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The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Carol Hughes)

Feb/6/23 6:30:07 p.m.
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It is my duty to interrupt the proceedings at this time and put forthwith the question on the motion now before the House. The question is on the motion. If a member of a recognized party present in the House wishes that the motion be carried or carried on division, or wishes to request a recorded division, I would invite them to rise and indicate it to the Chair.

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Division

Mr. Garnett Genuis

Feb/6/23 6:30:47 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, we would like to request a recorded division.

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The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Carol Hughes)

Feb/6/23 6:30:52 p.m.
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Pursuant to order made Thursday, June 23, 2022, the recorded division stands deferred until Tuesday, February 7, at the expiry of the time provided for Oral Questions.

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Mrs. Cathay Wagantall (Yorkton—Melville, CPC)

Feb/6/23 6:31:28 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I have three petitions to present this evening. The first is from citizens and residents of Canada who wish to draw the attention of the House of Commons to the following: The Liberal government promised, in its 2021 platform, to deny the charitable status of organizations that have convictions about abortions, which the Liberal Party views as dishonest. This may jeopardize the charitable status of hospitals, houses of worship, schools, homeless shelters and other charitable organizations that do not agree with the Liberal Party on this matter for reasons of conscience. Many Canadians depend upon and benefit from the charitable work done by such organizations. The government has previously used a values test to discriminate against worthy applicants to the Canada summer jobs program, denying funding to any organization that was not willing to check a box endorsing political positions of the governing party. Charities and other non-profit organizations should not be discriminated against on the basis of their political views or religious values and should not be subject to politicized values tests. All Canadians have a right, under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, to freedom of expression without discrimination. Therefore, the petitioners call upon the House of Commons 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 another values test, and affirm the rights of Canadians to freedom of expression.

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Mrs. Cathay Wagantall (Yorkton—Melville, CPC)

Feb/6/23 6:33:09 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, the next petition is from petitioners who point out that, although Canadians Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig were recently released after 1,000 days of unjust detention in China, there are at least 115 Canadians still being detained in China, including Huseyin Celil, who has been detained for over 5,000 days. The Chinese government has refused to accept his Canadian citizenship and has denied access to lawyers, family and Canadian officials. He was coerced into signing a confession and underwent an unlawful and unfair trial. Evidence now makes clear the Chinese government's treatment of the Uighurs meets most, if not all, of the criteria for genocide as outlined in the UN Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, and Canada cannot remain silent in the face of the unjust suffering of a Canadian citizen. Therefore, the petitioners call on the Government of Canada to take the following actions to address the situation: One, demand the Chinese government recognize Huseyin Celil's Canadian citizenship and provide him with consular and legal service in accordance with international law. Two, formally state his release from Chinese detainment and return to Canada is a priority of the Canadian government, of equal concern as the unjust detentions of the two Michaels. Lastly, appoint a special envoy to work on securing his release and seek assistance of the Biden administration and other allies around the world in obtaining his release.

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The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Carol Hughes)

Feb/6/23 6:34:48 p.m.
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I want to remind the hon. member, and all members, that when they present petitions, it should be a summary of the petition and not verbatim.

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Mrs. Cathay Wagantall (Yorkton—Melville, CPC)

