Debates of May 27th, 2014

Divorce Act

[Some hon. members]

Agreed.

No.

[The Acting Speaker, Conservative, Bruce Stanton]

All those in favour of the motion will please say yea.

[Some hon. members]

Yea.

[The Acting Speaker, Conservative, Bruce Stanton]

All those opposed will please say nay.

[Some hon. members]

Nay.

[The Acting Speaker, Conservative, Bruce Stanton]

In my opinion the nays have it.

And five or more members having risen:

Pursuant to Standing Order 93 a recorded division stands deferred until tomorrow, Wednesday, May 28, immediately before the time provided for private members' business.

The House resumed consideration of the motion, and of the amendment.

Extension of Sitting Hours

[Costas Menegakis, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, I am delighted to rise today to speak to the motion to extend the sitting hours of the House for the remainder of the spring session.

I would like to begin my remarks by saying that three years ago I was privileged to be elected by the wonderful residents of the great town of Richmond Hill as their member of Parliament. I made a commitment at that time to work hard on their behalf and represent their interests to the best of my ability. I promised to be diligent in my duties, to fulfill my responsibilities as their member of Parliament and to make Canada's laws by debating and voting on bills in an active, hard-working and orderly way. That commitment made three years ago remains my sole purpose each and every day as I enter this place.

I am sure my colleagues on both sides of the House also come here with that most noble of purpose. I have no doubt about that. It is this core responsibility that I will be directing the balance of my remarks toward, our obligation as legislators to make Canada's laws for the betterment of our constituents and, indeed, for all Canadians from coast to coast to coast.

The job of a member of Parliament is an unusual one. There are no set defined hours. It is, indeed, definitely not a nine to five job, for the business of the country takes place 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and 365 days a year. Our obligations do not always wait for a time that is convenient because world events do not pause and families cannot put their most urgent affairs on hold. All of us are sent here by those in our respective ridings who have put their faith in each and every one of us to do the right thing at the right time. Sometimes the right thing is working extra hours, as we have been asked to do here today.

I cannot imagine any of us going back to our constituents and telling them that we are not prepared to put in extra time and that all the improvements to make our communities safer will have to wait, or telling businessmen, businesswomen and businesses in our ridings counting on tax relief so they can invest in innovation or new hires that they will have to put their expansion plans on hold for a while, or telling the handlers of police dogs that give 110% in protecting our homes and neighbourhoods that they will have to wait before we get around to protecting their faithful and most trusted companions.

I cannot imagine telling the residents of my riding, who are waiting to receive their citizenship, that I am sorry, but we just did not get around to making the changes to help them receive their Canadian citizenships faster, or telling Canadians who have been asking the government to better protect the value of Canadian citizenship that they will have to wait a bit longer until we are ready. I am not prepared to have these conversations back in my constituency this summer and I hope all of my colleagues in the chamber feel the same way.

I would like to provide a couple of examples of important legislation that I believe we will have an opportunity to address over the coming weeks before we recess for the summer. I want to elaborate on those a little.

As I mentioned, Canadians, including those with multi-generational roots in our great country and those who are new to our land, have been asking for a comprehensive reform of our Citizenship Act. The act has not changed in almost four decades, and we all know that the dynamic in Canada certainly has over those four decades.

This legislation would protect the value of Canadian citizenship for those who have it. In February of this year, we all heard from Canada's citizenship and immigration minister, who responded to the request for such legislation by introducing the strengthening Canadian citizenship act.

This legislation would create a faster and more efficient process for those applying to get it. Bill C-24, the strengthening Canadian citizenship act, proposes to streamline Canada's citizenship program by reducing the decision-making process from three steps to one. It is very important that we work extra hours to ensure that we are able to assist those who are in that queue by giving them their citizenship that they deserve, in as expedient manner as possible. If passed, and hopefully we will pass this legislation, it is expected that by 2015 and 2016 this change would bring the average processing time for citizenship applications down to under one year. It is also projected in the same timeframe to reduce the current backlog by more than 80%. When I see members sitting here every single day, I know that back in their constituencies, in our multicultural mosaic that we call Canada, this is an important issue that they hear about every single day.

Additionally, citizenship application fees would be better aligned with the actual cost of processing, thereby relieving the burden on Canadian taxpayers who currently subsidize the majority of the costs. That is only fair to the taxpayer and fair to all involved in the process.

