- Member of Parliament
- House leader of the New Democratic Party
Member of the Board of Internal Economy
- NDP
- New Westminster—Burnaby
- British Columbia
- Voting Attendance: 63%
- Expenses Last Quarter: $138,331.47
- Government Page
- Jun/18/24 7:25:22 p.m.
- Watch
Madam Speaker, I always like to hear from my comrade from Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke. That being said, she railed against the NDP's dental care program. It is important to note that 200,000 seniors have had dental care so far, including hundreds in Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke. In fact, as we speak, in Pembroke, dentists are advertising the NDP's dental care program. The reality is that many people in her riding are benefiting from the NDP's work.
Could my comrade and colleague please tell us why she is opposing a dental care program that her constituents—
103 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Jun/17/24 11:48:06 p.m.
- Watch
Madam Speaker, this is a foreign country, according to my colleague from La Prairie. I love listening to him, but there are 700,000 Quebeckers who have benefited from dental care in this foreign country. This dental care was put in place thanks to the NDP. In the first five weeks alone, 700,000 Quebeckers have already taken advantage of this new program, which will really improve their health.
It is obvious that Quebeckers disagree with my colleague, but does he agree with the NDP amendment, which will completely fix this bill?
The Conservatives and the Bloc did not introduce any amendments. The NDP did. Does the member support the NDP amendment?
112 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Jun/13/24 8:30:52 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, this is all part of the delusions of the member for Carleton. “It is all a mirage”, they are saying to Canadians across the country, as hundreds of thousands of seniors are getting dental care, often for the first time. The member for Carleton says that it is all a mirage, that they are not getting dental care, as they sit in the dentist chair, as they actually have the dentist provide them with the care, as the oral hygienist provides them with care, as the denturist provides them with care.
The Conservatives' response and the member for Carleton's response is that it is all a mirage, that they are not living in reality and that they should live the Conservative reality, where dental care does not exist.
I prefer to live in real life.
140 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Jun/13/24 8:19:56 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to follow my colleague from Vancouver Kingsway. He mentioned that NDP governments have the best financial management track records, and that is important. The NDP also delivers results. We are not the party of tax havens or billionaires. We are the party that invests in ordinary people.
I found my Bloc Québécois colleague's last comment a bit ridiculous because the dental care program has been the most successful in Quebec. More people in Quebec are benefiting from the dental care program than anywhere else in Canada, and more dentists in Quebec are participating in the program than anywhere else. The Bloc Québécois can say that the dental care program is not working, but the facts say otherwise. To date, 200,000 people, particularly seniors in Quebec, have received dental care.
The reality is that the NDP is the party that has gotten the most results in Parliament in recent months. Members of the Bloc Québécois have not accomplished much. The NDP got pharmacare. This bill is now in the Senate. When we look at dental care, the grocery rebate and affordable housing, we see that the NDP caucus has been far more effective than any of the other parties in the House.
The members of the NDP are the real worker bees in the House of Commons. We do things to help people and we are seeing results in Quebec, of course, but also in British Columbia and across the country.
The main estimates are an opportunity to talk about financial management. As my colleague for Vancouver Kingsway said so eloquently, the NDP does have the best record of managing money and paying down debt with NDP provincial governments. We have not formed a federal government yet, but that that is coming. NDP provincial governments have simply outperformed, in fiscal management, Conservative and Liberal governments, and even governments like those of the Parti Québécois.
The reality is that is our record, and we are proud of it. More importantly, the NDP gets its good fiscal management record by not giving away money to billionaires, banks, oil and gas CEOs and lobbyists, which is, critically, what Liberals and Conservatives have done since Confederation. The NDP takes a different approach, which is why we are so effective in helping people.
The main estimates are also a report card for all members of Parliament to basically report back on what they have done since we started the session in the fall, because when we get to the main estimates, we know that there are only a few days left in the session. Let us talk about that. What can Conservative MPs say that they have done for their constituents over the course of the last nine months? It is not much. In fact, a Conservative member would have difficulty pointing to a single accomplishment that Conservative MPs have done for their constituents.
Let us talk about what the New Democrats have done. We got the grocery rebate, which has made a difference for about 11 million lower-income Canadians, as part of a doubling of the GST rebate. That has made a difference for constituents.
We can also talk about the school lunches, part of the recent budget and something the NDP campaigned on, that the member for Vancouver Kingsway campaigned on. As a result of it, hundreds of thousands of school children who could not learn because they went to school hungry will be getting school lunches. That is another accomplishment of the NDP.
We can talk about the anti-scab legislation that helps workers in the federal jurisdiction who are fighting for better wages and better health and safety conditions. Up until now, they have consistently had Conservatives and Liberals refusing to put in place legislation to ban replacement workers. If they were locked out or went on strike, they had no recourse. However thanks to the NDP, there is now anti-scab legislation in this country.
