address real issues of crime.
Petitioner have a number of asks. The first is to not proceed with Bill C-21. The second is to take stronger action against criminals, smugglers and gangs rather than law-abiding citizens, and the third is to allow the airsoft industry to continue producing and selling airsoft guns.
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- Nov/28/22 3:27:42 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the next petition I am tabling highlights the continuing detention and human rights abuses faced by Huseyin Celil. Mr. Celil is a Canadian citizen. He has been detained in China for well over a decade, and the Chinese government has not recognized his Canadian citizenship. At times, sadly, there have even been mixed messages on that here in this place, but I think we have gotten that point squared away.
The Chinese government has continued to detain Mr. Celil, and petitioners have the following asks of the government. They want the government to demand the Chinese government recognize Huseyin Celil's Canadian citizenship and provide him with consular and legal services in accordance with international law. They also want the government to formally state that the release of Mr. Celil from Chinese detainment and his return to Canada are a priority of the Canadian government, of equal concern as the unjust detention of the two Michaels. The petitioners want to see the Government of Canada appoint a special envoy to work on securing Mr. Celil's release and then also seek the assistance of the Biden administration, as happened in the case of the two Michaels.
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- Nov/28/22 3:27:42 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, alongside other issues of human rights abuses we see in China, this petition raises concerns about escalating violations of the fundamental human rights in China of Chinese Christians. Petitioners highlight the persecution we have seen of Christians in China and how that is increasing, and they call on the government to prioritize the advancement of human rights in its relationship with the government of China and to include, as part of its broader human rights advocacy, attention to the worsening plight of China's Christian community.
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- Nov/28/22 3:27:42 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, next I am tabling a petition in support of Bill S-223, a bill that would make it a criminal offence for a person to go abroad and receive an organ taken without consent. It also would create a mechanism by which a person could be deemed inadmissible to Canada if they are involved in forced organ harvesting and trafficking. I believe the bill will be automatically reported to the House today. Petitioners are hopeful that this Parliament will be the Parliament that finally succeeds in passing legislation combatting forced organ harvesting and trafficking.
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- Nov/28/22 3:27:47 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I want to also add my voice to those of thousands of Canadians from across Canada who have signed a petition to draw the attention of the House of Commons to the plight of Mr. Celil.
Mr. Celil has been in prison for over 5,000 days. He is a Canadian citizen. He is of Uighur origin. He has been in jail since 2001.
The Chinese government has refused to accept his Canadian citizenship and has denied his access to lawyers, his family and Canadian officials, while he has been coerced into signing a confession. He has undergone an unlawful and unfair trial.
Evidence now makes it clear that the Chinese government's treatment of Uighurs meets most if not all the criteria for genocide, as outlined by the UN Convention on the Punishment and Prevention of the Crime of Genocide.
Canada cannot remain silent. Therefore, the folks who have signed this petition are calling on the Chinese government to recognize Mr. Celil's Canadian citizenship and provide him with consular and legal services in accordance with international law.
They are calling on the Government of Canada to do all that it can to secure his release, appoint a special envoy to work to help Mr. Celil and seek the help of the Americans in this challenging time.
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- Nov/28/22 3:31:57 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the final petition that I have today is from Canadians from across Canada who are concerned about the Liberal Party's election platform from the last election, where it promised to revoke charitable status from pro-life organizations such as pregnancy care centres. These pregnancy care centres are invaluable for all of the communities. They counsel young women and save countless lives every year.
Revoking charitable status for pro-life organizations is a first step to more and more politicization of charitable status. This could also mean that churches, summer camps and all kinds of faith-based organizations may have their charitable status jeopardized. This would result in a definite cheapening and thinning of our civil society.
The folks who have signed this petition are concerned about the thousands of innocent babies who lose their lives to abortion every year and call on members of Parliament to do everything they can to prevent, block, organize and vote against any effort from the government to revoke charitable status for pro-life organizations.
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- Nov/28/22 3:31:57 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the next petition I have to present is from Canadians from across the country who want to raise the urgency of protecting children from predators and sexual abuse. This is an issue that I have raised many times, and I have often confronted the government on its lack of action.
In June, the government was asked to inform the House of the number of passports that it had given to child sex offenders over the past few years. The Harper Conservatives left the government with a number of tools to be able to provide it.
