44th Parl. 1st Sess.
February 9, 2023 10:00AM
- Feb/9/23 3:06:56 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, here are the facts.
This country is the envy of the world in terms of how we have navigated the pandemic. All week long, Mr. Speaker, you have heard the Conservatives sowing fear and creating anxiety. Our job is to offer hope, to find solutions and to make plans. They have no plan. We have a plan that will meet Canadians' expectations and give them hope for the future.
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- Feb/9/23 3:07:35 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, after eight years of the Prime Minister, the Liberals have found a new strategy to kill jobs, and that is to protect mud. The Liberals are proposing to shut down the critical halibut and swordfish fisheries off Browns Bank with a new marine-protected area by the end of next year. More than 95% of the ocean floor that the Liberals are planning to protect is mud. Apparently, a fishing line 12 feet under the surface of the water is a danger to the mud 270 feet below.
Will the Liberal who wants to kill fishing jobs to protect the scarcity of mud—
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- Feb/9/23 3:08:19 p.m.
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The hon. parliamentary secretary.
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- Feb/9/23 3:08:23 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I enjoy sitting on committee with the member opposite.
I think it is important to remember that there was a time when the Conservative Party was in power and it muzzled scientists, cut DFO jobs and did not give two hoots about anything related to keeping jobs in the community. When it comes to fishing and fishing communities, we have invested through the fish harvester benefit and we have invested in small craft harbours.
We know that small craft harbours and fishing jobs are the lifeblood of Atlantic Canadian communities and communities throughout Canada. We will continue to fight for them while he continues with his puns.
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- Feb/9/23 3:09:13 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, this week is International Development Week, a week to inform, inspire and involve Canadians in Canada's international development efforts. While this week many organizations will be highlighting their efforts, it was reported by the United Nations that around 660 million people may still face hunger in 2030, in part due to the lasting effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on global food security.
Can the Minister of International Development share with the House how our government will help the most vulnerable?
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- Feb/9/23 3:09:52 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the member for his important work in development.
This is a great opportunity for me to highlight International Development Week and our feminist international assistance policy. Through our feminist international assistance policy, we fund programs that address food security while giving women and girls equal access to education and resources. I will give members an example of this. A study found that if women farmers had the same access to resources as men, there would be an over 40% reduction of people living in hunger.
We will continue to fund programs that have a direct impact on reducing hunger around the world and that increase women and girls' participation in decision-making.
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- Feb/9/23 3:10:32 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, relief efforts in Turkey and Syria will need far more support in the coming weeks. Canadian partners are stepping up to help, but they need more support. So far, the government has only announced a matching fund for the Red Cross, not for the Humanitarian Coalition. The Humanitarian Coalition is a group of 12 Canadian leading international aid agencies that have vast experience in the region, and they are on the ground right now.
Will the government fix the matching fund to make sure that these Canadian organizations can deliver help to those who are displaced, grieving and deeply suffering right now?
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- Feb/9/23 3:11:14 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the Humanitarian Coalition, a group of Canadian NGOs that do this amazing work.
Yes, we have announced a matching fund of $10 million. This is in addition to the $10 million we have already committed. Our needs assessment is currently ongoing and all options are on the table, including additional matching funds. We will even consider direct funding to the Humanitarian Coalition to help the tremendous work that it is doing on the ground.
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- Feb/9/23 3:11:47 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, in The Hill Times of January 25, the government House leader stated that in the upcoming session, the government's third priority would be “protecting Canada’s economy and infrastructure from foreign interference and from the rise of despotism.” Presumably, the House leader includes protecting democracy and the Canada Elections Act among these goals.
Can the House leader inform this House how that top priority is coming along? Moreover, is the government now aware of any sitting MP or 2021 federal election candidate who was subjected to foreign interference or who was themselves involved in such illegal activities?
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- Feb/9/23 3:12:27 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, our government has taken the threat of foreign interference very seriously since the beginning when we took office. We heard just this week that a former ambassador to Stephen Harper was concerned about these things. However, if members note, none of the recommendations, nor the implementation of protecting our democracy and protecting our institutions, began until we took office.
We will continue to work with all parties and all parliamentarians to ensure that our institutions remain strong against the ongoing threat of foreign interference.
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- Feb/9/23 3:13:07 p.m.
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I draw the attention of hon. members to the presence in the gallery of finalists and winners of the 2022 Arctic Inspiration Prize. The finalists and winners from across Canada's Arctic are recognized for their innovative projects to improve the quality of life in their communities.
Some hon. members: Hear, hear!
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- Feb/9/23 3:14:00 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I rise today for the traditional Thursday question, where the government has the opportunity to inform the House as to the legislation that we will be debating in the days ahead.
I do note that, after the House leaders' meeting, there were some conversations about a very important piece of legislation, Bill C-39. Conservatives feel very—
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- Feb/9/23 3:14:16 p.m.
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I am just going to interrupt the hon. House leader. I am going to ask everybody to keep it quiet so that we can hear the question.
The hon. opposition House leader.
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- Feb/9/23 3:14:29 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Thursday is the day when the government informs the House as to the business for the coming days.
