Thank you, Mr. Chair.
I would first like to thank our witnesses for being here today.
If you don’t mind, before I begin my questions, I would like to respond to the letter that we have received from Trisha Mitrocsak.
I would like to remind the members of the committee that our comments can truly have an impact on those who hear them. When a member of Parliament refers to immigrants as bad apples, that has consequences. When another MP can’t stop talking about terrorism and radicalization in relation to immigration, that can also have consequences. Make no mistake about it. I could talk at length about the consequences. I have seen the real impact of those comments in a society that claims to be united. Some of our comments can go beyond the context of our speeches and can make people react. Those people don’t know all the ins and outs of everything we discuss in committee. As a matter of fact, that can really make people have a feeling of rejection and create division in our society.
I simply wanted to alert all the members, including those of our party, and ask them to tone down their comments, to exercise sound judgment at all times when they say something and to avoid stigmatizing people.
I will continue with my questions.