Debates of Dec. 5th, 2016

Oral Questions

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

The hon. Minister of Democratic Institutions.

[Maryam Monsef, Liberal, Peterborough—Kawartha, ON]

Mr. Speaker, it is with a great deal of sincerity that I repeat what I said in this House on Friday. On Thursday, I used words that I did not intend to use. Also, the member addresses a valid point. I apologize, and I can promise that for as long as I can remember, I will be sure to do better every day in this House.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

I thank the hon. member for raising this issue, and I thank the minister for the apology.

Foreign Affairs

[Pam Goldsmith-Jones, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, on behalf of the Minister of Foreign Affairs and pursuant to section 7 of the Special Economic Measures Act, I have the honour to table, in both official languages, a copy of the regulations adopted on November 28, 2016, under the Special Economic Measures Act, entitled “Regulations Amending the Special Economic Measures (Ukraine) Regulations.”

Government Response to Petitions

[Kevin Lamoureux, Liberal, 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 10 petitions.

Justice and Human Rights

[Anthony Housefather, Liberal, Mount Royal, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the seventh report of the Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights on Bill S-201, An Act to prohibit and prevent genetic discrimination.

The committee has studied the bill and has decided to report the bill back to the House with an amendment.

Transport, Infrastructure and Communities

[Judy Sgro, Liberal, Humber River—Black Creek, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the seventh report of the Standing Committee on Transport, Infrastructure and Communities regarding Bill C-227, an act to amend the Department of Public Works and Government Services Act (community benefit) with amendments.

Canadian Bill of Rights

[Rachel Blaney, NDP, North Island—Powell River, BC]

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-325, an act to amend the Canadian Bill of Rights (right to housing).

Mr. Speaker, the government must make housing a priority. In the communities I represent and across Canada, we see a staggering need for proper housing at a reasonable cost. In Canada, people do not have the housing they need.

For this reason, I wish to table today an act to amend the Canadian Bill of Rights. This bill would ensure that the right to housing is firmly recognized as law. This would redefine the way we frame a national housing strategy and finally allow us to adopt our international responsibilities regarding human rights. When housing needs are met, we as a society can grow much stronger and more prosperous.

I would like to thank the member for Hochelaga for working so hard on the issue of housing. I look forward to the debate, and I hope to see all members in this House support this bill.

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

Department of Health Act

[Francis Scarpaleggia, Liberal, Lac-Saint-Louis, QC]

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-326, an act to amend the Department of Health Act (drinking water guidelines).

Mr. Speaker, it gives me great pleasure to rise today in this House to table this bill, which would require the Minister of Health to conduct a review of drinking water standards in member countries of the OECD, and if appropriate, to make recommendations for amendments to our national guidelines here in Canada with respect to drinking water.

This bill is aimed at ensuring that our drinking water standards are the best in the developed world. It is a way for the federal government to have greater influence in the body that establishes national but provincially implemented drinking water standards in Canada.

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

Hospital Parking

[Robert-Falcon Ouellette, Liberal, Winnipeg Centre, MB]

Mr. Speaker, today I table petition e-492 that calls upon the Minister of Health and the Minister of Transport to enforce the Canada Health Act, with our provincial partners, to ensure adequate, affordable parking for patients and caregivers at medical facilities.

I am proud to support Collin Kennedy's call for action to allow free parking for people undergoing serious medical treatment. Requiring people who undergo chronic treatment for a range of illnesses to pay for parking is unfair, especially when they may already be unable to work. Other countries and jurisdictions have already figured out ways to do this.

This petition has over 12,355 signatures and is currently the 10th most-signed e-petition of this 42nd Parliament. I am happy to see that so many Canadians across this country have come together to ask the government for action.

Algoma Central Railway

[Carol Hughes, NDP, Algoma—Manitoulin—Kapuskasing, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to rise again to table a petition with respect to the Algoma Central Railway passenger service. The petitioners are from Richards Landing, Echo Bay, Aweres Township, Prince Township, Goulais River, and Sault Ste. Marie.

The train has not been running for some time, and it has caused a major hardship, especially for businesses and property owners. The annual economic impact has been estimated to be about a $40 million to $50 million loss in northern Ontario, for a mere $2.2 million per year subsidy. Members can see that the impact is quite great.

The petitioners speak about the fact that it is also an issue for first nations in accessing remote regions of their traditional territories. They are calling on the Minister of Transport to put the Algoma Central passenger service back on line, in line with his mandate, which is “To serve the public interest through the promotion of a safe and secure, efficient and environmentally responsible transportation system in Canada”.

