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- May/9/23 2:00:00 p.m.
Senator Loffreda: Honourable senators, I rise to speak to Senator Boyer’s inquiry on the positive contributions of Métis, Inuit and First Nations to our nation and globally. I hope this initiative will contribute to our collective appreciation of Indigenous peoples as we embark on a path toward greater reconciliation.
Admittedly, my knowledge of Indigenous issues was limited before coming to the Senate. The history I was taught in school was seriously inadequate. Thankfully, that is changing, and our kids are now learning about this history, including the dark aspects.
We have spoken about great Indigenous scholars, accomplished entrepreneurs and senators, of course. But what about our national sport? Like millions of Canadians, I enjoy hockey, so I’ve opted to share inspirational stories of Indigenous athletes who shattered the glass ceiling in the sport and became exhilarating players and role models.
Many may not know this, but Indigenous peoples contributed to the creation and evolution of the game we call hockey today. I won’t take part in the historical debate over the origins of the game — that debate is for historians and hockey enthusiasts — however, it has been said that two cultures, Mi’kmaq and European Irish, contributed to the origins of the game.
The relationship between Indigenous peoples and hockey is more complex than it seems. While hockey is part of our cultural identity, not everyone feels the same way. For some Indigenous peoples, pain and sorrow are associated with hockey. Academic papers have been written on the subject, using first-hand accounts of residential school survivors, who submit that the game was used for assimilation purposes and served to erase Indigenous presence. According to some scholars, hockey was used as a tool for social engineering and the experience of the students are important stories to share, but they must be understood in the broader context of a system that was aimed at stripping Indigenous youth of their cultural identities.
In a recent article in the journal Canadian Ethnic Studies, its authors, quoting Eugene Arcand, a Cree man who has been honoured for his work in support of Indigenous sport, wrote:
Arcand sees hockey as providing an opportunity for empowerment and change while, at the same time, emphasizing that hockey has been a site of brutal prejudice and racism.
As Arcand once said:
My survival in my life is all because of sports . . . . It helped me become the leader that I am today . . . . It’s a wonderful way to develop positive lifestyles and positive attitudes.
I think it’s important to mention this dichotomy. The relationship between Indigenous peoples and hockey is multilayered and reveals some dark and painful scars of which we must be mindful. However, my intention today is to focus on success stories and role models who reached some of the highest echelons in hockey.
Perhaps the first name that comes to mind when thinking about Indigenous hockey heros is George Armstrong, who was Algonquin. He captained the Maple Leafs for 13 seasons and to four Stanley Cup wins, including its last cup in 1967 — which, by the way, Leaf’s fans, was over 20,000 days ago. Armstrong never forgot his roots and often returned to northern Ontario to speak with youth. As one commentator said:
Armstrong has always been this iconic figure, not just in terms of Maple Leafs hockey but for Indigenous hockey, culture, and communities everywhere.
Armstrong passed away in 2021, but his trailblazing legacy lives on.
Another pioneering Indigenous player is Fred Sasakamoose. Considered the first Indigenous NHL player, Running Deer, as he was known, was Cree from Saskatchewan. A Member of the Order of Canada, Sasakamoose passed away in 2020. Thankfully, he was working on his memoir, which was published posthumously and made it onto Indigo’s list of top 10 books of 2021.
Sasakamoose went to St. Michael’s Indian Residential School, where he learned to play hockey and fell in love with hockey. In his autobiography, he writes about how hockey helped him forget everything else in his life:
I felt powerful and free and alive. The school and everything that happened there melted away for a few hours.
Fred made it to the NHL in 1953 and played for the Chicago Blackhawks. His NHL career may have been short, but he paved the way for dozens of other NHLers. Beyond hockey, Sasakamoose was a pillar in his community, serving as band councillor for 35 years and as chief.
He was involved with Saskatoon’s All Nations Hockey School and started the Fred Sasakamoose All Star Hockey Week. As he writes:
It was a camp for young Indigenous hopefuls to polish their skills, but I kept it open for non-Native kids as well. It seemed important not to create barriers between the young players.
