44th Parl. 1st Sess.
June 16, 2023 10:00AM
- Jun/16/23 11:40:18 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, hope springs eternal, but as Paul Valéry added, it is like walking a tightrope.
The government says it wants to work together, but there is only one week left for parliamentary business. It has one week to announce a commission of inquiry, and it does not have carte blanche. The government must have the consensus of the House regarding who will lead the commission. It must give the commissioner the flexibility to define the terms of reference. It must ensure that the commission can conclude its work before the next election.
The clock is ticking. The government must announce this commission of inquiry immediately, so why waste precious time?
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- Jun/16/23 11:40:57 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, we are optimistic that these conversations are ongoing. The Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs has received the leader of the Bloc's letter with some suggestions and recommendations. The minister is having fruitful conversations with party leaders across the aisle.
There are important details that must be determined in relation to a public inquiry, such as what the terms are, what the mandate is and how this would work. We are only going to do that by working together. That is precisely what the minister is working on.
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- Jun/16/23 11:41:36 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, the Minister of Public Safety's failure to prevent the transfer of notorious killer Paul Bernardo to a medium-security facility was not a mistake. It was a direct consequence of the Liberals' soft-on-crime policies, like Bill C-83.
Yesterday, Conservatives gave the government an opportunity to rectify this injustice, but it voted us down. Canadians are watching. The Minister of Public Safety needs to be held accountable for this travesty.
Will the Prime Minister have the courage to sack the incompetent minister, or will the minister do us all a favour and resign already?
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- Jun/16/23 11:42:14 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, the Conservative partisan interest in disliking the minister has been well-established, and they continue to repeat that.
That is a separate conversation from the conversation we need to have about this situation, which is greatly upsetting to everyone. A decision was made, independent of government, by Correctional Service Canada to make a transfer effective, and that is something that we are deeply concerned about. That is why there is a review. In two weeks' time, Correctional Service Canada could come back with its decision. I fundamentally reject the premise that the approach the member is talking about would work. It has failed everywhere in the world.
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- Jun/16/23 11:42:54 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, the offices of the Prime Minister and of the Minister of Public Safety knew about this transfer for three months. This was no mistake. This was a result of the Liberal government's agenda.
This did not have to happen. Yesterday, Liberals had a chance to right this wrong, but instead they chose to double down on their failure. For the Liberals to claim otherwise is misinformation. When will the minister formally change his title from Minister of Public Safety to minister of misinformation?
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- Jun/16/23 11:43:27 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, there is a peppering of partisan comments here. I would just say that this is a deeply serious issue about crimes that every single one of us were impacted by.
As I said earlier, this is a decision that was made by Correctional Service Canada and we have long made sure throughout the history of our country, that it operates independently of the actions of politics. We have been very careful to ensure that politics is not inserted in that process.
If we want to have a conversation about the outrage we feel about this crime—
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- Jun/16/23 11:44:06 a.m.
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The hon. member for Edmonton Manning.
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- Jun/16/23 11:44:08 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, the Liberal bill, Bill C-83, allowed rapist and killer Paul Bernardo to be moved from a maximum-security to a medium-security prison.
Under the Corrections and Conditional Release Act, the Minister of Public Safety has the power to send him back to where he belongs, but he refuses to do so. His office knew about the transfer for months, but the minister chose to remain blissfully ignorant.
Why will he not take responsibility and resign?
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- Jun/16/23 11:44:42 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, it is categorically false to say that. Bill C-83, which was aimed at ending solitary confinement, a practice that had been condemned by human rights groups and was found to be against our charter, was replaced by something called structured intervention units to allow for a more direct and equitable form of intervention in those cases.
The link between Bill C-83 and the decision made by Correctional Service Canada to transfer this known killer is misinformation.
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- Jun/16/23 11:45:22 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, Paul Bernardo is the worst type of human being who can exist, yet over and over again, Liberal ministers stand on their feet to defend his right to the comforts of medium-security prisons.
The minister may not understand, but it is the Liberals' very own Bill C-83 and its change to section 28 of the act that allowed this serial rapist and murderer to be transferred to easy street. This is not something that just happened. The Liberals made it happen. Yesterday, the government would not support a Conservative bill that would fix this by requiring serial killers to stay in maximum-security prisons.
