Senator Marshall: Thank you for that response, Senator Gold.

We’re seeing a worrying trend: Government either withholds certain information while other information, such as the Public Accounts of Canada and the Departmental Results Reports, are being released very late. They’re really not relevant by the time we get those reports; they are almost historical information.

The impression that’s being given is that government is deliberately withholding certain information and reports. So is the government deliberately withholding and delaying the release of accountability information?

Hon. Brent Cotter: Honourable senators, my question is for Senator Gold. It concerns the illegal war being waged against the people of Ukraine, “a threat to each and every one of us,” as Ambassador Rae said yesterday. This situation calls for Canada to do everything it can, even if those demands require commitments from each of us.

My question relates to the need for the imposition of sanctions on Russian businesses in Canada, not just freezing their bank accounts. That may involve some sacrifice from us. A specific example in my province is EVRAZ. EVRAZ is a Russian steel manufacturer with significant operations in Western Canada, and it is controlled by four Russian oligarchs close to Mr. Putin.

My question is this: Are we imposing constraints on companies like EVRAZ and doing so in ways that share the burden among all Canadians without punishing the good, hard‑working employees of those companies who had no say in their companies coming under Russian control?

Hon. Marc Gold (Government Representative in the Senate): Thank you for your question. I do not have information about what the government’s plans may be with regard to additional sanctions. A day does not seem to pass by without more sanctions being announced. The government will continue, as it has been, to not only work with its allies but to exercise leadership with its allies to ensure that the illegal aggression of Russia in Ukraine is answered with real, significant sanctions.

Again, you don’t need me to read the long list of sanctions directed at individuals and institutions operating worldwide. Those are a matter of public record. Out of respect for you and others who might have supplementary questions, I will simply say this: The government is continuing to work diligently to ensure that the sanctions are, and any additional sanctions will be, ones that have a real bite and impact upon the aggressor.

Hon. Kim Pate: Honourable senators, March 8 is International Women’s Day. This year’s theme is #BreakTheBias.

In Canada we are celebrating Women Inspiring Women, and we encourage recognition of those who inspire and demonstrate leadership in social, economic, environmental, cultural and political spheres.

Imagine a Canada that is diverse, equitable and inclusive — where every young woman and girl is inspired to pursue and seize leadership, free of bias, stereotypes and discrimination.

In 2008, one in four women in federal prisons were Indigenous while Indigenous peoples represented only 4% of the general population. This rose to one in three by 2016, and in 2022 it is approaching one in two.

The injustices identified 30 years ago for criminalized and imprisoned Indigenous women persist. The majority attended residential schools or had a family member who attended. Many are part of the stolen generations. More than 9 in 10 have histories of physical and/or sexual victimization.

The issues that give rise to Indigenous women being disappeared and murdered are the same issues to render them homeless and the fastest growing prison population.

It is time for us to work collectively to redress systemic class biases, sexism and racism — 1 in 2 federally sentenced women are Indigenous and 1 in 10 is Black. Imagine if that was the proportion of women in leadership in business, education and government. Imagine how we all could benefit and be enriched by more inclusive and equal public spaces.

In Canada, imagine what actualizing this year’s International Women’s Day themes could mean if, in 2022, we act to grow and strengthen inclusive, equitable and accessible social, economic and health supports and systems. Imagine if we ensure that we pull people in versus pushing them to the fringes where they become attracted to or easier prey to anti-government, anti‑democratic and anti-egalitarian ideas. Imagine if we implement every call for justice from the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls. And this year — there is one vacancy so far — we absolutely hope the next Supreme Court of Canada appointments are Indigenous and Black women.

Honourable senators, let’s truly break the bias and inspire women’s leadership in all spheres. Meegwetch, d’akuju, thank you.

Senator Cotter: My second question is specifically about EVRAZ, coming from a different direction.

Canada operates the Canada Strategic Infrastructure Fund, which, over the last five years, has distributed $5 billion to a hundred different projects, one of those in Saskatchewan. The fund contributed $40 million to EVRAZ. Does EVRAZ need the money? EVRAZ last week reported profits in excess of $3 billion and a whopping 60% of the share price paid out in dividends. Who are those shareholders? Four Russian oligarchs own two thirds of those shares.