More importantly, Bill C-24 would reinforce the value of Canadian citizenship. To ensure that citizenship applicants maintain strong ties to Canada, proposed changes to the act would provide a clear indication that the residence period to qualify for citizenship in fact requires a physical presence in Canada. It would also ensure that more applicants meet language requirements and are better prepared to fully participate in Canadian society, in their new country. As we have heard in our pre-study on the topic, language abilities allow for integration and better potential for success in Canadian society.

I am very proud that this legislation would finally act on lost Canadians who were born before 1947 by automatically extending citizenship to these individuals who obviously have strong ties to Canada.

Improving the integrity of Canada's citizenship process is one important element of the strengthening Canadian citizenship act and it is very important that we all work very hard and agree to work these extra hours so that we can provide some of the benefits as fast as possible back to Canadians and new Canadians.

The second important element is that it would shorten processing times. In fact, once enacted—

[Pierre-Luc Dusseault, NDP, Sherbrooke, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order. I waited five minutes before doing so. It seems to me that, during that five-minute period, the member was talking about Bill C-24 even though the debate is on Motion No. 10. I would like to know if he will get to the topic at hand, which is Motion No. 10, not Bill C-24.

[The Acting Speaker, Conservative, Bruce Stanton]

I appreciate the hon. member for Sherbrooke's intervention. It is not unusual for the question before the House to contain several subjects. In this case, Motion No. 10 affects many different bills. It is difficult to separate the two subjects.

Therefore, in this case, I would say that with respect to a bill that has been proposed as the necessity for the extended hours, it is difficult to make arguments on either side of that question without in fact reflecting on the subject of those bills.

I appreciate the point of order, but I think the hon. member is in relevant territory, provided he continues to reference the subject that is the question of Motion No. 10.

[Costas Menegakis, Conservative, Richmond Hill, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I can assure my hon. colleague that my intention here tonight is to give a very good explanation, as best as I can, to all colleagues in the chamber as to why I think it is important to put in these extra hours over the next few weeks.

There are a number of pieces of legislation that need to be looked at, and we will have an opportunity to look at them, properly debate them and, hopefully, pass them through the House. This way, we can get back to our constituents with a record of having done something for them, given the opportunity that we can do that by working additional hours.

I am referencing a couple of pieces of legislation today because I would like to impart to my hon. colleague opposite and all colleagues in the House the reasons for which I am convinced of the need to work the additional hours so that we can pass this legislation through. I am quite satisfied to work the additional hours. I appreciate your ruling on that matter.

I was speaking about Bill C-24. In fact, once enacted, the changes outlined in that particular act would mean that processing times will be shortened to less than one year. For example, with absolutely no changes and with no economic action plan funding, processing times would escalate to an unacceptable 35 months within two years. I am sure that the hon. member who made the intervention, and all members of the House, do not want to deal with this issue with their constituents, knowing that they could have done something about it and did not in an expeditious manner. It is important that we enact this legislation now, or as soon as possible, so that Canada's citizenship backlog can be eliminated by 2015-16, allowing for just-in-time processing of applications.

It would also provide a way to recognize the important contributions of those who served Canada in uniform. Once passed, Bill C-24 would allow permanent residents who are members of the Canadian Armed Forces to have quicker access to Canadian citizenship. Many residents in my riding were unaware of the current rules regarding obtaining Canadian citizenship. When I explained it to them, they wanted to know why we had not done it sooner. They want it done very quickly, and I do not want to go back there, knowing that I had an opportunity to stand up in the House and represent them, and say, “We decided that, as parliamentarians, we do not want to work the additional hours from now until the end of the session to provide those things that I had been asked for and continue to be asked for”. That is why I am speaking to the specific advantages of getting this work done as quickly as possible and processed through the House.

Residents in Richmond Hill were surprised to learn that under the current rules, there is no requirement to be physically present in Canada while obtaining citizenship, and that residency alone for three out of four years was enough. They support imposing a minimum requirement of 183 days of physical presence in Canada. They support being here for four out of the last six years. In fact, we heard witnesses testify in committee, without getting into the specifics of the bill, that they believe that four out of six years is actually not enough. Some of them thought that.

Our peer countries have stricter and longer residency requirements in order to be eligible for citizenship. We must strengthen the value of our citizenship in order to compete on the world stage. We have the opportunity to do that within the next couple of weeks if we put in these extra hours. I hope that all members of the House will support it.

