Thanks for having me at the committee.
I'm happy to speak to my colleague's motion, particularly at this juncture. I say “at this juncture” because I think there are many communities in this country that are feeling an increased level of anxiety, of fear and certainly of intimidation because, perhaps, they're an identifiable group or they follow a religion or they are a particular diaspora community.
That being the case, I think it's incumbent on this committee to report to the House on some of these measures we've talked about over and over again, whether in committee or in a public forum or on the floor of the House of Commons, and on how we want a place where people can come and live and feel safe, no matter whether they pray on Friday, on Saturday, on Sunday or not at all. The expectation is that Canada is a place where you can live free of any kind of threat.
I want to speak particularly to a few things in my colleague's motion. We've talked about this a lot in this country. In fact, the House of Commons voted on this in 2018, to designate and list the IRGC—the revolutionary guard in Iran—and the mullahs of Iran—those who have taken over the government and who rule with terror—and to ban them, effectively, from Canada, so they cannot organize, fundraise or recruit, because that's what they are allowed to do today.
We know that, by many estimations, there are about 700 Iranian agents living in Canada. We also know that the government, again, including the Prime Minister and all of the ministers who currently sit within the Canadian government, voted to ban these terrorists from Canada, yet we don't have that yet.
This is a time in which the activity of the regime has certainly increased. We've had about a year and a half of the Woman Life Freedom movement, over which Iran has certainly exercised a greater degree of influence, particularly inside Iran and outside of Iran in diaspora communities.
We know that Iranian-backed terror in the Middle East is fuelling the war chests of other terrorist organizations, like Hamas in the Gaza Strip. We know that they live in our community. They work out in our community. We know that the chief of police of Tehran works out at a GoodLife Fitness that is actually close to the riding of my colleague over there. We know that the health minister from the IRGC just had a steak dinner in the riding of another of my colleagues.
This is a community that is being terrorized by a regime that they left. This is a community that is so terrorized that they call our offices with a blurred-out background, in their cars, away from their homes, because they are afraid of being intercepted by the regime. Can you imagine leaving and fleeing a regime for a better life in Canada, and then having to call a member of Parliament from your car with a blurred-out background because you're afraid of the actions of that regime?
Now, what I don't understand is the government's not giving any reason for not banning this organization. In fact, as we understand it, from many who are talking around this town, this actually went back for a cabinet decision within the last two weeks, and they still haven't banned this organization.
This is one of the components needed to make sure we eradicate terror from our own soil. In fact, the Prime Minister, in the last two weeks, has talked about terror in this country. He used the word “terrorism” when talking about the shooting just outside of my colleague's riding in Montreal, where shots were fired at a school overnight. Thank God nobody was hurt, but that was just a matter of the time of day.
If it happened once, it can happen again. In fact, it did happen again. It happened again just a week later. These are shootings at Jewish institutions. We see that mosques.... We see people mowed down in the streets of London in front of a religious institution by a crazed lunatic. If that's not terrorism, I'm not sure what is. There is vandalism of Hindu temples. We see that. Anti-Sikh hatred in this country is on the rise. There is the burning of churches. This is just one of the reasons we want to bring this motion forward.
Another part of this motion is to evaluate Canada's threat assessment in light of the U.K. travel advisory we saw a number of weeks ago. That travel advisory said to exercise a high degree of caution when travelling to Canada. It declared, “Terrorists are very likely to try to carry out attacks in Canada.” We wonder why nobody within our authorities has said anything like that.
Another part of this motion is to remove red tape and speed up access to what's called the “security infrastructure program”, which protects communities at risk. The security infrastructure program was brought in by the previous Conservative government. A gentleman by the name of Stockwell Day, who was a great minister, brought in this program. I understand the program has.... There's been some tinkering around the edges. There have been some increases, of course, because the hate has gotten higher, but if you've ever looked at that program, you'll know you almost need a Ph.D. to apply for it. It's a complicated program. The terrorist attack I mentioned in London.... One of the mosques in London is still waiting, two years later, for funding from that program to protect its community. Smaller institutions don't have the resources and capabilities to apply for that funding. They're trying, certainly, to get their hands on some of that funding to keep worshippers, students and those who attend their community gatherings safe. They can't get their hands on it. This is another measure. It's not a question, necessarily, of funding. It's a question of how fast that funding flows and whether it flows at all.
This motion also brings forward an anti-hate crime task force, particularly to coordinate the protection of faith communities, Madam Chair, which have been under attack in this country. The rising tide of attacks against faith communities is something, frankly, that cannot be disputed. We see this in every single community. We see it among our own constituents and communities. They speak to us parliamentarians. They wonder why, in this country, they do not feel safe.