I could go on at length with the question, but what has the Government of Canada done to get our $40 million back?

An Hon. Senator: Hear, hear.

Hon. Pierrette Ringuette: Honourable senators, February is Age-related Macular Degeneration Awareness Month.

Age-related macular degeneration, or AMD, is an incurable disease that causes gradual loss of vision, blurred vision and distorted vision, and eventually dark spots in the vision and legal blindness. AMD causes the macula, the part of the retina responsible for detailed vision, to degrade.

AMD affects nearly 2 million Canadians and 196 million people around the world. It is the leading cause of loss of vision in adults over 50 and accounts for 90% of new cases of blindness in Canada. It is a serious problem that will only get worse as our population ages.

You very likely know someone with AMD, a disease that turns Canadians’ lives upside down and reduces their quality of life in retirement. Over time, people with AMD become unable to drive a car, read a book, participate in all kinds of sports and activities, or enjoy the comfortable and independent retirement they deserve after working so hard all their lives. They can no longer live in their own homes and are forced to move to a place where they will be cared for. This is a life-altering diagnosis, mainly because there is no cure.

Thanks to research being done in Canada, there is hope. A treatment is being developed, and clinical trials are encouraging. A new treatment is awaiting regulatory approval from Health Canada. It could have a significant positive impact on the millions of Canadians who suffer from AMD.

Please join me in raising awareness about AMD. Let’s support our fellow Canadians in their struggle, and let’s support the development and approval of treatments for this devastating disease.

Thank you.

[English]

Senator Dupuis: Senator Seidman, you spoke about the need for accountability on the part of the federal government, and you said that perhaps there were observations that could be appended or amendments that could be made. Can we agree that that is something we want to look into? What we want to know is how many tests the federal government distributed, how fast it distributed them and to which provinces and territories.

In other words, we don’t want to get caught up in the problem that you very clearly described, namely, the fact that we don’t know what the provinces themselves did with these tests and we have no way of verifying what the provinces did once they received the tests.

Do we agree that the only accountability we care about here is what the federal government did, how it did it and how fast?

[English]

Hon. Patti LaBoucane-Benson: Honourable senators, for the past six days, Canadians have watched the horrific, violent attack on Ukraine. We’ve witnessed war being waged on innocent Ukrainians, shocked by this assault on a free, proud and democratic country. There have been marches across Canada this weekend in support of Ukraine and in appreciation of the fear the hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian Canadians have for the safety of their families.

Although I am speaking today on the traditional land of the Algonquin and Anishinaabe, I live in the beautiful Treaty 6 territory, where we are all treaty people. Although the settlement of Canada is a history of colonization and disenfranchisement, there are also many stories of kindness, caring and working together for mutual benefit.

As Chief Billy Morin from the Enoch Cree Nation wrote:

Ukrainian Families were some of the 1st families to settle in Treaty 6 territory, before Alberta was even a Province. There are many instances of friendship between Indigenous & Ukrainian peoples that highlight the Spirit & Intent of Treaty 6.

I couldn’t agree more. There were deep relationships between Ukrainian and Indigenous people. There still are today. I can assure you that I am not the only Métis Ukrainian in Alberta. Significantly, Indigenous and Ukrainian settler women forged important relationships. Both understood the experiences of trauma and oppression — whether it was here or in Ukraine — and they were trying to raise healthy children despite these hardships. Indigenous women shared knowledge of local plants and medicines to keep their families healthy. Ukrainian women shared recipes for food that could be made from the food grown on their farms: perogies, holopchi, perishke.

Ukrainian women also gifted Indigenous women the babushkas they wore on their heads. Indigenous women have worn these beautiful scarves in their day-to-day lives for years, and now these scarves can be found across Turtle Island, worn as fashion items or part of regalia at powwows. For almost a week, my social media feeds have been galvanized, not only in deep admiration of and support for the bravery of the Ukrainian people, but also including Indigenous women posting pictures of themselves in beautiful floral scarves with the caption “wear your kokum scarf in solidarity with Ukraine.”