Falun Gong

[Candice Bergen, Conservative, Portage—Lisgar, MB]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present two petitions, signed by more than 300 constituents from my riding of Portage—Lisgar. These petitions are regarding Falun Gong. The petitioners point out that Falun Gong practitioners have been arbitrarily detained, including the family members of Canadians.

The petitioners request that the government bring forward measures to stop organ tourism and other concerning practises.

Syria

[Alexandra Mendes, Liberal, Brossard—Saint-Lambert, QC]

Mr. Speaker, in order to draw the attention of the House of Commons to the humanitarian tragedy currently unfolding in Syria, I rise today to present a petition to encourage action that promotes peace in that country.

This petition was initiated by members of the Diocese of Saint-Jean-Longueuil, with many signatures from my riding and neighbouring ones.

International Students

[Geng Tan, Liberal, Don Valley North, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present an e-petition signed by more than 500 citizens, residents of Canada, many of whom live in my riding of Don Valley North.

The petitioners call on the Government of Canada to conduct a study on equal access to both official languages training services for international students and graduates and on co-operative program policies that encourage and allow more qualified international students to gain work experience in the public sector to maximize the benefits of a culturally diverse workforce and to contribute to a multicultural society.

Genetically Modified Organisms

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise to present two petitions today. They both relate to the issue of genetically modified organisms.

The first is from primarily residents of the Lower Mainland, British Columbia, calling on the government and this Parliament to ensure, by legislation, that products, components, and ingredients that are sold commercially to Canadians have labelling to identify that they contain genetically modified organisms so that consumers will have a choice.

Genetically Modified Alfalfa

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

Mr. Speaker, the second petition comes primarily from residents of Ontario.

The petitioners are calling on this Parliament to ensure a moratorium to prevent the release of a newly modified product, genetically modified alfalfa. This concern comes from residents of farming communities who are very concerned that there be a moratorium to allow proper review of the impact on farmers in Canada.

[Garnett Genuis, Conservative, Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB]

Mr. Speaker, on a point of order. There is just a bit of background chat that translation is picking up through the audio. Maybe you could provide that information back to them.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

I appreciate the hon. member raising that. I think he has just provided that information, and I trust that will assist in removing that background in the translation.

Islam

[Frank Baylis, Liberal, Pierrefonds—Dollard, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I present an electronic petition initiated by Samer Majzoub, of Montreal, Quebec. The petition calls upon the House of Commons to recognize that extremist individuals do not represent the religion of Islam.

Since its founding more than 1,400 years ago, Muslims have contributed, and continue to contribute, to the positive development of human civilization. This encompasses all areas of human endeavour, including the arts, culture, science, medicine, literature, and much more. The petition also calls upon the House of Commons to condemn all forms of Islamophobia.

Canadians from every province and territory have signed this petition, and in a clear statement of support, the petition has garnered the most signatures in the history of electronic petitions, with 69,742 signatures.

Falun Gong

[Kevin Lamoureux, Liberal, Winnipeg North, MB]

Mr. Speaker, my colleague, the member for Portage—Lisgar, actually reminded me of a good petition I would like to table.

In July 1999, the Chinese Communist Party launched a nationwide persecution campaign to eradicate Falun Gong. Millions of Falun Gong practitioners have been arrested and put in custody and many have been sentenced to long terms of up to 20 years in prison, where torture and abuse are routine. Tens of thousands are feared dead as a result.

Petitioners are calling on parliamentarians to do what they can to improve public awareness.

Physician-Assisted Dying

[Mark Warawa, Conservative, Langley—Aldergrove, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I am honoured to present two petitions. The first highlights the issue of physician assisted dying. Petitioners are calling on Parliament to create legislation that would make it a criminal offence to force any person, against their will, to participate in assisted suicide or euthanasia.

Impaired Driving

[Mark Warawa, Conservative, Langley—Aldergrove, BC]

The second petition highlights Families for Justice. It is a group of Canadians who have had a loved one killed by an impaired driver. They believe that Canada's impaired driving laws are much too lenient. They want the crime called what it truly is: vehicular homicide. It is the number one cause of criminal death in Canada, with over 1,200 Canadians dying every year. Petitioners are calling for mandatory sentencing for vehicular homicide and are calling on Parliament to support two bills, Bill C-226 and Bill C-247, Kassandra's law.

Also, Mr. Speaker, if I had a petition to compliment you on your festive Christmas socks, I am sure I would be honoured to present that also.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

I am sure the member is out of order with that, but I thank him for the compliment.

Questions Passed as Orders for Returns

[Kevin Lamoureux, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Mr. Speaker, if Questions Nos. 559 to 567 could be made orders for return, those returns would be tabled immediately.