Public Safety Committee on May 28th, 2026

[Frank Caputo, Conservative, Kamloops—Thompson—Nicola, BC]

You are answering questions I'm not asking, Minister.

I'm going to ask you this: Does China have to sign off on this MOU being released? That's it. Just give a yes or a no, please.

[Gary Anandasangaree, Liberal, Scarborough—Guildwood—Rouge Park, ON]

The MOU in question is very similar to other MOUs that were signed since 2010, including by previous prime minister Stephen Harper. The convention has been that these documents are typically not released.

[Frank Caputo, Conservative, Kamloops—Thompson—Nicola, BC]

I'm not asking about conventions, Minister. Please stop answering questions I'm not asking. Does China need to sign off on this MOU being released, yes or no?

[Gary Anandasangaree, Liberal, Scarborough—Guildwood—Rouge Park, ON]

This is our convention. This is the practice that we—

[Frank Caputo, Conservative, Kamloops—Thompson—Nicola, BC]

The convention is for China to have to sign off.

[Gary Anandasangaree, Liberal, Scarborough—Guildwood—Rouge Park, ON]

Mr. Caputo, don't put words in my mouth. Let's not trivialize the very important issue that you're undertaking here.

[Frank Caputo, Conservative, Kamloops—Thompson—Nicola, BC]

Let's not.

[Gary Anandasangaree, Liberal, Scarborough—Guildwood—Rouge Park, ON]

Yes, let's not. The MOU with China was entered into a number of times, including in 2010 under previous prime minister Stephen Harper. They have never been made public and that continues to be the convention.

[Frank Caputo, Conservative, Kamloops—Thompson—Nicola, BC]

Also, there wasn't a foreign interference inquiry. We had members of Parliament who lost their seats because of foreign interference. That happened under your government's watch, Minister, so please don't lecture me about Stephen Harper and how things have changed.

Does that MOU need China's sign-off to get released, yes or no?

[Gary Anandasangaree, Liberal, Scarborough—Guildwood—Rouge Park, ON]

As I've said already, that is the prerogative of our government, and as convention dictates, we do not release the MOUs—

[Frank Caputo, Conservative, Kamloops—Thompson—Nicola, BC]

Sam Cooper got it wrong...?

[Gary Anandasangaree, Liberal, Scarborough—Guildwood—Rouge Park, ON]

—whether they're with China or other countries, to the public.

[Frank Caputo, Conservative, Kamloops—Thompson—Nicola, BC]

Are you saying that Sam Cooper got it wrong and that China doesn't need to sign off on that?

[Gary Anandasangaree, Liberal, Scarborough—Guildwood—Rouge Park, ON]

I have neither read his article nor follow him.

[Frank Caputo, Conservative, Kamloops—Thompson—Nicola, BC]

I didn't ask if you've read it.

What he posted says that there has to be sign-off from Beijing. You have skirted around this. You can dance all you want, Minister. It's just a simple question, so I'm going to frame it simply. Does Beijing need to sign off on this MOU being released, notwithstanding the prerogative and notwithstanding Stephen Harper?

Does Beijing need to sign off, yes or no?

[Gary Anandasangaree, Liberal, Scarborough—Guildwood—Rouge Park, ON]

It is our government that needs to sign off, Mr. Caputo.

[Frank Caputo, Conservative, Kamloops—Thompson—Nicola, BC]

Your government won't be transparent with Canadians. Is that right?

[Gary Anandasangaree, Liberal, Scarborough—Guildwood—Rouge Park, ON]

Let's not play games here.

[Frank Caputo, Conservative, Kamloops—Thompson—Nicola, BC]

I'm not playing games.

[Gary Anandasangaree, Liberal, Scarborough—Guildwood—Rouge Park, ON]

Let's get back to—

[The Chair, Liberal, Jean-Yves Duclos]

I'm sorry to interrupt both of you, but that's all the time we have for this first intervention.

Let me now move to Ms. Dandurand for six minutes, please.

[Marianne Dandurand, Liberal, Compton—Stanstead, QC]

Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.

Minister, thank you for joining us.

First, I would like to remind my colleague Mr. Caputo that we introduced a motion to hear from more witnesses on the issue he mentioned. Accordingly, we would very much like to move forward with this motion.

Minister, I would like to draw your attention to a topic that is very important to me: cellular connectivity.

I come from a particularly mountainous region and live in a city of nearly 200,000 people. Yet, at home, I have no cell service—and I won't even go into all the rural communities around Sherbrooke. Many of them have no cellular connectivity.

For example, I've had reports from firefighters who have to leave the scene of an emergency to call for backup. Sometimes paramedics have no service either. If you're in a car accident, sometimes you can't reach emergency services. There are also shelters that find themselves in situations where they have no connection.

I would therefore like to know more about the importance the Department of Public Safety places on the issue of cellular connectivity in rural areas and what actions are being taken to improve the situation.

[Gary Anandasangaree, Liberal, Scarborough—Guildwood—Rouge Park, ON]

Thank you, Ms. Dandurand.

First of all, thank you for the question. I know that you are at the forefront of this issue and that your work is very important in moving this critical issue forward.

I have to say that I had the pleasure of visiting your community. I met with many civic leaders, including the fire chief. I understood first-hand, I think, the complexity, especially around border towns, not just with respect to rural connectivity but also the confusion as to jurisdiction. While I think border towns have always functioned as good neighbours whether they're on the U.S. side or the Canadian side, it is often confusing, and connectivity is a central issue. I fully recognize the challenges. I want to thank you, and I also want to thank the mayors and fire chiefs I met.

I will say that the work continues. We need to ensure that rural communities are connected. That's part of the work of our secretary of state, who continues to work on ensuring that all parts of Canada are connected, especially in Quebec. We will continue to work together to ensure that emergency services, especially, are well equipped with the resources they need to function in remote rural areas.

[Marianne Dandurand, Liberal, Compton—Stanstead, QC]

Thank you very much.

I think the people back home will be very happy to hear that you are concerned about the situation and that the government is taking action on this matter. Let's hope there will soon be developments.

Along the same lines, as you mentioned, my area is a border region. We know there are overall budget constraints and that, sometimes, public safety resources are first cut from areas outside urban centres. However, there are border crossings in my region—just as there are in my colleague Mrs. DeBellefeuille's region—that are very important.

How can we ensure that these vital services—particularly border security services—are maintained, given the current budgetary constraints at the Department of Public Safety?

[Gary Anandasangaree, Liberal, Scarborough—Guildwood—Rouge Park, ON]

I'm going to ask if it's okay to ask President O'Gorman to comment as well.

What I will say is that in terms of our border crossings, they're very much aligned to our U.S. counterparts. In terms of timing, in terms of hours of service, they're aligned, and they mirror what our colleagues on the U.S. side do toward border control.

The unique feature, I think, especially in your community, is that emergency services, for example, sometimes come in from the U.S. side. That can often be frustrating for community members, especially when it's an emergency. We're very sympathetic to that, and we are working towards a solution.

Maybe I can ask Ms. O'Gorman to comment further.