Many of my constituents were also surprised to learn that under existing rules, there is no requirement to file an income tax return to be eligible for a grant of citizenship. They agree with the proposed changes in the new act that would require applicants to file Canadian income taxes to be eligible for citizenship. Again, all Canadians have to complete their income tax return on an annual basis. It should be a no-brainer for anyone seeking to have the same privileges as all Canadians to have the requirement to do that as well. Canadians want that passed as soon as possible through the House.

We know that knowledge of one of Canada's official languages is a key determinant in the successful integration of new Canadians. There are changes in the new legislation that would give stronger language tools to prospective new Canadians. We believe that this would help with their integration into the country and provide more potential for successful outcomes.

I see that I have five minutes left. I will move on.

As of October 2013, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police was investigating several large-scale cases of residence fraud involving more than 3,000 Canadian citizens and 5,000 permanent residents. There were also reports that nearly 2,000 individuals linked to these investigations have withdrawn their citizenship applications. We can see there is a litany of reasons why we need to put in legislation that will strengthen Canadian citizenship. Then we will be able to go back to our constituents, hopefully after the spring session, and say we did something about all of those things that they talk to us about every single day.

There are many other pieces of important legislation that I can speak about today, but there is one in particular that is of personal interest to me that was recently introduced in the House called the justice for animals in service act, more popularly known as Quanto's law.

This legislation would ensure that those who harm law enforcement, service, and Canadian Armed Forces animals, face serious consequences for their actions. It recognizes the special role that these animals play in protecting our communities and improving the quality of life for Canadians.

This legislation honours Quanto, a police dog who was stabbed to death while helping to apprehend a fleeing suspect in Edmonton, Alberta, in October of last year. It also pays tribute to other animals that have lost their lives in the line of duty such as Toronto Police Service horse Brigadier.

This is legislation the police services across the country have been asking for for many years. That piece of legislation is before the House. The minister has already introduced it. How nice would it be for all of us to go back to our ridings, meet with the police chiefs, meet police officers, meet officers working with horse and canine units and tell them that finally we did something? We worked extra hours to make sure that we were able to deliver to our police services who use police animals as tools to keep our communities safer. We did something about it.

That will go a long way, not only for members of the governing party, but for all members from every party in the House. We are doing something that is correct. It is the right thing to do. It is responding to our first responders. The police services have been asking for this many years.

Mr. Speaker, I am asking that you let me know when I have a minute left so I can conclude my comments—

[Some hon. members]

Time's up.

[Costas Menegakis, Conservative, Richmond Hill, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I see that my colleagues from the Liberal Party opposite in their usual heckling way are trying to throw me off and I appreciate their enthusiasm, but there are a couple more things I want to say.

I have a number of letters that I have received from constituents across the country from different ridings attesting to their support for legislation such as Quanto's law. I want to take this opportunity to read just a couple of them because I am running out of time. A resident in Thunder Bay writes:

Please continue to push for the amendment to Criminal Code that says, anyone who knowingly or recklessly poisons, injures or kills a law enforcement animal, including a horse or dog, could be subject to the same five-year maximum sentence.

Another resident in Nova Scotia writes:

I am a parole officer at a community correctional centre in which we employ awesome drug detector dogs that come in and find contraband including drugs and weapons. It is not morally or ethically right that offenders could attempt to poison nor injure these law enforcement service animals and it be treated as a property offence.

As I wind down, let me say that I think every member in the House wants to be able to go back to their riding at the end of this session and say, “I, as your member of Parliament, worked those extra hours to ensure that we pass this important piece of legislation that means a lot to you, my constituents, my neighbours. I did the best I possibly could as your representative in the Parliament of Canada.”

[Bob Dechert, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Justice]

Mr. Speaker, that impassioned speech just proves to everyone what a great member of Parliament the member for Richmond Hill is and how passionately he feels about all this legislation before the House. He made a very good case for the strengthening Canadian citizenship act, showing why that is so important for the people of Canada and why we need to get that measure passed soon.

The member also mentioned Quanto's law, the justice for animals in service act that he was instrumental in bringing forward, and we all need to commend him for that.

I wonder if the member could tell us about some of the other important criminal justice legislation that is before this House today, such as Bill C-26, the tougher penalties for child predators act, and Bill C-32, the victims bill of rights act, which we hope to debate later this evening.

[Costas Menegakis, Conservative, Richmond Hill, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the hon. member, the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Justice, for his kind words and for his hard work. He is a tireless person and a tireless representative for his constituents in this Parliament, particularly on matters of justice.