In 1998 Fred joined the NHL’s Diversity Task Force, allowing him to travel to reserves to identify skillful kids. Two of those boys were brothers DJ and Dwight King of Métis heritage. Dwight won two Stanley Cups with the Los Angeles Kings.
More recently, Fred testified at the Truth and Reconciliation hearings. As he pens in his book:
When I talked at the hearings, I described my hockey experiences as well as my sexual assault. It seemed important to speak about the sport that helped me cope with the awfulness of those years, and the sport that helped me build a life after I left the school.
The following quote from Fred sums up just how important he was to Indigenous peoples. He notes:
In several recent newspaper articles, writers have described my hockey career as “trailblazing.” They have suggested that I broke some kind of barrier for Indigenous players and players of colour. It pleases me to think that might be true.
No doubt, it is true.
Among the countless young Indigenous players he inspired, Fred had a huge influence on one superstar, Bryan Trottier of Saskatchewan, whose father was Cree Métis. The name Bryan Trottier is synonymous with the New York Islanders’ dynasty of the 1980s. He led the Islanders to four consecutive Stanley Cups and added two more with Pittsburgh Penguins and a seventh cup in 2001 as an assistant coach with Colorado.
Trottier wrote the foreword to Fred Sasakamoose’s book. In it, he reflects on how proud he was that Fred was the first full treaty Indigenous player to break into the NHL. He writes:
That meant a lot to me and to all of us. It made us all really proud of our heritage. When my siblings and I were in school and playing sports, kids would call us names. . . . But Fred’s accomplishments made us proud . . . .
Trottier, who published his autobiography last year, spent time in his post-hockey life reaching out to Indigenous youth and played a key role in starting an Aboriginal hockey team that toured the country to provide skating lessons and hockey clinics to youth.
Trottier and Armstrong are not the only Indigenous players with their names engraved on the cup. Reggie Leach, Grant Fuhr, Jordan Nolan and head coach Craig Berube have also had the honour of raising Lord Stanley’s Cup.
One name that has yet to be engraved on the cup but is certainly one of the most accomplished Indigenous hockey players is Carey Price. His trophy case is plentiful, with Olympic and World Junior Championship gold medals and the NHL’s Vezina and Hart trophies. Beyond the rewards, one of his greatest accomplishments has been his community advocacy. He has donated large sums of money in equipment to hockey associations, youth organizations and schools. Along with his wife, Carey is also the national ambassador for the Breakfast Club of Canada, which provides nutritious food to over half a million Canadian kids a day, including 41,000 Indigenous youth.
Carey has always been proud of his roots. Here’s what he said at the NHL awards in 2015 in front of a global audience when accepting one of the four trophies that evening:
I would like to take a moment to encourage First Nations youth. A lot of people would say it’s very improbable that I’d make it to this point in my life. I made it here because I wasn’t discouraged. I worked hard to get here, took advantage of every opportunity that I had. And I would really like to encourage First Nations youth to be leaders in their communities. Be proud of your heritage, and don’t be discouraged from the improbable.
Carey Price is not the only Indigenous hockey player with Olympic hardware. Women’s hockey is increasingly more popular and more exciting than ever. I fondly remember that gold-winning game in Vancouver and that heartbreaking gold medal lost in Pyeongchang.
Among the proud silver medallists in Korea was Manitoba’s Brigette Lacquette. She became the first Indigenous woman from Canada to play hockey at the Olympics and she continues to shatter the glass ceiling. The Chicago Blackhawks hired her in 2021, making her the first Indigenous woman to scout for an NHL team. She’s only 30 years old and already an inspiration for young Indigenous girls.
Honourable senators, beyond being Indigenous, all these players share something in common: They are inspirational. From one generation to the next, these elite players have been a source of inspiration and motivation. They are role models. Lacquette, Price, Trottier and Leach have all been awarded Indspire Awards in recognition of their powerful legacies.
