SoVote

Mr. Dane Lloyd (Sturgeon River—Parkland, CPC)

Feb/6/24 1:23:42 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-5

Mr. Speaker, at the outset, I would like to say that I will be splitting my time with my hon. colleague from Flamborough—Glanbrook. I am pleased to rise today on this very important debate. Canadians may wonder what Canada's top exports and fastest-growing exports are. They might think about oil and gas, minerals or aerospace parts. However, they would be surprised to learn that one of Canada's fastest-growing exports over the past few years has been stolen vehicles. Actually, this has been over the past eight years, under the Liberal government. This ongoing surge in auto thefts is a direct consequence of a weak justice system, the absence of proper law enforcement and a border so porous that the number of vehicles getting through reached over 100,000 vehicles in 2022 alone. In other words, it is a legacy of the current Liberal government. I am proud to rise to speak to this issue and to put forward a common-sense Conservative plan to deal with these auto thefts, because that is what the hard-working people in Sturgeon River—Parkland and across this country deserve. They deserve a real plan that would provide tangible results, put these repeat offenders behind bars, and keep our vehicles in our driveways and off container ships going abroad. This is not just an issue of young kids taking a vehicle out for a joyride or stealing a vehicle just to make a few bucks. Our country is facing an industrial-level organized crime problem. Let us go over some of the key facts. As we speak, on average, a vehicle is stolen every six minutes in Canada; therefore, in the time that we have been debating here today, dozens of Canadians have had their vehicles stolen from their driveways and places of work. The trend is clear: In 2018, the insurance industry paid out $400 million in stolen vehicle claims, and since then, this number has grown drastically. In 2021, it reached $700 million in claims; in 2022, which is the latest year we have the insurance statistics for, the insurance industry paid out an unprecedented $1.2 billion in claims on stolen vehicles. After eight years of the current government's soft-on-crime agenda, car thefts have tripled in Toronto and doubled in Montreal. While big cities have seen the largest increases in recent years, this wave of crime is affecting all Canadians across the country, including those living in western Canada and rural Canada, where vehicles being stolen from farms is a common story that I hear. F-350s are vehicles that are often stolen. In fact, over the Christmas break, I woke up at seven o'clock in the morning, when people were getting up, getting dressed and getting ready to go to work. I looked out the window, and I saw an F-350 parked outside my house. There were people in hoodies trying to steal it. Kids were getting up and getting ready to go to school at that time in some of our rural communities, and there were people still out and trying to steal those cars. It is shocking and unacceptable. This is not just a temporary crime wave. This is a sophisticated, industrial-level organized crime operation that requires our immediate attention. This is not a new issue; we faced it before, in the early 1990s. Car thefts inspired many Hollywood-level movies, such as The Fast and the Furious and Gone in 60 Seconds. However, with better technologies, better law enforcement and tougher sentences, we saw a significant decline in the number of auto thefts. I was actually pulling up the statistics on this, and it is very interesting. From 2004 to 2015, the number of auto thefts reported to police in Canada went down by 61%. What happened between 2004 and 2015? We had a tough-on-crime Conservative government that put forward tangible measures to get tough on repeat offenders who were stealing vehicles, with mandatory minimum sentences and with investments in law enforcement to crack down on crime. That is a record I am very proud of. It is not a record that the current government can say it replicates; during the time that it has been in power, we have seen a tripling of stolen vehicles from Toronto, a doubling from Montreal and an overall 34% increase in the country. The trend was broken by the Liberal government, and this is directly due to its policies. It has become relatively easy to smuggle a vehicle out of the country after it has been stolen. The dedicated men and women of the CBSA are doing their very best, but they are facing a capacity problem, with an estimated five CBSA agents at the port of Montreal. About a year ago, CBSA union officials came to the public safety committee. They talked about some of the measures they have in place so that people can report auto thefts and suspicious activities at the port. It is the 21st century. Do members know what measures the government has at the ports so that people can report when they see suspicious threats? It has a hotline telephone on the wall, so if people see something, they can call somebody to deal with it. It is 2024. We need new and better technologies to ensure that we have the tools we need to stop these containers with our vehicles from leaving our ports. Once these stolen vehicles leave Canada, they are destined for markets far away, in Africa and the Middle East. As a result of our weak enforcement, Canada is becoming what some industry experts are calling a “donor country” for stolen vehicles. Usually, it is a good thing to be a donor, but not when we are talking about stolen vehicles. The revenue generated from this trade is being used to finance drug trafficking, illegal arms trafficking, human trafficking and even terrorism. Just a couple of weeks ago, Italian authorities intercepted a vessel with 251 stolen Canadian vehicles on it; they were bound for sale in the Middle East. Cars with Canadian licence plates have been a common sight on the streets of Accra, the capital of Ghana. In fact, the flood of Canadians' stolen vehicles entering that country has led the Ghanaian government to beg the Canadian government to do more to prevent our vehicles from leaving our country, because this is affecting its domestic market. This is not just a Canadian issue; it is becoming an international issue. It is an embarrassment for our country. It is not only a crime problem but also an economic problem, with $1.2 billion in insurance payouts made. Do members think the insurance companies are just going to eat that cost? That means Canadian families are paying an estimated $500 in increased premiums. The reports coming out of MNP talk about how many Canadians are living paycheque to paycheque or are less than $200 away from insolvency. Who can afford $500 more for insurance premiums just to pay for the vehicle people are taking to work? It is not just the case for the people who are driving a Toyota Highlander, a Lexus or the other vehicles that are often being stolen; everyone is paying for it. The costs are being distributed to everyone, no matter what vehicle they have. This is unacceptable. We know what the problem is. The government talks about having a summit, but the problem has been clear for years: We have a government with soft-on-crime policies that have unleashed a torrent of repeat violent offenders on our streets. Members might ask why I am calling them violent offenders. I saw a left-wing commentator online on what is now X, formerly known as Twitter, asking why we are putting people in jail for victimless crimes. This is not a victimless crime. In the few stories that I have seen where people have been stopped in stolen vehicles, do members know what charges most often accompanied the stolen vehicle charge? They were weapons, firearms and drug possession charges. There was a heroic job done by RCMP officers just west of Stony Plain a few days ago. A stolen vehicle went through town with five people in it. They deployed a tire device to pop the tires. When they stopped the vehicle, they found methamphetamine, cocaine and loaded weapons. Two of the five people charged were released the very same day. This is unacceptable. These people do not carry guns because they are going out hunting or carry drugs just because; they are carrying these things because they intend to sell them or because they intend to commit violence if they are confronted. Since 2015, the crisis has come to a point where Canadians will no longer accept inaction from the Liberal government. They will no longer accept bills such as Bill C-5, allowing house arrest for the people who are committing these crimes. Canadians will no longer accept a government that lets repeat offenders back on the streets over and over again, with bail, not jail, to victimize our families. I know that, under our Conservative government, we will bring in mandatory minimum sentences. We will provide the resources to law enforcement to get these criminals behind bars and disrupt organized crime. This will keep the criminals from sending our stolen vehicles abroad and using that money to finance the terrorism and firearms trafficking being used to commit violence on our streets or the drugs that are victimizing families and addicts who need treatment. We will not accept this. That is our common-sense plan, and we are going to do it.