Colleagues, these scarves have become symbols of empathy, relationship, resilience and solidarity. They are symbols of trade and cooperation between Indigenous people and Ukrainian settlers. They are symbols of people sharing resources and wisdom, working together and caring for each other.

Senators, I wear this scarf today not only as a symbol of solidarity but also as a reminder of the trauma of war and pain the Ukrainian people will carry in the years to come. I sincerely hope our government will not only continue leading the effort to end this war, but that it will also be a leader in the effort to rebuild Ukraine and heal the Ukrainian people in the same spirit of friendship that has existed on Treaty 6 territory for many years.

Slava Ukraini. Glory to Ukraine. Hiy hiy.

Hon. Ratna Omidvar, Chair of the Standing Senate Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology, presented the following report:

Tuesday, March 1, 2022

The Standing Senate Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology has the honour to present its

THIRD REPORT

Your committee, to which was referred Bill C-12, An Act to amend the Old Age Security Act (Guaranteed Income Supplement), has, in obedience to the order of reference of February 24, 2022, examined the said bill and now reports the same without amendment.

Respectfully submitted,

RATNA OMIDVAR

Chair

Hon. Tony Loffreda: Honourable senators, I rise today to bring your attention to the fourteenth edition of the John Molson Undergraduate Case Competition, or JMUCC, and pay tribute to my alma mater Concordia University.

From February 28 to March 5, Concordia University’s John Molson School of Business is hosting its annual undergraduate case competition. The week-long event gives teams of business students from around the globe a chance to compete and solve live business cases. Using their skills, knowledge and resourcefulness, teams present their analysis to a panel of judges consisting of industry specialists who must evaluate and rank their work. Once again, I am honoured to serve as lead judge for the finals on Saturday. In fact, I’ve been involved with the competition since its inception in 2009.

Year after year, I am struck by the business acumen and all‑around brilliance of the students competing in the event. They showcase passion, spirit and dynamism — the three pillars at the heart of JMUCC’s mission statement. One thing is certain: our future business leaders and entrepreneurs are ready to take the world by storm. They have the brains and heart — the perfect one-two combination — that will certainly help them succeed in life. It’s truly impressive to see.

Over the years, I’ve witnessed firsthand how life-changing and formative this competition is for these students. They acquire some lifelong skills that will allow them to be better entrepreneurs and businesspeople but, above all, better global citizens. Some of these skills include strategic thinking, innovative problem solving and sound decision making.

Since its inception, JMUCC has grown into the largest international case competition with 28 universities from across the world competing each year. In total, 54 cases have been analyzed, and nearly 1,400 university students have competed. In my view, what makes JMUCC so popular and attractive to students is the fact that it is held in one of the most beautiful cities in the world and hosted by one of Canada’s great post‑secondary institutions. Regretfully, for the second time in a row, the competition is being held virtually this year, which didn’t allow its competitors an opportunity to explore all the sights and sounds that Montreal has to offer.

Honourable senators, please join me in congratulating this year’s organizing committee for hosting another world-class event despite the challenges of the pandemic and wishing all participants an exciting and memorable competition.

Hon. Donald Neil Plett (Leader of the Opposition): Honourable senators, my question today is again for the government leader in the Senate.

Leader, Canada stands in solidarity with Ukraine and its people. Russia’s attack on Ukraine should serve as a warning about how unprepared the Trudeau government is to defend Canada’s sovereignty and security, especially in the Arctic.

Last year, leader, Russian fighter aircraft flew over Canadian-claimed waters at the North Pole. The Government of Canada had no response. In 2017, this government issued a defence policy statement that promised a modernization of the North Warning System. That hasn’t happened. It promised to conclude a competition to buy new fighter aircraft to replace our 40‑year‑old jets. That has not been concluded. It promised unmanned aerial vehicles to monitor Canadian waters. Nothing has happened.

Leader, what and when does the government plan to do anything in terms of these much-needed modernizations?

