Emergencies Act  Madam Speaker, the test is in the legislation. There has to be a threat that is national in scope. We did not have the tools available that could deal with that. This emergency is national in scope. It has impacted pretty much the entire country. There is not only the occupation of downtown Ottawa, but also the blockades that we saw in Windsor, in Manitoba at the Emerson crossing, in Coutts, Alberta and, most recently, in British Columbia.

Emergencies Act  Madam Speaker, the member opposite knows that politicians cannot dictate to law enforcement how to apply the law. We have to rely on law enforcement to do the work. We have heard from our interim police chief that the Emergencies Act allowed him to do the important work he has done, with the help of many other police services, including the RCMP and the OPP, to put an end to this illegal occupation here in Ottawa.

Emergencies Act  Madam Speaker, my heart ached as a Canadian when I saw communities in British Columbia going through the torturing heat or the flooding that I have seen just recently, or the parts of the country that experienced forest fires. This is a big country, and what binds us, unites us and glues us together is that we care for each other, so I say that I will stand with the member opposite, shoulder to shoulder, if her community goes through a disaster.

Emergencies Act  Madam Speaker, the member is right. He and I had the opportunity to work on very important charter-related issues when we were banning the practice of carding in the province of Ontario. The member was a city councillor then, and he and I worked together on that particular aspect.

Emergencies Act  Madam Speaker, what we have to remember in this instance is that for over three weeks, we were not able to put an end to the occupation. It continued on. Different tactics were used, with the application of existing law being present, but our law enforcement agencies were not able to end this occupation.

Emergencies Act  Mr. Speaker, thank you for recognizing me and giving me the opportunity to speak in this extraordinary debate that is taking place in this House. It is the Sunday afternoon of the Family Day long weekend in Ontario, but here we are, as parliamentarians, debating a very important issue.

Richard Patten  Mr. Speaker, I rise in the House to honour my late friend, Richard Patten, who dutifully served our community of Ottawa Centre as the member of provincial Parliament from 1987 to 1990 and from 1995 to 2007. During this time, he also served as minister of government services and minister of correctional services in Ontario.

Emergencies Act  Mr. Speaker, it has been four weeks in a row. The members opposite talk about listening to the protesters but they will not even listen to a member of this House to understand what my constituents, the members of my community, are going through. When did the line cross between this being a lawful protest, which we welcome in my riding and happen all the time, to an illegal protest?

Emergencies Act  Mr. Speaker, now I will speak on behalf of my constituents, which all of us are sworn to do. I ask the members opposite: If this kind of occupation was happening in their neighbourhoods in their ridings for four weeks in a row—

Emergencies Act  Mr. Speaker, as members are very much aware, my riding includes Parliament Hill, which has been under siege for over three weeks now. My community has been held hostage, and I can assure the House these protests have not been peaceful or lawful. My question for the Prime Minister is this.

Disaster Assistance  Madam Speaker, I want to thank the member for the important points he is making. On his first point, I want to assure him that through the disaster financial assistance arrangements, we are working very closely with the Government of British Columbia. We have received an initial assessment from it, and our officials are now reviewing that assessment for supports that would be available.

Disaster Assistance  Madam Speaker, I appreciate the comments by the hon. member for South Okanagan—West Kootenay. Our government absolutely recognizes the profound consequences that November's flooding has had on local communities in the member's region. Our thoughts remain with all those who were impacted by this tragic disaster.

COVID-19 Protests  Mr. Speaker, I agree with the hon. member on the point that Canadians have made a lot of sacrifices. They are following the public health guidelines. They are getting vaccinated. They are wearing masks. They are socially distancing themselves. It is amazing. I have two young children.

COVID-19 Protests  Mr. Speaker, the member opposite is right. I, along with the member for Ottawa—Vanier, am in the heart of this crisis. As I mentioned, the community's suffering is unbearable. I am starting to run out of words to explain it. That is why, as soon as this crisis is over, we need to start engaging and thinking about the future.

COVID-19 Protests  Mr. Speaker, I will address the second question first. I think the member opposite knows quite well that, in our system of democracy, politicians do not tell police officials how to enforce the law. There is a very important, significant and healthy distinction and differentiation between the two.