The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, I wish to draw your attention to the presence in the gallery of Pierre Beauregard, Amelia Valdez, Samuel Beauregard and Azfar Adib. They are the guests of the Honourable Senator Miville-Dechêne.

On behalf of all honourable senators, I welcome you to the Senate of Canada.

The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, I wish to draw your attention to the presence in the gallery of Baroness Margaret de Vos van Steenwijk and Lysbeth van Valkenburg-Lely. Also in the gallery is Nahla Valji, Global Coordinator of the Spotlight Initiative in the Executive Office of the United Nations Secretary-General. They are the guests of the Honourable Senator Jaffer.

On behalf of all honourable senators, I welcome you to the Senate of Canada.

The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, I wish to draw your attention to the presence in the gallery of the Honourable Mr. Justice J. Patrick Moore and the Honourable Madam Justice Tamarin Dunnet, both from the Superior Court of Justice – Ontario. They are the guests of the Honourable Senator Oh.

On behalf of all honourable senators, I welcome you to the Senate of Canada.

The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, I wish to draw your attention to the presence in the gallery of the Honourable Mr. Justice J. Patrick Moore and the Honourable Madam Justice Tamarin Dunnet, both from the Superior Court of Justice – Ontario. They are the guests of the Honourable Senator Oh.

On behalf of all honourable senators, I welcome you to the Senate of Canada.

The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, I wish to draw your attention to the presence in the gallery of Baroness Margaret de Vos van Steenwijk and Lysbeth van Valkenburg-Lely. Also in the gallery is Nahla Valji, Global Coordinator of the Spotlight Initiative in the Executive Office of the United Nations Secretary-General. They are the guests of the Honourable Senator Jaffer.

On behalf of all honourable senators, I welcome you to the Senate of Canada.

The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, I wish to draw your attention to the presence in the gallery of Pierre Beauregard, Amelia Valdez, Samuel Beauregard and Azfar Adib. They are the guests of the Honourable Senator Miville-Dechêne.

On behalf of all honourable senators, I welcome you to the Senate of Canada.

Hon. Victor Oh: Honourable senators, I rise today in commemoration of Asian Heritage Month.

May is a special month in the Asian Canadian community. This is a time for our country to celebrate the contributions and recognize the sacrifices of Canadians of Asian descent and to reflect on the many challenges faced throughout our nation’s history.

With the one hundredth anniversary of the Chinese head tax and Chinese Exclusion Act this year and the influx of anti-Asian sentiment since the COVID-19 pandemic, this community has not only persevered but thrived and significantly influenced Canada into the prosperous nation it is today.

I was honoured to attend the Association of Chinese Canadian Entrepreneurs’ twenty-sixth awards gala in April. This annual event recognizes the significant contributions of nine forward-thinking pioneers of entrepreneurial spirit who have exemplified business success and contributed enormously to the community in service and philanthropy. As they told of their many hurdles, I felt proud to know that we live in a nation that nurtures the spirit of innovation that contributes to job creation and economic growth.

Colleagues, in my closing, I would like to reiterate that Canada would not be the country it is today without the contributions of the Asian Canadian community. However, I stand here proudly to acknowledge that Canada is a beacon of hope and light on the global stage in such a time of fear and uncertainty. It is a haven of multiculturalism and cultural inclusivity as we all strive to commend the contributions of our diverse citizens.

This Asian Heritage Month, let us honour Asian Canadians’ resilience and celebrate our nation’s multi-ethnic mosaic by participating in and supporting our local Asian heritage celebrations.

Thank you. Xie xie.

Hon. Julie Miville-Dechêne: I rise today to commend my guests from Quebec, Pierre Beauregard and Azfar Adib, for their dedication.

Mr. Adib is a PhD candidate in computer engineering at Concordia University. His research focuses on online age‑verification technology in order to ensure both the right to privacy and the safety of users, particularly children.

As for Pierre Beauregard, he’s the person who’s been the most involved in my efforts to advance Bill S-210, which seeks to protect children from exposure to pornography. The trials he has faced in his own life are what made him realize how great a risk these free, easily accessible platforms pose to children.