Feb/6/23 6:34:57 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I respect that. Unfortunately, these are issues that I am not as familiar with, but I was asked to present them. I will do my best to shorten this particular one. The citizens of Canada draw the attention of the House of Commons to the fact that Abdul Rahman Khan, the emir of Afghanistan, was installed by the British government and received a subsidy from it. They waged a genocidal campaign against the Hazaras from 1891 to 1893. It wiped out the vast majority of this ethnic group. There were tens of thousands of Hazaras who were forcefully displaced from their lands and many other thousands were forcefully proselytized, raped and enslaved from 1891 to 1893. The petition goes on to talk about the fact that even as late as August 1998, hundreds, if not thousands, of men, women, children and elders were slaughtered in the cities of Mazar-e Sharif and Bamiyan. The Hazaras still continue to face systemic and targeted persecution in post-2001 Afghanistan. It is clearly a serious issue. Canada has spent $3.6 billion in assisting Afghanistan and we lost 158 brave men and women in uniform in the fight against the Taliban. Afghanistan remains one of the largest recipients of Canada's international financial assistance. Therefore, the undersigned call upon the Government of Canada to take action. They ask to formally recognize the 1891 to 1893 ethnic cleansing perpetrated against the Hazaras; to designate September 25 as Hazara genocide memorial day; and to support Bill C-287 to ensure that all development assistance sent from Canada to Afghanistan is contributing to the peace and security of the region for all peoples.

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Mr. Gord Johns (Courtenay—Alberni, NDP)

Feb/6/23 6:37:02 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, it is timely that I table this petition given that we are on the eve of the critical meeting between premiers and the Prime Minister to talk about health. The petitioners are talking about the health crisis right now, about the poisoned drug supply and the toxicity of those drugs that are killing valued citizens, like mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers and family members of people in our communities. They cite that the war on drugs has allowed organized crime to be the sole provider of most controlled substances. That has resulted in widespread stigma. They are calling on the Government of Canada to reform current drug policies, to decriminalize simple possession of drugs listed in the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act, and to provide a path for expungement of conviction records for those convicted of simple possession. Lastly, with urgency, they ask to implement a health-based, national strategy for providing access to a regulated safer supply of drugs and expand trauma-informed, just-in-time treatment, recovery, harm reduction services, and public education and awareness campaigns throughout Canada to save lives and take this epidemic head-on.

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Mrs. Cheryl Gallant (Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke, CPC)

Feb/6/23 6:38:18 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, in the government's drive to dismantle the military, it is demoralizing the existing troops and preventing people from signing up through its implementation of systemic racism and its removal of Christianity from the forces. It is doing that by taking away the military chaplains. The people in this petition want to overturn the decision to take out the Christian religions from the military.

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

Feb/6/23 6:39:00 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I am pleased to be tabling a number of petitions this evening. The first petition highlights the human rights situation in Afghanistan. In particular, it draws the attention of the House to the horrific violence that has been inflicted on the Sikh and Hindu minority in Afghanistan. It highlights various specific instances and calls on the government, the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship and the Minister of Foreign Affairs to do all they can to support the Sikh and Hindu community in Afghanistan.

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

Feb/6/23 6:39:36 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, the next petition I am tabling highlights the ongoing, horrific persecution of Falun Gong practitioners in China. The petitioners note that the Falun Gong is the traditional Chinese spiritual discipline that consists of meditation exercises and moral teachings based on the principles of truthfulness, compassion and tolerance. They note that information has been uncovered about various forms of persecution, including forced organ harvesting and trafficking targeting Falun Gong practitioners. They call on Parliament and the government to condemn these measures, to call for the end of the persecution of Falun Gong, as well as to continue to strengthen efforts to combat forced organ harvesting and trafficking.

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

Feb/6/23 6:40:23 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, next I am presenting a petition that raises concern about the second proposed values test we have seen from the current government. It was in the Liberals' 2021 platform. They propose to deny charitable status to any organizations that have views with respect to abortion that they consider dishonest. The charities act already contains a prohibition against dishonest conduct. However, this was targeted against those who hold views that the Liberal Party does not agree with. This proposal could jeopardize the charitable status of hospitals, houses of worship, schools, homeless shelters and other charitable organizations that do not agree with the Liberal Party on these things. It follows a similar values test that was associated with the Canada summer jobs program that we saw in the past, which was rescinded in response to significant public criticism. The petitioners are calling on the House and the government to protect and preserve the application of charitable status rules on a politically and ideologically neutral basis, without the imposition of another values test. They also want to see the government affirm the right of Canadians to freedom of expression.

