House of Commons Hansard #340 of the 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was inmates.
The Speaker Liberal Geoff Regan
Pursuant to section 79.2(2) of the Parliament of Canada Act, it is my duty to present to the House a report from the Parliamentary Budget Officer entitled “Labour Market Assessment--2018”.
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 three petitions.
Canada-Israel Free Trade Agreement Implementation ActRoutine Proceedings
Liberal
Bardish Chagger Liberal Waterloo, ON
moved for leave to introduce Bill C-85, An Act to amend the Canada-Israel Free Trade Agreement Implementation Act and to make related amendments to other Acts.
(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)
Colin Carrie Conservative Oshawa, ON
Mr. Speaker, I am honoured to table a petition from my constituents in Oshawa. They are concerned about the Liberals' manipulation of the summer jobs program and its attestation test. In Oshawa, it primarily affects faith-based organizations that hire summer students to provide summer camps, day camps and things along these lines.
It is a huge precedent denying funding for Canadians simply because they have a different belief than the government of the day. There is a concern about what is next. The petitioners are calling on the government to end this discrimination against faith-based organizations.
Sheri Benson NDP Saskatoon West, SK
Mr. Speaker, it is an honour to table this petition. The petitioners are calling on the government to adopt Motion No. 166 on postal banking. They point out the fact that many people are relying on payday lenders and that Canada Post has over 3,800 outlets where it could, in regions that are rural and northern, serve people who generally are unbanked.
John Nater Conservative Perth—Wellington, ON
Marjolaine Boutin-Sweet NDP Hochelaga, QC
Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to present a petition signed by several hundred people, most of them from Quebec but also some from other places in Canada. According to the petitioners, there is far too much plastic in our lakes, rivers and oceans. They are asking the government to adopt a national strategy to combat plastic pollution in collaboration with first nations, the provinces and municipalities.
Dave MacKenzie Conservative Oxford, ON
Jamie Schmale Conservative Haliburton—Kawartha Lakes—Brock, ON
Fin Donnelly NDP Port Moody—Coquitlam, BC
Mr. Speaker, I rise today to present a petition from many petitioners throughout Quebec and the country. They are very concerned that the government would purchase Kinder Morgan, making such a poor decision with the investment of tax dollars.
Arnold Viersen Conservative Peace River—Westlock, AB
Martin Shields Conservative Bow River, AB
Christine Moore NDP Abitibi—Témiscamingue, QC
Mr. Speaker, today I am presenting a petition against the wine and alcohol excise tax hike in the previous Liberal budget. The tax hike is hurting small wineries and microbreweries in my riding, and the petitioners strongly oppose it.
Garnett Genuis Conservative Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB
Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to also table a petition in support of Bill C-350 and Bill S-240. These are important bills that would address the issue of international organ harvesting, making it a criminal offence for a Canadian to go abroad and obtain an organ for which there has not been consent, and that would also deal with inadmissibility to Canada of people who have been involved in international organ trafficking.
David Yurdiga Conservative Fort McMurray—Cold Lake, AB
Mr. Speaker, I also stand today to present a petition regarding Bill C-350 regarding the international harvesting of organs.
Michael Cooper Conservative St. Albert—Edmonton, AB
Scott Reid Conservative Lanark—Frontenac—Kingston, ON
Mr. Speaker, I too am rising with a petition in support of these two bills, one from the Senate and one from the House. The issue of organ harvesting to which attention is drawn by the petitioners is one that has resulted in the deaths of many thousands of involuntary donors of organs, prisoners whose organs are harvested in an abuse of human rights that has had no parallel since the abuses of the Nazis in the Second World War. We need to try to stop this. That is what the petitioners want us to do, and these bills would help accomplish that goal.
Kevin Lamoureux LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons
Mr. Speaker, I would ask that all questions be allowed to stand.
Bill C-83--Time Allocation MotionCorrections and Conditional Release ActRoutine Proceedings
Waterloo Ontario
Liberal
Bardish Chagger LiberalLeader of the Government in the House of Commons
Mr. Speaker, I move:
That, in relation to Bill C-83, An Act to Amend the Corrections and Conditional Release Act and another Act, 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.
Bill C-83--Time Allocation MotionCorrections and Conditional Release ActRoutine Proceedings
Liberal
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 places so that the Chair will have some idea of the number of members who wish to participate in this question period.
The hon. House Leader of the Official Opposition.
Bill C-83--Time Allocation MotionCorrections and Conditional Release ActRoutine Proceedings
Conservative
Candice Bergen Conservative Portage—Lisgar, MB
Mr. Speaker, this is indicative of what the Liberals have been doing overall on this bill, which is very disturbing to see. This is a bill that would have a direct effect on the men and women who put their lives on the line every day dealing with the most dangerous, horrific criminals in Canada.
Corrections officers do not like this bill. The government has not talked with them about this bill. It has not talked or consulted with them on the very dangerous and very real implications for the men and women who serve as corrections officers.
This bill would be taking away the ability of corrections officers to put individuals in solitary confinement for the protection of other inmates, the protection of themselves or the protection of guards.
We are again seeing the Liberals focusing on protecting criminals, focusing on worrying about the comfort of criminals who are serving their time in federal penitentiaries, and shutting down any discussion or debate. It is shameful to see.
Bill C-83--Time Allocation MotionCorrections and Conditional Release ActRoutine Proceedings
Dominic LeBlanc Minister of Intergovernmental and Northern Affairs and Internal Trade, Lib.
Mr. Speaker, it will not surprise or shock anyone that I disagree with most, if not all, of those comments. First, what we are seeking to do is to send this legislation to committee. This legislation will have been before the House for three days.
My hon. colleague referred to the importance of hearing from correctional officers. I personally have a large federal correctional institution in my riding. In fact, there are three institutions. I have had a chance to meet with the union representatives for correctional officers on a number of occasions. I think it is always important to listen to those men and women who work in the system. Having the legislation at committee would allow us to do exactly that.
As my hon. colleague noted, this legislation has been before the House for some time. If we fail to enact legislation by December of this year or January of next year, because of court decisions in two jurisdictions, we could very well find ourselves in a situation where the institutions would have no recourse to the proper tools to ensure safety.
Bill C-83--Time Allocation MotionCorrections and Conditional Release ActRoutine Proceedings
NDP
Matthew Dubé NDP Beloeil—Chambly, QC
Mr. Speaker, if I am not mistaken, this is the 48th time this government has moved time allocation. With the election only a year away, I imagine the Liberals are trying to step up the pace in order to match the record set by the previous government. In terms of the bill's substance, it basically changes a term; it makes a minor change to administrative segregation. Ultimately, it solves nothing. Ontario and British Columbia courts have ruled that administrative segregation is unconstitutional.
The minister just mentioned the two decisions in question and the fact that measures need to be taken quickly. However, I wonder if the minister can explain to me why his party is rushing a bill that completely fails to address those court decisions. On top of that, we had a bill on the Order Paper, and the government is appealing the B.C. Supreme Court ruling. I do not quite understand where the government is going with that.
Why did it not simply respect the courts' decisions and introduce a bill that really reflects those decisions?