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Mr. Ken Hardie (Fleetwood—Port Kells, Lib.)

Feb/6/24 1:34:09 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the issue of auto theft, having worked for the public auto insurer in B.C., but there are statistics that show, in fact, that auto thefts in B.C. are down quite substantially from where they were five years ago. I wonder whether the member could reflect on what might be the cause, because the same laws are in effect. If one believes it is “catch and release”, that has been in effect there too for quite a long time, even in the Stephen Harper days. What is different in B.C. and maybe in Manitoba and Saskatchewan, and in fact worse, than in all other jurisdictions?

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Mr. Dane Lloyd

Feb/6/24 1:34:49 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, looking at the statistics, there are increases or decreases in different jurisdictions. One can cherry-pick certain jurisdictions and say, “This jurisdiction is seeing a lower rate; therefore our government's policies must be successful.” However, when we look at the aggregate across the country, there has been a 34% increase. This increase has been most stark in provinces like Ontario and Quebec. Why is that? It is because the port of Montreal has become such a conduit for getting stolen vehicles abroad. It is because of the current government, which has a responsibility for the ports and a responsibility to protect our borders, that we have seen the port of Montreal become such a conduit for stolen vehicles. That is why we are seeing a commensurate increase in Ontario and Quebec. However, it is not just an Ontario and Quebec issue. In Alberta, vehicles have been stolen for many years. F-350s are being re-vinned and sent down to the United States. They are being sent to chop shops. This is a cross-Canada issue, and we cannot neglect any part of the country with our response.

