Debates of Nov. 7th, 2012

Canadian Heritage

[James Moore, Conservative, Minister of Canadian Heritage and Official Languages]

Mr. Speaker, we do not support the bill. We do support the 2012 budget, which is consistent with our election platform.

We are making record investments in Canada's culture. We created two new national museums and the Canada media fund, and we have provided unprecedented levels of funding for the Canada Council for the Arts and our heritage. Our investments in Canada's culture are at an all-time high.

For these reasons, artists from across the country came to Parliament Hill last week to tell all Canadians that the government has kept the promises it made to artists.

Justice

[André Bellavance, Bloc, Richmond—Arthabaska, QC]

Mr. Speaker, although there are more and more revelations about the hold that organized crime and the Mafia have over entire sections of the economy—particularly the construction sector—the government is doing nothing. It is acting as though these criminals were not just as detrimental to society as terrorists, even though they corrupt public servants, sell drugs to our youth and orchestrate murders in broad daylight.

Why does the government not create a list of banned criminal groups, like the list of terrorist organizations, in order to limit as much as possible what they can do?

[Rob Nicholson, Conservative, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada]

Mr. Speaker, I am not sure where the hon. member has been for the last year.

I appreciate that fighting crime is not much of a priority for what is left of the Bloc, but that being said, we have brought in legislation concerning organized crime, making all murders automatically first degree. We have toughened sentences for gun crimes associated with organized crime, including drive-by shootings. We have eliminated house arrest for certain organized crime offences.

I suggest that if the member wants more, he should just read the bills we have been passing in this Parliament that he has completely missed.

Presence in Gallery

[The Speaker, Conservative, Andrew Scheer]

On the occasion of Veterans Week, I draw the attention of hon. members to the presence in the gallery of some of our war veterans, namely, Mr. Alfie Bojalil, a peacekeeping veteran; Mr. Arthur Rossel, a Dieppe veteran; and Mr. Ed Carter Edwards, also a World War II veteran.

[Some hon. members]

Hear, hear!

Government Response to Petitions

[Tom Lukiwski, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 36(8) I have the honour to table, in both official languages, the government's response to 59 petitions.

Tribute to Veterans

[Steven Blaney, Conservative, Minister of Veterans Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, in the foggy dawn of August 19, 1942, when Europe was under the control of the Nazi regime, 5,000 Canadians landed at Dieppe. Let us talk about one of those veterans.

Arthur Rossel was 22 years old and in a landing craft. He was part of The Essex Scottish Regiment from Windsor and said, “I was a lucky man because when we hit the water, I was supposed to be a bodyguard for the Brigadier-General”. It did not turn out that way. As he was trying to save the general, he was seriously wounded. He spent 18 days in a coma and months more in hospital following the raid. Arthur feels that he was lucky.

Nine hundred soldiers were not so lucky and fell at Dieppe seventy years ago. Close to 2,000 Canadians were taken prisoner.

A young French nurse, Sister Agnès-Marie, and her nursing colleagues welcomed these injured, maimed and dying soldiers and cared for them day and night with limited means. Soldiers told these nurses that they would free France for them. They told these nurses that they reminded them of the sisters in Quebec. This young French nun, Sister Agnès-Marie, put her own life at risk to care for these soldiers. Through her prayers and her tears, she witnessed the last moments of many soldiers' lives. That is what we are commemorating this week.

This is Veterans' Week, and today we, as parliamentarians, would like to take a few moments to pay tribute to veterans.

I would like to thank my colleagues for their presence here and tell them that Arthur returned to Dieppe 70 years later and received a hero's welcome. Arthur told us that he signed more autographs than ever this year because the people of Dieppe remembered the sacrifices and courage of Canadian soldiers. Arthur returned to Dieppe for a very simple reason: he wanted to pay tribute to his comrades who were not as lucky as he was and who never returned home.

Sister Agnès-Marie, the same nun from 70 years ago, was also there that year. She is 98 years old and she said that we must never forget the lasting scars left by these brutal massacres. She added, “They were fathers, husbands and brothers, young and old, before being dragged into a world war that altered the course of their existence. Alas, some did not even have the chance to experience the pleasures of life before going to war. Thrown into a dangerous raid, they were sadly unable to meet their objective, but they found their way to a blessed eternity.”