I wrote a letter to the Minister of Public Safety a number of months ago. Particularly after the heinous attacks of October 7, we saw a rise in anti-Semitism. Now, subsequently, we also see a rise in Islamophobic rhetoric and action right across the country. We wonder why there was no coordination. It took a month to respond to that letter, and even longer to act on it. We feel it's not there.
This motion speaks to a number of issues. Actually designate those whom the government promised to designate as terrorists as terrorists. We have heard this over and over again from diaspora communities. They are wondering who the constituency is here that is being protected by the government. Who is the government answering to? They, themselves, voted to list them as a terrorist entity and ban them from Canada, from organizing and from being able to raise money and recruit. Who is it they are protecting? It simply doesn't make sense to diaspora communities across the country—to Iranians who fled the regime to come here.
This is a simple number of measures to protect our communities from the terror that has been rising in this country, which our Five Eyes allies seem to believe is happening and which the Prime Minister himself admitted.
Of course, another part of this motion that I haven't spoken about yet—but I will—is the foreign influence registry. We've heard time and again from this government that this cannot be tolerated and they are doing everything they can to target foreign interference. Unfortunately, everything they can stops short of actually establishing a foreign influence registry. Frankly, we ask ourselves, oftentimes, “Why not go forward with this?” We want to see the government work to identify additional threats. Establishing a foreign influence registry is one of those.... They've continued to break their promise to establish a registry. This, of course, would limit the influence of foreign governments that wield intimidation within Canada, particularly over some of the diaspora communities we are talking about. They are afraid to live within their own communities.
This is not a country where you should be afraid to live in the place where you moved—to which you fled. I have a well-known story. I'm a child of immigrants who fled the former Soviet Union. They live in a neighbourhood with many who did the same thing. Many fled from Iran after the fall of the Shah. Many have fled the most brutal regimes in the world to find a better life in Canada. The fact that we can't explain to them why these things happen in our community—when they feel intimidated, when shots are fired at a school, when fire bombings target institutions, or when people are mowed down in the streets by cars simply because of the way they look or the faith they practise—or tell them we are taking it seriously here in Ottawa is a head-scratcher for everybody who chose to move to Canada.
In that light, under all of that, I want to make sure this committee reports to the House that the following measures be taken—I will repeat them one more time for the sake of the record: that we finally designate the IRGC as a terrorist entity under the Criminal Code and expel the estimated 700 Iranian agents who are operating here in Canada; that we finally establish a foreign influence registry; that we evaluate Canada's threat assessment, certainly in light of the U.K.'s travel advisory we saw a number of weeks ago; that we remove some of that red tape, or all of that red tape, to speed up access to the security infrastructure program to protect those communities at risk; and that we create an anti-hate crime task force to coordinate the protection of faith communities. Of course, these have been under a tremendous amount of threat in the last number of months and years. It seems as if all those communities are, frankly, more afraid than they were even two years ago.
These are just simple measures that would tell Canadians that their representatives in Ottawa—those who have the power to change things for them—are at least paying attention. There have been commitments made in this House over and over again, whether through votes, statements or bravado, which often happens in this town. Let them know, at a time when their communities are facing these threats, that we are working for them and also taking this seriously.
I'm very happy that my colleague brought this motion forward in committee, and I'd like to see it in the House. Again, these are five very simple, achievable measures that I think would increase safety in our communities and in the communities of many of my colleagues, two of whom were at an establishment which hours later was under attack.
I know that my colleagues have taken measures...through all of the resources that we're provided as MPs, but there are communities that don't have that. This isn't about protecting MPs. This is about making sure that people, particularly around holidays in many communities, go out and feel safe attending these community celebrations. They won't think twice about doing what should be allowed and should be celebrated in this country.
I want the House to talk about this, because certainly there is a timeliness to all of this. I want those who need to make that decision about whether to send their kids to school, whether to attend that community centre, to attend a menorah lighting...which I understand now is okay everywhere in the country, and it's doubly okay in Hampstead, I'm pleased to hear.
For all of those who are going to attend afternoon prayers or churches during the holidays, I want them to know that Ottawa is talking about how to keep those institutions safe. I frankly believe that without freedom of religion, freedom of movement, freedom of speech, there is no freedom in this country. It's one of the things we have to protect.
As much as I will repeat elements of this motion, I think it's quite important to talk about it in the House and to make actual policy. The protection of our state, of our institutions, of the people who live within Canada, of all Canadians, no matter where they're from, where they live or what they do, I'm not sure is a partisan issue. I'm not sure why everybody in this committee, and eventually everybody in the House, couldn't support these few measures.
With that, I'd like to thank my colleague for bringing forward that motion.