They are calling on the Government of Canada to ensure that Canadians are not going abroad to participate in illegal activities such as organ harvesting and child pedophilia.
The folks who have signed this petition recognize that there is a bill in front of the House of Commons right now, Bill S-223, calling for a ban on Canadians going abroad or making it illegal for Canadians to go abroad to gain illegally harvested organs. This is a horrific act that is happening with more and more frequency.
They are calling on the Government of Canada to do all that it can to reduce the illegal harvesting of organs.
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- Nov/28/22 3:32:06 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I would ask that all questions be allowed to stand.
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- Nov/28/22 3:32:10 p.m.
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Is that agreed?
Some hon. members: Agreed.
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I am now prepared to rule on the point of order raised on November 22, 2022, by the member for New Westminster—Burnaby concerning the application of Standing Order 69.1 to Bill C-27, an act to enact the consumer privacy protection act, the personal information and data protection tribunal act and the artificial intelligence and data act and to make consequential and related amendments to other acts.
The member for New Westminster—Burnaby stated that there is a clear link between the first two parts of Bill C‑27, which respectively enact the consumer privacy protection act and the personal information and data protection tribunal act. He further noted that these elements were both part of the previous Bill C-11, which was introduced in the House during the 43rd Parliament.
However, the member argued that part 3, which enacts the artificial intelligence and data act, should be considered separately, because it does not directly concern privacy protection or the analysis, circulation and exchange of personal information. Accordingly, he asked the Chair to divide Bill C‑27 for the purposes of voting, as Standing Order 69.1 permits.
The official opposition House leader concurred. He added that, outside of clause 39 of the bill, which mentions the new consumer privacy protection act in the definition of the term “personal information”, part 3 of Bill C-27 does not refer to parts 1 or 2. Furthermore, the member for South Shore—St. Margarets stated that parts 1 and 2 of Bill C-27 deal with privacy protection, which has nothing to do with the subject of part 3, the regulation of the new industry of artificial intelligence.
On November 23, the parliamentary secretary to the government House Leader pointed out that privacy protection is the common theme that links every part of Bill C-27. In his view, the bill’s three parts constitute a framework for protecting the privacy of Canadians from the risks posed by artificial intelligence systems. He argued that dividing the bill would prevent members from considering all the risks and impacts that new artificial intelligence technologies may create for the security of personal information. He also noted that privacy laws do not adequately protect the public from new artificial intelligence systems and that, as a result, Bill C-27 should be considered as a whole.
Standing Order 69.1 gives the Chair the authority to divide the questions, for the purposes of voting, on the motions for second or third reading of a bill. The objective here is not to divide the bill for consideration purposes, but to enable the House to decide questions that are not closely related separately.
The Chair has carefully reviewed the provisions of Bill C‑27 and taken into account members' statements on the issue of dividing it for voting purposes. The Chair agrees that the bill's three parts are connected by a broad theme, namely, the use and protection of personal information. While parts 1 and 2 of the bill are closely related, this is not true of part 3.
The Chair is of the view that, given the lack of cross-references between part 3 and the preceding parts of the bill, with the sole exception being one reference to the new consumer privacy protection act—which serves to propose a common definition of the term “personal information”—dividing the bill for voting at second reading is justified.
In his intervention, the parliamentary secretary to the government House leader emphasized the common theme that links the three acts enacted by Bill C-27. In a decision on a similar matter, delivered on March 1, 2018, which can be found at pages 17550 to 17552 of the Debates, Speaker Regan said the following, at page 17551:
…the question the Chair must ask itself is whether the purpose of the standing order was to deal only with matters that were obviously unrelated or whether it was to provide members with the opportunity to pronounce themselves on specific initiatives when a bill contains a variety of different measures.
In the absence of a clear link between the three parts of Bill C-27, other than the theme of privacy protection, the Chair is willing to divide the question. Accordingly, two votes will take place at the second reading stage for Bill C-27. The first will be on parts 1 and 2, including the schedule to clause 2. The second will deal with part 3 of the bill. The Chair will remind members of this division before the voting begins.
If any part of this bill is negatived, the Chair will order the bill reprinted for reconsideration at committee.
I thank the hon. members for their attention.
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