I believe that Canada should thank Arthur and the veterans of Dieppe for risking their lives for our democracy. Thank you so much, Arthur.

On the ground and in the sky, the battle went on during the Second World War. The efforts of approximately 50,000 Canadians who served with the Royal Canadian Air Force in Bomber Command operations over occupied Europe was one of our country's most significant contributions during the Second World War.

Ed Carter Edwards was one of them. In 1942, Ed enlisted and joined the sixth Royal Canadian Air Force group. He flew 21 successful missions as a wireless operator air gunner, but, unfortunately, he was shot down over France in 1944. He first made contact with the French resistance but then fell into the hands of the Gestapo. He was betrayed and ended up in a Buchenwald concentration camp. There he saw the atrocities of war. Luckily, the German airmen took him to a prisoner-of-war camp so he could escape.

He finally made his great journey with his son Justin. We are very proud, Mr. Speaker, that you were able to recognize Ed Carter Edwards today.

We can be so proud, as all parliamentarians can be so proud, of what our great veterans have accomplished. Their legacy goes on in Korea where we will be commemorating the 60th anniversary next year. It also goes on in our peacekeeping and NATO missions. It goes on in Bosnia. Canada and other peacekeeping nations faced huge challenges in the Balkans, and there was only so much they could do to curb the worst of the violence brought on by the hatred and viciousness of the combatants there. Many horrible acts were perpetrated that the peacekeepers simply could not prevent.

In 1992, Alfie Bojalil gained recognition and was awarded the commander-in-chief commendation for his participation in this effort. He was in the besieged city of Sarajevo. He returned on his own this year. Mr. Speaker, I thank you for recognizing Alfie Bojalil as one of our NATO and UN veterans and others for what they are giving us and what they are doing for our country.

But some never come back. On September 6, 2009, a few weeks before the end of the second mission in Afghanistan, Major Yannick Pépin lost his life when his armoured vehicle struck an improvised explosive device. I went to the funeral, where I met his wife, Annie Roberge, and their children. Today, she is courageously moving on with her life.

Today, we talked about Vimy.

Madison Ford has not been in a war. She is 16 years old and she is in one of my colleague's riding. She is a student at Bear Creek Secondary School in Barrie, Ontario. She travelled, along with 5,000 students, to the 95th anniversary of the Battle of Vimy Ridge this past April, and she wrote, “These soldiers gave their lives for our freedom. These brave soldiers gave Canada its identity of “the true north, strong and free”.

I was listening to her and I kind of envied her because I felt that she was speaking like the Minister of Veterans Affairs. However, the good thing is that the youth understand that not only was Vimy the birth of a nation, but when our youth go to Vimy, it is the birth of a new generation.

Madison is asking us one thing during Veterans Week. She asks, “Please take a moment to acknowledge the bravery and heroism of the veterans that are with us today. Thank you for your service and risking your life for me. Let us together listen to the final prayer of those sacrifices we are honouring. We may hear them say softly: 'I love my family, I love my comrades, I love my country and I will defend their freedom to the end'”.

I thank Madison for the great words she has written.

We can see that this is the Canadian journey. It has begun in many conflicts. We have seen Arthur in Dieppe. We have seen Ed in Bomber Command. We have seen Alfie in Bosnia, and we are still seeing our great soldiers in Afghanistan today.

We can say today, with hope, because Madison is reminding us that these youth care for our veterans. In the famous words of John McCrae:

To you from failing hands we throw

The torch; be yours to hold it high.

If ye break faith with us who die

We shall not sleep, though poppies grow

In Flanders fields.

[Peter Stoffer, NDP, Sackville—Eastern Shore, NS]

Mr. Speaker, I personally want to thank the Minister of Veterans Affairs on behalf of the official opposition for a very fine speech and kind words to Canada's veterans and the heroes of our nation.

I would like to share with members some of the names of so many of our heroes, over two and a half million Canadians, who donned the uniform of Canada: people like William Hall, an African Nova Scotian who received the Victoria Cross in Lucknow, India; John MacRae who served in the Boer War and in World War I and who gave us that famous poem In Flanders Fields; Smokey Smith from British Columbia who fought bravely in Italy and earned the Victoria Cross; and Tommy Prince, a brave first nations aboriginal with the Devil's Brigade in World War II. We must not forget that the first nations people in Canada were exempt from going to war but they went anyway to serve their country.

