Debates of Nov. 23rd, 2020

COVID-19 Emergency Response

[The Assistant Deputy Speaker, Carol Hughes]

There are no points of order during Adjournment Proceedings. I am, however, checking right now, but it could very well be that there is some confusion about which Order Paper question for the late show was put forward because the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Labour is here. I will allow the parliamentary secretary to continue. I am double-checking with the table at this point as to what the actual question for tonight was.

[Anthony Housefather, Liberal, Mount Royal, QC]

Madam Speaker, I understand the point of order. I am as confused as the member, but my understanding is that I am answering the question on the Order Paper for today. I will just continue, and we will figure this out.

We understand there may be concerns from employees and employers in federally regulated workplaces about COVID-19. That is why the labour program has reached out to employers and representatives to make sure they are aware and understand their responsibilities.

The Canada Labour Code requires employers to protect the health and safety of workers in the workplace. They must create and update their hazard prevention program and ensure that it covers biological hazards such as COVID-19.

We must also pay increased attention to the mental health of workers during these challenging times. Many changes have been accelerated by the pandemic, including a shift to more remote work. Mobile technologies and a variety of factors, including the fact that many more Canadians are now working from home, have blurred the boundaries between what it means to be at work and not at work.

This ability to be constantly connected to the workplace, while beneficial in many ways, can exacerbate certain psychosocial risks for employees, which can lead to anxiety, depression and burnout. This is why the Government of Canada is engaging with employers and labour groups, with the goal of coming up with the best way to give federally regulated workers the right to disconnect to better support workers' work-life balance and well-being.

Moreover, since the beginning of the pandemic, the Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety has been providing valuable guidance to Canadian workers and businesses. It has published health and safety tips on its website, made e-learning courses available free of charge and provided an online space. To help the CCOHS continue its important work, the government is providing it with additional funding of $2.5 million over two years.

All Canadians are entitled to a safe and secure workplace in times of crisis and normalcy alike. Nobody should work in dangerous conditions or conditions that jeopardize their safety.

As we continue to work through and deal with the impacts of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the Government of Canada will continue to consult and work with unions, workers, employers, experts and provincial and territorial governments. Together we will take the steps needed to create a healthy, safe workplace for everyone during the pandemic and our ongoing recovery. During this process, public health authorities such as the Public Health Agency of Canada and Health Canada, with the assistance of CCOHS, will continue to be available to provide guidance and support.

[The Assistant Deputy Speaker, Carol Hughes]

I did check, and the hon. member for Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke is correct that the question was about the disability tax credit. I will allow her to do her follow-up question on that.

[Cheryl Gallant, Conservative, Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke, ON]

Madam Speaker, once again the government is insulting disabled Canadians by refusing to answer the question I asked the Prime Minister on their behalf. It is time the government took the concerns of the disabled seriously.

Canadians know how the groping Prime Minister treats strong women, having purged the former health minister, Dr. Jane Philpott, along with the former female justice minister and a former female Liberal MP, who said of the Prime Minister, “You believe in them when it's convenient and you leave them when it's not.” The former Liberal MP also had this to say on why she quit: “So there were just a number of different instances that just didn't sit right with me and the principles that I hold dear, and I wanted to make sure that I was able to look at myself in the mirror the next day.”

Having a fancy title with “disability inclusion” in it and refusing to act is tokenism at its worst. The minister who includes disability in her virtue-signalling title has an opportunity to be more than a prime ministerial photo op. Include the regulations to enact Bill C-462, an act restricting the fees charged by promoters of the disability tax credit, in the disability inclusion plan now.

[Anthony Housefather, Liberal, Mount Royal, QC]

Madam Speaker, I apologize that I am not answering the question my hon. colleague asked, but I will respond to what she most recently stated.

I have had the pleasure of working with the Prime Minister for the last five years, and I can say there is no prime minister in Canadian history who has had more of a feminist agenda than this prime minister. Whether fighting for the rights of women abroad, standing up for a woman's right to choose in Canada, funding women's health care or making sure half of his cabinet was made up of women, our Prime Minister stands proud for the rights of women throughout Canada, and his team stands with him.