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Ms. Kristina Michaud (Avignon—La Mitis—Matane—Matapédia, BQ)

Feb/6/24 1:35:56 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I know that my colleague is very familiar with this file. He said that criminal groups are using this money to fund other criminal activities, including terrorism. Earlier I was talking about human trafficking and illegal arms trafficking. He says that the Conservative Party has a plan for auto theft and that it involves harsher sentences. However, what is his party's plan to go after the heads of these big criminal networks? Obviously we think of the car thieves, those who commit the crime in the here and now. Often they are people who do not have a criminal record. Some are even minors. We have seen people under 18 committing these crimes in Toronto and bringing the cars to Montreal. Yes, I think it is important to increase certain sentences, but it is also important to go after the heads of these criminal groups. What is his party's plan for that?

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Mr. Dane Lloyd

Feb/6/24 1:36:59 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I much appreciate being with my hon. colleague on the public safety committee on this issue. I found, actually, quite the opposite: oftentimes the people caught with stolen vehicles do have very lengthy criminal records. In fact some of them are even out on bail and are supposed to be on house arrest when they are conducting these crimes. They are repeat offenders. I do appreciate what the member is talking about. How do we go after the big guys? These criminal organizations are very sophisticated. They use multiple middlemen to prevent the big players from being hit. We obviously have to go after some of the big players, but we also have to remove their frontline soldiers from the streets, which makes it harder for them to recruit new people to come out to commit the crimes. We also have to stop the vehicles from leaving the ports in the first place. If we make it more difficult, because it is very easy today to get these vehicles out of Canada, it is going to discourage criminals from engaging in this activity. It is is going to discourage them from bringing their immense resources to bear on getting vehicles out of Canada. We need to be tough on the border. We need to get the people who are committing the crimes off the street so we can protect our communities.

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Mr. Damien Kurek (Battle River—Crowfoot, CPC)

Feb/6/24 1:38:29 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I would ask specifically whether the hon. member could comment on what seems to be the rapid increase in not being able to effectively catch vehicles in the process of being stolen. I know there have been high-profile cases. I have heard that it has been the case in Alberta as well that somebody will put an air tag in the vehicle and be able to follow it, yet law enforcement does not seem to either have the resources or be able to get the vehicle before it is shipped overseas.

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Mr. Dane Lloyd

Feb/6/24 1:39:06 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I actually did have a positive interaction, as much as it could be positive, when a vehicle of mine was stolen. I had a subscription for technology that allowed me to track the vehicle. I called the police, and they were able to locate the vehicle fairly quickly. The vehicle was in a neighbourhood to cool off so the thieves could check to see whether it was being tracked or not. Obviously, criminals know this technology is being used. They rip the electronics out of vehicles to prevent them from being used, but there is a technological solution that could really help. We need to not only get tough on the criminals but also to make it clear that we need to use all the technological tools we have available to tackle this very difficult issue.

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Mr. Dan Muys (Flamborough—Glanbrook, CPC)