In 2017, well before I met him, Mr. Beauregard presented a petition to the Quebec National Assembly calling on the Government of Quebec to impose age verification. He has made more and more contacts around the world during the course of his research and activities.

For the past three years, he’s been writing me to keep me informed of all of the developments in the area. In my past career, we would have described Mr. Beauregard as a great source. Today, he’s a valuable ally. Thank you, Pierre. The support of citizens, parents and health professionals has been invaluable to me.

As Bill S-210 begins its journey through the House of Commons, there has been a lot of good news.

In Germany, the courts recently ruled in favour of the government and against MindGeek, the owner of Pornhub, to force it to comply with German law, which requires age verification for all users in that country. The fact that MindGeek houses its servers in Cyprus doesn’t mean it can sidestep German law, which aims to protect its children from serious danger.

In the United Kingdom, a sweeping online safety bill, which mandates age verification for access to pornography and other harmful content, will be passed by July.

In the United States, Louisiana recently became the first state to mandate age verification for online pornography. An additional 26 states, including California, New York and Massachusetts, have passed or are considering passing laws to control minors’ access to harmful online content.

The fight is not over, however. In our country and elsewhere, some people continue to resist and oppose common-sense rules whose drawbacks are minor compared to the importance of the objectives pursued.

Finding the right balance isn’t easy. We need to protect minors, but also protect people’s privacy. We need to protect the innocence of our children, but allow what is legal. We need to regulate pornographic content, but promote modern sex education.

In my view, these challenges are no reason to give up.

Thank you.

Some Hon. Senators: Hear, hear.

(On motion of Senator Martin, debate adjourned.)

[English]

On the Order:

Resuming debate on the motion of the Honourable Senator Kutcher, seconded by the Honourable Senator Cormier:

That the Standing Senate Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology be authorized to examine and report on the negative impact of health disinformation and misinformation on Canadian society and what effective measures can be implemented to counter this impact; and

That the committee submit its final report on this study to the Senate no later than May 31, 2024, and that the committee retain all powers necessary to publicize its findings for 180 days after the tabling of the final report.

The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, I wish to draw your attention to the presence in the gallery of Dr. Christie Newton and Dr. Brady Bouchard. They are the guests of the Honourable Senator Osler.

On behalf of all honourable senators, I welcome you to the Senate of Canada.

The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, I wish to draw your attention to the presence in the gallery of Dr. Christie Newton and Dr. Brady Bouchard. They are the guests of the Honourable Senator Osler.

On behalf of all honourable senators, I welcome you to the Senate of Canada.

Hon. Percy Mockler: As Chair of the Standing Senate Committee on National Finance, I’d like to begin by thanking the honourable senators on the committee and the support staff for all their hard work.

Honourable senators, I have the honour to table, in both official languages, the tenth report of the Standing Senate Committee on National Finance entitled Supplementary Estimates (C) for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2023.

Hon. Donald Neil Plett (Leader of the Opposition): My question today is for the leader and member of the Liberal government of Canada. Leader, yesterday The Globe and Mail reported on the contents of a top-secret CSIS report from July 2021. This report claims that Beijing’s interference in our country involves a People’s Republic of China — PRC — diplomat in their Toronto consulate targeting family members of a Canadian member of Parliament “. . . to make an example of this MP and deter others from taking anti-PRC positions.”

The Globe and Mail says the member of Parliament who was targeted was Michael Chong, and it named a specific PRC diplomat who targeted Mr. Chong’s family in Hong Kong. This diplomat was also named earlier this year in another The Globe and Mail report on Beijing’s interference in our democracy.

Leader, why is this diplomat still permitted to be here? Why are his threats against an MP’s family of no concern to your government? Is it because Mr. Chong is a Conservative member of Parliament?

Hon. Marc Gold (Government Representative in the Senate): The answer is no. Thank you for your question. It is outrageous. Attempts to interfere with our democratic process and elected officials are outrageous, regardless of the party. Michael Chong is a respected parliamentarian. He is respected on all sides in the other place and, indeed, in this place.

As honourable senators would know, the Prime Minister and Minister Mendicino have directed the head of CSIS to follow up with Mr. Chong immediately. This is unacceptable.

