Hon. Marc Gold (Government Representative in the Senate): Thank you for the question. I will be pleased to provide a written response when I receive the information. My oral response will no doubt be somewhat predictable in that I will inquire with the government and come back with a response.

I would like to note that although it wasn’t mentioned in the Speech from the Throne, I am advised that the government knows that Canada and Canadians need a modern employment insurance system. This issue hasn’t been forgotten just because of the COVID-19 pandemic or the election.

Hon. Diane Bellemare: My question is for the Government Representative in the Senate. Senator Gold, perhaps you saw the ad published in Saturday’s edition of Le Devoir by Quebec’s Conseil national des chômeurs et chômeuses. The purpose of the ad was to draw attention to the urgent need to reform the EI system.

On October 23, the Institute for Socio-economic Research and Information published a research paper on a proposal to reform the employment insurance system to meet the challenges of the 21st century. These public statements are the latest in a series of policy stances taken by a multitude of stakeholders representing the private sector, workers and several community groups.

In its 2021 budget, the federal government promised consultations on EI reform. The budget provided $5 million over two years to conduct these consultations. However, the Speech from the Throne did not mention EI once.

Senator Gold, where is the government on its EI reform plan? What is the status of the consultations planned in the last budget? Can you provide us with a clear road map of the steps in the planned public consultations? Can you also provide us with a written response to that effect? I think a number of groups would be happy to have that information.

Hon. Leo Housakos (Acting Leader of the Opposition): My question is for the Government Representative in the Senate.

Senator Gold, while it may have been rolled out with the best of intentions, the CERB program was fraught with problems from the get-go. We’ve certainly heard all the stories of people receiving payments for which they didn’t qualify. Now, according to a report from the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC), we know that organized crime knowingly and actively defrauded the CERB program by filing multiple applications using stolen identities.

I think we can all appreciate how incredibly frustrating this must be for taxpayers, especially for Canadians who have to jump through hoops to qualify for various other programs from your government.

Senator Gold, what if anything is being done to recover these taxpayers’ dollars from criminal organizations? What is being done to ensure that criminals are punished for this defrauding of taxpayers’ funds?

Senator Gold: I do agree with your question, and I certainly will make those inquiries.

I am the grandson of an immigrant, and many of us here are children of immigrants. We, along with First Nations, Inuit and others, built this country together, so I couldn’t agree with you more. I’ll make every effort to get a quick answer for you.

[Translation]

Senator Gold: It’s the position of this government that any law that it brings forward into the other place or this chamber is one that conforms to the Charter of Rights and the values that define us, in that regard, as a free and democratic society. Again, when the bill arrives or is tabled, whether here or the other place — and I have no information on the timing or process — we’ll have occasion to dig in and study it properly.

[Translation]

Hon. Percy Mockler: My question is for the Government Representative in the Senate. My question is on the same topic as Senator Martin’s question.

Senator Gold, hundreds of thousands of forestry workers across Canada are worried about their job security in light of Canada-U.S. relations.

[English]

My question for the Government Representative in the Senate today concerns the U.S. Department of Commerce’s decision to raise its tariffs on softwood lumber exports from my province of New Brunswick.

Historically, mills in New Brunswick were excluded from the American tariffs or trade restrictions for our softwood lumber. The reasons for that included the fact that a high percentage of our wood supply in the Maritimes comes from private woodlot owners and also large industrial private land.

Senator Gold, what is the government doing to ensure that New Brunswick regains its exclusion from American softwood lumber tariffs?

Hon. Marc Gold (Government Representative in the Senate): I can’t answer specifically with regard to the current discussions that are underway in Washington or what has gone on between the minister and her counterpart in New Brunswick, but it has always been the case that this government, whether in the context of free trade agreements or in the context of responding to unjustifiable initiatives — whether in softwood lumber in the past, aluminum in the more recent past and so on — has always worked closely with their provincial counterparts to make sure that provincial interests and viewpoints are reflected in the Canadian approach to dealing with the Americans. I have every assurance that will continue to be the case in this controversy.

Senator Housakos: Government leader, the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada, or FINTRAC, says that it does not know exactly how much CERB money went to organized crime. However, the Minister of National Revenue told the media that audits of CERB have been under way for some time.

Leader, according to the Canada Revenue Agency, how much CERB money did these audits show was fraudulently claimed by organized crime?

Hon. René Cormier: Honourable senators, since the emergence of AIDS, 80 million people have been infected and more than 36 million have died. Some 38 million people are living with the virus today, and between 700,000 and 1 million people die each year.

Behind those numbers are women, men, children, people from all walks of life, all origins and all regions of the world who are dying from or living with this terrible disease.

HIV/AIDS first appeared on this planet 40 years ago. It was considered a shameful disease at that time, one that only affected “other people,” mainly homosexual people and drug users.