Feb/6/24 1:39:59 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-5

Mr. Speaker, I will start with a couple of headlines that dominated the radio and the online and social media news in my home community this past weekend. They really underscore the debate we are having today. The first is “Gun-wielding men forcefully entered Dundas home, stole two luxury cars: Hamilton police”. The second is “High-end vehicles stolen in ‘targeted’ home invasion in Hamilton, Ont.”. Those are just a couple. Twenty years ago, I lived on the street where this particular crime took place on Friday night. It is a few houses down from where I used to live. It was shocking to hear that this was taking place. My grandparents lived on that same street when I grew up. I talked to one of the neighbours yesterday, and people on Hopkins Court now live in fear. There were other vehicles at the targeted residence that the thieves did not get on Friday night, and the residents are now fearful the thieves will be back because they were a target. This is, as my colleagues have mentioned, a sophisticated gang operation that is taking place; it is an organized crime operation. That is the crux of the problem. They will be back because federal enforcement and federal prevention actions are woefully inadequate. Less than 24 hours later, I received a text from my neighbour on an unrelated incident, but one of similar concern. There was a vehicle prowling around his workshop building and garage. It had to go around a steel barrier, through the grass and across a hill in order to get there. Alarmed by what he was seeing take place in the early hours of Sunday morning, my neighbour followed the vehicle and was able to get part of the licence plate number and report it to Hamilton Police Service. These are just two recent incidents that are not isolated at all but are part of an epidemic. I have talked to a number of constituents who have been victims of vehicle theft. One couple was able to trace their vehicle that was stolen from their driveway in Waterdown to Montreal. This was the second vehicle stolen from the couple's driveway. Waterdown is a bedroom community in the greater Toronto and Hamilton area. The couple actually walked by the person they believe was the criminal responsible on the street of Montreal near the port. Eerily, the individual gave them a knowing glance. These are incidents we are hearing about. The couple also heard that as part of this organized crime network, groups are paid thousands of dollars per night just to scope out vehicles in driveways and locations that will be targeted in the coming nights. Just to spot vehicles, they are getting thousands of dollars. We are talking about millions of dollars in criminal activity. Truck and auto thefts are in not just my community; they are across the GTA. There have been a number of local headlines about this across Niagara, Waterloo Region, southern Ontario and, in fact, across the country. We know that local law enforcement is hamstrung because it needs the federal government to act. The Criminal Code, the RCMP, CBSA and certainly federal ports are all matters of federation jurisdiction. In order to puts the brakes on auto theft by organized crime, we need the federal government to act. At the transport committee, which I am privileged to sit on, there was a Conservative motion put forward today to look specifically at what is going on at the port of Montreal. Unfortunately, it was voted down by the Liberals and the NDP, the cover-up coalition working together. They do not have any interest in getting to the bottom of this. It is costing all of us, even those people fortunate enough not to have had a vehicle stolen, because we know there has been $1.2 billion in insurance payouts for stolen vehicles; this is causing an increase in insurance premiums, up 25% in some cases in Ontario. These are brazen acts of theft and violence, and they are affecting people in our communities. In 2022 alone there were a staggering 9,600 motor vehicles stolen from the GTA. This leaves families traumatized and financially burdened. The impact goes far beyond the immediate victims; it undermines the fabric of our society. It is eroding the trust and confidence in our institutions and is contributing to a pervasive sense of insecurity. The repercussions are felt not only in the emotional toll exacted on individuals and families but also in the economic consequences borne by our communities as a whole. One of the most concerning aspects of this crisis is the failure of federal ports to stem the tide of stolen vehicles leaving our shores. These cars and trucks, pilfered from the streets of the GTHA, are effortlessly smuggled into containers, loaded onto trains and illegally shipped out of the country, primarily via the port of Montreal. Ironically, that port is in the backyard of the Minister of Transport. In December I asked the CBSA, via an Order Paper question, how many vehicles it had intercepted at the port of Montreal. Despite the exponential rise in auto thefts that we have seen, over 300% in the GTA since the Liberal government took office in 2015, the number of vehicles intercepted at the port of Montreal remains stagnant, year over year, at somewhere between 1,000 and 1,100. We know that 105,000 vehicles were stolen in Canada in a year. We are talking about fewer than 1% being retrieved. We know that the technology exists, through X-ray scanners, to scan more of the containers and actually track the vehicles down. However, there is just one scanner right now at the port of Montreal, and it does not work half of the time. That is insufficient. As my colleague mentioned, there are African countries begging the Government of Canada to take action on this issue. The action is not being taken, and that is cause for concern. Like so many things in Canada, this is something that should not be happening. It should not be this way. Even when Canadians resort to practical measures like putting Apple AirTags in their vehicles, recovery is far from guaranteed. Railway agents often refuse to inspect cargo already en route to the ports, and there are inadequate resources at the ports for inspection; therefore there is a highway facilitating this. The root cause is the soft-on-crime approach by the Liberal-NDP government, with bills like Bill C-75 and BIll C-5 that have emboldened criminals to be repeat offenders. They are often released on bail within hours of arrest and go on to commit further crimes. Even after being convicted, these individuals are often granted house arrest, which is really insufficient. We say, “Enough is enough.” Common-sense Conservatives are committed to really hitting the brakes on car theft and restoring the sense of security to our communities. The Leader of the Opposition has put forward a common-sense plan that includes a number of measures, such as mandatory prison sentences, ending house arrest for convicted car thieves, tougher sentencing for those crimes that are gang-related and have an organized crime element, and, of course, jail, not bail for repeat offenders and repeat violent offenders, as we saw in the examples I brought up from my community this past weekend. In addition to that, we need to address what is happening at the ports. We need more CBSA officers. Right now there are only five at the port of Montreal. We need to cut the waste on consultants at CBSA and invest in enforcement at the ports. We also need to have more scanners that could actually address the issue. There is some urgency now. Violent crime is up across the country. What the Liberal government has proposed is a summit: more convening and fewer results. Common-sense Conservatives have a plan to axe the tax, build the homes, fix the budget and stop the crime. Indeed, we are going to stop crime. We are going to slam the brakes on auto theft. We will restore law and order. We will bring home safer streets to Canadians from coast to coast.