There are people like Jack Ford of Newfoundland and Labrador, the last surviving individual from the Nagasaki nuclear bombing. He was in the shipyards at the time and if it were not for the hole that he was in he would not have survived. He is a brave hero from the province of Newfoundland and Labrador.

Who could forget August 9, 1974, that terrible tragedy where nine Canadian peacekeepers were killed over Syria when a missile brought down their Canadian Forces Buffalo aircraft? August 9, 1974 is etched in the memory of all our peacekeepers for their brave service in peacekeeping missions around the world.

Ed Carter-Edwards, my personal friend from Ontario, served so bravely with the air force. Unfortunately, he was betrayed and was brought into the Buchenwald war camp. He survived and is still with us today. It is an honour that he is with us to share his story of what happened. Ed Carter-Edwards and many others of that generation deserve our undying gratitude for the tremendous work that they have done and the sacrifice they have made for our country.

I also cannot forget one of the bravest people I have ever read about, Captain Nichola Goddard. She bravely gave her life in Afghanistan for the peace, freedom and democratic principles that we hold so dearly so that the great people of Afghanistan could have what we have in Canada. Unfortunately, she gave up her life for those principles, but she did it so bravely. She would be honoured to know that she was the first woman killed in combat from Canada.

The reality is that she, like all other women who have served our country over the years, is a shining example of what happens when Canadians are willing to put their life forward so that we in this country can maintain the principles of peace, freedom and democracy and share those democratic principles around the world. I know for a fact that when Canadian soldiers, peacekeepers and veterans go around the world there are people in other countries looking up to our brave Canadian heroes and imagining what kind of country they come from.

What kind of individuals lie about their age, get into a uniform and sacrifice their young life in the fields of Europe or elsewhere? I will tell the world that those people are Canadians who sacrificed so much so that people like my family from the Netherlands could be free. The Netherlands today is a prosperous democratic country. Why is that? It is because Canada and her allies, the Polish brigades, the Americans, the British and many others went over there to fight against tyranny so that people like my family could be free. As my father said, “If they have a military like that, imagine what kind of country they come from”.

I am very proud as a Dutch-born Canadian to call Canada my home. I am very proud of the fact that over 5,700 Canadians paid the ultimate sacrifice and are buried in the soil of the Netherlands so that many of us could be free.

The sacrifices do not stop here. Many Canadians in uniform are serving around the world showing the world what it can be when one lives in a country of peace, freedom and democracy and the principles of the rule of law. This is what the men and women who wear the uniform do day in and day out.

I also pay a special tribute to the RCMP officers, firefighters, police officers and those people who serve our country internally to protect our citizens on a daily basis. These are the true heroes of our nation. Even though Remembrance Day comes but once a year, for those people who serve our country, Remembrance Day is every day for them and their families.

At the going down of the sun and in the morning, let us say, “We will remember them and god bless all their memories”.

[Sean Casey, Liberal, Charlottetown, PE]

Mr. Speaker, it is said that only a soldier can bear true witness to the nature of war and conflict. This is as true today as it was 95 years ago. For many of us in the chamber today, war and conflict are perhaps intangible concepts. As time passes and we lose more and more of our living links to those wars and conflicts of the past, our understanding will rely more on those stories passed from generation to generation, from family to family, as well as the stories captured in the recordings of our history books and the writings and poems of soldiers.

The First World War arose out of a series of complicated alliances, brewing tensions, efforts to maintain declining empires and the protection of territory and of commerce. It is telling that the killing of an archduke should trigger so much destruction and the death of millions of our fellow human beings. Valour and honour resided in those young men who took up arms and gave of themselves in the service of their country.

In his famous poem, Jorge Luis Borges laid out the sentiment in great clarity when he wrote:

It was their luck to be born into a strange time.

The planet had been parceled out among various countries, each

one provided with loyalties, cherished memories, with a past

undoubtedly heroic, with rights, with wrongs, with a particular

mythology, with bronze forefathers, with anniversaries, with

demagogues and symbols.

This arbitrary division was favorable for wars.