When it comes to the minister referred to, she is hardly a token. She is a woman of character, integrity, strength, determination and great intelligence, and she has done wonderful work for Canadians during the course of this pandemic.

Foreign Affairs

[Michael Barrett, Conservative, Leeds—Grenville—Thousand Islands and Rideau Lakes, ON]

Madam Speaker, it is a pleasure to rise in this place and, as I did the last time I participated in Adjournment Proceedings, I have really great news, a very exciting announcement to share with the House and that is the birth of my son, Nathan. I am very excited. My wife, Amanda, is doing very well. Amanda is my best friend. I am incredibly proud of her. The strength and the example that she sets are inspiring to me. To welcome Nathan with her, we would also like to recognize the incredible staff at the Brockville General Hospital.

We had incredible care and a very personal experience, and they took care of my new son and my wife incredibly well. I will recognize a few of them, knowing I am going to leave a few people out. We had nurse Kate, Dr. Kristin Finkenzeller, nurses Coralie, Ellen, Riley, Jackie, Lisa and others as well, and I have to thank all of them. It was world class. We know that 2020 has presented incredible challenges to those working in health care, but members would not know it based on the care that my family received. We are blessed as a family by the birth of Nathan, but also by those health care practitioners who did what they did for my family. My other children, Luke, Ama, Michaela and James, are very excited that their new brother is home with us, and we look forward to Christmas and to all of the days ahead.

I have to ask the government and follow up on a question that I raised previously. It is with respect to the approach the government has taken on matters dealing with China. Specifically, I will ask this evening why the government persists in its failure to act. We saw it last week with the opposition motion dealing with Huawei and making a decision on banning the use of this technology in Canada. While our other Five Eyes partners have done so, the Liberal government even voted against all other members of the opposition, who put forward a timeline for the government to make a decision.

We know that former minister Ralph Goodale promised on May 1, 2019, that the government would make a decision. An election has passed, Mr. Goodale no longer joins us in the House and we have a new public safety minister who has also failed to act. Why will the government not be decisive when it comes to China? Why is it that the Liberals are always playing catch-up?

They say that they act in concert with our allies, but that could not be further from the truth. The decision on Huawei is case in point. Now we have the private sector making the decision to exclude this technology from its infrastructure, while the government continues to dither and act without decisiveness.

To the minister, when will the government follow through on its commitment to act in concert with our allies, to finally get tough on this issue, to finally get tough on China and to make a decision?

[Anthony Housefather, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Labour]

Madam Speaker, I am really pleased that I was given the chance to be the substitute for my friend, the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, so I can be one of the first, or at least one of the first who has now heard, to congratulate the member for Leeds—Grenville—Thousand Islands and Rideau Lakes and Amanda on the birth of Nathan.

I wish both of them a really hardy mazel tov. It is wonderful news. The member is one away from being equal to the Brady bunch at this point. Best of luck, and I hope the grandparents are really close to help babysit.

Allow me to start by challenging the member's misperception that nothing has changed in the government's approach to China. As the Minister of Foreign Affairs has said a number of times, the China of 2020 is not the China of 2016. In light of that, we are taking a corresponding approach to it.

Some aspects of our engagement with China have not changed. Let me highlight a few elements of this continuity. First, we will continue to speak out against the arbitrary detention of our citizens. In this regard, allow me to reprise the strong principled position, which my colleague the Minister of International Trade conveyed clearly to the CCBC audience. As she said, it remains an absolute priority to secure the immediate release of Canadians Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig and to secure clemency for Canadians facing the death penalty in China, including Robert Schellenberg.

Second, we will continue to work with like-minded countries to find ways to resist China's coercive diplomacy by insisting on mutual respect, reciprocity, and adherence to rules and principles, including human rights. For example, we joined with other countries and voiced our serious concerns over Beijing's imposition and implementation of the national security law in Hong Kong. Further, Canada has led by taking a number of actions, including suspending the Canada-Hong Kong extradition treaty, restricting exports of sensitive items to Hong Kong, and updating our travel advice and advisories for Hong Kong.

