Harold Albrecht

[Fair Elections Act, May 13th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, a number of months ago, I had the privilege of serving with my colleague on the procedure and House affairs committee. I know my colleague does his homework and is very well-informed on this bill, so I was rather surprised to hear him, at many times throughout his speech, use words like “mistakes”, “concessions” and “changes”, as if this was something unusual that would happen at committee level.

One of the things that he referred to was the retention of the student vote program. I can say, with confidence, that many of us approached the minister and said that in our ridings, this system was working well. That is the reason for having studies at committee, to allow input into that committee to conduct a more in-depth study than we can do in the House, with all 308 members.

I am rather surprised, then, to hear my colleague refer to these changes as somehow “big concessions”. The very point of having our committees is to study in-depth the legislation that is proposed and to then make recommendations to the House after the in-depth study.

Why is my colleague implying that the committee's work is somehow to simply rubber-stamp a bill that was passed here at second reading? This is the job of our committees. Why is he implying otherwise?

[Relay for Life, May 6th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, Friday through Saturday, more than 700 students, staff, and community members from Waterloo-Oxford, my alma mater, will join together from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m.

I will be privileged to join them at their fifth biennial Relay for Life, raising awareness and much needed funds to fight cancer. They take the opportunity to remember those who lost a battle to cancer, celebrate those who have won their battle, and support those whose fight is ongoing.

Through the four previous relays, W-O has raised more than $360,000. Those numbers make this rural high school one of the top fundraisers across Canada. The last two relays each raised more than $100,000 in a community of little more than 20,000 people. Imagine if a high school in Toronto was able to raise $5 from each resident to fight cancer. There is no greater sense of co-operation than we find in our small communities.

I am proud of the students and teachers of Waterloo-Oxford for their efforts. I am grateful to the broader W-O community for supporting these efforts so generously. Cancer can be beaten. We just need a little more of that W-O spirit.

[Health, May 5th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, during National Mental Health Week, parliamentarians are encouraged to reflect on and learn about the issues that are faced each and every day by people with mental health challenges. By taking time to talk about how important good mental health is in our lives, we can better appreciate how we as a government can support those in need.

Can the parliamentary secretary please update the House on the work that our government is doing to support good mental health?

[Employment, May 2nd, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, too many recent Canadian graduates are underemployed while employers are searching for workers. In economic action plan 2014, this government committed to creating paid internship opportunities for youth.

Could the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Employment and Social Development update the House on the status of this commitment to our youth?

[Mental Health Week, May 2nd, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, on Monday, the first day of Mental Health Week, the Mental Health Commission of Canada will invite members of Parliament to lead 308 conversations about suicide prevention.

I am not an expert. Everything I have learned, I have learned from conversations with experts, service providers, survivors and many others.

Between May and August, MHCC hopes every member of Parliament will host similar conversations. It needs our help to engage our networks and to share what we learned, not only with MHCC but with the public. I encourage all members to join in Monday and start a dialogue on suicide prevention this summer.

I am also asking everyone touched by suicide, every Canadian working so hard to save the lives of vulnerable Canadians, to reach out to their members of Parliament and offer to help them start that conversation. Together, we can save lives.

In Canada, there are 4,000 deaths by suicide each year. Experts say that two-thirds of those are preventable. We need to talk about suicide and suicide prevention because not talking about it is not working.

[First Nations Control of First Nations Education Act, April 30th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, the member for St. Paul's has suggested that under Bill C-33, the Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development would have extraordinary powers, but unfortunately, that statement is not true. In fact, under Bill C-33, the Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development would have less control over first nations education than the provincial ministers would have over provincial education.

Could the member opposite please explain why, if the minister has such excessive powers, the Assembly of First Nations has endorsed Bill C-33, not once but on two different occasions?

[Petitions, April 30th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, I present a petition today from a number of petitioners in my riding in the Waterloo region.

The petitioners ask Parliament to refrain from making any changes to the Seeds Act or to the Plant Breeders' Rights Act through Bill C-18.

[Protecting Canadians from Online Crime Act, April 28th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for outlining some of the effects of Bill C-13 and how it would help to modernize the tools available to our police forces to investigate, to actually reflect the fact that there are many changes in modern technology.

A number of years ago I introduced a private member's motion in the House, Motion No. 388, which sought to clarify an offence in the Criminal Code of encouraging someone to die by suicide. While it currently is an offence in the Criminal Code, it was not clear in the code as to whether that included telecommunications and Internet technology. Motion No. 388, which passed unanimously in the House, called on government to implement some of those changes.

I was pleased to note that in the comments made by my colleague and also some comments I was able to read that the bill would actually give police better tools to track and trace telecommunications, their origins and destinations. Could my colleague highlight how the bill would make it impossible for those who would presume to hide behind the anonymity of the Internet to continue to do that kind of devious work?

[Mental Health, April 10th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, today marks my 3,000th day serving as the member of Parliament for Kitchener—Conestoga.

I can no longer count the number of times I have risen in this House to speak to issues regarding mental health, mental illness, and suicide prevention. In Canada, we suffer about 4,000 deaths by suicide each year. About 90% of those victims suffered from a diagnosable mental illness.

Today, members of the Canadian Psychiatric Association are on the Hill, raising awareness of the policies, programs, and investments to prevent and treat mental illness. The CPA asked our government to continue to strengthen the mental health services we deliver, and it expressed its willingness to partner in this effort. At the CPA's breakfast this morning, I heard the stories of Matt and Rachel, two ordinary Canadians, and how they are successfully managing their illness and leading productive lives.

To break the stigma surrounding mental illness, we need to talk about it.

Congratulations to Matt and Rachel for their courage, and our thanks go to the CPA for ensuring that their story is heard.

[Business of Supply, April 10th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, I am sure that, when Canadians became aware that my colleague from Malpeque was speaking today, they were suddenly glued to their TVs, hoping he might repeat the little pigeon dance that he did yesterday. He disappointed a lot of Canadians, I am sure.

His leader believes that our budgets will actually balance themselves, that we do not need to balance the books, and that they will all look after themselves, but I am wondering if that is what maybe the hon. member thinks as well in regard to debate in Parliament. We could just debate and debate, never call for an actual decision, and just waste time.

All of us have to plan our lives in a way that we can actually accomplish something. Does my colleague not agree that there comes a time when we need to stand up and vote and make a decision?