It is true that in the early part of the last century young Canadians left their homes, saying goodbye to moms and dads, saying goodbye to perhaps a lover or a wife. They were off to war. Some signed up for service, for duty and for adventure. What they confronted was anything but an adventure, but they were duty bound. They lived in rain-soaked trenches, endured the bitter cold of winter and every day confronted the possibility of their own deaths. They lived in conditions we could never fully comprehend.

They did all this in the service of their country and far too many shed blood for us. Therefore, today we remember Vimy Ridge. We remember Passchendaele. We remember Dieppe. We remember the Battle of the Atlantic. We remember all the battles from Kapyong to Kandahar. However, we should not glorify or revel in war, for to do so would bring dishonour to those who sacrificed so much. The young men who entered the call to fight, who took up arms in a cause greater than themselves, would have no doubt preferred peace over war.

I hope the House will allow me at this time to pay tribute to the profound role, and I would say the decisive role, women have played in the war effort. In August of 1914, life changed for Canadian women. It was a period when women were often relegated to their homes, cleaning the house and tending to their children. In the midst of the war overseas Canadian women got to work, literally. With so many of our young men overseas there was a significant void in the labour market. There were jobs to be done. In response, women worked in munitions factories, they became nurses, they worked in our shipyards and they still managed to raise their children. They too were heroes. They too sacrificed much. We remember their service to Canada and beyond and for paving the way for countless young women who followed.

I want to close by acknowledging one such woman. Nichola Goddard was the first female Canadian combat solider ever to be killed in action. She was a brave woman. She was strong in spirit. She loved her family. She loved her husband and she loved her country.

Nichola Goddard was born in Papua New Guinea, the daughter of British and Canadian parents, parents whose love of education and adventure led them to teaching in places all over Canada and eventually to Charlottetown.

It also provided Captain Goddard the opportunity to spend much of her childhood living in places like Black Lake and Lac La Ronge in Saskatchewan. She attended junior high in Edmonton and high school in Antigonish. She went to the Royal Military College in Kingston. She became a soldier, rising quickly to the rank of captain. She served with the Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry and her parent unit, the 1st Regiment Royal Canadian Horse Artillery.

Captain Goddard arrived in Afghanistan in January 2006, and on May 17, 2006, she died. Captain Goddard was standing in the turret of her light armoured vehicle, when it was struck by a rocket-propelled grenade early in the battle. She died instantly. She left behind much that day. She left behind a mom and dad, devastated by the loss of their daughter. A mom, a dad, a husband, siblings, all left with a range of emotions but enormously proud of her bravery and dedication in the service of others.

Today, as on other days, we remember Nichola Goddard and all the men and women who served their country and paid the ultimate price.

Lest we forget.

[Louis Plamondon, Bloc, Bas-Richelieu—Nicolet—Bécancour, QC]

Mr. Speaker, first of all, I would like to thank the minister for asking the government to allow the Bloc Québécois and the Green Party to pay tribute to our veterans on this solemn occasion.

Today, we are taking time to mark Veterans Week. It is important to commemorate the men and women who fought and those who never came home to their families.

World War I ended on November 11, 1918. Canadian and Quebec soldiers had participated in one of the most devastating conflicts Europe had ever seen. Many took part, and too many died. After the armistice was signed, Canada decided to designate a day for remembering the soldiers who fell at the front.

Ever since, we have paused on this date to remember our armed forces. Everyone in this House knows the difficulties they must overcome and the efforts they make. They accept the most perilous of missions without flinching. Their only reward is the appreciation and gratitude of their fellow citizens and the immortal memory that is kept alive in our words and our hearts. When we gather each year to honour the memory of the fallen, it is our way of saying a collective thank you. Thank you for your sacrifices. Thank you for your devotion to duty.

The people themselves make this very clear. One need only look, year after year, at the younger generations that take the time on November 11 to remember all that the veterans did. Some people travel to attend ceremonies and parades. Others wear the poppy. But all remember.

How can we forget the courage and valour of the women and men who donned the uniform and risked their lives for their missions? They are the ones who went to the front to defend the values on which our societies are based. When we talk about democracy, liberty and equality, these soldiers endured everything to ensure that those fundamental values are respected.