People in my life, including Bernard, Laval, Pierre and so many others, died in silence, because one does not reveal the true nature of one’s illness, so as not to ostracize one’s family or be rejected.

Well, that remains true to this day, colleagues. It is still taboo to disclose one’s HIV status. Despite the advent of triple therapy in 1996, despite scientific advances, despite the fact that it is considered a chronic disease, silence still reigns in our communities. The spread of this virus continues because there is still no vaccine against AIDS.

According to data from the HIV in Canada surveillance report, in 2019, there were 2,122 new HIV diagnoses across the country. The most affected age groups were people aged 30 to 39, followed by those 20 to 29, and then those 40 to 49.

The most troubling part, colleagues, is that the Public Health Agency of Canada estimates that in 2018, 13% of people living with HIV did not know they were infected.

[English]

Prevention and access to drugs are both crucial in eradicating this disease off the face of the earth. However, the COVID-19 pandemic shows us that if northern countries do not effectively help southern countries have access to drugs, it won’t happen. If we do not work concretely toward reducing inequalities in the world, it won’t happen.

[Translation]

As we mark World AIDS Day and Aboriginal AIDS Awareness Week, what do we need to do, honourable senators, to ensure that Canada takes responsibility nationally and internationally and meets the targets it set with UNAIDS to eradicate this disease by 2030?

[English]

There is not a choice to be made between ending the AIDS pandemic that is raging today and preparing for the pandemics of tomorrow. The only successful approach will achieve both. As of today, we are not on track to achieve either, says the UNAIDS Executive Director.

[Translation]

Colleagues, it’s time for us to come together and urge our fellow citizens to do more. HIV/AIDS is not a pandemic of the past; it is a pandemic of today.

[English]

“End inequalities; end AIDS; end pandemics,” should be the theme that ought to inspire us, because no one is safe until we are all safe. Thank you. Meegwetch.

[Translation]

Hon. Marie-Françoise Mégie: Honourable senators, November 25 marked the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women and the beginning of the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence. This time is an opportunity for us to speak out against this worldwide crisis and its devastating effects, to pay tribute to the victims, and to renew our commitment to putting an end to gender-based violence once and for all.

Gender-based violence is sometimes invisible. It may remain hidden because of stigma, shame or the fear of not getting the support needed to get away from the violence or to survive the trauma associated with it. Certain intersectional populations are disproportionately affected. Black and Indigenous women, immigrant and refugee women, LGBTQ2+ people, and people with disabilities often face structural and cultural barriers that make them more vulnerable.

The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated this violence. According to the Canadian Femicide Observatory for Justice and Accountability, the number of femicides in Quebec rose from 13 in 2019 to 23 in 2020, an increase of 77%. So far, in 2021, 18 femicides have occurred in Quebec and 41 in Ontario.

The pandemic is also making it harder for people fleeing gender-based violence to access support and services. According to a 2020 survey, shelters had a harder time meeting survivors’ needs during the pandemic. Lockdown measures further isolated women living with violent partners.

Esteemed colleagues, in 2020, the Government of Canada did indeed allocate $100 million to fighting gender-based violence. Nevertheless, I call on the government to work closely with the provinces and territories to develop long-term strategies to end this form of violence. We have to invest in social infrastructure to empower women fleeing violence and create the right conditions to help them thrive.

Women and girls are entitled to safety and dignity. It’s high time we ended violence against them.

Thank you.

[English]

Hon. Renée Dupuis: Honourable senators, it seems increasingly clear that the COVID-19 pandemic that has been going on for a more than a year and a half has heightened inequalities around the world, including here at home.

On the eve of International Human Rights Day, I want to acknowledge the fact that human rights now have a key place in sustainable development.

Many of the UN Sustainable Development Goals for 2030 make that very clear. For instance, goal 3 seeks to ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages. Goal 6 is to ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all. Goal 10 seeks to reduce inequality, and goal 11 is to make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable.

Access to safe drinking water for Canada’s Indigenous communities is an ongoing issue and one of the most dire examples of inequality and systemic discrimination. This is clearly illustrated by the number of drinking water advisories still in effect on Indigenous reserves and the water contamination problems recently uncovered in Nunavut’s Inuit communities. The amount of work required to make up lost ground and eliminate these inequalities is of direct concern to us.

Dear colleagues, we are committed to having this government collaborate with Indigenous communities to establish a specific schedule and provide adequate funding for the infrastructure required to supply this essential service for all Indigenous communities, as a matter of rights, equality, justice and solidarity. We must send a message that the future of Indigenous communities and the health and well-being of their members are of the utmost importance to us.

Hon. Patricia Bovey: Honourable senators, today I rise as Chair of the Senate Artwork and Heritage Advisory Working Group, and I celebrate the poignant, truly meaningful artists’ work installed in this Senate building over the past few months.