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Mr. Kevin Lamoureux (Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons, Lib.)

Feb/6/24 1:49:31 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I wonder whether my colleague across the way would agree with me that the Leader of the Conservative Party made a big mistake when Conservatives slashed the funding to law enforcement agencies while he sat around the cabinet table. Would the member indicate whether the Leader of the Conservative Party made a mistake by cutting real jobs from the Canada Border Services Agency? We are talking about well over 1,000 jobs. Would the member not agree that supporting additional funds and making sure that there were more people working in that area would have been better then? Some people might suggest he was part of the problem.

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Mr. Dan Muys

Feb/6/24 1:50:22 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. member for Winnipeg North for his revisionist history. Crime was actually down during the previous Conservative government. We have seen an exponential rise in the auto thefts in particular, but violent crime is up 39%. We have the highest murder rates in 30 years under the soft-on-crime policies of the government. We have seen this exponential rise in auto thefts impacting people in our communities. Cars are stolen at gunpoint, and that is alarming in every sense. We are putting forward a very practical plan to actually get this issue resolved, not just words, talks and summits among bureaucrats.

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Ms. Marilyn Gladu (Sarnia—Lambton, CPC)

Feb/6/24 1:51:14 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-5

Mr. Speaker, I was really surprised to see the Liberals issue a press announcement that talked about the huge increase in car theft since they were elected in 2015. It is interesting that they did nothing about the problem, other than make it worse with Bill C-75 and Bill C-5, until we started raising the issue. Now the Liberals' answer is a meeting. Would the member agree that this is simply not enough?

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Mr. Dan Muys

Feb/6/24 1:51:47 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Sarnia—Lambton is also a border community that sees a lot of this criminal activity that is happening across the border. The member is exactly right. It was actually hilarious. The government press release announced the increase that we have seen, 300% in the greater Toronto area and over 100% in Ottawa and Montreal, and talked about this for some time. I have certainly been hearing about it from constituents the entire two years I have been a member of this place. We have been raising this. As I mentioned, I put forward an Order Paper question to ask for specific numbers of what was being checked at the Port of Montreal, and clearly that was insufficient. We raised this as a motion at the transportation committee today and it was voted down by the cover-up coalition. More talk by politicians and bureaucrats and more hot air are not going to solve this problem; action is.

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Ms. Marilyn Gladu

Feb/6/24 1:52:49 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I understand that our leader is visiting the Port of Montreal. Apparently, when it comes to cars that have trackers on them, owners can tell that their cars have gone to the Port of Montreal overnight and are shipped away to foreign countries. Clearly we need more resources there to detect and to retrieve these cars. Would the member like to elaborate?

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Mr. Dan Muys

Feb/6/24 1:53:14 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I will admit that I was not aware of what Apple tracking devices were until my wife introduced them to me. We have used them in our luggage to track down luggage lost at airports in Canada, which is another federal transport issue. I have spoken to constituents who have used those trackers and seen the movement of their stolen vehicle from their driveway to Montreal and out of the Port of Montreal. We know that this is the source of the problem, which is why our leader is there. He has made some very specific recommendations about enforcement through the CBSA, cutting consultants and waste, so we can put more resources into that. There is the use of the scanners and technology. The one scanner that exists right now at the Port of Montreal does not work half the time. We need dozens of scanners, not just one.

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Hon. Arif Virani (Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, Lib.)

