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Decentralized Democracy

Senate Volume 153, Issue 14

44th Parl. 1st Sess.
December 17, 2021 10:00AM
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The Hon. the Speaker: Those opposed to the motion who are in the Senate Chamber will please say “nay.”

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Some Hon. Senators: Yea.

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The Hon. the Speaker: I hear a “no.” Those in favour of the motion who are in the Senate Chamber will please say “yea.”

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Some Hon. Senators: No.

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The Hon. the Speaker: If you are opposed to the motion, please say “no.”

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The Hon. the Speaker: Senator Dupuis, do you want to ask a question or to speak?

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Hon. Jane Cordy: Honourable senators, I would like to begin by acknowledging that I am joining you from Mi’kma’ki, the ancestral and unceded territory of the Mi’kmaq people.

We have arrived once again at the end of our sittings before the holiday break. We have been busy since our return, and the Senate has passed some critical legislation. Our committees are up and running, and many of you have brought important issues to the floor of our chamber for discussion. We’ve faced challenges but we have always risen to the occasion, and I hope that we have made the lives of Canadians better and easier by the work we do in this chamber.

I would like to thank everyone who makes our work possible during days like this. I won’t say “unprecedented times,” because after almost two years, the unprecedented times have actually become the norm. Thank you to the clerks, pages, interpreters, stenographers, Information Services Directorate, building services, the Parliamentary Protective Service and Senate Administration staff. Thank you so much for your dedication and hard work in keeping this chamber running smoothly. Without you, we would simply not be here, and never has that fact been more evident than it is now.

Thanks to you, Speaker Furey, for always leading the way with the very best in mind for the chamber and for the people who make it hum. Your concern for the safety of all staff is a true reflection of who you are as a person, and I thank you. And thank you to Senator Ringuette, who has been elected Speaker pro tempore twice in 2021.

I would like to take a moment to thank the PSG leadership team, Senators Dalphond, Bovey and Francis, and all my Progressive Senate Group colleagues for their support and collaboration this year. The PSG is a merry group of senators, and I could not be happier about how we have all come together. Our meetings are full of shared ideas and frank discussions, but also much laughter and collegiality. I look forward to the day when we can be in one room again, and enjoy all that we have built together. It is a privilege to work with each and every one of you.

I would be remiss if I did not mention The Progressives’ staff. Every PSG office, and I would say every office on the Hill, has truly excellent people in it, who work hard on behalf of their senators. Thank you so much. And to our leadership staff — Melanie, Caitlin, David, Natasha and Heather, who is on parental leave — a huge thank you for all that you do. As we all know, for the staff who work for us, whether in leadership or in senators’ offices, this is not a 9-to-5 job.

Finally, I would like to thank my fellow leaders and facilitators, Senators Gold, Plett, Housakos, Woo and Tannas. Our discussions have not always been sunshine and roses, but we manage to set aside our differences when it counts and do the best we can for the Senate and for all Canadians.

Senator Woo, as you take your leave as facilitator of the ISG, I hope that you look back fondly on your time in that role and take pride in your many accomplishments. Senator Saint-Germain, I look forward to working with you over the next year. It sure will be nice to have two women in the leadership group.

Honourable senators, in normal times we would all be heading back to our respective provinces for some rest and relaxation. For those going home, safe travels. But many of us will simply click “leave the meeting” and head to the next room. So whether travelling across the country or just walking away from the computer, on behalf of the Progressive Senate Group, I wish you all a very happy holiday season and best wishes for the new year. Stay safe, and I look forward to seeing you all again soon.

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Hon. Raymonde Gagné (Legislative Deputy to the Government Representative in the Senate): Honourable senators, with leave of the Senate and notwithstanding rule 5-5(j), I move:

That the sitting be suspended to await the announcement of Royal Assent, to reassemble at the call of the chair with a five minute bell.

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Hon. Marc Gold (Government Representative in the Senate): Honourable senators, with leave of the Senate and notwithstanding rule 5-5(j), I move:

That, when the Senate next adjourns after the adoption of this motion, it do stand adjourned until Tuesday, February 1, 2022, at 2 p.m.