The Indigenous peoples room has been rehung, expanding Indigenous representation across Canada. The first museums at the Senate, with Inuit art from the Winnipeg Art Gallery and Nunavut in room B30 of the Senate of Canada Building, represents art from across the Arctic. Both of these initiatives reflect the Senate’s reconciliation goals.

The second, honouring Canada’s Black artists, celebrates Toronto artists Denyse Thomasos and Tim Whiten, both with widely acclaimed international careers. Trinidadian Canadian Ms. Thomasos, who died young, taught in the U.S. The Art Gallery of Ontario is presenting her retrospective exhibition. Her energy-filled art captures a vibrant urban centre and past and future Black sensibilities. Tim Whiten, Professor Emeritus of York University, has worked in many major collections. He, too, links past and present realities, overlaid with a depth of spirituality.

These small projects have immense impact. I was particularly moved by the response to our Inuit installation from a security person who worked here from 1988 to 1998. Yisa Akinbolaji, using his traditional Nigerian colours in Stolen Identities, seen here last year, depicted Louis Riel’s image in Manitoba’s poplar woods. It inspired Métis poet and teacher, Ginette Fournier-Richer’s poem, Pour Ton Nom:

[Translation]

Your name. . .

I said it again and again

but the red silence stole all its letters

I screamed it again and again

but the greedy wind muted my heart

I pleaded with it again and again

but the trees’ blue limbs let it slip to the ground

I murmured it again and again

but your frayed silhouette pitilessly escaped me

I carved it again and again

but the stone absorbed my blows without a trace

Your name. . .

pain upon pain

loss upon loss

discarded, imprisoned, erased

Your name. . .

I walk through the dust of your smiles,

your tears, your dreams,

your words. . .

Your name. . .

trembles on the ferns

that bend to the light

hanging on the promise of scant hope. . .

I would like to thank Ginette Fournier-Richer, all the artists, the Winnipeg Art Gallery, Nunavut, the Olga Korper Gallery, our Senate subcommittee, our curator, Tamara Dolan, and the team that installed these works.

[English]

Hon. Diane F. Griffin: Honourable senators, I rise today to mark the passing of my dear friend Barbara Trainor, who died in September at the age of 73.

Barb and I met during our undergraduate studies at Saint Dunstan’s University. We were in the final graduating class of Saint Dunstan’s, which went on to become the University of Prince Edward Island.

After finishing her degrees, Barb was a mathematics teacher at Queen Charlotte, East Wiltshire and Bluefield schools. Later, she joined the P.E.I. Department of Education and created science curricula to be used through throughout the Atlantic provinces.

In her later years, Barb really made her mark in volunteer activities. She was a master gardener, and she was a national judge for the Communities in Bloom program. Barb was the P.E.I. representative on the trail partner advisory council to the Trans Canada Trail, and was also active at the local level as a member and president of Island Trails.

She was a wonderful advocate for the creation and expansion of P.E.I. trails. In July, we spent a pleasant walk on an expanded portion of the Trans Canada Trail that she helped create — another part of her legacy. Barb and I shared a love of the outdoors, of skiing and travel. Our shared interests led to many ski trips, including in Quebec, Alberta, Utah, Idaho, Maine and Sun Peaks in British Columbia, where we skied with the former senator the Honourable Nancy Greene Raine.

Barb loved to hike, cycle and ski. From time to time, she good-naturedly joined me on my bird-watching adventures, including a trip we took to Africa.

After enjoying an outdoor adventure, she would say, “It’s good for the soul.”

Barb Trainor greatly loved her family. She and her husband, Cecil Taylor, raised daughters and step-daughters who meant the world to them. Cecil participated in many activities with Barb when he was not busy overseeing disciplinary measures for the Maritime Junior Hockey League and serving on the National Council of the Conservative Party of Canada. They both contributed to their community in so many ways.

Barb’s work and legacy will live on for many years in Prince Edward Island. May perpetual trails lie before her. Thank you.

[Translation]

Hon. Ratna Omidvar: Honourable senators, my statement is a sister statement to that of Senator Ataullahjan’s last week on Afghanistan, but I would like to use my time to pivot and shine a light on the great efforts and contributions that are being made by ordinary Canadians to help Afghans get to safety. Many of these Afghans are individuals who assisted Canadian troops, diplomats, Canadian NGOs, Canadian journalists and our allies. Even though Canadian troops left Kandahar in 2014, we left behind many colleagues and co-workers who, wittingly or unwittingly, because of their association with us, are now targets of the Taliban. Our moral obligation to them is undeniable.

