44th Parl. 1st Sess.
May 2, 2024 10:00AM
- May/2/24 2:12:51 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, being a coastal province, we know that the sea does giveth and, sadly, does taketh away.
On April 21, the first day of the lobster season in Lark Harbour in Newfoundland and Labrador, Trevor Childs, 44, and his nephew Nicholas Skinner, 28, set off to set their traps. On shore helping were Trevor's dad, his grandfather and some others, getting the traps ready to load aboard their boat for the young men to set off. However, the sea had another plan and swamped their boat. They perished in the cold waters.
The small communities of Lark Harbour and York Harbour were in shock, but none more than their families.
Trevor is leaving behind the love of his life, Joanna, and precious Carrie, 9; Addisyn, 6; and Reece, 2. Nicholas leaves the love of his life, Martina, along with his mom, dad, siblings and numerous other family members, friends and the entire fishing community of our province.
Both of these young men loved the outdoors and all it offered. They were great contributors to their towns, always there to lend a hand.
These tragedies impact everyone in small rural towns. In moments of loss, communities knit together to help the families heal and move on.
May Trevor and Bruddy rest in peace.
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- May/2/24 2:14:15 p.m.
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- Re: Bill C-5
Mr. Speaker, after nine years of the Liberal-NDP government's soft-on-crime policies, crime, chaos and disorder have become the norm in our country. Thanks to Liberal bills, Bill C-75 and Bill C-5, violent crime is up 40% and extortion is up 218%.
Towns and suburbs that were once peaceful are now being terrorized by gangsters. Just this week, a 19-year-old connected to a string of extortions was charged for three separate home shootings, including one where bullets hit a child's play room. He was arrested, charged and let out on bail. Guess what. Now he has fled the country.
Canadians have lost faith in our justice system. Despite the Prime Minister 's inaction, extortion is a federal responsibility. The Criminal Code is federal. The RCMP responsible for catching these criminals is federal. The catch-and-release bail policies are also federal.
Only common-sense Conservatives will reverse the damage, stop extortion and bring home safe streets for all Canadians.
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- May/2/24 2:15:23 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, on April 7, we lost a proud British Columbian and great Canadian.
The Hon. John Allen Fraser served as the 32nd Speaker of the House from 1986 to 1994 and for 21 years as the member of Parliament for Vancouver South. He was held in the highest regard by all who knew him. I and so many sought out his counsel on many public affairs.
I was honoured to speak at his piping-out ceremony from the Seaforth Highlanders during my tenure as associate minister of national defence. I note that his bride of 59 years was Cate Findlay, not a family member but the right clan.
John was a UBC-trained lawyer, minister of the Crown and the first Speaker to be elected by secret ballot. He was a voracious reader with a keen sense of humour, and an orator of note who loved the outdoors.
As chief opposition whip and on behalf of a grateful nation, I thank Speaker Fraser for his service to our province and our country. My thoughts are with his friends and his three daughters Sheena, Anna and Mary, and their children, as they mourn his loss.
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- May/2/24 2:16:52 p.m.
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I thank the hon. member for recognizing an extraordinary Canadian, John Allen Fraser.
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- May/2/24 2:17:00 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, May is Borderline Personality Disorder Awareness Month.
Borderline personality disorder, or BPD, is a serious and complex mental illness stemming mainly from a chronic dysregulation of emotions. People who suffer from BPD, close to 2% of the population, have enormous difficulty controlling their emotions; as a result, they are all particularly sensitive and emotionally reactive.
The Sashbear Foundation is committed to raising people's awareness about BPD. Since its creation by Lynn Courey and Mike Menu, this charitable organization has restored hope, taught skills and offered a community to more than 10,000 families that have been greatly affected by a loved one's mental health.
Every year, the foundation organizes the Sashbear Walk, which gathers hundreds of sympathizers to create an orange sea of support, reduce stigmatization and raise awareness about this illness and our national mental health crisis.
I urge my colleagues to visit sashbear.org to learn more about BPD.
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- May/2/24 2:18:09 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, teams from around the world are gathering in Calgary next week for the World Para Hockey Championship. I am so pleased to share that the starting goalie for Team Canada is none other than Adam Kingsmill from my home community of Smithers, B.C.
Despite losing his leg in a tragic lawnmower accident when he was just a toddler, Adam became an accomplished athlete, playing softball, racing motocross and excelling at stand-up hockey, all with the incredible support of his parents Bobbie and Grange.
In 2016, Adam caught the eye of Team Canada's coaches, who convinced him to try para hockey, or sledge hockey. Five years later, he brought home a silver medal from the world championship in the Czech Republic. He followed that up just a year later with another silver, this time at the 2022 Paralympic Games in Beijing, China.
Adam's indomitable spirit, determination and achievement continue to inspire people across northern B.C. and across Canada. I hope my colleagues will join me in wishing him and his teammates the very best of luck at this year's world championships. Go Canada. Go Adam.
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- May/2/24 2:19:25 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, a woman from Saint‑Hyacinthe has made it into the Guinness Book of World Records. Jani Barré, who has a rare genetic disorder called osteogenesis imperfecta, completed her 10th marathon in a wheelchair in London.
She completed the fastest women's wheelchair marathon in history, with a time of four hours, 19 minutes and 21 seconds, beating the record set in 1983 by a woman who happened to be an Olympian.
Jani may have brittle bone disease, but she also has an iron will. Despite having suffered 157 fractures in her lifetime, she has been training for the past 20 years or so at her second home, the Saint‑Hyacinthe boxing club, which was founded by her father, Bernard.
I am certain that she is not done yet. She is a model of unwavering determination and someone who should inspire us all.
My dear friend Jani is a source of pride for our region and for all of Quebec.