How about dental care? It is the biggest hit of any government program in years, with over 200,000 seniors having already accessed dental services. We can do the math: It means that in each and every Conservative riding, there are 500 or 600 seniors who have already gotten dental care, and not thanks to the Conservatives, because the Conservatives did everything they could to block those programs, but thanks to the NDP.
Yes, those seniors will be thinking, “Why am I electing a Conservative MP when they do not do anything for me? The NDP has been fighting for me. The member for Burnaby South has been fighting for me and maybe I should be looking at the NDP.” Of course, they would be showing good judgment in doing that because the reality is that the NDP delivered dental care. This is something that Conservatives and Liberals refused to do.
In fact a few years ago, Conservatives and Liberals voted against the dental care program that the NDP put forward, but in a minority Parliament, the member for Burnaby South and the entire NDP caucus fought, and now hundreds of thousands of seniors have had dental care already. Millions of seniors have signed up, and we know that in about a week and a half, people with disabilities and families with kids under 18 will be able to access dental care as well. By the beginning of July, all dentists will be eligible to be part of the program.
Wow, what an accomplishment that is. Can Conservative MPs point to anything they have done over the last 10 months? No, but the NDP can also point to that.
How about clean energy jobs? Members will recall that Conservatives fought, tooth and nail, the clean-energy jobs program of the NDP that we fought for and got through the House. As a result, good, well-paying, unionized jobs in the clean energy sector will be coming in the coming months because of the NDP.
How about pharmacare? People with diabetes are often paying $1,000 to $1,500 a month for their diabetes medication and devices. Conservatives said, “Oh, we do not give a damn about them.” However, Canadians want to have the program, and the NDP fought hard. Now the pharmacare bill is through the House and is in the Senate. We are pushing senators in the other place to please adopt the legislation because it would mean that up to six million Canadians who have diabetes would have their medication covered.
There are Canadians who need contraception. For women's reproductive rights and freedoms, this is absolutely crucial. They would have access to contraception, and again this is because of the NDP.
How about affordable housing? Well, affordable housing is something that Conservatives slashed. Over the dismal, terrible Harper regime, the worst government in Canadian history, food bank lineups doubled. Housing prices doubled. People would say that the same things happened under the Liberals, who continued a lot of Conservative policies, and that is true. However, Conservatives are responsible for half the problem and they should be standing up and apologizing to Canadians for not doing what was required then, as Liberals should be apologizing for not doing what is required now.
However, in a minority Parliament, the NDP forced the government finally to invest in affordable housing, and we know that affordable housing units are starting to be built now. In the coming months, there will be more and more affordable housing that is based on 30% of income as opposed to the massive rental prices people are paying. Affordable housing will be coming to neighbourhoods right across the country.
Regarding health care funding, the terrible, horrible, no good, very bad Harper government slashed health care funding, which has led to the crisis that we are seeing today because Liberals, when they came to power, decided they were not going to restore the health care funding that Conservatives cut. Thanks to the NDP, we are now seeing an increase in health care funding across the country, and that is going to make a difference in the quality of life of our health care professionals and of Canadians who have health care issues and go into the hospital.
As I mentioned earlier, the fact that we now have in place the first steps of universal single-payer pharmacare means that when patients leave acute care hospitals, they will actually have access to their medication. Members of the Canadian Federation of Nurses Unions tell us that hundreds of Canadians die every year because they cannot afford to pay for their medication.
Every other country that has universal health care has universal pharmacare. Thanks to Tommy Douglas and the NDP, we have universal health care. Thanks to the current leader, the member for Burnaby South, and the NDP, we are now looking at the start of universal pharmacare, which means patients will be able to continue to live long and healthy lives.
Therefore school lunches, grocery rebates, anti-scab legislation, dental care, clean-energy jobs, pharmacare, affordable housing and health care funding are all thanks to the NDP.
1540 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Jun/13/24 8:01:48 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, I always enjoy working with my colleague, but I do not understand the Bloc Québécois at all.
The NDP forced the government to bring in a dental care program. Quebec is where the program is the most popular. The vast majority of dentists who joined this program are located in Quebec. In Canada, the largest group of people already using these dental care services are Quebeckers. The new program has only been operating for a few weeks, but it is popular. Tens of thousands of Quebeckers have already received dental care through the program.
Why does the Bloc Québécois oppose a program that Quebeckers want?
115 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Jun/3/24 8:10:42 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, we will have an election when the member's constituents are voting on whether or not to axe the dental care that thousands of his constituents are now accessing, the pharmacare for diabetes and contraception medications that thousands of his constituents would be getting or the affordable housing that is being built. We will have an election, but the election will be on what Conservatives want to axe and whether Canadians want to go down that road. I am quite confident his constituents will say no to axing all of those services and programs that are helping people.
