House of Commons Hansard #48 of the 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was overdose.
Kent Hehr LiberalMinister of Veterans Affairs and Associate Minister of National Defence
Mr. Speaker, we have set up six advisory groups to advise us on policy, ranging from financial security to service delivery to commemoration and the like. We have consulted widely with our partners in the various groups, from the Legion through other members abroad. We will be going forward on these policy meetings to advise us of good policy for the long run for veterans and their families.
I can give the member more information as it proceeds along.
Rhéal Fortin Bloc Rivière-du-Nord, QC
Mr. Speaker, this week the Barreau du Québec submitted a brief to the Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights that confirms that Bill C-14 on medical assistance in dying does not meet the requirements set out by the Supreme Court in the Carter decision.
I happen to know that there are a few government MPs who are also members of the Barreau du Québec, and I am sure they could confirm the credibility of the representatives from the Barreau for the minister, if necessary.
Will the government, which includes 40 MPs from Quebec, nine of which are members of the Barreau du Québec, amend Bill C-14 to address the gaps outlined by the Barreau du Québec?
Sean Casey LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada
Mr. Speaker, yes, we did in fact hear evidence from representatives of the Barreau du Québec. However, we are very confident that the bill is consistent with the charter.
The document we introduced in the House provides a detailed explanation of the measures we have taken, which are consistent with the charter.
Denis Lebel Conservative Lac-Saint-Jean, QC
Mr. Speaker, I would like to bring to your attention a mistake that was made today. In a reply, the Prime Minister said that, in the last election, Quebeckers voted so they could finally have people in government.
I would like to remind him that I was elected in September 2007 and that I am a proud lad from the Lac-Saint-Jean region and a proud Quebecker.
The Speaker Liberal Geoff Regan
I do not believe that the hon. member's comment is a point of order.
The hon. Prime Minister on a point of order.
Justin Trudeau LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, I simply wanted to point out that for the first time in a long time a majority of Quebec MPs are in government.
The Speaker Liberal Geoff Regan
That is also not a point of order.
The hon. member from Regina—Qu'Appelle on a point of order. I hope that it is a genuine point of order this time.
Andrew Scheer Conservative Regina—Qu'Appelle, SK
It always is, Mr. Speaker.
I have a thing here that the finance minister may enjoy reading. It is the “Fiscal Monitor” from February, which proves that any deficit that Canada enters into will be as a result of Liberal choices in spending.
I wonder if I can unanimous consent to table it.
The Speaker Liberal Geoff Regan
Does the hon. member have the consent of the House to table the document?
Kevin Lamoureux LiberalParliamentary 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 one petition.
Mr. Speaker, while I am on my feet, I move:
That the House do now proceed to Orders of the Day.
The Speaker Liberal Geoff Regan
In my opinion, the yeas have it.
And five or more members having risen:
Call in the members.
Bill C-14—Time Allocation MotionCriminal CodeGovernment Orders
Beauséjour New Brunswick
Liberal
Dominic LeBlanc LiberalLeader of the Government in the House of Commons
moved:
That, in relation to Bill C-14, An Act to amend the Criminal Code and to make related amendments to other Acts (medical assistance in dying), not more than one further sitting day shall be allotted to the consideration at second reading stage of the Bill;
and
That, 15 minutes before the expiry of the time provided for Government Orders on the day allotted to the consideration at second reading stage of the said Bill, any proceedings before the House shall be interrupted, if required for the purpose of this Order, and, in turn, every question necessary for the disposal of the said stage of the Bill shall be put forthwith and successively, without further debate or amendment.
The Speaker Liberal Geoff Regan
Pursuant to Standing Order 67.1 there will now be a 30-minute question period. I invite hon. members who wish to ask questions to rise in their place so the Chair has some idea of the number of members who wish to participate in this question period.
The hon. member for Regina—Qu'Appelle.
Andrew Scheer Conservative Regina—Qu'Appelle, SK
Mr. Speaker, I want to pre-emptively address what I anticipate might be coming from the government side about the use of this procedural tactic, and I hope we can get down to the actual substance of the bill, debate on which is now being shut down.
What ever merit there may be for a government at some point or another to try to allocate time, this bill is of such an important nature. It is such a monumental shift for Canadian society. Many members wanted to speak to the bill. We had tried to find ways that we could accommodate that, while at the same time not unduly delaying a response to a court decision.
I know there are many different views on all sides of the House on this. I would like to ask the minister why she felt it was necessary, after only two complete days of debate, that we would now find ourselves shutting down debate, preventing members of Parliament to express the views of their constituents or their own conscience on this very important bill.
Bill C-14—Time Allocation MotionCriminal CodeGovernment Orders
Vancouver Granville B.C.
Liberal
Jody Wilson-Raybould LiberalMinister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada
Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to stand to speak about this. We recognize that the Supreme Court of Canada has put in place a deadline of June 6. We respect the Supreme Court of Canada in terms of responding to the Carter decision and have put forward Bill C-14 to do just that.
There has been substantive debate in the House. We have had over 21 hours of debate. Eighty-four members of Parliament, from every party in the House, have had the opportunity to speak.
We need to ensure we meet the court's deadline. We need to get this into committee so if amendments are proposed, they can be proposed at the committee stage.
I would further respectfully submit that yesterday we tried to extend the sitting hours as late as necessary to ensure that all MPs who wanted to speak had the opportunity to do so. Unfortunately, the opposition decided to limit the hours of debate.
Peter Julian NDP New Westminster—Burnaby, BC
Mr. Speaker, that is absolute rubbish, and it is shameful. The opposition parties were very clear that we wanted to debate the issue throughout the week. That was the initial government offer. Now we are seeing a shameful backtracking from the government.
The Liberals promised sunny ways. They promised that they would respect opposition parties in the House. I remember them promising as well that they would respect parliamentary debate in this place. They had no better opportunity to prove they would actually walk the talk than on Bill C-14, which is a non-partisan issue to which I think all members of Parliament want to give voice.
However, now we are seeing, shamefully, the use of closure to shut down what should have been a non-partisan debate through the course of this week.
What is even more appalling is that in the previous government, it would allow five days of debate. The Liberals are shutting this down after two-and-a-half days of debate, only. Why are sunny ways turning to dark ways, and why are Liberals shutting down debate on the bill after only two-and-a-half days?