An Act for the Substantive Equality of Canada's Official Languages  Madam Speaker, I sincerely thank my colleague, who sits with me on the Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration. I know he was there during today's committee meeting when the minister announced that we would be opening two more visa offices in Africa. My colleague knows that we are making a lot of progress.

An Act for the Substantive Equality of Canada's Official Languages  Madam Speaker, I really appreciate that question from my colleague, who is also a member of the Standing Committee on Official Languages. As I just said in my speech on Bill C‑13, we want this policy to help the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship build on efforts to increase francophone immigration to Canada.

An Act for the Substantive Equality of Canada's Official Languages  Madam Speaker, I think the bill is pretty specific. We are talking about francophone immigration outside Quebec and asking the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship to work with everybody to make sure that francophone immigration continues to increase in Canada and Quebec.

An Act for the Substantive Equality of Canada's Official Languages  Madam Speaker, I rise this evening to talk about our official languages and Bill C‑13, which proposes a long-awaited reform of our language framework. As a francophone from southwestern Ontario, I am proud to be able to rise in the House of Commons to speak to this bill, which would support the modernization of the Official Languages Act in Canada.

An Act for the Substantive Equality of Canada's Official Languages  Madam Speaker, my Bloc Québécois colleague gave a very spirited speech. I appreciate his fight to preserve the French language in Quebec. I also thank him for understanding that a large percentage of francophones are in Africa. However, I have the impression that my colleague across the aisle does not understand that francophones outside of Quebec are also a minority.

Environment  Mr. Speaker, next week will mark Endangered Species Day, and soon after is the International Day for Biological Diversity. It is a time to reflect on nature and conservation, particularly in Canada's urban spaces, which are home to three-quarters of Canadians. Urban parks have a role to play in supporting species to survive and offering residents benefits like cool spaces among the heat islands in our urban environments.

International Development  Mr. Speaker, we know that the pandemic has disproportionately affected women, especially the millennial women and girls. This is much more true for women and girls in the global south, for whom the pandemic has reversed decades of hard work in the development gains. Could the Minister of International Development tell us how Canada is going to ensure that all women, adolescents and children not only survive this pandemic but thrive?

Health  Mr. Speaker, LGBTQ+ rights are human rights, and we know that there is still more work to be done. For years, LGBTQ+ communities have been calling for a non-discriminatory blood donation system. Today, Health Canada approved the request from Canadian Blood Services. Could the Minister of Health tell us more about this historic announcement and the impact it will have on these communities?

Rwandan Genocide  Mr. Speaker, 28 years ago today, more than one million people died in the genocide against the Tutsis in Rwanda, and to this the world said “never again”. “Never again”, but yet again the world is dealing with the consequences of not seeing each other's humanity. I want Rwandans watching this today from my riding of London West and across Canada to know that the world sees them and the world recognizes their resilience and willingness to rebuild and to walk the path of reconciliation no matter how hard it is and how hard it has been.

Small Business  Mr. Speaker, as Women's History Month comes to an end today, women still face systemic barriers to participate in our economy, and there is still a lot of work that needs to be done for women entrepreneurs, especially those who are under-represented. Women should be celebrated every day and have equal chances to prosper.

Affordable Housing  Mr. Speaker, access to quality and affordable housing helps to create a stable environment for children by reducing frequent family moves, affecting the stability and well-being of families. I am proud to see the many investments happening across the country to continue to address housing needs.

Women and Gender Equality  Mr. Speaker, March 8 is International Women's Day, a time to celebrate women's and girls' achievements and crucial contributions to our society. International Women's Day is also a moment to raise awareness of the progress made toward gender equality and to look to the work that remains to be done for the equality of all women in Canada and abroad.

Seniors  Mr. Speaker, some working low-income seniors in this country have had a challenging time making ends meet during this pandemic, which is why they turned to what most Canadians did, the CERB and other pandemic benefits. While we are going to be supporting people who suffered drops in their GIS and allowance compensation payments, the Minister of Seniors' mandate letter also called on us to look forward.

Old Age Security Act  Madam Speaker, I want to thank the member for her comments and her really great speech. I agree with her that it is time for this bill to pass and to pass quickly. We have talked about how much all of us really want to support seniors and how many of us were sent to this House by seniors to be strong advocates for them.

Nutrition International  Mr. Speaker, this week is International Development Week, a chance for all of us to come together and celebrate our achievements in international development. Today, I am particularly pleased to draw attention to Nutrition International, an international organization headquartered here in Canada, which this year is celebrating 30 years of making a difference for millions of people living in vulnerable situations.