The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, I wish to draw your attention to the presence in the gallery of Lucia Almeida and Nodin Outten-Joseph, who are the Manitoba winners of the Your Voice is Power Coding and Indigenous Music and Histories Competition. They are accompanied by their family. They are the guests of the Honourable Senator McPhedran.

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

Hon. Marc Gold (Government Representative in the Senate): Thank you for your question, and thank you for finally addressing a question that I know is at the heart of so many Canadians’ preoccupations.

Things are not great. Things are challenging for so many Canadians, and the government is aware of this. The government has taken very important action to do its part in addressing the challenge. That includes removing the federal GST on the construction of new rental apartment buildings, urging all provinces to follow suit — as many are doing and more, I hope, will — and entering and announcing, finally, the first Housing Accelerator Fund agreement with London, which will create 2,000 new homes over three years, the most significant investment in London’s history, as the mayor announced. The government is also looking at further solutions regarding supply chain and transport issues and is exercising its leadership — as I said yesterday to Senator Cordy — with the provinces, municipalities and the private sector in order to address the shortfall in supply that is at the heart of our crisis.

Hon. Diane Bellemare introduced Bill S-275, An Act to amend the Bank of Canada Act (mandate, monetary policy governance and accountability).

(Bill read first time.)

Hon. Patti LaBoucane-Benson (Legislative Deputy to the Government Representative in the Senate): Honourable senators, I have the honour to table, in both official languages, a Charter Statement prepared by the Minister of Justice in relation to Bill C-42, An Act to amend the Canada Business Corporations Act and to make consequential and related amendments to other Acts, pursuant to the Department of Justice Act, R.S.C. 1985, c. J-2, sbs. 4.2(1).

Hon. Stan Kutcher: Senator Gold, on September 15, a piece in The Globe and Mail highlighted Canada’s lax approach to sanctions enforcement. It revealed that Canada is one of the top 10 countries evading export controls related to Russia’s illegal war on Ukraine. Canadian companies have been flagged for purchasing prohibited American goods and selling them to Russia, violating U.S. sanctions laws. These banned goods, which include products like electronics, are tools Russia uses to continue the genocidal war against Ukraine.

As the Canadian government continues to support Ukraine, we can’t let Russia benefit from this lack of oversight and lack of enforcement. Can you please tell us what the Government of Canada is going to do to address this important issue and ensure that Russia’s invasion is not aided by sanctions evasions by Canadians?

The Hon. the Speaker: Do you have a question, Senator Housakos?

Hon. Patti LaBoucane-Benson (Legislative Deputy to the Government Representative in the Senate): Honourable senators, I have the honour to table, in both official languages, a Charter Statement prepared by the Minister of Justice in relation to Bill C-35, An Act respecting early learning and child care in Canada, pursuant to the Department of Justice Act, R.S.C. 1985, c. J-2, sbs. 4.2(1).

The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, when shall this bill be read the second time?

(On motion of Senator Bellemare, bill placed on the Orders of the Day for second reading two days hence.)

[English]

Hon. Donald Neil Plett (Leader of the Opposition): Senator Gold, prior to my full-time involvement in politics, I spent my life in construction, both as a tradesman and while running a plumbing and heating company, so I know just how important the summer months are to building homes in Canada.

On Monday, Senator Gold, Statistics Canada reported that residential construction investment was down in the month of July, with declines seen in eight provinces and two territories. Single-family home construction fell to its lowest level since August of 2020, and multi-unit construction investment was down for the ninth consecutive month.

Leader, yesterday in this chamber you told Senator Cordy that your government had taken important action on housing and was showing leadership. If the Trudeau government’s track record is so great, why is residential building investment down in July during a housing crisis?

Hon. Marc Gold (Government Representative in the Senate): Thank you for your question. That inflation has risen in the last report is true. It is also true that inflation is down significantly from the level of 8.1% in July of 2022 to its current level. The most recent bump in inflation, if I understand it correctly and if the analysts are correct, is due to global oil prices that are independent of any government policy in this country or elsewhere.

With regard to your larger question about the government’s economic performance, there are approximately 950,000 more Canadians employed now than there were before the pandemic. Our credit rating is strong. We have the lowest debt-to-GDP ratio in the G7.

I could continue, but you’ve heard this all from me before, as you have heard the same litany of statements from the opposition in this chamber.

The government is doing a good job of managing our economy through very challenging times.