These Indigenous superstars, like Ethan Bear, Jordin Tootoo, Zach Whitecloud and Brandon Montour, have all had to overcome adversity to become high-performing athletes. They are a testament to what you can achieve when you work hard and love what you do.
Fred Sasakamoose understood what it meant to be a role model. He wrote:
There’ve been many Indigenous players since I started, but it’s good to think I inspired . . . kids way back then. Showed them, showed everyone, that we could make it in the white world. That’s more important than any award. And I hope by sharing my story now, non-Indigenous readers might have a better understanding of the hurdles we have to overcome to succeed.
The NHL also realizes that it has work to do to drive positive social change and foster more inclusive communities. Through its Hockey is for Everyone initiative, the league wants to make hockey programs safe, positive and inclusive environments for all players and families.
Further, the Hockey Diversity Alliance was also founded in 2020 by NHL players of colour to create a platform to end racism and intolerance.
My beloved Montréal Canadiens are also committed to embarking on the path of healing and reconciliation. The Habs now make a land acknowledgement at the Bell Centre and they have honoured Indigenous leaders at home games.
Honourable colleagues, I wanted to highlight inspirational stories of Indigenous players today to inspire and in the hopes that Indigenous youth and other marginalized groups know that, indeed, hockey is for everyone.
I also wanted to highlight that with confidence, ambition and perseverance, you can succeed and excel in life despite the many challenges.
Allow me to end with one last excerpt from Sasakamoose’s book, where he recounts an exchange with a U.S. sports reporter, who was at his home to do a segment. The reporter told Fred that the network wanted a “happy story.” Fred bluntly told him he came to the wrong place.
As he looks back on this encounter, Fred writes:
His request made me think he didn’t know much about what it’s been like to be Indigenous on this continent for the last couple of centuries. Or maybe he did, and he was telling me he and his viewers didn’t care, didn’t want to hear about it. But it is part of my story, and I want people to understand that. I am a lucky man. One of those rare people who had a dream come true. Who did something that so many people would like to do but can’t. But I am also trying to survive in a world that has not always recognized our rights or given us the freedom and honour we are owed.
Thank you, meegwetch.
(Debate adjourned.)
On the Order:
Resuming debate on the inquiry of the Honourable Senator Woo, calling the attention of the Senate to the one hundredth anniversary of the Chinese Exclusion Act, the contributions that Chinese Canadians have made to our country, and the need to combat contemporary forms of exclusion and discrimination faced by Canadians of Asian descent.
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- May/9/23 2:00:00 p.m.
Senator Dalphond: There is only five minutes left.
My first question was really about the power granted to the Governor-in-Council to extend the date, but there is no such power granted to the Governor-in-Council to shorten it. You said, “Well, you can amend the law.” To amend the law is an interesting exercise.
My question is the following, and it follows on the questions from Senator Gagné.
We know that, based on the carbon tax, every year the government will make a calculation of what the farmers are going to pay for the tax on carbon in Saskatchewan, and that becomes the pool for Saskatchewan that is going to be divided, at the end of the year among the farmers of Saskatchewan, based on the costs of operating their farms, not the cost for propane and not the cost for natural gas.
Are you saying that if this bill comes into effect in June of this year, the amount that was set aside for the farmers of Saskatchewan in January and that has to be shared among the farmers will no longer be shared or that it will still be shared? And if it will still be shared, I don’t understand why the farmers have to gouge their price to get the higher price. They can get the tax back.
I want to understand the logic of the arguments, because I fail to understand it.
Senator Wells: Thank you, Senator Dalphond.
I don’t think I said, and I don’t agree if you said, that the farmers will gouge the price up and that they will share in those spoils.
This is simply an expansion of the already-existing exemption for equipment or fuel that doesn’t exist. If you have a grain dryer, and it is powered by natural gas or propane, this would allow that to be exempted from the carbon tax. If there is something that does exist on an industrial scale — and we hope that exists within the eight years — then that would qualify.
