Debates of Nov. 22nd, 2023

Emergency Preparedness

[The Speaker, Liberal, Greg Fergus]

That is falling into debate. I thank the member.

[Leah Gazan, NDP, Winnipeg Centre, MB]

Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order. During QP, the leader of the Conservative Party referred to the environment minister as “crazy environment minister”. We are going through a mental health crisis in this country. I would like the member for Carleton to apologize to this House and apologize to people struggling with mental health across this country.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Greg Fergus]

I thank the member for Winnipeg Centre for raising this point of order. The Speaker did point out, during question period, the importance of using language that is respectful with respect to individual members of this House.

We are going to be moving on.

On a point of order, I recognize the hon. member for Madawaska—Restigouche.

[René Arseneault, Liberal, Madawaska—Restigouche, NB]

Mr. Speaker, it has become impossible to hear questions and answers here, especially the answers. The heckling always comes from the same part of the House. There is supposed to be decorum around parliamentary language.

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[René Arseneault, Liberal, Madawaska—Restigouche, NB]

Mr. Speaker, this perfectly illustrates my point. Parliamentary language has changed here. Some of our colleagues have started being rude, showing no manners, and bullying. That is heckling.

I believe that, as parliamentarians, we all have the right to clearly hear what other colleagues have to say in their answers, without feeling intimidated. In due course, I would like to know the position of the House on respect for decorum and parliamentary language. Things have gotten out of control.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Greg Fergus]

I would like to thank the member for Madawaska—Restigouche for his intervention.

As you all know, the Chair has already shared its observations and guidance on how members can behave in a more respectful manner while having passionate and focused debates here in the House.

I know that today, as is often the case on Wednesdays, there are a number of members, of all political persuasions, who are a little more passionate than usual, if I may say it that way. However, I agree that it is important that we all respect each other. When a member is speaking in the House, we must remain quiet and let the member express their thoughts. It is very important.

In this particular case, the Chair did hear the member's response. However, I encourage all members to exercise a lot more discipline so that everyone can be heard here in the House of Commons.

[Randall Garrison, NDP, Esquimalt—Saanich—Sooke, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order. With respect, I think if you examine the proceedings today, you will see that the point of order raised by the member for Winnipeg Centre is about the use of the term “crazy”, referring to someone's mental health as a pejorative.

It does not matter who it is applied to in this House. Her point of order was about the use of that term as a pejorative. I think you, Mr. Speaker, may have inadvertently confirmed that negative term in your ruling.

I would like the Speaker to examine those records, because I think we need to make sure that in this House, we respect all those Canadians who are struggling with mental health issues and not use mental health as a pejorative in this House.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Greg Fergus]

I thank the member, and I will take a closer look at the point of intervention from the member for Winnipeg Centre.

[Rick Perkins, Conservative, South Shore—St. Margarets, NS]

Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order. As you are examining this question, I would encourage you to examine the statement by the member for Esquimalt—Juan de Fuca on June 14, 2014, using the same word.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Greg Fergus]

I thank all members.

The House resumed from November 8 consideration of the motion that Bill C-316, An Act to amend the Department of Canadian Heritage Act (Court Challenges Program), be read the second time and referred to a committee.

Court Challenges Program Act

[The Speaker, Liberal, Greg Fergus]

It being 3:28 p.m., the House will now proceed to the taking of the deferred recorded division on the motion at second reading stage of Bill C-316, under Private Members' Business.

Call in the members.

(The House divided on the motion, which was agreed to on the following division:)

Vote #451

[The Speaker, Liberal, Greg Fergus]

I declare the motion carried. Accordingly, the bill stands referred to the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage.

(Bill read the second time and referred to a committee)

[The Deputy Speaker, Conservative, Chris d'Entremont]

I wish to inform the House that, because of the deferred recorded division, Government Orders will be extended by 13 minutes.

Public Safety

[Dan Mazier, Conservative, Dauphin—Swan River—Neepawa, MB]

Mr. Speaker, it is an honour to present a petition on behalf of my constituents.

I rise for the 26th time on behalf of the people of Swan River, Manitoba, to present a petition on the rising rate of crime. The NDP-Liberal government has neglected Swan River and its 4,000 rural residents, who have been impacted by a wave of criminals in the community. Four individuals in Swan River were responsible for over 300 offences in just 18 months, and 53 of those were violent offences.

The rural community is calling for action in the form of jail, not bail, for violent repeat offenders. The people of Swan River demand that the Liberal government repeal its soft-on-crime policies, which directly threaten their livelihoods and their community. I support the good people of Swan River.

Pakistan

[George Chahal, Liberal, Calgary Skyview, AB]

Mr. Speaker, my constituents and other Canadians have brought forward a petition regarding the people of Pakistan.

Pakistani Canadians are becoming increasingly concerned about reports of political turmoil and uncertainty in Pakistan following the unjust removal of a democratically elected government and the subsequent arrests of Imran Khan and members of his party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf. There have been reports of abductions, enforced disappearances and torture regarding political activists, their families and other state opposition.

The petition calls upon the subcommittee on international human rights to immediately begin a study of human rights violations, particularly towards minorities and human rights groups in Pakistan; the Government of Canada to implement sanctions on corrupt Pakistani military officials who have been involved in human rights violations; the government to work with the IMF to use its influence to tie loans to the condition that free and fair elections occur; and the government to implement a foreign agent registry to protect Canadians from foreign interference. The petitioners call for all these measures to continue until democratic institutions and human rights have been restored in Pakistan.