100 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- May/31/24 11:29:50 a.m.
- Watch
Madam Speaker, on dental care, the NDP forced the government to do it; now we want to make sure that all Canadians get it.
Beginning in June, children under 18 and persons with disabilities will benefit from the NDP's dental care plan. Tens of thousands of seniors are already saving money, thanks to this dental coverage, but the Conservatives want Canadians to pay out-of-pocket. They already want to axe dental care for seniors. They are spreading disinformation and doing everything they can to take it away.
Will the government put into place all the resources necessary to fight Conservative disinformation and stop them from denying dental care for Canadians?
112 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- May/31/24 11:28:33 a.m.
- Watch
Madam Speaker, a third of the people who have registered for the NDP dental care program are in Quebec. The need is there, and the NDP delivered results. The Conservatives and the Bloc Québécois do not want dental care for seniors, children and people with disabilities. The Conservatives are spreading disinformation and do not care about the impact that might have on people's health and wallets. We cannot allow this to happen.
Will the government counter the Conservatives' disinformation and ensure that this dental care is available to everyone who needs it?
97 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- May/30/24 6:56:21 p.m.
- Watch
Madam Speaker, the Conservatives were fighting tooth and nail to stop the dental care program. More than two million seniors across this country have signed up for dental care already. In the first three weeks of the dental care program, 120,000 have had access to dental care, often for the first time in their lives. Conservatives fought like hell to stop that program from coming into being and helping their constituents.
Now the Conservatives are wasting $400,000 in taxpayers' money in a debate that is about deleting all the clauses of the bill, a meaningless, ridiculous, disrespectful debate that will cost Canadians $400,000 by the time it ends this evening to try to block pharmacare, which will help, on average, 18,000 Conservative constituents with diabetes medication and 25,000 Conservative constituents in every riding in the country in terms of contraceptives.
Why are the Conservatives so afraid of the benefits that the NDP has forced the government to provide that will actually make a difference and help their constituents' lives?
174 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- May/29/24 8:57:11 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, I look forward to the dental care update.
10 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- May/29/24 8:42:06 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, I will not be sharing my time. I will mainly be directing my questions at the Minister of Health. My colleague from Courtenay—Alberni will ask the Minister of Mental Health and Addictions some questions later.
The minister just gave all Canadians some good news, I think. Some 120,000 seniors have already received dental care. How many of them are Quebeckers?
65 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- May/28/24 1:41:27 p.m.
- Watch
Madam Speaker, the insults and how Conservatives are handling this ultimately shows what their real goal is. The reality is that we have, and I said this in response to my Bloc colleague who was giving the same disinformation, one incident where it turns out it was the Liberal Party of Canada's fault. It has apologized. It never should have done that. It was disrespectful to the Speaker, to the House of Commons and to Parliament and it has apologized. Conservatives are using this as a pretext to hold up other legislation in the House and I find that untenable. The member has thousands of people who are benefiting from what the NDP has done in his riding with respect to both dental care and pharmacare. Rather than pretending they are not trying to block this legislation, they should just come clean with Canadians.
145 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- May/21/24 1:04:26 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, in the House, we have seen the Conservatives blocking the dental care legislation.
Six thousand seniors, on average, in each of the Conservative MPs' ridings, have actually signed up for dental care so far, and we know that millions more are joining as we speak. Tens of thousands of Canadian seniors have benefited from dental care.
We have seen the Conservatives opposing the pharmacare legislation, even though 17,000 of their constituents, on average, would benefit from the diabetes medication components, and 25,000 people in their ridings, on average, would benefit from contraceptive coverage.
We now have the Conservatives blocking Bill C-69 as well. We are talking about affordable housing. These are all things that the NDP has forced the government to put forward in a minority Parliament. This is important.
My question to my colleague is simply this. Why are the Conservatives systematically opposing measures that would help people in their ridings?
157 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Apr/9/24 2:50:59 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, thanks to the NDP, we now have dental care in Canada. This was opposed by the corporate Conservatives at every single step.
New Democrats fought for the nearly two million seniors who will benefit from the dental care program in a few weeks' time. Dentists are raising concerns about the rollout of the program. Seniors should not have to wait any longer to benefit from going to their dentists.
What will the minister do to ensure that every senior who is registered will benefit from the dental care program without delay?
93 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Mar/21/24 5:00:10 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, I like my colleague. He said that we need to remember things. Well, we need to remember the Harper regime, which was the worst government in our entire history. Back then, housing prices doubled. Lineups at food banks also doubled. We witnessed all that and it was awful. We cannot let ourselves forget the Harper regime.