I don’t know if this is answering your question. The other part is that we know that laws can be repealed. We spent the first two years of the Trudeau government repealing laws, and this can happen to that. We can amend it from eight years to six years, depending upon not just the available fuels but the available equipment on an industrial scale out there. I think farmers know best. I’m not a farmer, but I think they know best when they say, in consultation in the development of the bill with former Senator Griffin; MP Philip Lawrence; and MP Ben Lobb, who sponsored this bill — people who are familiar with the farming communities and heard from the ranchers, growers and farmers in developing this — that eight years seems a reasonable amount of time. If it is to be extended, that is the will of the chambers.
That is where I would go with that.
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- May/9/23 2:00:00 p.m.
Senator Gold: The answer is yes. It is a priority, as are jobs, as is supporting Canadian workers, as is supporting our transition to a green economy. A government has responsibilities to all Canadians, to all regions and to all sectors. Governments and the art of governing is making choices.
The Government of Canada makes those choices and enjoys the confidence of the House of Commons. We have our job to do in evaluating the choices that they make when they come to us in the form of legislation when it is our role to do so.
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- May/9/23 2:00:00 p.m.
Senator Dalphond: Senator Wells, will you accept another question?
Senator Wells: Yes, Senator Dalphond.
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- May/9/23 2:00:00 p.m.
Senator Gold: Senator Batters, colleagues, my job is to answer questions, and I will. It is not to try to school this chamber on the basic elements of how security information is transmitted from CSIS or other agencies through various levels. Nor is it my obligation or desire to remind you that we are still dealing with leaked material, of which we actually have no notice how nuanced it was or wasn’t — published and leaked information that has been taken seriously by this government and acted upon by this government upon its receipt.
With regard to the rest of your question, Senator Batters, the fact remains that this government is taking the steps necessary to protect Canadians from foreign interference. The actions it took in expelling the diplomat and declaring the individual persona non grata sends a strong signal not only to China but also to other countries who seek to interfere with our democratic processes.
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- May/9/23 2:00:00 p.m.
The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, there have been consultations and there is an agreement to allow a photographer in the Senate Chamber to photograph the introduction of a new senator.
Is it agreed, honourable senators?
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- May/9/23 2:00:00 p.m.
Senator Gagné: Thank you.
I was raised on a farm, so I have a good idea of the challenges farmers face. I understand the complexities.
I was wondering, Senator Wells, if you are aware of the fact that Bill C-8 proposed and implemented a refundable tax credit for farm businesses operating in backstop jurisdictions starting in 2021-22.
There have been some concerns raised that with the adoption of this bill, Bill C-234, this would result in a double compensation of farmers that could result in further complexities, such as clawbacks. Therefore, I’m wondering whether you have any comments, and if you think the Standing Senate Committee on National Finance could lend its expertise or perspective on this matter.
Senator Wells: Thank you, Senator Gagné.
Of course, you can’t double-dip on a benefit, whether it is a rebate or an exemption. If you are rebating, you can’t be exempted. If you are exempted, you can’t get a rebate, and that is built into the system. That is a policy decision by the Canada Revenue Agency. That doesn’t need to come through legislation. The ability for them to do that — by directive of their minister — is already there.
I think it is up to the will of the chamber if this goes to committee, and if it does go to committee, where might it go? If it is a question of taxation, it may go to the National Finance Committee. If it is a question of something specific to farms, it may go to the Agriculture and Forestry Committee. I don’t know; I would leave that to the will of the chamber.
But for exemptions and rebates, it is one or the other, and I think that is well recognized.
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- May/9/23 2:00:00 p.m.
The Hon. the Speaker having informed the Senate that there was a senator without waiting to be introduced:
The following honourable senator was introduced; presented His Majesty’s writ of summons; took the oath prescribed by law, which was administered by the Clerk of the Senate; and was seated:
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- May/9/23 2:00:00 p.m.