Old-Growth Forests

[Elizabeth May, Green, Saanich—Gulf Islands, BC]

Mr. Speaker, it is an honour to rise today to present a petition from citizens of Saanich—Gulf Islands and a number of others, who are very concerned about the fate of old-growth forests. This is e-petition 4277, with nearly 2,000 signatories; they are looking for action to protect old-growth forests and noting that the Species at Risk Act calls for protection of the ecosystems and habitats of species identified as threatened.

The petitioners note that these species are particularly threatened by industrial logging through old-growth forests. The petition goes into some detail about the specific types of blue-listed species that are only found in high-elevation, old-growth yellow and red cedar forests and specific types of lichen.

The solution that the petitioners point to is that the Government of Canada, using the tools that exist, such as the Species at Risk Act, can move to protect rare species of lichen important to ecosystems and immediately require that British Columbia uphold and enforce protections for these species across all Crown lands.

Climate Change

[Mark Gerretsen, Liberal, Kingston and the Islands, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I have two petitions to present today.

The first is from a number of Canadians who are calling to the attention of the government the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's most recent report, which has warned against repeating temperatures over the next two decades that will bring widespread devastation and extreme weather. They also bring to the government's attention that this impacts Canada today, with increased flooding, wildfires and extreme temperatures.

The petitioners are calling on the Government of Canada to move forward immediately with bold emissions caps for the oil and gas sector that are comprehensive in scope and realistic in achieving the necessary targets that Canada has set to reduce emissions by 2030.

Food Security

[Mark Gerretsen, Liberal, Kingston and the Islands, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the second petition is certainly a lot closer to home. It is being presented on behalf of Collins Bay Public School in Kingston.

The individuals who signed this petition are calling to the attention of the government that Canada is the only G7 country without a national school food program. They also remind the government that the 2022 budget reaffirmed mandate letter commitments to the Minister of Families, Children and Social Development and the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, directing them to work with provinces, territories, municipalities, indigenous partners and stakeholders to develop such a program.

The petitioners are, therefore, calling on the government, the Minister of Families, Children and Social Development and the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food to prioritize funding for a national school food program through budget 2024 for implementation in schools by fall 2024.

Electoral Reform

[Mike Morrice, Green, Kitchener Centre, ON]

Mr. Speaker, it is an honour to rise to present a very well-timed petition; a motion on this very issue is before the House.

The petitioners make a very strong case. They note, first of all, that the record-low voter turnout in the last Ontario election of 43% demonstrates increasing voter disengagement and that distorted results from the most recent federal election illustrates the need for electoral reform. They also note that citizen assemblies have considerable legitimacy and public trust, given that they are, by their very nature, non-partisan, truly randomly selected representative bodies of citizens with no vested interest in the outcome.

The petitioners point out that citizen assemblies allow for more nuanced public deliberations than do simple yes or no referenda. They also say that citizen assemblies have been used successfully in Australia, Belgium, France, Ireland and Scotland, and the list goes on. They say that a citizens assembly on electoral reform would give citizens a leadership role in building consensus on a specific model for electoral reform in this country, but it would need to be established as soon as possible to enable its recommendations to be adopted in advance of the next federal election.

As a result, the petitioners call on the House to establish a citizens assembly on electoral reform; to mandate that the assembly craft a specific, detailed design for an electoral system tailored to Canada's needs that would make every vote count; to complete its work within the next 12 months; and to collaborate across party lines to table and pass legislation to enact the changes recommended by the assembly in advance of the next federal election.

Human Rights

[Arnold Viersen, Conservative, Peace River—Westlock, AB]

Mr. Speaker, I have a number of petitions to present today.

The first petition is from Canadians across the country who are concerned about the human rights protections of people living in Turkey, Pakistan and Bahrain. The petitioners note that Turkish, Pakistani and Bahraini officials have committed gross human rights violations, including against thousands of Turks and eight Turkish Canadians. They say that Turkish officials have killed hundreds, including Gokhan Acikkollu, and wrongfully detained up to 300,000 people; they say that multiple human rights abuses are happening across Turkey.

The petitioners are calling on the Government of Canada to closely monitor the human rights situation in Turkey; to sanction Turkish officials who have committed these gross violations against Canadians and killed Gokhan Acikkollu; and to call on the Turkish, Pakistani and Bahraini governments to end all human rights violations in their respective countries.

Rights of the Unborn

[Arnold Viersen, Conservative, Peace River—Westlock, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the next petition I have is from Canadians from across the country who are concerned about the fact that over 300 babies die every day in this country, given the Morgentaler decision.

Since then, there is no protection for preborn human life in this country. Canada is one of only two countries in the world where this is the case, with North Korea being the other one. Over 98% of these deaths could be prevented by having better laws in this country.

The heartbeat of a human being starts when the baby is five weeks old.

Therefore the folks who have signed this petition are calling on the Government of Canada to create and strengthen preborn human rights in this country.

Medical Assistance in Dying

[Arnold Viersen, Conservative, Peace River—Westlock, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the next petition I have is from Canadians from across the country who are concerned about the comments of Louis Roy, of the Quebec college of physicians, when he recommended to a committee here in this place that euthanasia be expanded to babies from birth to one year of age. This proposal for the euthanasia of children is deeply disturbing to the Canadians who have signed this petition and they want to emphatically insist that infanticide is always wrong.

The folks who have signed this petition call on the Government of Canada to block any attempt to allow for the euthanasia of children.