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

Feb/6/23 6:41:35 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the next petition I am presenting is with respect to the ongoing detention of Mr. Huseyin Celil, a Canadian citizen who has been detained in China for well over a decade. The petitioners share a bit of Mr. Celil's background. He is a Canadian Uighur human rights activist who was detained because of his work supporting the political and religious rights of Uighurs. He is a Canadian citizen. He was taken from Uzbekistan. This is happening in a context where this House has determined that the Government of China is committing an ongoing genocide against Uighurs and other Turkic Muslims. The petitioners call on the Government of Canada to fight for the release of Mr. Celil, in particular to push the Government of China to recognize his Canadian citizenship and provide him with consular and legal services in accordance with international law, and to formally state that securing the release of Mr. Celil from Chinese detainment and his return to Canada is a priority of the Canadian government of equal concern as the unjust detentions of Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor. The petitioners want to see the government appoint a special envoy to work on securing Mr. Celil's release, and to seek the assistance of the Biden administration and other allies around the world in obtaining Mr. Celil's release.

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

Feb/6/23 6:42:56 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the next petition deals with the human rights situation of another minority group in Afghanistan, the Hazara community. The petitioners share some of the history, going back to the 19th century, of violence targeting the Hazara community. They highlight Canada's close connection with Afghanistan, the work that was done over a long period of time, and the lives lost to try to establish and preserve freedom and democracy in Afghanistan, which of course makes it particularly sad to see what is happening in that country right now. The petitioners want to see the government recognize the genocide the Hazaras were victim of and designate September 25 as Hazara genocide memorial day.

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

Feb/6/23 6:43:47 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the next petition I am presenting highlights a proposal in the 2022 report of the Minister of National Defence's advisory panel on systemic racism and discrimination, a proposal that ironically was itself discriminatory. It calls for the exclusion of clergy from religions that have a different view on gender and sexuality than the Department of National Defence. The petitioners call on the government to reject those recommendations and to affirm the right of all Canadians, including the Canadian Armed Forces chaplains, to freedom of religion.

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Mr. Gord Johns (Courtenay—Alberni, NDP)

Feb/6/23 6:48:29 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I said last week on Ground Day that I would be back again every week to drag the government here to have a discussion about the need for mental health parity in this country. Here I am again, on the eve of what will hopefully be a historic meeting tomorrow of the Prime Minister and the premiers of the 10 provinces and three territories in this country, to talk about health care in this country. I hope mental health will be at the forefront of that conversation. The last three years, as we know, have been extraordinarily difficult, and that has taken its toll on the mental well-being of many Canadians. No one is untouched by the impact of the mental health crisis that is taking place in this country. Last fall, a joint report by the Mental Health Commission of Canada and the Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction found that almost 35% of respondents reported moderate to severe mental health concerns, and fewer than one in three people experiencing mental health concerns were accessing services. Financial constraints were noted as a key barrier to obtaining supports, while financial concerns were identified as the top stressor across most of Canada. We know that these are difficult economic times for many, and things are getting worse. As Canada navigates through these difficult economic times, it is more essential than ever that we get support to those who are struggling so they can access mental health care regardless of their ability to pay. Recently, the Douglas Coldwell Layton Foundation commissioned Abacus Data to conduct a survey of 2,000 working Canadians to explore the impact of working conditions and personal finances on their mental health. Not surprisingly, it found that work is a regular source of mental health distress for one in three workers, or about 6.5 million working Canadians. This includes burnout, anxiety and depression. The survey revealed that four in 10 workers say that negative emotions caused by their workplace are increasing. The most troubling finding of all is that 9.4 million respondents to this survey, or almost half of working Canadians, described their mental health as less than good. The evidence is in, so what is there to do? What actions must be taken to address the mental health needs of Canadian workers? We know that the promises of the government during the last election about the good sense of establishing the Canada mental health transfer have not happened. It was a comfort to many millions of Canadians and to many millions of Canadian workers that they would have access to services and that life was going to improve. It was, after all, the second commitment listed in the Minister of Finance's mandate letter from the Prime Minister. Marching orders had been given and help was on the way. Regrettably, while the fiscal and costing plan presented in the election campaign indicated that $875 million would be committed toward this transfer by 2023, no funds have been allocated to date out of this new money. The Liberals are going to pat themselves on the back tonight and talk about old money. What we want to hear about is their promise and them fulfilling it. We read in the media that direction has been given to ministers that new programs must be funded in part through cuts. This is alarming. It is incredibly short-sighted when it comes to mental health. It cannot happen here. In 2011, a study commissioned by the Mental Health Commission of Canada estimated that the poor mental health of Canadians cost our economy at least $50 billion annually, not including at least $6 billion in lost productivity of workers. Therefore, I am hoping the government will make a commitment, especially on the eve of tomorrow's meeting with the premiers and the Prime Minister.

