44th Parl. 1st Sess.
November 27, 2023 11:00AM
- Nov/27/23 2:06:02 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the poor, the homeless, the abused, veterans, seniors, youth, adults suffering with disabilities and those people suffering with depression and mental health conditions are among the most vulnerable in our society. They are falling through the cracks of Canada's medical assistance in dying regime. They are the ones who will be at risk when the MAID laws in Canada are expanded in March 2024.
Last year, death by euthanasia increased by 30% from the year before. Every day in Canada, 36 people use MAID to end their lives, which is the highest in the world.
Last week, I hosted a forum with Canadians who are disturbed by the expansion of Canada's euthanasia regime to include the mentally ill. This expansion is not about compassion; it is a betrayal of the most vulnerable. I call upon the government to reverse its course and instead provide help and hope for Canadians suffering with mental health conditions.
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- Nov/27/23 2:07:14 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, this past Saturday, November 25, marked International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women and launched 16 days of activism, which will conclude on Human Rights Day on December 10. It is a time to reflect, unite and advocate for a world where every woman can live free from fear and violence. It also serves as a stark reminder that, despite progress, countless women around the world still endure physical, emotional and psychological abuse.
Violence against women is a pervasive and insidious issue that knows no boundaries; it affects women of all ages, backgrounds and social statuses. It ignores our shared humanity and creates barriers to achieving equality. It is a violation of basic human rights that demands collective efforts from all society.
Let us use this time not only to raise awareness but also to ignite action. Together, we can build a world where every woman can live with dignity and be free from the shadow of violence. It is a collective responsibility, and by standing united, we can and must eliminate violence against women once and for all.
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- Nov/27/23 2:08:19 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, today is day three of the 16 days of activism against gender-based violence. I want to take this opportunity to talk about this issue, which continues to plague us. In 2022, 184 women were brutally killed in Canada, mainly by men. In other words, one woman or girl is killed every 48 hours.
Thousands of women and children use the services of women's shelters, but every night, roughly 300 women and children are turned away because the shelters are already full. That is a real problem. As a society and as a country, we need to do better.
I would like to say how much I appreciate the work that the women's shelters do to help women who are victims of domestic violence. I would like to thank a couple of organizations in particular that are making a huge difference in the community of Saint-Laurent: the Centre Amal pour femmes, and Bouclier d'Athéna.
To all the employees of these centres and all those who work every day to save women's lives, I thank them very much.
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- Nov/27/23 2:09:28 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, suicide is a deeply personal issue that impacts us all. Years of hard work and advocacy are finally paying off. On November 30, more than 1,000 days after the House unanimously passed my motion to bring 988 to Canada, and after relentless pressure by Conservatives, Canadians struggling with their mental health will finally have access to a simple, easy-to-remember three-digit suicide prevention hotline. This life-saving service will be open 24-7 and staffed by expert crisis responders. It will allow Canadians to call or text 988 in their darkest hour to receive confidential, immediate and non-judgmental support.
On behalf of the Conservative Party and myself, I would like to extend a personal and heartfelt thanks to everyone who has been involved in the process of creating and launching 988. From the over 700 communities across Canada that passed motions to bring 988 to Canada to the crisis workers and the first responders on the front line, their efforts are going to save lives. To those who are struggling with mental health, they can know that they do not have to suffer alone; they are loved, they are valued and their life is worth fighting for.
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- Nov/27/23 2:11:02 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, gender-based violence is not a women's issue. Sally Armstrong urges us, “Stop making this a women's problem. It isn't. It's a men's problem.” Ten years after the horrific attack at École Polytechnique, the Hon. Margaret McCain, at a ceremony on December 6 at the Women's College Hospital, courageously added that Marc Lépine had been physically abused by his father as a child. Hurt people hurt people. We have a moral obligation to prevent the preventable. Hurt people need timely access to trauma-informed, culturally safe and evidence-based care.
In 1991, Jack Layton, Ron Sluser and Michael Kaufman founded the White Ribbon Campaign. Today, it is the largest movement of men and boys to end violence against women and girls and to promote gender equity, healthy relationships and a new vision of masculinity. In response to MMIWG, indigenous communities have led the Moose Hide and I Am a Kind Man campaigns.
There will never be enough shelter spaces to prevent the plague of femicide until we see systemic and generational change that starts with confident and caring men.
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- Nov/27/23 2:12:19 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Canadians recently learned that a second Northvolt battery plant, subsidized by the Liberals, will give hundreds of jobs to foreign replacement workers rather than to unionized workers. Those jobs should be for Quebeckers. The government allocated over $7 billion in taxpayer subsidies to this project.