Hon. Marc Gold (Government Representative in the Senate): Thank you for your question. The Government of Canada is committed to defending the sovereignty of Canada, and the Arctic in particular. It is aware of the issues you raised, and is working to provide the necessary physical assets and collateral support to ensure that our sovereignty is not compromised.

Senator Plett: You repeated what I said, leader. I asked you a question. When? What? You say they’re committed. I read that they’re committed. I read what they promised to do. Leader, we need answers in this chamber, not a repeat of our questions.

I have other written questions, leader, on the Order Paper that your government has not answered about the state of Canada’s defence and Coast Guard readiness. For example, what is the cost estimate to build two polar icebreakers? When will the construction of medium icebreakers begin? Why has the plan to upgrade our search and rescue helicopters been reportedly put on hold? When will the used Australian fighter jets the Trudeau government purchased in 2018 be fully operational?

Leader, why are there no answers other than that the government is committed? Is it the plan of the Trudeau government to continually delay making decisions instead of actually doing anything and then just telling us they’re committed?

Senator Gold: The answer to your question is no. The questions you raise are important and legitimate. They have been transmitted to the government. This chamber should know that our office works hard to impress upon the government the importance of timely answers for the benefit of senators and, frankly, for the benefit of my office, which stands before you representing the government, and we will continue to do so. I hope you can get your answers in a timely fashion. We are doing our best to make sure that happens.

[Translation]

Hon. René Cormier: My question is for the Government Representative in the Senate.

[English]

First, I would like to acknowledge that it is Senator Griffin’s last week in the Senate. I want to thank her very much for her work on behalf of all Canadians, and particularly citizens of the Maritimes. Thank you, Senator Griffin.

[Translation]

Senator Gold, since this is Francophonie Month and today will be remembered as the day Bill C-13 to modernize the Official Languages Act was introduced in the other place, I am pleased to announce the results of a recent public opinion survey. It was conducted last fall by Environics Research for the Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages and found that more than 87% of Canadians support official languages. The Commissioner of Official Languages, Raymond Théberge, noted that the poll numbers should, and I quote, “help leaders draft the next Action Plan for Official Languages.”

It goes without saying that the Action Plan for Official Languages that will be expiring in 2023 is a key positive measure for enhancing the vitality of official language minority communities.

My question is the following, Senator Gold. When does the government plan to start drafting the next action plan for official languages? How does it intend to consult official language minority communities and take their needs into consideration during the drafting process?

Hon. Marc Gold (Government Representative in the Senate): Thank you for raising this question.

As you mentioned, the current Action Plan for Official Languages is in effect until 2023. I am told that the government will be launching consultations on the next action plan shortly and that details should be announced in the coming months.

Senator Cormier: Senator Gold, according to the 2018‑23 Action Plan for Official Languages, the government has committed $2.5 million over five years to initiatives led by partners such as the City of Ottawa. We know that municipalities, especially those in a minority situation, have a crucial role to play in supporting the development and vitality of official language minority communities.

Senator Gold, given that municipalities fall under provincial jurisdiction, how will the federal government support their invaluable contribution to the development and vitality of linguistic communities? Will it be through a provision in the new version of the act, targeted measures in the next action plan for official languages, or some other means?

Hon. Terry M. Mercer: Honourable senators, I know we are all dismayed by the situation in Ukraine. Russia’s actions by its brutal dictator are unacceptable, and we must continue to support the people of Ukraine in every way we can.

Senator Gold, Operation UNIFIER is the Canadian Armed Forces mission to support the training of security forces in Ukraine. We send a group of about 200 forces members to Ukraine every six months with the ability to deploy up to 400 members. According to National Defence, since 2015 Canadian troops have conducted more than 600 courses, training nearly 33,000 Ukrainian military and security personnel. On January 26, the minister announced additional funding of $340 million for immediate support for Ukraine and for the extension and expansion of Operation UNIFIER. However, the troops were pulled out and are now in Poland, given the current security situation in Ukraine.

Will the government leader tell us when our forces will be redeployed to Ukraine to train additional, much-needed Ukrainian forces to fight against Russia’s illegal war?