Hon. Robert Black: Honourable senators, I give notice that, at the next sitting of the Senate, I will move:

That, notwithstanding the order of the Senate adopted on Tuesday, April 26, 2022, the date for the final report of the Standing Senate Committee on Agriculture and Forestry in relation to its study on the status of soil health in Canada be extended from December 31, 2023, to December 31, 2024; and

That the committee be permitted, notwithstanding usual practices, to deposit with the Clerk of the Senate its report relating to this study, if the Senate is not then sitting, and that the report be deemed to have been tabled in the Senate.

Hon. Tony Loffreda: Honourable senators, I rise to speak about a transformative event I experienced this summer. July 2023 marked the eightieth anniversary of Operation Husky, the Allied landing in Sicily during the Second World War.

In the summer of 1943, 25,000 Canadian soldiers fought to help liberate Italy. To celebrate this occasion, my wife and I joined hundreds of volunteers, civilians and military personnel for The Walk for Remembrance and Peace, a 325-kilometre journey through towns and villages throughout the island. This was a civilian and personal initiative that I paid for personally in its entirety — I felt that passionately about it.

Sicilians were equally passionate about receiving us.

[Translation]

Our hosts were generous and extremely welcoming. They are eternally grateful for the sacrifices made by Canadian soldiers who crossed the ocean to join our allies and fight for peace and freedom at a time when Italy needed them most.

[English]

Two events were especially touching for me. At a cemetery in Agira, Canadian tombstones were finally assigned the faces of most of our fallen soldiers. A gentleman who works at the cemetery shed tears as he saw, for the very first time, the faces of the brave soldiers who helped free his country.

In Rosolini, I addressed a large crowd who had gathered in the public square to welcome our group. We were greeted by the Italian army’s Bersaglieri. My father and my great-uncles were members of this infantry corps. To be in their presence was a full-circle moment.

All of this was possible because of the passion of Steve Gregory from Montreal. He has been the driving force behind our “Canadian Camino.” Dozens of volunteers, both here and in Italy, also made the entire journey possible, and I commend them for their commitment to ensuring its success. I also extend my thanks to General Scardino and the Italian Armed Forces for their many contributions. Grazie mille!

Hearing stories of war and devastation combined with messages of hope and resiliency reminded us of our good fortune to live in peaceful democracies. Colleagues, please join me in honouring our heroes who fought and died in Italy. May their sacrifice serve as a reminder of how blessed we are to live in a country where peace, democracy and the rule of law are celebrated and protected.

Thank you.

Hon. Ratna Omidvar: Honourable senators, this month, we marked the one-year anniversary of the death of Mahsa Amini — her murder, in fact, at the hands of the morality police in Iran.

Her death unleashed a roar of defiance by women in Iran, whose lives and freedoms are restricted not simply by law but, in fact, by the constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Women who are LGBTQ, religious and/or ethnic minorities face double and triple jeopardy.

After Mahsa’s death, women took to the streets in droves to protest gender apartheid, temporarily shutting down the morality police. But they paid a heavy price for this — 22,000 were arrested and hundreds were blinded, raped and tortured for simply being part of a protest. More than 500 were killed — 70 of them mere children.

But the women took courage from the solidarity expressed in their fight for freedom, including here on the streets in Canada and, indeed, by remarks here in this chamber.

After one year, the headlines of the revolt have retreated, and some of us may think that the revolution has been snuffed out and that this was a mere brief moment in time. This is why I stand to inform the chamber that the revolution has not retreated. It has taken on another subverted form of expression.

Civil disobedience and micro protests have replaced marches on the street. Women flout the compulsory hijab law every day, leaving the authorities incapable of dealing with the volume of the infractions of the law. Young boys and men are wearing shorts in solidarity because wearing shorts is also illegal in Iran. There are flash protests by women who roller skate, ride on a bike and sing and dance for a nanosecond on the street because — guess what — joy itself is a crime for the women in Iran.

In the face of these organic protests, the regime has set up video surveillance, face recognition technology and misinformation on social media to entrap the protesters.

I cannot predict when women in Iran will enjoy the freedoms they deserve, but in their hearts and minds, there will always be a time that was before Mahsa, and now there is a time after Mahsa. There is a reason why TIME magazine named Iranian women the heroes of 2022.

Mahsa’s death was senseless, but it was not in vain. She died for women, life and freedom.