We found this out after hearing that Stellantis will be doing the same thing at its plant in Windsor. At first, the Liberals called that news disinformation. Then they changed their story and said that there was only one foreign worker. Soon after, they changed their story again to just a small number of workers. Stellantis has now confirmed that at least 900 taxpayer-funded foreign replacement workers will be brought to Canada to work in this plant.
Now that we know that foreign replacement workers will be used in the Stellantis and Northvolt plants, are the Liberals going to do the same thing at the Volkswagen plant in London?
The Prime Minister seems to have forgotten that he is supposed to serve Canadians first. The common-sense Conservatives are calling for the Prime Minister to finally be honest and publish the contracts for all taxpayer-funded battery plants.
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- Nov/27/23 2:13:27 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, after eight years, the NDP-Liberal government is just not worth the cost.
Last week, we learned that Stellantis and LG are bringing in foreign workers to their manufacturing facility in Windsor. This is the same facility that is receiving $15 billion in taxpayer subsidies after it threatened to close up shop unless the government paid up. That is about $1,000 in additional debt for every Canadian household. The government sold this sweetheart deal as a win for Canadian workers in the automotive sector, but when the news from the Windsor police first broke that taxpayer dollars were subsidizing foreign workers, Liberal ministers responded that the number of foreign workers would be anywhere from one person to a very few people. We have now learned that it is close to 1,000 people.
Behind all the noise, we have a government that has lost its way and is afraid to admit its mistakes. Canada, including Windsor, is home to many skilled workers. People in Windsor and in all of Canada know that taxpayer dollars should not be used to fund foreign workers. The government needs to release the Stellantis and LG contract so Canadians can know the truth.
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- Nov/27/23 2:14:43 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, gender-based violence perpetuates cycles of fear and trauma, hinders social and economic development and reinforces gender inequality. Women and girls are often the primary victims, but men and non-binary people can also experience this type of violence.
Our government is committed to preventing gender-based violence by promoting a responsive justice system and supporting victims, survivors and their families.
Awareness, education and legislative measures play a key role in promoting a culture of respect and equality. We must all mobilize and stand up. Let us work together to put an end to gender-based violence once and for all.
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Mr. Speaker, today we started debate on Bill C-273, which aims to protect children by ending the legalized physical punishment of kids. Canada would join 65 other countries worldwide by adopting the bill. This is an important step. It would implement call to action number 6 of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. It is a start, but we can do much more in a country as wealthy as Canada.
We support children also by supporting their families. Every child and everyone should have a home and a roof over their head at night. Every child and everyone should have safe drinking water, good, safe schools and great health care, including dental care and mental health supports. Children should not have to worry about whether their family can afford medication that keeps their loved one in good health, whether they or their family will have to go into debt for decades for them to go to university or whether this planet will be burned beyond repair by climate change because no one took action.
The NDP believes that every child deserves love and support and deserves to be able to fulfill their full potential. We will continue to fight to build a Canada where every child matters and no child is left behind.
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- Nov/27/23 2:16:49 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, today I am pleased to highlight the 40th anniversary of a seniors' group known as the Groupe amical de Ste‑Julie. This milestone was celebrated on September 9 with a meal that brought together many of the volunteers who have worked with this remarkable organization over the past four decades.
For nearly half a century, this organization has dedicated itself to improving the well-being of Sainte‑Julie's seniors, regularly cooking up healthy, tasty and comforting meals at modest prices and then inviting them to get together to share those meals and take part in activities. This helps enrich their social lives. Forty years of service to a people with some 400 years of history is nothing short of remarkable and deserves to be properly celebrated.
I thank the visionaries who founded this group 40 years ago and the volunteers who have come through the doors over the years. It is their four decades of exemplary dedication that we are celebrating. Congratulations to the Groupe amical de Ste-Julie and its members. I wish them continued success.
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Mr. Speaker, after eight years of reckless spending and sky-high carbon prices, Canadians are out of money and the NDP-Liberal government is out of touch. Last week’s mini-budget just offered more of the same. The Prime Minister chose to quadruple his carbon taxes on gas, groceries and home heating, and Canadians cannot afford it. Between April 2022 and March 2023, 5.9 million visits were made to Ontario food banks alone. That is an increase of 36% over the previous year and the largest single-year increase ever recorded by Ontario’s food bank network. This is in Canada in 2023. Common-sense Conservatives have offered real solutions. Bill C-234’s carbon tax carve-out would save Canadian farmers a billion dollars over six years. Lower costs for farmers mean lower food prices for all Canadians.