Feb/6/24 1:54:20 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-59

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to rise to speak on this very important issue. Auto theft is a critical one that impacts Canadians. As a GTA resident, and as a GTA member of Parliament, I have heard from my constituents, friends and neighbours about fear of theft and increased risk in their communities. I can assure each and every one of those individuals right across the country that I take these concerns very seriously and I am determined to address this problem alongside the Minister of Public Safety, the Minister of Transport and other colleagues. What is not helpful is spreading disinformation and stoking fear even in this very chamber. It is disappointing, but unsurprising, that the Leader of the Opposition and his colleagues across the way have taken this very tactic. To start, let us discuss what we have done to address the issue of auto theft. In December, we increased funding to fight organized crime. Last week, we redoubled our efforts by announcing $121 million for the Ontario police forces to combat guns, gangs and organized crime. Let me open a parentheses here; that is guns and gangs funding. On the night of a marathon vote initiated by the opposition, the Leader of the Opposition, in his infinite wisdom, returned to cast a direct vote against guns and gangs funding. Let the record be clear about which side of the House actually supports guns and gangs funding to keep our communities safe. I was delighted to attend the announcement a week ago in York region in the GTA alongside the Minister of Public Safety, Premier Doug Ford, and other key players who will help prevent auto theft by organized crime. We are also holding a meeting in Ottawa this Thursday that will bring together the provinces and representatives of cities, ports, insurers, automakers and other key stakeholders to discuss and develop a coordinated approach to combatting auto theft. While Conservatives are busy tweeting out videos, as a result of a news release by our government that they decided to read, and repeating childish slogans, we have a plan to keep communities safe. I want to point out the very bill the Leader of the Opposition has weaponized on this issue, a bill I was pleased to work on as the parliamentary secretary at the time to the then minister of justice, Bill C-75. It raised the maximum penalty on summary conviction for motor vehicle theft from 18 months to two years. For everyone who is watching right now, let that sink in. Either the Leader of the Opposition does not understand the Criminal Code or he is purposely misleading Canadians. Either way, his objective is to repeal Bill C-75 and therefore lower the maximum penalty for motor vehicle theft. If it sounds a bit illogical, it is. Additionally, a pillar of his so-called plan is to add an aggravating factor on sentencing to this issue. As I said yesterday in the House, and as I will repeat today, the Criminal Code already includes this provision. Section 718.2(a)(iv) specifies as an aggravating factor, allowing for a more increased sentence, involvement with organized crime. I will be sharing my time with the member for Vaughan—Woodbridge, Mr. Speaker. This is a critical measure. We know that the majority of auto thefts are not one-off crimes committed by first-time offenders. Auto theft is most often coordinated through an operation of organized crime networks. What are we doing with respect to those organized crime networks? We are cracking down, as the police agencies have asked us to do, on organized crime and the financing of it. How are we doing that? We have the fall economic statement being debated in this very House, Bill C-59. That bill contains provisions to crack down on money laundering to stop the organized criminals who are making our communities unsafe. What has the Leader of the Opposition done in his infinite wisdom? He has directed every one of his Conservative colleagues to vote against this measure, to vote against measures that would keep our communities safe and to basically empower organized criminals. Is this illogical? Yes, very illogical. In a video posted just this morning, the Leader of the Opposition threw the CBSA under the bus for failing to solve the issue of auto theft. What he conveniently failed to mention, in a very polished video that was very professionally done, is that under his watch, when he was part of the Conservative government at the cabinet table, the Conservatives cut 1,000 jobs from the CBSA. If one of the problems with this, which we will be discussing at the auto summit, is border security, I am not sure how we keep the borders safe when we are cutting employees working at the border. Is it illogical? Indeed, very illogical. In addition, the Conservatives routinely vote against bolstering CBSA funding. They talk out of both sides of their mouths on this issue. Canadians watching right now deserve a heck of a lot better. I am always open to good-faith suggestions for improving the Criminal Code. I take my mandate to keep our streets and communities safe very seriously. I look forward to working with the leaders on Thursday. What I do not see from members of the official opposition is any sort of leadership on this issue. Instead, I see trifling slogans and redundant suggestions about how to amend the Criminal Code with provisions that are already there. Canadians deserve a lot better from that opposition.

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Mr. Chandra Arya (Nepean, Lib.)