Hon. F. Gigi Osler: Honourable senators, it is a pleasure to have representatives of The College of Family Physicians of Canada, or CFPC, join us in the gallery. Here today is their president, Dr. Christie Newton, and their past president, Dr. Brady Bouchard. The College of Family Physicians of Canada represents 42,000 members across the country. They are the voice of family medicine in Canada.

Yesterday was National Physicians’ Day, a day to recognize the work of physicians in caring for patients and building a stronger health care system. This year on National Physicians’ Day, representatives of CFPC travelled to Ottawa to meet with parliamentarians to advocate on behalf of family medicine.

In 2023, the shortage of family physicians across the country suggests that more than 6 million Canadians do not have a family doctor. A study by the Canadian Medical Association shows that, in recent years, the percentage of medical graduates choosing family medicine has fallen from 38.5% to 31.8%.

CFPC has been strongly advocating for actions to improve primary care in Canada. More family physicians are needed to relieve the pressure on those who are currently in practice. There must be consistent, deliberate action to increase supply and enhance capacity, with a focus on underserved areas and populations. This would help relieve the strain on the current health workforce and improve access to care for Canadians. Despite the federal government’s recent federal investment in health, Canada currently funds primary care at about half the level of many other OECD countries.

Family physicians are the backbone of primary care. Many believe that more team-based care, with family physicians partnered with nurse practitioners, physician assistants, social workers and counselors, would improve access to care and better health outcomes. This team-based medicine approach requires governments to rethink health care delivery and further invest in the human health resources needed for comprehensive, high‑quality primary care.

Honourable senators, CFPC is here today to offer solutions they believe will deliver results and improve health. Thank you to my colleagues who have met with them, and thank you to The College of Family Physicians of Canada for your dedication and hard work. Thank you. Meegwetch.

Hon. Leo Housakos: I would like the government leader to focus on today’s candle, and we’ll worry about Rapporteur Johnston for another time.

Back to MP Michael Chong, he and his family were targeted by the Beijing regime because he moved a motion in the House of Commons recognizing the Uighur genocide. A similar motion, sadly enough — it was a sad day in this institution when Trudeau-appointed senators defeated that motion.

Now, if Prime Minister Trudeau did not take action to protect Michael Chong because he is a Conservative and because of partisan reasons, that’s shameful. If it’s because of utter incompetence — as he hasn’t shown any ability to protect Canadians from foreign interference — that’s just as shameful.

Now that the Prime Minister has been called out by the media with concrete information, what does he do, colleagues? He calls for another investigation where now that everyone has resigned from the Trudeau Foundation, he is running out of people he can appoint to investigate all of his various failures. Who is he going to appoint now to investigate this particular failure? Will it be his mother or his brother? Or maybe, colleagues, he might appoint himself. I can just see it now: What did I know? When did I know it? Who told me? Why didn’t I do something about it?

Hon. Marc Gold (Government Representative in the Senate): Well, thank you for your question. As I mentioned in my response, Senator Woo, my understanding is that the RCMP is continuing to investigate these matters and, to the best of my knowledge, have not released the findings or the results. Therefore, I’m really not in a position to answer your question.

Hon. Yuen Pau Woo: Senator Gold, you have just heard Senator Housakos make a grave and baseless allegation against Chinese Canadians in Montreal who are associated with certain community organizations. He was referring, of course, to Minister Mendicino’s declaration that all of the so-called Chinese police stations in the country have been shut down, including one alleged to have been located at the Service a la Famille Chinoise du Grand Montréal and another at Centre Sino-Québec de la Rive-Sud in Brossard.

Senator Gold, what evidence did police find to substantiate the claim that there were Chinese police stations in Montreal? What illegal activities have been stopped?

Hon. Yuen Pau Woo: Senator Gold, you have just heard Senator Housakos make a grave and baseless allegation against Chinese Canadians in Montreal who are associated with certain community organizations. He was referring, of course, to Minister Mendicino’s declaration that all of the so-called Chinese police stations in the country have been shut down, including one alleged to have been located at the Service à la Famille Chinoise du Grand Montréal and another at Centre Sino-Québec de la Rive-Sud in Brossard.

Senator Gold, what evidence did police find to substantiate the claim that there were Chinese police stations in Montreal? What illegal activities have been stopped?