When will the government take public safety seriously, reverse these ridiculous changes and keep notorious—
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- Jun/16/23 11:46:02 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, many people in the House are parents, and I am a father. The—
Mrs. Stephanie Kusie: Do you have a daughter? What would you do if your daughter were a victim?
Hon. Mark Holland: Yes, I am the father of a daughter, and they are yelling out to ask about my child.
Madam Speaker, the idea that I would find those crimes anything other than repugnant, and that I or any member of the House would not do everything in their power to ensure public safety, is repulsive. The difference is that we will not mis-characterize information. We will not torque. Saying something that is not true, that a bill that has absolutely no impact on this matter is involved, is politicizing this, and that is something that should not be done.
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- Jun/16/23 11:46:50 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, post offices are the heart of rural communities. We rely on them to keep in touch with loved ones and to pick up essentials, but consecutive Liberal and Conservative governments have been starving them of resources.
It started with making postmasters find their own facilities. When that fails, the Liberals privatize our mail, destroying union jobs. Shockingly, when privatizing government services does not work out, they just plop in a mailbox and call it a day. What is the minister's plan to stop the privatization scheme, save rural community hubs and save well-paying union jobs?
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- Jun/16/23 11:47:30 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, as the member opposite knows very well, Canada Post is a crown corporation at arm's length from government. However, of course, ongoing discussions do occur between me and the chair of the board at Canada Post.
As is the case with many other postal carriers around the world, Canada Post is evolving to meet changing customer needs and expectations. There is a top priority in keeping its employees in the communities that it serves, and it will continue to serve Canadians with the service they can rely on.
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- Jun/16/23 11:48:10 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, with all due respect, that answer was not good enough.
The government's policy on postal service is failing rural communities. It is not working in Atlin. It is not working in Telegraph Creek, and it did not work in the 120 communities in rural Canada that lost have their post offices since the government took office in 2015.
Therefore, I would like to give the hon. minister another chance to answer this question: Is she aware of the impact her government's policy is having on rural communities when it comes to post offices? If so, what is she going to do to ensure that not a single additional community loses its post office?
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- Jun/16/23 11:48:51 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, I suppose I need to reiterate that Canada Post is a crown agency at arm's length from government. However, we do work together to always ensure that the corporation provides the high-quality service that Canadians expect, at a reasonable price, and that reaches Canadians across the country. We will continue to work with Canada Post to ensure that the corporation continues to meet the evolving needs of Canadians, including changes brought on by the pandemic.
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- Jun/16/23 11:49:25 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, this month is pride. Just last week, the pride flag was raised on Parliament Hill, showcasing our tremendous support of members of the 2SLGBTQI+ community, who continue to face systemic barriers.
One in four entrepreneurs have faced discrimination or lost their businesses because of their 2SLGBTQI+ ownership. Can the Minister of International Trade, Export Promotion, Small Business and Economic Development update Canadians on yesterday's historic announcement?
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- Jun/16/23 11:50:03 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, the entrepreneurs and businesses of the 2SLGBTQI community contribute tremendously to Canada's economy, contributing $22 billion and employing half a million Canadians, yet they face discrimination. A third lose business because of who they are, and 40% are not able to get access to capital or funding.
Therefore, yesterday I announced $25 million to help these incredible business owners, businesses and entrepreneurs from the 2SLGBTQI community to empower them to grow their businesses across Canada and contribute—
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- Jun/16/23 11:50:40 a.m.
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The hon. member for Haliburton—Kawartha Lakes—Brock.
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- Jun/16/23 11:50:45 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, Paul Bernardo is a serial killer and rapist. Vile monsters like him are living more comfortable lives because the Liberals are soft on crime. If they were not, the government would have supported the member for Niagara Falls' motion yesterday to keep mass murderers where they belong, in maximum security.
This minister has yet to explain to Canadians how he could sit on the news of Bernardo's transfer to medium security for three months. When will the Prime Minister find the courage to stand up for the victims of monsters like Bernardo?
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- Jun/16/23 11:51:25 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, first of all, all of us stand up against monsters like Bernardo. That is why we ran: to keep our communities safe. The principle difference is that we are saying we have to use evidence and make sure we use reasoned, levelled arguments. The Correctional Service has always been independent.
Yesterday there was UC motion. I find this interesting because when I talk to the opposition House leader, he often tells me that we cannot use UC motions to just blow through the process. He complains that they are used in that way, and then they move a massive change that would change how we deal with corrections. They have said that they should not be used that way.
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