Thankfully, many Canadians have risen to the challenge, especially veterans of the Canadian military, including former generals who are shining a light on a daily basis on the precariousness of the lives we left behind. They have come together to identify the people at risk and their families, have set up volunteer networks to guide and house them in safehouses and, with the help of sophisticated technology and networks on the ground, they have planned their often very dangerous evacuation to Pakistan. They are doing so on a self-financed, volunteer basis through donations. They have been able to get hundreds out with many more to come. They have been active and delivered results, whereas our government has talked about processes, protocols and promises — not enough, I will conclude.

The same is true for many Canadian NGOs and media organizations like The Globe and Mail, that are working night and day to get their Afghan colleagues out of the country. Just recently we heard of the heroic efforts by the Rainbow Railroad, a Canadian-led initiative to provide safety to LGBTQ Afghan refugees. They have successfully evacuated members of their at‑risk community to safety to the U.K. — to the U.K., colleagues; not to Canada. Why? One might well ask.

I want to applaud these courageous and dedicated citizens. We, the Senate and our nation, owe them a debt of gratitude. Please help me commend these true heroes and urge our government to work alongside them, follow their lead and support their citizen-led efforts. Thank you.

Hon. Raymonde Gagné (Legislative Deputy to the Government Representative in the Senate): Honourable senators, I give notice that, at the next sitting of the Senate, I will move:

That, when the Senate next adjourns after the adoption of this motion, it do stand adjourned until Tuesday, December 7, 2021, at 2 p.m.

Hon. Marc Gold (Government Representative in the Senate): Honourable senators, I give notice that, at the next sitting of the Senate, I will move:

That, notwithstanding any provision of the Rules, previous order or usual practice:

1.in accordance with rule 10-11(1), the Standing Senate Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology be authorized to examine the subject matter of all of Bill C-3, An Act to amend the Criminal Code and the Canada Labour Code, introduced in the House of Commons on November 26, 2021, in advance of the said bill coming before the Senate, when and if the committee is formed;

2.in addition, the Standing Senate Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs be separately authorized to examine the subject matter of clauses 1 to 5 contained in Bill C-3 in advance of it coming before the Senate, when and if the committee is formed;

3.for the purpose of their studies, the aforementioned committees have the power to meet, even though the Senate may then be sitting or adjourned, with rules 12-18(1) and 12-18(2) being suspended in relation thereto;

4.subject to the following paragraph, as the reports from the committees authorized to examine the subject matter of all or of particular elements of Bill C-3 are tabled in the Senate, they be placed on the Orders of the Day for consideration later that day; and

5.each of the committees authorized to examine the subject matter of all or of particular elements of Bill C-3 be authorized to deposit its report with the Clerk of the Senate if the Senate is not then sitting, with the reports thus deposited being placed on the Orders of the Day for consideration at the next sitting after they are tabled.

Hon. Yonah Martin (Deputy Leader of the Opposition): On that note, while we’re investigating, and we don’t know what the fraudulent amount may be — the impact could be quite big based on just anecdotal evidence. On the other hand, we have low-income seniors who lost their jobs and took the CERB through the Canada Revenue Agency who are having their access to the Guaranteed Income Supplement (GIS) treated differently than seniors who took emergency benefits through the EI system. The Parliamentary Budget Officer estimates that about 90,000 seniors who took the CERB through the Canada Revenue Agency will see their GIS payments clawed back.

The Trudeau government never told seniors that accepting the CERB could hurt their GIS payments. Through no fault of their own, these seniors are now suffering financially. Leader, while these other investigations are taking their time, what is your government doing to fix the serious problem you have created for some of the most vulnerable people in all of Canada, our low-income seniors?

(1500)

Hon. Marc Gold (Government Representative in the Senate): Senator, thank you for raising the question and for underlining the importance of the industry to your province, to mine and, indeed, to many regions and provinces.

It’s simply not the case, however, with respect, that this is not an industry that is important to Canada. Quite on the contrary, Canada has and will continue to use all of its levers to defend the interests of the industry as it can. It’s extremely disappointed with the results of this most recent decision. The duties are unjustified. They hurt workers, they hurt businesses and they hurt communities, indeed in both countries.

As members will know, Minister Ng is currently in Washington. This is an issue she is raising with her counterparts. My understanding is she is accompanied by MPs from all parties to make it clear how significant and important this is for Canada.

As Minister Freeland has also said, we, the Government of Canada — I’m quoting her — is ready to respond to “. . . defend national interests.” That’s what we’re doing.

Senator Gold: Thank you for your question. The concern that you’re expressing is shared by Canadians in the industry and by this government. I will be happy to report, as I’m sure the minister will upon her return, the processes at play and the levers and options that are within Canada’s power to execute are matters that sometimes take some time to put into place or to decide to put into place. Most of these discussions, especially with our major trading partner, take place out of the spotlight. When I have something to report, I will be happy to report it.

[Translation]