The Hon. the Speaker informed the Senate that the honourable senator named above had made and subscribed the Declaration of Qualification required by the Constitution Act, 1867, in the presence of the Clerk of the Senate, the Commissioner appointed to receive and witness the said declaration.
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- May/9/23 2:00:00 p.m.
The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, I have the honour to inform the Senate that the Clerk of the Senate has received a certificate from the Registrar General of Canada showing that Iris G. Petten has been summoned to the Senate.
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- May/9/23 2:00:00 p.m.
The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, there have been consultations and there is an agreement to allow a photographer in the Senate Chamber to photograph the introduction of a new senator.
Is it agreed, honourable senators?
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- May/9/23 2:00:00 p.m.
Hon. Iris G. Petten, of St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador, introduced between Hon. Marc Gold, P.C., and Hon. Fabian Manning.
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- May/9/23 2:00:00 p.m.
Hon. Senators: Agreed.
(Motion agreed to.)
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- May/9/23 2:00:00 p.m.
Senator Dalphond: Thank you, senator.
[English]
I have two questions, but I will wait for the second round for the next one.
The first question is about the — if I read the bill properly — carve-out, to use an expression, which I think is rather proper. The carve-out is good for 8 years, but it can be extended by the government afterwards if it believes that it should be extended for another 8 years or 10 years or 20 years.
Don’t you think it would be better if the bill also provided that the government could reduce the eight years, which has been provided here, if next year or two years from now there are technology advancements that make it interesting to use another technology and, instead, use something else based on solar power or wind power, other than natural gas or propane, to dry the grain, for example?
Senator Wells: Thank you, Senator Dalphond. That is an excellent question, and, of course, any government can do anything it wants, as long as it has the will of the chambers.
This is established at eight years in this bill. Of course, the government can extend it, but a government can also repeal it or make an amendment to make it six years or make it any number of years.
I didn’t hear what you said, but any amendment can be made to any existing legislation.
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- May/9/23 2:00:00 p.m.
Senator Quinn: Thank you so much for a very informative speech. It underscored the importance of the issue being dealt with. In regard to the people that I have been meeting with from the various associations that I have talked to, the one thing that has stood out to me — in relation to other discussions that have happened here around the agricultural industry — is food security. You alluded to food security in your speech, and it resonated with me. I’m somewhat concerned that the farming industry — as price-takers — is continuing to face challenges such that the next generation has less interest in taking over, or becoming involved in that business, which backs into the question of food security.
I would suggest that we could wait to see what other approaches could be taken, but given where we are in our particular point in history within the agricultural business — with food security and the prices that my honourable colleague just talked about — does it not make sense that this oversight be corrected through the expansion of the exemptions? I agree that this is the right language.
At some point, I will have a great discussion with Senator Woo about carve-outs — maybe over a roast beef or something.
In any case, I want to get your opinion on this question: Should we not be concerned more about food security, as well as the ability of the current generation and the next generation to enter into the business?
Senator Wells: Thank you, Senator Quinn. That is an excellent question. It is a trend that we’re seeing. There are fewer family farms because it’s hard to make a go of it on that small scale — on the family farm scale, or even the small industrial scale. We do see, especially across the Prairies — and we see it within the fishing industry in Atlantic Canada as well — the larger companies that have economies of scale buying up smaller farms, or smaller operations, because they can have a better margin. However, it is still difficult. I cannot think of anything in the food supply chain that is decreasing in price; nothing comes to mind.
It is a really important point. If there are fewer and fewer farm operations, it becomes closer and closer to monopolistic tendencies where the consumer will have no say in the price. They will simply be in a position to take it or leave it, whether it’s the consumer or the value-added consumer companies that put value into grain or cattle.
I agree with you; it is untenable, and any time you increase the price of something that is already on dangerous ground, it doesn’t make it any better.
[Translation]
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- May/9/23 2:00:00 p.m.
