The Budget  Mr. Speaker, our plan to strengthen the middle class and grow the economy would lead to a country where people who work hard can look forward to a good standard of living, a secure retirement, and better prospects for their children. Our Canada child benefit will lift 300,000 children out of poverty.

The Budget  Mr. Speaker, after 10 years of weak growth, Canadians have voted for a change. We ran on a commitment to reinvest in Canada's infrastructure and middle-class families, after many years of neglect by the previous government. We are clear that this will mean several years of budgetary deficits, but invest we must.

The Budget  Mr. Speaker, we are investing in Canada's economy. I had one constituent in the summer tell me at the doorstep that when the pipes in the house are leaking we do not rush to pay the mortgage off early; we take out a home improvement loan and we fix the pipes. Well, Canada's pipes are leaking, and we are going to fix them by investing in Canada's economy and lifting 300,000 children out of poverty.

The Budget  It is a new day for Canadian families, Mr. Speaker, and it is a true privilege to rise in the House to speak in favour of the government's budget. This is a budget that finally gives middle-class families and those working hard to join them a long overdue helping hand. My riding of Scarborough Centre is a community of hard-working middle-class families.

The Budget  Mr. Speaker, this is certainly an exciting day for Canadians as the Minister of Finance has shared our plan to grow the economy and strengthen the middle class. As I knocked on thousands of doors during the recent election campaign, many hard-working middle-class Canadians in my riding of Scarborough Centre consistently told me that they wanted an economy that worked for them.

Citizenship Act  Mr. Speaker, yes, we are reducing the time period from four years to three years because we feel that those people who are contributing to the economy and want to join us and enjoy their rights as Canadian citizens should be allowed to apply earlier. The time period will be reduced from four years to three years before they can apply for Canadian citizenship.

Citizenship Act  Mr. Speaker, during the election campaign, the Liberal Party promised to repeal the unfair and reprehensible parts of the previous Conservative bill, Bill C-24, and that is exactly what we are doing with Bill C-6. The two-tier citizenship provisions that were contrary to the Canadian values of equality and inclusiveness will be gone.

Citizenship Act  Mr. Speaker, I agree that we need to be concerned about security. We also need to be concerned for our Canadian values. If we allow terrorists to change who we are as Canadians, if we allow terror groups to alter our fundamental Canadian identity, then the terrorists will have succeeded.

Citizenship Act  Mr. Speaker, it is truly a pleasure to rise in the House today in support of Bill C-6, for this is very much a bill that speaks to the heart of why I am so proud to be Canadian and what makes our country the envy of the world. In my first speech in the House as the member of Parliament for Scarborough Centre, I spoke about how my husband and I came to Canada from Pakistan about 16 years ago to provide better opportunities for our children.

Citizenship Act  Mr. Speaker, it has been noted that this legislation will reduce the age where applicants for citizenship need to demonstrate knowledge and language proficiency to ages 18 to 54. This seems to be a fair range. Would the hon. minister perhaps discuss with the House why asking a 64-year-old grandmother, who is reuniting with her family, to pass an English test is somewhat unfair?

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship  Mr. Speaker, my riding of Scarborough Centre is one of the most diverse communities in Canada. The Prime Minister came to my campaign office during the election and promised to repeal the second class citizenship provision of Bill C-24, telling my constituents that a Canadian is a Canadian is a Canadian.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship  Mr. Speaker, we recently celebrated Family Day in Ontario. I rise to welcome two new families from Syria to our Canadian family, and to my riding of Scarborough Centre. The Al Jawabrah family are sponsored by the Jame Abu Bakr Siddique mosque, and I was pleased to meet Luai, Heba, and their children at the North American Muslim Foundation's Family Day event.

Canada's Contribution to the Effort to Combat ISIL  Mr. Speaker, in the last election campaign, we ran on a commitment to end our participation in the air strikes and refocus our contribution to the international coalition on training and greater humanitarian support. That is exactly what this government is doing. We are proud of the contribution that our airmen and airwomen have made to the international coalition.

Canada's Contribution to the Effort to Combat ISIL  Mr. Speaker, we are doing what is the best solution right now in the present circumstances, and refocusing our combat mission. That is what we promised during the election campaign. We are changing it to being humanitarian based and providing more training and surveillance services.

Canada's Contribution to the Effort to Combat ISIL  Mr. Speaker, as a Canadian, I am proud of the work that our men and women in uniform have done in Iraq and in other deployments. I want to thank them all for all the work they have done. As Canadians, it is our responsibility both abroad and at home to provide them with the necessary support they need at the time.