Feb/6/24 2:00:09 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to offer my congratulations to Michelle O'Neill of Sinn Fein who became the First Minister of Northern Ireland last Saturday. This historic first and a groundbreaking milestone was once thought to be beyond the realm of possibility. Sinn Fein's evolution from the political wing of the Irish Republican Army to becoming the leading political party in Northern Ireland's 2022 elections underscores the dynamic shift in the political landscape. It is a testament to the enduring impact of the 1998 Good Friday agreement. This also brings Sinn Fein's long-cherished vision of a united Ireland closer to reality. This showcases the potential for unity and positive change within a historically divided community.

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Mr. John Williamson (New Brunswick Southwest, CPC)

Feb/6/24 2:01:05 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, with an ever-increasing number of Canadians struggling with mental illness, we need a government that will listen to mental health advocates and professionals. Common-sense Conservatives believe that those who are struggling with mental health deserve support and treatment, not despair and death. We know that recovery is possible. If the government moves forward with legislation that allows MAID for mental health illness as the only underlying condition, the result will be the deaths of people who could have gotten better. Assisted death is not health care. Far too many Canadians are falling prey to MAID because of the growing poverty and homelessness in our country. Every day, we hear of more Canadians caught in this cycle who feel their only escape is assisted death. Canada must do better. Canadians deserve a government that will offer solutions instead of assisted death. The Conservatives stand on the side of the most vulnerable Canadians and their loved ones.

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Ms. Anna Gainey (Notre-Dame-de-Grâce—Westmount, Lib.)

Feb/6/24 2:02:22 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, today, I would like to congratulate Dr. David Mulder, who retired after a career of over 60 years. Dr. Mulder moved to Montreal from Saskatchewan in 1963 to complete his medical training. He joined the Montreal Canadiens organization, earning $10 a game. He went on to become the team physician, treating countless players, from Jean Béliveau to Saku Koivu, even my own dad. He served in many capacities, including surgeon and chief of the Montreal General Hospital and chair of the Department of Surgery at the McGill University Health Centre. The trauma centre at the McGill University Health Centre, or MUHC, has been named in honour of Dr. Mulder for his outstanding leadership in trauma care, both as a surgeon and an educator. Gentle, humble and gracious, endlessly generous with his time, our city, our health care institutions and, of course, our beloved Habs benefited from his renowned skill and devotion to his patients. Dr. Mulder holds an important place in the history of the MUHC and the Montreal Canadiens. I thank him for everything he has done.

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Mr. Denis Trudel (Longueuil—Saint-Hubert, BQ)

Feb/6/24 2:03:30 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, as we kicked off our Black History Month celebrations on Friday, the community of Longueuil showed just how vibrant it is by immersing us in African and Caribbean culture in the middle of a Quebec winter. I have to say that it was quite the party. There was a tasting of bissap, the iconic drink of West Africa, which was prepared by Michèle Kaugbouh, a native of the Ivory Coast. Then, there was a musical performance by Tamara Suffren, a singer of Haitian origin. Muna Mingole, a proud member of the Longueuil community who is originally from Cameroon, did a fabulous job as MC for the evening. We were also able to admire the original creations of Paola Trénou, a fashion designer of Togolese origin, one of whose creations I am wearing right now, as well as those of Espérance Koumabeng, who is originally from Tchad, and Ghislain Ounguedou and members of the Nouvelle Famille association who are originally from Cameroon. We were also able to enjoy delicious chicken, cakes and desserts made by Alvine Yossa, Marguerite Ngoula and Jolande Petipa from Cameroon. I thank Joseph de Tassot for his amazing griot. This is Quebec in all its glory. I wish them all a happy Black History Month.

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Mr. Stéphane Lauzon (Argenteuil—La Petite-Nation, Lib.)

Feb/6/24 2:04:40 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, it is critical that we recognize the importance of supporting our valued dairy farmers. This is not just about the economy; it is also about preserving our cultural heritage and our nation's food security. Their hard work not only ensures the availability of a quality product, but also helps maintain our traditions and our identity. In this era of globalization and rapid change, it is our duty to protect and uplift our dairy farmers and their associations, because they are the stewards of our agricultural heritage and our food future. By investing in their well-being and promoting sustainability, we are not only preserving a vital industry, but also strengthening the ties that bind our communities across the country.

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