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Decentralized Democracy

House Hansard - 172

44th Parl. 1st Sess.
March 23, 2023 10:00AM
Context: House Hansard - 172 - Mar/23/23
Ms. Elizabeth May (Saanich—Gulf Islands, GP)
Mr. Speaker, it is good to have a right of reply when I started the speech by saying I was quite sure I would forget someone if I tried to thank all the people who have helped the bill. I also want to make sure to thank the hon. member for Lac-Saint-Louis, who was the seconder on the day this bill came forward for first reading, back in February 2022. I also want to thank my colleague and friend, the member for Victoria, for reminding me of the suffering. I visited Sarnia, and I remember standing with the people of Aamjiwnaang First Nation. Their burial ground is behind barbed wire and fencing, because on all sides are the refineries and the pesticides and the chemical plants. Also, for the non-indigenous people of those neighbourhoods, it is not uncommon, and the mayor complains about it from time to time, to suddenly have “shelter in place” warnings. People have to go into their homes and close all the windows, because outdoors is no longer safe. There are so many stories here. I hope that we get the bill through, that we get it through the other place and that it gets royal assent before another election. Dates are uncertain as to future elections. It would dash the hopes of so many people if we do not see this through. When it goes to the other place, I will be very grateful. I am not sure what the protocol is for thanking the senator who will be the sponsor in the next place. To avoid any protocol problems, I will wait until that senator stands in the other place to take control of the bill at first reading there. We have strong support in the Senate for this bill, but we also know the other place can find its own routes and sometimes things are not navigated as smoothly as we might want, not that everything runs smoothly every moment here. I am deeply grateful to my colleagues, very grateful for what I hope will be a strong vote of support. At this point, what I mostly want to say is that this is the work of many hands. Earlier, I used the metaphor of midwives. There are many who have helped, and we hope that there will be a delivery of a piece of legislation that is not a bumper sticker, that is not a one-day wonder, but that actually makes change. We need to make serious, radical changes in our environmental policies in order to create an environmental justice system. That is the goal of our efforts here today. I still hold out hope that those who said they would not vote for the bill might change their minds. In any case, we have done good work here today and I thank all members.
479 words
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