Senator Batters: I guess I was just reinforcing the point you made that farmers are price-takers, not price-makers. If they have increased costs because of the carbon tax increasing, as well as GST on the carbon tax and all of that, they have to pass that cost along in order to remain a viable operation. The cost, of course, is passed on to the consumer at the grocery store because groceries do not fall out of the sky. Groceries come from farmers, generally, at one point or another.
As a result, given that grocery store prices are continuing to increase — perhaps inflation is flattening a little bit, but it is still a very high rate — could you tell us a bit more regarding how the food that farmers produce, whether that be grain, cattle or chickens, results in higher costs at grocery stores?
Senator Wells: Thank you again, Senator Batters.
In regard to farmers, ranchers and growers being price-takers, their markets are commodity markets. For the price of hogs, wheat and all of these things, they have no say like in the grocery store. The grocery store owner might charge a specific price for a can — whatever it is — because they have the choice to do that. The farmer has no choice. Any price differential wouldn’t happen in that year; that would happen in the next year. But when you look at it, there are so many things globally that account for a price, such as droughts in different areas of the world and flooding in other areas; there are so many things. The farmer gets what the farmer gets. They do not have a great deal of choice.
It is absolutely passed on to the consumer. The consumer is the one who pays for the end product regardless — which gives even more credence to the necessity for farmers to have as much margin as they can in order to invest in things that they know they will need to invest in. It is only becoming more costly; it is not becoming less costly, especially with the price of fuel and the price of equipment — this goes directly to that — for which there are no other alternatives, both in fuel and equipment.
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- May/9/23 2:00:00 p.m.
Senator Carignan: Leader, last week, Toronto media showed images of several hundred people lined up outside of a food bank.
Given the answer you just gave me, what do you have to say to the hundreds of people who were waiting in line at the food bank so they could feed themselves?
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- May/9/23 2:00:00 p.m.
Senator Miville-Dechêne: The public is still scared, however, and some people are happy to take those fears and exploit them. I don’t think we can try to make them go away.
That was the point of my question. Is the federal government considering strong action to positively counter or correct the fearmongering about immigration? Unfortunately, the immigrants themselves are the ones who suffer from prejudice.
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- May/9/23 2:00:00 p.m.
Senator Plett: Well, I find it strange. He is your parliamentary secretary, and you don’t know about claims that he has made.
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- May/9/23 2:00:00 p.m.
Senator Woo: Thank you for the explanation. An expansion of an exemption is another word for a carve out, of course, but I appreciate that that’s what you’re looking for.
Your argument that increasing or preserving the margins of farmers so they can spend surpluses on innovative and less carbon-intensive technologies has a logic to it, but the point is that you need some kind of incentive for them to do that. There’s no guarantee that farmers will use the surpluses, fungible as they are, for that particular task.
Again, there are other tools by which we can incentivize farmers to use geothermal and solar and whatever else might appear, and this is through the means of direct incentives for those technologies.
Why are we not considering these other pathways that, on the one hand, are consistent with the universality of a carbon tax, recognizes the fluctuations, incomes and prices that farmers inevitably face, but also focus on incentives for specific carbon‑reducing technologies that may be available in the years ahead?
Senator Wells: Thank you for the question, Senator Woo. I’m sure those incentives are already there for migrating to alternative sources of fuel that have carbon neutrality, like geothermal, solar and wind, but we’re not there yet. We may be there in some small-scale operations, but we’re not there on an industrial scale.
Canada, among most countries, is a world leader in industrial farming. These are industrial-scale operations that don’t yet enjoy the benefit of geothermal and all the other things that may occur in the future through innovation, investments or other technologies, but this is what we have. The carbon tax is relatively new, and the industry has not caught up to it.
One day, it would be great if these industrial processes were carbon neutral. In regard to on-farm, I still push back on your claim that this is a carve-out because the system already exists where there are exemptions. This is just adding to those exemptions. We will agree to disagree.
This is further assistance for the ranchers, growers and farmers to reach where they need to be.
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