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The Hon. the Speaker: Is leave granted, honourable senators?

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The Hon. the Speaker: Is it your pleasure, honourable senators, to adopt the motion?

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Senator Dalphond: Thank you for those very important comments, senator. You raised a fundamental question about the role of the Senate.

I would like to hear your thoughts on two subjects.

First of all, isn’t there a distinction to be made between carefully reviewing legislation, even legislation unanimously passed by the House of Commons, and respecting the House of Commons when it responds to our proposed amendments? Should the fact that a bill passed unanimously be a determining factor at the outset, when we are considering it? I’m not sure. When the other place sends back its responses to our proposals, showing deference to the elected chamber is important.

My second point is this: Shouldn’t we direct our comments not only to the government, but also sometimes to the opposition in the Senate who, in the case of the conversion therapy bill, for example, ensured that the bill passed without this chamber having a real debate at second or third reading, or even a pre‑study of the bill?

(1140)

That bill was passed in just one afternoon, without any real debate or analysis. We failed to fulfill our constitutional duty, but I don’t think we could blame the government that time.

[English]

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The Hon. the Speaker: I see two senators rising. Do we have agreement on a bell? The vote will take place at two o’clock. Call in the senators.

(1400)

Motion in amendment of the Honourable Senator White negatived on the following division:

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Senator Lankin: Thank you, Senator Tannas. I want to say up front that I wish to associate myself with everything you said. I agree with you completely. I would like to say every single senator probably agrees with you, though I don’t know that to be the case, but I would say with certainty the majority would agree with you. Others have spoken to this in other bills and other situations at other times, and it continues.

There is a time for the Senate to engage on this, and I think now it is the time as we look to enter a new sitting in the new year. I would like to ask you if you would be willing to work with other senators, representative of each of the groups, to develop a proposal or a plan for engaging this Senate in a principle statement about what we expect in our relationship with the House of Commons in exchange of information, and to engage in developing a strategy for talking to the federal government; moving, passing a motion; essentially how we move the ball from A to B to get to a place where we are able to do the valuable work. Because one of the things you didn’t say, but I know that you believe, is that unless we are able to do that, Canadians aren’t well served. There isn’t value for the money they are paying for the operation of the Senate, and bills with mistakes, missed opportunities and a profound impact — good and bad — on Canadians will go through this place without the attentive review they need. Thank you for the opportunity to enlist your leadership on this issue.

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The Hon. the Speaker: The question can only go to Senator Tannas.

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Senator Gold: Of course. It would be my pleasure to do so.

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Hon. Paula Simons: Senator White, I was the senator who asked the minister the question about intimidation at the homes of health care workers. This is a concern that I share, but it was your argument today — and I believe the argument of other senators at committee — that we didn’t need much of this legislation because it was already encompassed in existing Criminal Code provisions.

Drawing on your own experience as a former police chief and police officer, do we actually need your amendment or are health care workers sufficiently protected under the Criminal Code as we have it now?

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Hon. Renée Dupuis: I will speak, Mr. Speaker.

The amendment put forward by Senator White poses the same problem that we see with almost every amendment that is brought forward when we do not have the chance to examine the impact. People complain about the bill coming to us at the last minute and not having time to study it properly. This amendment seeks to respond in part to the concern raised by many members of the Standing Senate Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs to the effect that some provisions of the Criminal Code are not being applied to incidents of violence against health care workers or people who are trying to access health care facilities.

I think the problem created by the non-enforcement or poor or inadequate enforcement of Criminal Code provisions to date in the context of COVID-19 is a different problem that cannot be solved. If Senator White’s amendment is adopted, there is no guarantee it will be enforced. I think this is a useless argument. The amendment introduces an element that makes a more restrictive interpretation by the courts more likely and, even if it were adopted, it would not address the lack of enforcement of the legislation as it now stands or of the amended version if this bill passes.

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