Hon. Leo Housakos: Senator Gold, in your answer to Senator Plett just a second ago, you acknowledged finally that things are not great, but things are not just not great. Things are in a state of catastrophe right now, yet we had our Minister of Finance at the beginning of the summer doing this massive victory lap, stating that “Canada’s plan to bring down inflation is working.” She said it was a “milestone moment,” and went on to say:

I really want to thank Canadians, it has been a really tough time economically since COVID first hit ... and this is a really good moment ... It has been a real struggle for Canadians and the Canadian economy to get back down to 2.8%, and I am really grateful to everyone who has ... (stayed) the course.

“Inflation in Canada has come down!” she claimed with excitement.

I don’t know what planet Minister Freeland and Prime Minister Trudeau live on, because inflation right now is at the highest level it has been in 35 years. We just got the figures out for the month of August, and inflation is well into 4%. All economists are claiming it will continue to grow until the end of the year, and they suspect we will have more rate hikes by the Bank of Canada. And we’ve had, by the way, 10 bank rate hikes since March of 2022, which is pummelling working-class Canadians.

The question is simple: Will you finally acknowledge as a government that the Freeland-Trudeau economics of more debt and more deficit are not working and are leading to record-high inflation, and will you commit to finally putting in place a fiscal anchor, which we so desperately need?

Hon. Marc Gold (Government Representative in the Senate): Senator, thank you for your question. As we all know, Canada imposes sanctions under the Special Economic Measures Act and the Sergei Magnitsky Law, which the government passed in 2017. It’s my understanding that the government created a new sanctions bureau, and that Canada is the first of our allies to make use of new seizure and forfeiture authorities. I remind the chamber that the government has also imposed sanctions that have been adopted by the UN Security Council, and, as we all know, the enforcement of this Canada sanctions regime is the responsibility of the RCMP and the Canada Border Services Agency. Canada remains committed to enforcing its laws appropriately in light of the Russian aggression in Ukraine.

Hon. Marc Gold (Government Representative in the Senate): Thank you for the question. Every 2SLGBTQI+ child has the right to feel safe at school. That is fundamental. Those who work with children and listen to what they have to say are telling us that children must be at the heart of these decisions. We need to maintain a central position focused on children’s well-being. I have been assured that the Government of Canada is committed to doing everything in its power to protect the mental health and safety of queer and trans children.

Hon. René Cormier: My question is for the Government Representative in the Senate.

Senator Gold, I’m sure you noticed, as I did, the demonstrations that are currently taking place on Parliament Hill.

The “1 Million March 4 Children” group invited its members to demonstrate for parental rights at the expense of 2SLGBTQI+ policies. At the same time, a counter-demonstration was organized to advocate for the rights of 2SLGBTQI+ communities.

In the groundswell of debate surrounding transgender students’ pronoun choices and access to gender-neutral washrooms in schools, important questions arise that extend far beyond provincial jurisdiction, specifically the protection of the fundamental rights of Canadian children.

Senator Gold, how does the federal government intend to act, and act swiftly, to protect 2SLGBTQI+ children in their schools and beyond?

Hon. Flordeliz (Gigi) Osler: My question is for the Government Representative in the Senate. Manitoba has the highest proportion of First Nations residents among Canadian provinces. For many indicators of health, there is a widening gap between First Nations residents and other Manitobans. In 2021, Indigenous Services Canada established the Nursing Health Human Resources Framework to respond to nursing shortages and to address nursing station closures in remote and isolated First Nations communities. Yet, in a media conference last week, the Chief of the Pimicikamak Cree Nation, a First Nation in northern Manitoba that is home to over 8,000 on-reserve residents, stated that their nursing station repeatedly faces closures due to nursing staff shortages.

Senator Gold, what is the government doing to ensure the effectiveness of the Nursing Health Human Resources Framework as we continue to hear about nursing shortages and nursing station closures in Manitoba?

Hon. Andrew Cardozo: My question is for the Government Representative in the Senate, and it is on the topic of affordability. Let me start by painting the context of where we are.

I note several measures — from recent years — to help make life more affordable: the Canada Child Benefit in 2016; the National Housing Strategy in 2017; the increase to the Canada Pension Plan in 2019; and the Canada-wide Early Learning and Child Care Plan, which is the national child care program that went into effect a couple of years ago, and we’re considering the bill related to this now.

Earlier this year, Parliament passed bills on the Grocery Rebate, the dental plan for children and the Canada Disability Benefit. All of these measures help Canadians in this affordability crisis. Perhaps you can tell your government to talk a bit more about some of these measures that they have taken so that we have a better idea of what they have done.

My question is simple: What other measures is the government planning? Would you consider price controls, perhaps, on basic Canadian groceries, or working with provincial governments to have strong national rent control?