That said, we need to look at what we have to do now. Of course, the Liberals have done a little better than the Conservatives on fighting climate change. They did even more when the NDP forced them to implement measures like the dental care program. Of course, there are thousands of seniors in my colleague's riding who have signed on to the Canadian dental care program thanks to the NDP.
I have a very simple question for my colleague. Has he asked his constituents if they want the dental care program to continue? Does my colleague understand that the Conservatives must support this program, and all the other programs that the NDP has put in place, to help the people in his riding?
183 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Feb/28/24 7:30:34 p.m.
- Watch
Madam Speaker, there is no doubt that we need to work harder and smarter. New Democrats have always said that; this is why we believe in, and I have always supported, having evening sessions. This is not new for New Democrats.
However, what I find perplexing is the Conservatives' opposition to the idea that we would provide health breaks for employees and that we would work through evening sessions. I find it equally perplexing that Conservatives oppose dental care. The NDP's plan for dental care helps, on average, 30,000 constituents of each and every Conservative MP, yet they voted against it. Affordable housing helps thousands of people. We saw, under the Harper regime, that they destroyed 800,000 affordable housing units. Now, the NDP is fighting to put those housing units back, and Conservatives vote against it. They voted against the grocery rebate, and I gather that they are going to vote against pharmacare, which would help, on average, 15,000 constituents in each and every Conservative riding.
If Conservatives are not standing up for their constituents, why are they here?
183 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Nov/27/23 5:55:01 p.m.
- Watch
Madam Speaker, I would remind my colleague and friend that the Liberals ran for 25 years on pharmacare and 20 years on dental care. They never did it. They ran for a decade on anti-scab legislation, but they voted against it when the NDP brought it forward. The difference is that, this time, because of a minority Parliament, New Democrats are forcing the Liberals to do what they said they would do and never do when they hold a majority government.
Yes, we are the adults in the room and the NDP is forcing the Liberals to do the right thing, from which all Canadians will benefit.
An hon. member: Oh, oh!
113 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Jun/5/23 8:18:09 p.m.
- Watch
Madam Speaker, I have a lot of respect for that member and appreciate her work in the House. I would kindly suggest that she has not actually read the bill that the Conservatives have been fighting against over the course of the last few days, because what she actually referred to was the dental payment from last year, not the dental program that takes effect at the end of this year which includes seniors, people with disabilities and youth. It is a completely different program. If she had read the bill, long as it is, she would be informed about that. I have enormous respect for the work she does, but I am going to correct inaccuracies and in this case what she said was in reference to last year, not this year.
133 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the question from my colleague, whom I was pleased to work with on the Standing Committee on Finance. I also appreciated his speech earlier.
I will start off by mentioning that I am not the NDP leader. I am the NDP House leader. I just had to make a slight correction there.
The NDP always makes sure that the benefits that Canadians count on continue to be there. That is why the member for Burnaby South worked to ensure that the GST credit was doubled a few months ago and has done so again with respect to this bill.
Certainly we will continue to keep watch, because we want Canadians across Canada, including in Joliette, to have the ability to pay for groceries.
Dental care is also very important in a riding like Joliette and across the country. We will continue to exert pressure for that to be implemented.
In my speech, I mentioned my constituent Joanne, who was experiencing a lot of tooth pain. By the end of the year, she will have access to dental care for the first time in her life as a senior. That is what we are bringing to the House when it comes to accountability.
The NPD continues to exert pressure for people like Joanne and millions of others who have been abandoned by the old parties.
229 words
All Topics
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
Mr. Speaker, I like the member and I enjoy working with her on Canadian heritage, but this is the complete emptiness of the Conservative dialogue. The Conservatives have offered one single idea in the past year, to buy Bitcoin, and we saw Bitcoin tank. If any Canadians had followed their advice, they would be ruined financially. That is the only idea Conservatives have brought forward, so I want to correct the record.
First, in terms of dental care, yes, there is a plan, and it is thanks to the member for Vancouver Kingsway, the NDP health critic, that there is a plan for rollout to ensure that people with disabilities, seniors and youth in that member's riding, about 30,000 strong, would have access to dental care by the end of the year. On pharmacare, the government has to deliver the legislation that both Liberals and Conservatives voted against two years ago, including the hon. member. Shame on all of them who voted against the Canada pharmacare act that I presented in the House.
That legislation would be only a first step, and that is why our warning is to say to Liberals that, if they really want to heed the quality of life for Canadians, the right to basic health care and the competitiveness of our businesses, it is time to start ensuring that the next steps after the adoption of the universal pharmacare bill would be done to put in place the financing criteria so that we can roll that out in the coming years.
258 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- menumenu
- notificationsnotifications
- home
- mailmail
- searchsearch
