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Decentralized Democracy

House Hansard - 215

44th Parl. 1st Sess.
June 16, 2023 10:00AM
Context: House Hansard - 215 - Jun/16/23
Hon. Michael Chong (Wellington—Halton Hills, CPC)
  • Jun/16/23 12:03:10 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, the resignation of a Canadian executive from the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank confirms what we have long been saying. The bank is a tool of the Chinese Communist Party to spread its authoritarian model of governance throughout the Indo-Pacific region. The bank has said that it is willing to lend to Myanmar's military junta, which has been targeting the Rohingya minority, and there are suggestions that it is willing to resume lending to Russia. What more proof does the government need to conclude that this bank runs contrary to Canada's interests and values?
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Context: House Hansard - 215 - Jun/16/23
Hon. Michael Chong (Wellington—Halton Hills, CPC)
  • Jun/16/23 12:04:16 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, just a couple of years ago, Global Affairs Canada advised the government that the bank is an example of how Beijing “promotes perspectives on governance, economic security, and human rights that diverge in fundamental ways from Canada’s.” Just two years ago, the finance committee recommended that the government withdraw from the bank. Moreover, former solicitor general and Liberal finance chair Wayne Easter said that the recommendation should “serve as a ‘wake up and smell the roses’ moment” for the government. When will the Prime Minister heed the advice of Global Affairs Canada, heed the advice of senior Liberals and withdraw Canada from the bank?
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Context: House Hansard - 215 - Jun/16/23
Hon. Michael Chong (Wellington—Halton Hills, CPC)
  • Jun/16/23 12:17:08 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present our supplementary report.
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Context: House Hansard - 215 - Jun/16/23
Hon. Michael Chong (Wellington—Halton Hills, CPC)
  • Jun/16/23 12:56:21 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I have just two points to add to this debate. The first point is that the government has used time allocation and closure at the same rate as the previous government did. CBC did an analysis of the two-year period of this government and found that the government managed to get 23 bills passed through the House of Commons and used time allocation and closure 23 times. The previous government used time allocation double the number of times that the current government has done, but the previous government had double the number of bills that the current government has introduced into the House and adopted in the House. Therefore, if the government has used time allocation to a lesser extent in terms of absolute numbers than did the previous government, it is only because it has had a much lighter legislative agenda. The second point I would make is that back in 2015, the Prime Minister and his party promised to do politics differently and promised to limit the use of closure and time allocation. Clearly, that has not happened.
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