Third, notwithstanding difficult bilateral and global circumstances, we will continue to develop a commercial relationship with China, the world's second-largest economy and an important consumer of Canadian commodities, agri-food and other products. We will continue to boost much-needed jobs for Canadians by supporting our exporters, including firms that export to and do business with China. China is an important market for many Canadian companies across a wide variety of sectors. It is important that we push China to abide by its international obligations under trade agreements so as to ensure a level playing field for our businesses.

Standing up for our values and our interests requires us to listen to our stakeholders, including the members of the CCBC, while at the same time communicating our resolve to support our citizens abroad, including Messrs. Kovrig, Spavor and Schellenberg, standing up for human rights and making sure that those abuses by the Chinese government are well noted.

[Michael Barrett, Conservative, Leeds—Grenville—Thousand Islands and Rideau Lakes, ON]

Madam Speaker, I will start by thanking the hon. member, my colleague for the good wishes of mazel tov. I will certainly convey those to my wife, Amanda.

My question, then, to the member is why vote against the motion that would have called for concrete action? It would have called for a timeline. It did not prescribe a decision for the government to take. It simply called for the government to make it within a period of time that is long overdue by the government's own promise.

To the member, why vote against a common-sense motion to resolve this, to bring certainty to the issue, and to demonstrate to the world that we are prepared to stand up against China?

[Anthony Housefather, Liberal, Mount Royal, QC]

Madam Speaker, I will refer the hon. member to the minister's comments and the parliamentary secretary's comments in that debate.

As we reframe our relationship with China, I can commit to the member that we will continue to stand up for Canadian values and interests. As the Minister of International Trade clearly stated when she addressed CCBC members on October 13, securing the immediate release of Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor remains an absolute priority.

We also commit that we will work with like-minded countries to resist China's coercive diplomacy and ensure adherence to rules and principles, including human rights. We will also continue to boost much-needed jobs for Canadians and support Canadian businesses doing business with China while always championing the rules-based international order.

Indigenous Affairs

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

Madam Speaker, since we are starting off with personal greetings and messages, I would like to wish my grandmother, who turned 90 yesterday, a very happy birthday. I am so incredibly proud of her. She continues to be in good health. I am sad that I was not able to be with her.

Earlier this month, on November 5, I asked a question that I felt the government did not give a meaningful response to. The government has been told, repeatedly, by the Canadian Human Rights Commission that its discrimination against indigenous children has to stop.

We know that indigenous children in Canada are overrepresented in our child care system. It is very clear. We have looked at the numbers. We know that children from these communities are facing systemic racism, and that the resources given to other children are not the same as are given to these children.

We know the history of Canada. We know where we have come from. We know about residential schools and the colonial system, and we are still not seeing indigenous children given the respect they deserve.

I am here because indigenous children matter, and because they do not get a second childhood. The history of Canada is one of generations of indigenous children being stolen, and then having their childhoods stolen. Now we see the pattern is continuing and not ending.

In his response to me, the Minister of Indigenous Services said:

We intend to compensate first nations children harmed by the discriminatory child and family services policies. Throughout this process, our focus remains on advancing a plan that prioritizes the best interest of the individual child and puts the safety, well-being and security of that child at the forefront.

However, we know that the government is still taking indigenous children to court. We know that, repeatedly, the government has received non-compliance orders telling it that it is still not fulfilling its obligation. The problem is vast, but the core of it is that we do not see the care and concern for indigenous children that we need to see in this country.

I just want to remind all of us that there is a plan. The First Nations Child and Family Caring Society has brought forward the Spirit Bear plan, which is looking to end the inequalities in public services for first nations children, youth and families. I am tired of hearing that the government has gotten another non-compliance order.