Human solidarity is on display whenever the time comes to help other people in their struggle to gain and preserve liberty and respect for basic human rights. Canadian soldiers are on the front lines defending these values, and we should never forget it. They accept all their missions with humility, determination and courage. We have a collective duty to remember that.

We remember, too, the men and women who took part in these conflicts out of uniform. We also remember the fathers, mothers, brothers, sisters and friends of these soldiers. We remember the families afflicted by the loss of one of their loved ones. This day is especially important to them, and we should underscore their sacrifice.

We remember our soldiers’ determination to accomplish their mission, restore the peace, and secure areas in order to help the civilians living there. Present and future generations are all indebted to our veterans. They are the ones who sacrificed so that we can live with our families in a world of peace and freedom.

This Veterans Week, the members of the Bloc Québécois are joining the other members of the House to say that we remember.

[The Acting Speaker, Conservative, Bruce Stanton]

It seems the House is accepting of the fact that we are extending the opportunity to comment under ministers' statements today also to the member for Saanich—Gulf Islands.

The hon. member for Saanich—Gulf Islands.

[Elizabeth May, Green, Saanich—Gulf Islands, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I wish to begin by saying a particular thank you, as my colleague from the Bloc has done, for this occasion for the smaller parties to join in today in a non-partisan sense. For that I thank particularly the minister and the government House leader whom I understand is largely responsible.

November 11 is a day to remember all of the soldiers who died knowing that they had been sent to the front lines to protect our freedom. We owe our respect and gratitude to the men and women of the armed forces who made the ultimate sacrifice by giving their lives to this noble cause. November 11 is an opportunity for Canadians to remember.

We remember those who gave their lives. We remember the shattered lives of the soldiers who returned from the war wounded in body and spirit.

My father was one of the veterans of the Second World War. He grew up in London during the blitz. I think he saw more death and destruction before joining the army than once he was in uniform. It was in going to war that my father became a pacifist.

We recognize the sacrifice of so many who have gone into peacekeeping missions, into armed conflict, selflessly. There is no greater example of selflessness than people who give their lives for a larger cause and we always say that their lives must not be in vain, but in doing so, we need to commit to greater efforts to avoid war, to avoid conflict.

We have mentioned many war heroes today in this chamber. I will not take long to mention a few more names, those who have sacrificed so much in war, have come back home to Canada and have had to continue to fight on behalf of other veterans.

I would like to particularly recognize Lieutenant Louise Richard, co-founder of Gulf War Veterans Association of Canada who, together with Captain Sean Bruyea, did so much to defend and help other veterans; Colonel Pat Stogran, who did so much as an ombudsman; and Corporal Dennis Manuge, whose recent effort selflessly helped so many.

I want to thank again the Minister of Veterans Affairs for putting the matter to rest after Corporal Manuge's efforts in court.

We recognize on November 11 the great sacrifices in war time, sacrifices not only of individual soldiers, but of those who love them, those who lost them, those who welcome them home with open arms. We remember on November 11 that many have given their lives for the life that we enjoy today.

On November 11, we remember with gratitude. On November 11, we remember and pray that war will be no more.

[The Acting Speaker, Conservative, Bruce Stanton]

I invite hon. members to rise and observe two minutes of silence to commemorate our veterans.

[A moment of silence observed]

Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development

[Chris Warkentin, Conservative, Peace River, AB]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the fourth report of the Standing Committee on Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development in relation to Bill C-27, entitled “First Nations Financial Transparency Act”. The committee has studied the report and has decided to make amendments to this report. Therefore, I report the bill back to the House with amendments.

Agriculture and Agri-food

[Merv Tweed, Conservative, Brandon—Souris, MB]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the fourth report of the Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-food, regarding Bill S-11, Safe Food for Canadians Act.

The committee has studied the bill and has agreed to report the bill back to the House without amendment.

Foreign Affairs and International Development

[Dean Allison, Conservative, Niagara West—Glanbrook, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the sixth report of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development in relation to its study on the role of the private sector in achieving Canada's international development interest. Pursuant to Standing Order 109, the committee requests the government table a comprehensive response to this report.

Canada Labour Code

[Sana Hassainia, NDP, Verchères—Les Patriotes, QC]

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-464, An Act to amend the Canada Labour Code and the Employment Insurance Act (parental leave for multiple births or adoptions).

