Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to rise today, and correct the record on many of the inaccuracies being advanced by the opposition benches.
The absurd theory suggested that this is a debate on values or religion is simply ridiculous. This is simply a matter of reading a definition on a publicly available website.
If my colleagues will indulge me, I will take a moment to read the definition of the core mandate into the record:
An organization’s mandate is a statement of its main purpose or its reason for existence. The key activities undertaken by the organization, including services provided to the community outline how the mandate is fulfilled. For many not-for-profits and religious organizations, their mandate may be similar to the description of “ongoing programs” that they provide to the Canada Revenue Agency at tax time.
There are many colleagues on the other side who are playing lawyer. They will take a couple of words from the application, and not include the definition. We are legislators. We deal with definitions on defined terms every day, and to ignore the definition is misleading to Canadians, and that is unacceptable. Canadians are not being told the full story of the program, and kids and students are going to suffer.
As one can see, there is absolutely nothing that precludes religious organizations from applying, or even being granted funds under the Canada summer jobs program. I have had the opportunity in St. Catharines to speak to many faith organizations in my community, and I am pleased that they are applying, because there is nothing here that will prevent them from applying or receiving funding. No argument can be made to the contrary.
It is irresponsible for the opposition to advance the position that attesting to upholding charter rights equates to a values test. The Charter of Rights and Freedoms is not something to be trivialized. I contend that the charter is Canadian values themselves enshrined in law. Asking Canadians to simply reaffirm that public funds will be used in a way that respects those values and laws our nation is built upon is not much to ask for.
However, what makes me angry is that member after member from the Conservative caucus is standing up or Tweeting misinformation that is leading to organizations losing out on funding. This misinformation that is being promoted is leading to these organizations falsely believing that they are no longer eligible for funding. Every summer camp that kids do not get to attend or meals on wheels program that is short a driver in their ridings is thanks to the opposition and the misinformation that is being spread.
This is being made worse by the fact that they are only doing this to pander to their base. The farther their leader drags them away from the centre requires them to go looking for new votes. The general public, especially young Canadians, should not suffer because the Leader of the Opposition is trolling for votes.
If we look at the price the Leader of the Opposition had to pay to become the leader of the Conservative Party, we look to statements that have been made by a long-standing relationship with the Canadian Centre for Bio-Ethical Reform, an organization that fights against a woman's right to choose. Nine months ago during his leadership campaign, he spoke to the Canadian Centre for Bio-Ethical Reform director of communication, Jonathon Van Maren, who said, “Like most of you, I’ve known who my top choices are for months...[The Leader of the Opposition] is pro-life and has a record to prove it.”
That is because the Leader of the Opposition told the centre, “I have always voted in favour of pro-life legislation. I voted according to my conscience every time. I spoke out when Henry Morgentaler received the Order of Canada...”
That is the price that the Leader of the Opposition paid, and this is what we are seeing again today. There has been misinformation, as I have said.
Over the past two years, I have had the pleasure of visiting businesses, and organizations in my riding who were recipients of Canada summer jobs funding. I think particularly of visiting two young students at the Foster Festival, which is an arts and theatre festival in St. Catharines. They were theatre students at Brock University, and had the opportunity to build sets, meet new people, and have mentors in an industry that can be difficult to get into, especially in Niagara.
They were recipients of Canada summer jobs funding. So too were many faith organizations, and that will happen again. At those businesses and organizations, I had the opportunity to meet with students who were hired, and the message I got from them was identical. They were all pleased to have an opportunity to gain the on-the-job experience that they were receiving, to work hard, and make a few hard-earned extra dollars to take back to school in the fall.
I think it is obvious why the tactics of my colleagues across the aisle are so infuriating. These tactics are causing these students to suffer, to lose out on unique opportunities. Has anyone thought of the students and how the misinformation being spread impacts them?
I am grateful going to churches, to the mosque in St. Catharines, and to other faith organizations, and organizations that may not be churches themselves but are inspired by faith, inspired by Christianity. I am happy to report they are applying for Canada summer jobs. I look froward to visiting those students this summer so we can see them at work, building that on-the-job experience, and making a bit of extra money.
We are talking so much about religious values, yet no one on the opposition has stopped to ask about how this will affect the students.
We are the government that recognized the importance of this program. We doubled the funding for this program, because of the positive impact it was having on Canadian youth. The benefits and opportunities afforded to young Canadians demanded that this program be expanded. That is what should be on the minds of our opposition colleagues.
The opposition would rather see these funds used to undermine the hard-earned charter rights of Canadians. That is completely unacceptable. The Conservatives continue to speak about religious rights and freedom of speech, which are not impacted by the attestation, yet they seem to forget about the rights guaranteed to women under section 15. The equality of rights guaranteed under section 15 protects the rights of women should they choose to access safe abortion services.
We have already heard one member of the opposition rise today and liken the LGBTQ2 community to being a lifestyle choice. We have heard the opposition House leader comparing the government's protection of charter rights in this attestation to the horrible oppression and prosecution of the LGBTQ2 community during the 60s, 70s, and 80s. It is clear that the opposition does not get it, and it is clear that the government needs to stand up for these hard-earned charter rights.
Enough is enough with the misinformation. Enough is enough with the marginalization of charter rights. Enough is enough with the disrespect that has been shown toward young Canadians and organizations in our communities. This is a program about young Canadians getting good-paying summer jobs and life experiences that go along with that. It is time to put them back into the centre of our thinking and not treat them like political pawns.
Every year I look forward to seeing the Canada summer jobs list for my riding, to seeing the positive impact those jobs will have in St. Catharines, and on young Canadians. As in past years, I look forward to seeing that list in the near future. I am looking forward to seeing those kids get the skills that they are looking forward to very soon. I am also looking forward to continuing this in the coming years.