Mr. Speaker, next week Canadians are invited to join together to celebrate Citizenship Week. This is an opportunity to reflect on the many freedoms, rights, and responsibilities that we enjoy as citizens of this great country. It is also an ideal time for all citizens to reaffirm their commitment to Canada, our values and traditions.
Since 2006, more than 1.5 million new citizens have made a permanent connection to Canada. We are proud of this record, and we continue to ensure that we welcome even more new citizens to the Canadian family. With our government's recent changes to the Citizenship Act, connections to Canada are being strengthened and newcomers are seeing their applications being processed more quickly.
Next week, thousands of newcomers will become Canadians at poignant ceremonies from coast to coast to coast. I invite all Canadians to take part in Citizenship Week activities across Canada to celebrate all that it means to be Canadian and to show the world that we are Canada proud.