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Mr. Terry Sheehan (Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Labour, Lib.)

Feb/6/23 6:48:33 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I want to thank the hon. member for Courtenay—Alberni's continued work. I had an opportunity to visit the member's riding and I can tell us that it is a beautiful place with a very positive vibe and very great people, so I thank the member for raising this. We are following through on measures to better protect the mental health of workers in federally regulated industries. Members can see that this commitment is not only reflected in the Minister of Labour's mandate letter, which states that the minister will move forward with and secure passage of amendments to the Canada Labour Code to include mental health as a specific element of occupational health and safety and to require federally regulated employers to take preventative steps to address workplace stress and injury. Also, we have taken concrete actions since the government has been in power, since 2015. The steps we have taken to meet this commitment are numerous. We have moved forward on 10 days of paid sick leave for all federally regulated workers in Canada. We recognize that mental health is health, period. We have also worked closely with unions and employers to make sure that they understand our commitment to this question. I had an opportunity to be in British Columbia this summer, talking with the building trades and the BC Federation of Labour. We had excellent dialogue on this very subject and they had some really good ideas, as well, that we are looking at incorporating. We are also looking to push the right to disconnect in this new economy. We are going to prioritize the fight against violence and harassment at work. Last week, in fact, the Minister of Labour ratified convention 190 of the International Labour Organization, which aims to fight violence and harassment at work in every jurisdiction around the world. We are leading this fight. Addressing mental health is a complex issue and there is no one-size-fits-all solution. When it comes to changing policy and regulations, it takes a lot of research and consultation with stakeholders to get this issue right. That is exactly what we are doing. We had consultations with stakeholders between the spring of 2020 and the fall of 2021, to get their views on how the Government of Canada can better support the mental health of federally regulated Canadian workers. We held virtual engagement sessions with a number of key stakeholders and partners, including the Mental Health Commission of Canada and the Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety. We met with the Canadian Mental Health Association and the Centre for Addictions and Mental Health, who are experts in this field. We are engaged with indigenous partners, employers, unions and non-governmental organizations. We have also invited interested Canadians to provide feedback. During our virtual sessions, we talked about various aspects, including barriers and, of course, solutions, solutions that went from clarifying legal requirements and increasing expertise to addressing the stigma and improving data and research. In other words, work is well under way and we will continue to move forward to make mental health a priority for federally regulated Canadian workers. Work is also ongoing to develop a right to disconnect policy, which would clarify the expectations around answering emails and texts outside of work hours. We can see that we have done a lot in this field. We continue to be committed to Canadians and we are leading the way. I look forward to continue working with all parliamentarians, as we move forward on this important issue.