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- May/2/24 2:20:31 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Canadians are way past their breaking point. It is so bad that the CEO of Food Banks Canada now says that food banks are becoming unsustainable. Canadian food bank usage is at an historic high, two million people per month. Food banks cannot meet this demand.
For people who have not been forced to the food banks and still utilize their local grocery store, let us consider some facts from a new report by Canada's food professor. Sixty per cent of Canadians are so desperate that they are eating expired or spoiled food. Twenty per cent of households with the lowest incomes use over 20% of their disposable income just to buy food.
After nine years of short-sighted policies of the Liberal-NDP government, families are sliding deeper and deeper into debt. This is not the Canada that I grew up in and this is not the Canada in which we want to raise our children. Common-sense Conservatives would rebuild our economy and bring home lower prices for all Canadians.
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- May/2/24 2:21:36 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, this February 7, we had a historic vote on my Motion No. 75 in the House of Commons.
Unanimously, all members of Parliament, spanning various political affiliations and regions of our country, resoundingly gave unwavering support for declaring May as Polish Heritage Month and designating May 3 as Polish Constitution Day in Canada.
Today, on Polish National Flag Day, parliamentarians from Canada and Poland, the Polish Embassy and Ambassador Dzielski, consuls general, the Canadian Polish Congress and the community at large came together to commemorate these milestones on Parliament Hill for the first-ever Polish flag raising.
As we recognize and celebrate Polish Heritage Month and, on May 3, Constitution Day from coast to coast to coast, and with the Polish and Canadian flags flying proudly on Parliament Hill, I say, dziękuję bardzo, thanks very much, to the entire Polish Canadian community.
[Member spoke in Polish]
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- May/2/24 2:22:55 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, when will the Prime Minister make it illegal to smoke crack in a hospital room? Just the date, please.
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- May/2/24 2:23:11 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the Province of B.C. made a request for a temporary pilot project. B.C. now has concerns about that project, which we share. We are now working together to address those concerns. Opioid addiction is a tragedy that has affected far too many Canadian families. We have to work together to solve it, not score cheap partisan points off the pain of Canadians. There are no pilot projects anywhere else in Canada.
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- May/2/24 2:23:52 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, because of the government's decision, it is no longer illegal to smoke crack, meth or shoot up heroin in public spaces in British Columbia like parks, hospitals and public transit. The British Columbia government has now begged the Prime Minister to reverse this decision
I have a simple question: When will the Prime Minister once again make it illegal to smoke crack in a hospital room? Just the date.
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- May/2/24 2:24:23 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, unlike the Conservatives, we believe in working together with Canadians to solve our country's most pressing problems. That is why earlier this week I was in touch with Premier Eby, and I assured him that we share his concerns. We are working urgently together to address them.
Let us remember that opioid addiction is a tragedy afflicting so many Canadian families. Let us work together to help them, not to score cheap partisan points.
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- May/2/24 2:25:02 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, dangerous addictions are hurting Canadians. After the government's decision to change the law, overdose deaths shot up and drug-related crime went through the roof. Now the British Columbia government is asking for the government to reverse its decision. It is a simple question. It is a simple decision to make.
One final time, on what date will the government make it illegal to smoke crack in a hospital room? Just the date.
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- May/2/24 2:25:39 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, unlike the Conservative House leader, I have actually been in touch with the Premier of B.C. about this truly pressing issue, and unlike the Conservatives, we are working collaboratively with the Province of B.C. We share its concerns and we are working together to support public health and public safety. What we are not doing is fundraising off the pain, death and suffering of Canadians.
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- May/2/24 2:26:18 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, every day that this radical Prime Minister dithers on the deadly experiment of legalizing hard drugs is a day that more people die. Six people a day are dying in British Columbia.
After nine years of this Prime Minister, Quebec is not immune to this crisis, which is affecting all regions of Canada. The Journal de Montréal reports that crack consumption is surging in Montreal and will increasingly start happening in public places.
Will the Prime Minister put an end to his extremist experiment in legalizing hard drugs today and say no to any possibility of expanding it to Quebec?
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- May/2/24 2:26:57 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, British Columbia requested a pilot project. B.C. now has serious concerns, which we share. That is why we are working urgently and closely with the province to address this concern.
I want to point out that these are tragedies for families across Canada. It is important not to politicize Canadians' grief.
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- May/2/24 2:27:37 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, it is not politicizing to talk about syringes on the ground, distressing situations and unacceptable behaviour a stone's throw from a school in Montreal. We now know that the Prime Minister's radical experiment to legalize hard drugs in British Columbia, which was supported by the Bloc Québécois, has been catastrophic and deadly.
The Bloc member for Joliette had this to say in the House: “The hope is that this pilot project will set a course”. The member for Rimouski-Neigette—Témiscouata—Les Basques said that “the Bloc Québécois fully believes that it is a step in the right direction”.
Quebec has no interest in going down that road. Can the Prime Minister assure the House that he will not follow the radical advice of the Bloc Québécois?
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- May/2/24 2:28:15 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, opioid addiction is a tragedy that we must address together by prioritizing public health and safety.
Conservatives will simply say that our government's policy is extremist and radical. However, do my colleagues know who actually has extremist and radical policies? White supremacists and misogynists. It is time for the Conservatives to condemn policies that are truly extremist and radical.
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- May/2/24 2:28:57 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, La Presse reported today that CBC management is planning for closer ties between the English-language network and Radio-Canada.
Radio-Canada is not in crisis. CBC is in crisis. Closer ties will mean concessions made at the expense of Quebec culture and Quebec creators. Our cultural identity will be taken away and we will be assimilated into English Canada's identity. This is a very dangerous slippery slope.
Will the Prime Minister reassure francophones in Quebec and Canada that the government has no intention whatsoever of merging CBC and Radio-Canada?
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