Mr. Speaker, what a pleasure it is to rise on this very important piece of legislation, which I believe has widespread support that goes far beyond this chamber.
When we talk about indigenous peoples in Canada, there is no doubt that there is no relationship that is more important than that between Canada and indigenous peoples. In fact, we often hear the Prime Minister and others in the House talk about that very special relationship. A big part of that is the Truth and Reconciliation Commission report, in which there were a series of 94 recommendations. In fact, one of the documents I keep at hand is those 94 recommendations.
What we are talking about today is a recommendation that was a call to action from the report. I would like to read into the record exactly what call to action 80 is calling on the government, or members of Parliament, to act on. It says:
We call upon the federal government, in collaboration with Aboriginal peoples, to establish, as a statutory holiday, a National Day for Truth and Reconciliation to honour Survivors, their families, and communities, and ensure that public commemoration of the history and legacy of residential schools remains a vital component of the reconciliation process.
This is something that has been discussed a great deal in the House on a number of different fronts. Today we are talking about the importance of call to action 80, dealing with recognizing a national holiday, which would be September 30 of every year. That is something I believe we see support for from both sides. I can appreciate the Conservative Party is not necessarily onside with it for whatever reason, but it is fair to say that all members recognize the importance of having a designation.
I would like to think that when we talk about reconciliation and the importance of remembering and appreciating what actually took place during the residential school era, it is taken seriously at all different levels. I would like to think, for example, that our schools have a role to play in this. I would like to think, as has been pointed out, even provincial entities have a role to play in this. What we are seeing today is that the House of Commons, because it is not just the Government of Canada but members of Parliament on all sides of the House, is recognizing the importance of that particular call to action. That speaks volumes about the amount of goodwill.
When the previous speaker was concluding her remarks, we could see the emotion and the importance of this very issue. Over the last number of years we have seen some really wonderful debates. At times they can be very emotional debates that take place, and some of the more emotional debates that I have witnessed, sitting in the chamber, happen when we talk about reconciliation with indigenous peoples in Canada.
This is not the first time we have been addressing the truth and reconciliation report and the many different calls to action. Just a couple of weeks ago in the chamber, we were talking about calls to action 13 and 14. It was yet another piece of legislation that was introduced, this one by a cabinet minister of the government, in essence dealing with language and culture, ensuring that the language of indigenous peoples will be around for generations to come.
During that debate, there was widespread support for the legislation, again because of reconciliation. The Prime Minister indicated, and I believe all of us would agree, that reconciliation is not the responsibility of any one individual. We all have a role to play. That is why I was encouraged today during private members' hour. A member from the Liberal caucus forfeited his spot in order to allow for the legislation to be debated today. It sends a very important message, which is that when it comes to reconciliation, we are prepared to put the politics of partisanship to the side in order to ensure the right thing is done.
I applaud my colleague in the Liberal caucus for offering his position and I applaud the member from the New Democratic Party for bringing forward an important piece of legislation. By working together, we are seeing a greater likelihood of this call to action being addressed. Equally, when other legislation or budgetary measures are brought forward that deal with the calls to action for truth and reconciliation, we see support that bridges more than just one political party.
I represent Winnipeg North and can say that, with an indigenous population somewhere in the neighbourhood of 18% to 20% in my riding, this is a very important issue. Much of the damage that was caused by residential schools people can witness first-hand by walking around the north end of Winnipeg and talking to some of the people, as I have, as to just how severe the impact of residential schools has been. When we see actions by the government to try to tackle these important issues, it is important to me personally and as the representative of Winnipeg North to ensure that we try to advance these very important pieces of legislation.
We know, for example, the government has legislation dealing with child welfare and child welfare is a very serious issue that has to be dealt with. Whether it is the Prime Minister, ministers or the Liberal caucus, or I suspect members from the NDP and the Conservative Party, they recognize that the status quo needs to change. When we bring forward the child welfare legislation, which is not that far away, I anticipate there will be a healthy debate. Hopefully we will get the same sort of support for that legislation as we are seeing for the legislation brought forward by the member opposite. I believe that is what we will see, at least I hope that is what we will see, because it is important.
I started my comments by saying there is no relationship more important to Canada than the one with indigenous peoples. If we believe that to be true, I highly recommend the report by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada, in particular, the fine work that Senator Sinclair did, and the 94 calls to action. Today we are talking about recommendation 80. There is still more to come and I look forward to the ongoing debate and discussion so that members not only in the chamber but well beyond, in all the regions of the country, will recognize just how important it is that we affirm that positive relationship.