I want to note, in particular, the need to address Bill C-39, which has only been tabled very recently, despite the fact that the government had years knowing about a deadline to protect vulnerable Canadians as it relates to the medical assistance in dying regime. There is a deadline looming of March 17.
Conservatives feel very strongly that mental illness should not be the sole factor when considering medical assistance in dying. Therefore, we very much support passing this bill to establish more of a timeline for the government to get this right, and for parliamentarians to come together and get this part of the regime right.
I am hoping that when the government House leader rises to inform the House as to the calendar for the next few days, he can also tell us what the expectations are and how we can deal with this bill in a timely manner so it can get through the Senate and get royal assent to protect vulnerable Canadians who are struggling with mental illness.
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- Feb/9/23 3:15:31 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, as somebody who has had a battle with mental health issues, I can tell the hon. member that this bill, for our government, for myself and I believe for every member in this House, is something that is exceptionally important and something that we want to get right. We have had very good and deliberative discussions among all parties, and I think we have the opportunity to continue those deliberations to make sure that we get that balance right and that we meet the objective we all have of ensuring that we protect vulnerable people.
Tomorrow we will resume the second reading debate of Bill S-8, an act to amend the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act. On Monday and Wednesday, further to the opposition House leader's question, we will call Bill C-39, which extends the temporary exclusion of eligibility for medical assistance in dying where a person's sole medical condition is a mental illness until March 17, 2024. I would also like to inform the House that Tuesday and Thursday of next week shall be allotted days.
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- Feb/9/23 3:17:04 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, as we walked into members' statements, I was trying to highlight the importance of Canada's Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and that we should never take it for granted.
I believe that over the last 40 years we have seen that Canadians, from coast to coast to coast, not only have recognized the importance of it, but it has become a part of our values. When parliamentarians or others travel abroad, we get a sense of pride in the fact that so many other countries around the world look to Canada to demonstrate leadership on the issue of our Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
Yes, there is a clause in there called the notwithstanding clause. At the time, back in 1982, when it was ratified and when Pierre Elliott Trudeau, the Queen and Jean Chrétien as the Attorney General signed off on the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, there was a great sense of optimism. We can hold our heads high in terms of the way Canada is perceived around the world.
The notwithstanding clause was a part of it, and it was something that was put in place in order to demonstrate that Parliament is supreme. It is also something that should be very rarely used or referenced. What we have seen since 2017 is the issue of the pre-emptive usage of the notwithstanding clause. We should all be concerned about that.
We have Liberals on this side of the House who have stood up on that particular issue. The official opposition is nowhere to be found on the issue. That is quite concerning. When I ask questions of Conservatives attempting to address the issue, the simple answer they provide is that it is not federal jurisdiction but provincial. I find that unfortunate because I think the vast majority of Canadians look to the Parliament of Canada to protect the fundamental freedoms and rights of individuals.
I have run out of time. I hope I get a couple of questions.
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- Feb/9/23 3:19:57 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to ask the member if he could opine on the Egan v. Canada decision from 1995 and the Oakes test. He went on and on about section 33, which is the substance—
An hon. member: Oh, oh!
Mr. Tom Kmiec: Pardon me. Did you not like the accent on it?
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- Feb/9/23 3:20:14 p.m.
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Order.
I want to ask members to speak through the Speaker and not to each other, and I want to remind the hon. members to have a certain amount of respect for each other, so that we can have discussions that are somewhat civil in this hallowed place.
The hon. member for Calgary Shepard may continue.
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- Feb/9/23 3:20:44 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, as with you, English is not my first language. I grew up in the province of Quebec, so this is an issue that actually touches me very deeply. I am an enfant de la loi 101, as many Quebeckers will recognize it. I knew neither French nor English when I came to this country, so when I ask a question about the Constitution of Canada and about the charter and how it affects us, I may not get the pronunciation of “Oakes test” precisely.
I would just like to know something about section 1 and the Oakes test that is used. Many Canadians and many constituents of mine are upset with how it was applied in Canada. They believe there were violations of their charter rights committed during the pandemic, so I would like to hear the member of the Liberal caucus, as we are talking about section 33 of the charter, opine on section 1 and the reasonable limits we can place on people's charter rights. Is the Oakes test sufficient for these times today?
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- Feb/9/23 3:21:43 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I want to reflect on the motion the Bloc has brought forward to the House today, which is of very grave concern. All of us should be taking a look, and the example we have used is with regard to the Province of Ontario using the notwithstanding clause as a pre-emptive measure in order to squash union rights for free bargaining, affecting thousands of Ontarians.
This was not in the 1990s. This was just last fall, and I would think that members on all sides of the House would be concerned. The Minister of Justice has made reference to the fact that we need to be clear that pre-emptive use of the notwithstanding clause is of concern to the government. The Prime Minister himself has made reference to that. The Conservative Party, in contrast, has been nowhere to be found. This is such an important issue, reflecting on the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and the notwithstanding clause, and the Conservatives have been silent. That is unfortunate.
The member might want to refer to something a number of years back, but what we are talking about is the issue of pre-emptive use of the notwithstanding clause. We should all be concerned about that.
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