Mr. Speaker, I would like to introduce my bill concerning parental leave for multiple births or adoptions. As some of you already know, I am the proud mother of a little boy, and this has led me to research the challenges faced by Canadian parents. I discovered that parents of twins or triplets face even greater challenges, not just because their daily lives are more complicated, but also because the law puts them at a disadvantage.

Parents who have twins or triplets only have 35 weeks of parental leave, the same amount as parents who have one child. However, welcoming multiple children at a time into their lives is not the same as welcoming one.

My bill would help these families by providing them with more leave, up to 72 weeks. The sole purpose of this bill is to help Canadian families, and I am certain that my colleagues from the other parties will support my bill as they care about the physical, mental and financial health of their constituents.

I would like to thank Ms. Kimberley Weatherall, of Multiple Births Canada, an association that has been working for several years advocating for the rights of parents of twins and triplets, as well as Mr. Christian Martin, who is the proud father of twin girls and who appealed to the Federal Court to be eligible for the same parental leave as his wife. Ms. Weatherall and Mr. Martin have supported my efforts in this regard, and I would like to thank them for their assistance.

(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)

[Nathan Cullen, NDP, Skeena—Bulkley Valley, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I will be seeking unanimous consent in a moment for a motion that we believe would accomplish a reasonable compromise on a bill that has been sitting, without being called by the government, since February 17 of this year, more than nine months. It is Bill C-32, an act to amend the Civil Marriage Act. The government has chosen not to call the legislation for all this time. We need to balance the expediency of having this legislation finally passed through the House, not only for a royal recommendation but also to ensure that the bill has appropriate time to be studied.

I seek unanimous consent for the motion, which reads as follows: That notwithstanding any Standing Order or usual practice of the House, Bill C-32, an act to amend the Civil Marriage Act, be disposed of at all stages as follows: not more than one sitting day shall be allotted for the consideration at second reading; if the bill is not reported back on the fifth sitting day after the bill is disposed of at second reading, during routine proceedings, it shall be deemed to have been reported from the committee without amendment; upon being reported from the committee, the bill shall be deemed concurred in at report stage and deemed read a third time and passed.

[The Acting Speaker, Conservative, Bruce Stanton]

Does the hon. opposition House leader have the unanimous consent of the House to propose the motion?

[Some hon. members]

Agreed.

No.

[Peter Van Loan, Conservative, York—Simcoe, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I listened with interest to the proposal of the New Democratic Party House leader for his first time allocation motion. I welcome him to the club, having proposed the allocation of time for debate on an item in the House.

We actually have a better idea to speed this up, and the other parties are aware of this. I propose the following motion, which would ensure that the bill gets to the Senate today: That notwithstanding any Standing Order or usual practices of the House, Bill C-32, an act to amend the Civil Marriage Act, shall be deemed to have been read a second time and referred to committee of the whole, deemed considered in committee of the whole, deemed reported without amendment, deemed concurred in at report stage and deemed read a third and passed.

By adopting this motion, the bill would proceed to the Senate today.

[The Acting Speaker, Conservative, Bruce Stanton]

Is it the pleasure of the House to adopt the motion?

[Some hon. members]

Agreed.

No.

Lyme Disease

[Gord Brown, Conservative, Leeds—Grenville, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I present a petition today from some constituents in my riding of Leeds—Grenville. The petitioners call upon the government to support Bill C-442, the national Lyme disease strategy act.

Patent Act

[Chris Charlton, NDP, Hamilton Mountain, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to table four separate petitions in the House today with hundreds of signatures all addressing the same pressing issue, the need for the House to adopt Bill C-398 on an urgent basis so as to facilitate the immediate and sustainable flow of lifesaving generic medicines to developing countries.

As members will recall, an earlier iteration of the bill was brought forward by my former colleague Judy Wasylycia-Leis, and although it passed in the democratically elected House of Commons, it died in the unelected Senate. Frankly, it was a disgrace.

As the petitioners remind us, in sub-Saharan Africa grandmothers are burying their adult children and caring for many of the 15 million children who have been left orphaned by treatable diseases such as HIV-AIDS, TB and malaria.

We have the ability to help. There is no cost to taxpayers. Let us get the job done.