It is time for the Prime Minister to put Canadians ahead of his environment minister and above his politics. Canadian farmers have made it clear. The Prime Minister must stop pressuring his appointed senators to vote against Bill C-234.
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- Nov/27/23 2:18:53 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, during my previous career, I spent many years covering murder trials, and I would say that most of them were cases of violence against women. I cried with the families after difficult days of testimony when we witnessed horrific evidence, heard terrifying details and listened to violent offenders try to justify their actions. I still get choked up when I share the families' stories. I still relive the horrors in my nightmares. Eleven million Canadians say that they have experienced intimate partner violence at least once since the age of 15. It is not only the victims who suffer; it is also their families, their friends and the frontline workers who were there trying to help.
In my role as parliamentary secretary, I have heard from organizations across the country. The national action plan to end gender-based violence provides half a billion dollars to help prevent or address the cycle of violence. As the 16 days of activism get under way, let us all commit to doing this work. Gender-based violence has to end.
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- Nov/27/23 2:20:07 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister is spending $44 billion to subsidize three battery plants. That $44 billion breaks down to $3 billion for every Canadian family.
That money was supposed to create jobs, but now we find out that 900 foreign replacement workers are coming to Windsor. Another several hundred foreign workers are coming to Montérégie.
Can we see the contract for each plant to find out how much of Canadian taxpayers' money the Prime Minister is spending on foreign workers?
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- Nov/27/23 2:20:50 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank the Leader of the Opposition for his question. Canadians are seeing just what a risky bet the Conservatives are.
When he was minister of employment, Canada's manufacturing sector lost not 3,000, not 30,000, but 300,000 jobs.
Stellantis is going to invest $3.4 billion to build one of the largest plants in North America. We are going to create 2,500 jobs for Canadians.
We will continue to invest in Windsor, we will continue to invest in the sector, and we will continue to invest in Canada's workers.
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- Nov/27/23 2:21:30 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, he would make a good employment minister for South Korea.
As a side note, the Prime Minister told us there would be no consequences for doubling the national debt. In its economic update, however, the government now admits that next year, it will spend $52 billion, or $3,000 for every Canadian family, on interest on the debt. That means it will spend more on debt interest than on health care.
Why is the Prime Minister spending more on bankers than on nurses?
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- Nov/27/23 2:22:10 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Canada has the lowest debt and deficit in the G7, and we have a AAA credit rating.
At the same time, we have a responsible economic plan that will enable us to make the necessary investments in Canadians. We are building housing faster than ever. We are there with supports for dental care and child care.
The Conservatives just want to make cuts, but we know that we need to invest in Canadians.
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Mr. Speaker, Feed Ontario, a coalition of food banks, released staggering numbers yesterday: 800,000 Ontarians went to the food bank for a total of six million visits. This is a 36% increase, the biggest increase ever. If the total number of people who visited a food bank were a town, it would be the fourth-biggest town in all of Ontario.
Will the Prime Minister therefore cancel his plan to quadruple the carbon tax on the farmers who feed us, and pass common-sense Conservative Bill C-234 to carve out the tax for farmers?
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- Nov/27/23 2:23:40 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we know that things are challenging for Canadians right now. That is why we are there for them, building more homes faster, providing dental care for children and seniors and cutting child care fees by 50% across the country.
The only thing that Conservatives know how to do is cut, cut, cut. They would cut child care, dental care and housing. That is not common sense; that is nonsense.
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- Nov/27/23 2:24:18 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the minister and the Prime Minister have imposed brutal cuts on Canadian families who open their fridges to find nothing there.
The report that is out demonstrates that in each of the last seven years, Ontario food bank visits have gone up. Last year, they went up by record numbers: 800,000 people went a total of 6 million times to the food banks in this province.
There is a bill before the Senate to take the carbon tax off the farmers who feed us, rather than quadrupling it as the Prime Minister has said he will do. Will the Prime Minister stop interfering with the independence of the Senate and let the bill pass so we can bring home affordable food?
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- Nov/27/23 2:25:05 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, once again, the leader of the Conservatives is demonstrating this week that he just cannot tell the truth to Canadians. If it is about the Canada-Ukraine free trade agreement, where there is no price on pollution, he cannot tell the truth to Canadians about what he is doing. If it is with regard to why he jumped to the conclusion that there was a terrorist attack, he cannot tell the truth to Canadians. If it is with regard to misogynistic hashtags on YouTube, he cannot tell the truth to Canadians. We need to understand why he does not trust Canadians with the truth.
Some hon. members: Oh, oh!
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