Senator Plett: Thank you for the question, Senator Omidvar and, no, I have not done research on that. I would assume that the majority of the immigrants that I certainly have had connections and relations with who have come over to our country have very many of the same family values that I have, and maybe that is because those are the ones that I socialize with. But the majority of them would have many of the same values as me. I don’t think that there could be any clear distinction made that one ethnicity is — I don’t want to use the word “violent” — more aggressive than others. I may be wrong.

Senator Plett: Again, this is on debate, Your Honour, not a question. I would like to not engage with Senator Simons any further, and so I will not answer her question.

Senator Gold: I thank the senator for his suggestion. I will bring it to the minister’s attention.

That being said, I’d simply like to point out that the Canada Pension Plan and the public sector pension plans are subject to their own acts of Parliament, which have been amended many times by various Parliaments.

[English]

Senator Dupuis: Do we agree, you and I, that this question deserves to be studied by the Senate as legislator, since the Supreme Court itself noted that it couldn’t rule on the change to section 43, which is ultimately in the hands of parliamentarians?

[English]

Senator Gold: Thank you for the questions. I’ll certainly add that to the inquiries I undertake to make.

Senator Plett: Certainly.

Senator Plett: Point of order, Your Honour. This is not a question related to anything that I said here today. I would appreciate that, if Senator Simons has a question related to the speech, she asks it and does not go on a rant. If she wants to debate this bill later on, she can do that.

Senator Carignan: I would point out that the CPP Investment website clearly states the following:

Our accountability is ultimately to our stewards — the federal Finance Minister and the Finance Ministers of the participating provinces.

It also states that the “annual report is tabled in Parliament by the Federal Finance Minister.” We are Parliament, and your government is the Minister of Finance. I think Senator Gignac is absolutely right to make this proposal, and I think it’s unacceptable for a federal board to use tax havens.

Senator Woo: Would you take a question, Senator Downe?

Senator Forest: I have a follow-up question. How do we distinguish between a slap out of love and a spanking? How do we define that?

[English]

Senator Downe: Yes, of course.

Senator Marshall: Our health care system is expensive, and our results are modest to poor.

Senator Batters: Senator Omidvar, your Recommendation 2 talks about “targeting populations that are currently overrepresented in Canada’s suicide rates . . . . ” In that short list, your committee included “persons with mental illnesses.”

Senator Batters: Senator Omidvar, your Recommendation 2 talks about “targeting populations that are currently overrepresented in Canada’s suicide rates . . . . ” In that short list, your committee included “persons with mental illnesses.”

Senator Omidvar, another fact noted in that 2010 commercial I mentioned was that 90% of those who die by suicide have mental illness, so it’s not a subset of suicide deaths in Canada. This is nearly the entire group of suicide deaths in Canada.

Why did your committee include that in your targeted demographic list?

Senator Omidvar: Senator Batters, I understand what you’re saying. Mental health is likely an underlying cause for suicides, regardless of which population they are in. I take your point, but I believe the committee did recognize the importance of mental illness as a condition, and we’ve noted it in the recommendation.

If you have not found it to your satisfaction, in retrospect, I wish you had been called as a witness; that would have helped. Hopefully, the next time we study this matter, we will remember to do so.

(On motion of Senator Martin, debate adjourned.)

On the Order:

Resuming debate on the motion of the Honourable Senator McCallum, seconded by the Honourable Senator LaBoucane-Benson:

That the Standing Senate Committee on Energy, the Environment and Natural Resources be authorized to examine and report on the cumulative positive and negative impacts of resource extraction and development, and their effects on environmental, economic and social considerations, when and if the committee is formed; and

That the committee submit its final report no later than December 31, 2022.

Senator Gold: Again, the Government of Canada appreciates the work that the Honourable David Johnston did, regrets the degree to which his integrity was impugned and —

Senator Plett:  — to the Prime Minister.

Senator Plett: No, no, that’s fine.

Senator McPhedran: As a point of clarification, Senator Plett, how do we regulate this when you give a specific example about an acceptable limit of physical contact or physical punishment that happens in the privacy of a home or other location where the recipient of those two slaps, for example, has no power, no voice and no way of getting beyond that private situation?

Senator Dupuis: Would Senator Plett agree to answer a supplementary question?

[English]

Senator Poirier: Yes, I will.

Senator Plett: I’m not sure, Senator McPhedran, whether you heard any of my speech or not. In my speech, I said that a slap on the bum with the hand so it leaves no mark is not assault. So, no, you and I agree. We should not assault children. Absolutely. I don’t think spanking a child with two slaps on the bum — it cannot leave a mark or it’s assault — I do not believe that it is assault.

Hon. Wanda Thomas Bernard: Honourable senators, I rise today, grateful to be on Algonquin Anishinaabe territory, to bring attention to the remarkable contributions of Eddie Carvery III, a community advocate, activist and the grandson of activist Eddie Carvery, whom I introduced last week.

Following in the footsteps of his grandfather — Eddie Carvery, Sr. — Eddie III has an unwavering dedication to social justice. He is relentless in his pursuit of equality and inclusion for the people of Africville. Eddie is the co-creator and co-host of the award-winning podcast “Africville Forever,” produced during the peak of the 2020 Black Lives Matter movement and the surge of awareness regarding anti-Black racism globally.

Witnessing his grandfather’s activism and having his own personal and profound experiences of anti-Black racism pushed Eddie to embark upon a new approach to carry on the legacy of his ancestors. “Africville Forever” engages listeners through the stories, struggles and resilience of Africville, with the hope that Africville continues to be acknowledged worldwide. It highlights the persistent desire of community members to one day return to Africville, ensuring that the land is returned and developed for the benefit of the entire community.

Eddie also gives back to his community through his professional life, ensuring African Nova Scotians have a place in an industry that occupies the land that was previously Africville. Eddie serves as the implementation lead for the African Nova Scotian Pathways to Port Careers Project. His focus is on engaging youth by creating career opportunities for African Nova Scotians in port and port-adjacent fields.

I admire Eddie Carvery III. I admire his commitment to preserving Africville’s history through podcasting and his essential work in creating employability opportunities for his community. He is leading real change.

Eddie Carvery III is living evidence of the multi-generational resilience within the Carvery family, African Nova Scotians, African people and the descendants of Africville. For this reason, I stand with Eddie on his quest for justice, equality and the restoration of Africville’s rightful place within our society.

Thank you, asante.

[Translation]