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Mr. Gord Johns

Feb/6/23 6:52:31 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I appreciate the comments from my colleague. I appreciate my colleague addressing workers and the needs of workers. What I do not appreciate is that the government made a promise in 2021 to deliver a mental health transfer. It has not done that. Our overall health care spending on mental health is between 5% and 7%. In the OECD, the average is 12%. This is unconscionable, that it has not delivered. We need parity when it comes to mental health and physical health in our country. This is costing lives. It is unconscionable that it has delayed on this promise. I do not want to have to drag everyone here at the end of the day. I do not want to drag us here. I do not want to drag the parliamentary secretaries here. I do not want to keep all the staff here late at night. Every week I will continue to bring them back here until they deliver on their promise of a mental health transfer. It is costing lives. This is critical. I hope that tomorrow they deliver on the promise and I hope it is a historic day for all of us.

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Mr. Terry Sheehan

Feb/6/23 6:53:33 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I thank the member for his continued work in this area. I mentioned in my speech highlights of a few things that we have undertaken, but there certainly are more. We are taking action to protect the rights and well-being of workers. This is a top priority for us. We are going to make sure we do things the right way. We are going to work in close collaboration with our partners and stakeholders, including the Mental Health Commission of Canada, the Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety, and the federally regulated employers and labour groups, just to name a few. To get this right, we need to talk to people. We need to know about their lived experiences, the barriers they face and their perspectives. That is how we are going to get this right, and this is how we are going to move this important issue forward.

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Mr. Greg McLean (Calgary Centre, CPC)

Feb/6/23 6:54:25 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, on November 22, 2022, I rose in the House and asked a question of the government linking taxes, carbon taxes in particular, with the rate of inflation we are experiencing in Canada. I used the example of Japan and the decisions they are making to address inflation in Japan versus the ones we are making here. I got a response from the Associate Minister of Finance, the member for Edmonton Centre, which was more of a song and a dance than a reply. I hope I get a better response from the government tonight. Let us address this. In November, Japan was experiencing 4.2% inflation. Canada, on the other hand, was experiencing 6.8% inflation. As a result of the inflation Japan was experiencing, it cancelled its increase to the carbon tax, which was expected to take effect in April of this year, but that has been cancelled. Canada, on the other hand, is increasing its carbon tax by 30%. Notably, Canada's carbon tax right now is $50 per tonne, and it will rise to $65 if the government continues on the path its on. Japan's carbon tax is about $3 Canadian per tonne of carbon, so there is a significant difference between what we are doing here. We can see why inflation is much more of a problem in Canada. Carbon tax this year is expected to bring in $8.27 billion into Canada. Not to be outdone, when pressed on the issue, the governor of the Bank of Canada actually admitted, after some study, that the carbon tax itself was contributing 0.4% to the inflation rate in Canada. Instead of 6.8%, without the carbon tax, we would have an inflation rate of 6.4%. That amount is going to increase by about 1.3 times, so about 0.52% of our inflation rate is going to be part and parcel of the carbon tax. Let me bring home what that means. This summer we had oil prices rise. West Texas Intermediate, the grade we measure our oil by, was about $110 per barrel in the world. That equated to about $2.10 per litre filling up in Calgary. Think about the last time oil was that high. It was actually $1.40 per litre, so it has gone up an extra 70¢ per litre. Part of that is inflation, and part of that is the price inflation. Apples to apples, it should be about $1.72 per litre versus $2.10. Where is the extra 40¢? I will tell colleagues. It is in the form of taxes on gas. It is excise taxes. It is carbon taxes. It is clean fuel taxes. I know the narrative on the other side is going to tell me that x per cent of the economists around the world believe that a carbon tax is the most effective way of pricing carbon and reducing carbon emissions. I could agree. Let me ask this: If this is so, why are so many other taxation mechanisms required? There is the clean fuels standard; the clean electricity standard, which is on its way; emissions caps, some targeted at specific industries; vehicle mandates; and massive subsidization of chosen paths forward. This is billions of dollars that the government is spending needlessly, and all of them are, by design, inflationary. This is inflation built upon inflation. The savings of Canadians are at risk. The energy security of Canadians is at risk. Will the government come clean and provide Canadians clarity on what the future looks like in the designed inflationary spiral that it is designing here?

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