Regarding tougher penalties for child predators, is there a member of Parliament or any human being in this country who would not want to have tougher penalties on child predators, those who would prey on the most vulnerable in our society, our children? We have an opportunity to pass a piece of legislation that would protect our children in their schools, in the play yard, in the community centre where they play a sport, in the park where they are on a swing. We can protect our children. How can we possibly say to our constituents that we have this bill called “tougher penalties for child predators act”, but we decided we did not want to work the extra hours between now and June and that for whatever reason, we got to this point and we were not able to pass it? We have an opportunity to stand up and do the right thing here.

[Laurie Hawn, Conservative, Edmonton Centre, AB]

Mr. Speaker, I must compliment my colleague from Richmond Hill on his excellent speech and, as was previously mentioned, for putting some passion to the issue, because passion is what we should be about in the House—passion, hard work, reason, and moving the yardsticks forward in whatever it is we are trying to do.

I want to talk a bit about Quanto's law, and I know my colleague had a lot to do with that.

Today the Minister of Veterans Affairs announced a half-million-dollar pilot program for getting companion dogs to veterans who are suffering from operational stress injury. That is a tremendously important thing. We have about 100 veterans now who have dogs. This will bring another 50 dogs to veterans. It is about animals, but it is also about Quanto's law with service dogs and other service animals that our police forces and other people rely on to help them in their work.

I wonder if my colleague can stress the importance of that issue, and the importance of staying here and getting these kinds of bills passed.

[Costas Menegakis, Conservative, Richmond Hill, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I know the hon. member has certainly done a lot of work as a veteran himself. I know he has served in the Canadian Armed Forces and I know how close he is to our first responders and I know how important it is to him as an Edmontonian that something is being done in the name of Quanto, a dog that was actually killed while in the line of duty in the hon. member's hometown of Edmonton.

A lot of people do not realize that in some cases it costs upwards of $75,000 to train one of these animals, and they have no choice when they are taken in as puppies to be trained. We have an opportunity to let our police officers know that the companion they trust their lives with will be looked after.

[Jinny Sims, NDP, Newton—North Delta, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I am so delighted to hear such an impassioned speech from my colleague about wanting to debate government bills and also to represent Richmond Hill and the constituents who live there.

However, when I look at the history of what has happened since we came back in the summer, since October, and we look at all the closure motions we have seen, we see that my colleague has actually only spoken to five government bills since the beginning of October, so this cry now that we need all this time to speak actually makes me a bit skeptical.

As I speak on a wide range of issues because they are so important in my riding, my question for my colleague is this. On this particular issue, if we sit until midnight, which I do not object to, how does the government's limiting the role of the opposition help MPs represent their constituencies?

[Costas Menegakis, Conservative, Richmond Hill, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I was particularly amused that the member had done a little research to find out how many different bills I have spoken to in the House since we came back in October.

I am proud to say that I have spoken on those five and on many other issues, as well as in committee. However, the member opposite should know that I will put my record for the hours that I put in for my constituents, both in this place and back in my constituency, up against hers or that of any other member in this House.

The people of Richmond Hill know that their member of Parliament works 24/7 for them, all of the time. Why do I think we need to impose closure on occasion? It is because of hearing regurgitated speeches saying exactly the same thing over and over again ad nauseam. I submit to the hon. member—

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[The Acting Speaker, Conservative, Bruce Stanton]

Order. The hon. parliamentary secretary is speaking at the top of his voice, but it is very difficult for members at this end of the chamber to hear him. There is a lot of noise in the chamber, and I would ask hon. members to keep their comments down.

The hon. parliamentary secretary.

[Costas Menegakis, Conservative, Richmond Hill, ON]

Mr. Speaker, actually I thank the members of the Liberal Party for their support. They are being quite supportive over here today.

What I do want to say to the member who asked the question is that to speak ad nauseam with repetitive speeches one after another after another serves no purpose. That is not why Canadians brought us here.

I will close by saying this. It is something that Aristotle said:

Political society exists for the sake of noble actions, and not of mere companionship.

We are not here to hear everybody say the exact same thing over and over so that they can get volume for the YouTube channel or measure the words or the number of times somebody gets up in the House, as the member stood up to do. We are here to act.

[The Acting Speaker, Conservative, Bruce Stanton]

It being 8:00 p.m., pursuant to an order made earlier today it is my duty to interrupt the proceedings and put forthwith every question necessary to dispose of government business No. 10 now before the House.

Is the House ready for the question?

[Some hon. members]

Question.

[The Acting Speaker, Conservative, Bruce Stanton]

The question is on the amendment. Is it the pleasure of the House to adopt the amendment?