Indigenous children matter so very much, and we have to keep them safe. The only way we can do that is by making sure that they have the resources in those services to support them. We also have to start looking at our government departments and making sure that any part of our government that interacts with first nations is starting to look at the inequalities, and that the investment is there.

Even in Bill C-92, which the government assures will finally fix this, one of the biggest gaps in it continues to be the number of resources.

It is time to get real and to get on to it. We know that in September 2017, the Assembly of First Nations passed a unanimous resolution supporting the Spirit Bear plan to end all inequalities in federally funded public services. Why has the federal government simply not implemented it, three years later?

[Pam Damoff, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Indigenous Services]

Madam Speaker, I would like to thank the member for raising this issue and acknowledge that I am speaking to members this evening from the traditional territory of the Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation. I would like to join other members in the House in also wishing her grandmother a happy birthday.

The safety and well-being of children, families and communities will always be a priority for this government. The overrepresentation of indigenous children in care is a tragic part of our shared history. We cannot undo this reality, but by working together, we can right the past wrongs and ensure history does not repeat itself.

We introduced An Act respecting First Nations, Inuit and Métis children, youth and families, and are continuing to work to reform the system that has given rise to this historic injustice. We acknowledge the prevalence of systemic racism in our country, we abhor the fact that it persists and we are committed to confronting it, to mitigating its devastating ongoing effects and to eliminating it.

We acknowledge a system that has historically and repeatedly failed children, youth and families, and we acknowledge the need to do what is right. This government has been crystal clear. We recognize that first nations children harmed by discriminatory child and family services must be compensated. That is why, together with partners, we are working toward a goal of comprehensive, fair and equitable compensation for those affected by historic inequities in first nations child welfare.

While there remain substantive unresolved questions on the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal's jurisdiction, we remain committed to a comprehensive, fair and just compensation for children. This way forward may lie outside the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal's process. We continue to be in active consultation with all parties to move forward on this important matter.

My hon. colleague from North Island—Powell River and I have met to discuss the safety and well-being of indigenous children in care because of the great importance it holds for both of us. The Government of Canada is dedicated to working in full partnership with indigenous peoples to reform child and family services so that every indigenous child has the ability to grow up in their communities, immersed in their cultures and surrounded by loved ones.

To ensure a better future for indigenous children, we are actively implementing An Act respecting First Nations, Inuit and Métis children, youth and families, which came into force on January 1, 2020. This historic legislation includes core provisions for first nations, Inuit and Métis to exercise jurisdiction over child and family services and addresses concerns that have been expressed by indigenous peoples across the country for generations. Indigenous families and communities ought to decide what is in their best interest and what is in the best interest of their children and youth.

We continue to work and support communities that are developing their own child and family services programs, to provide historical funding to reform the system and are committed to putting the best interests of indigenous children, youth and families first.

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

Madam Speaker, I thank the hon. member for wishing my grandmother a happy birthday. Her name is Dona Aloise Letnes and I am very proud to carry her middle name.

When we come back to this issue, what I need to know here is why is the federal government choosing not to implement the Spirit Bear Plan? This is a plan that has been endorsed by multiple agencies that really addresses the core, which is that indigenous children deserve a childhood.

We know that in September 2019, the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal found that Canada's discrimination toward first nations children was under the federal first nations child welfare program and that it was ongoing.

Does the parliamentary secretary acknowledge that Canada is still actively discriminating against first nations children in this country and that it is time to end that? That does not come with just compensation. It comes with making sure indigenous children have a childhood.

[Pam Damoff, Liberal, Oakville North—Burlington, ON]

Madam Speaker, I think the hon. member and I agree it is critically important that first nations children have a childhood. That is why we continue to work not only to implement the compensation framework, which is intended to accurately reflect the CHRT's September 2019 order regarding compensation, but other related orders. The goal is comprehensive, fair and equitable compensation that will provide further healing for those affected by the historic inequities in first nations child welfare.

[The Assistant Deputy Speaker, Carol Hughes]

I want to wish Dona, the grandmother of the hon. member for North Island—Powell River, a happy birthday. That is quite the milestone.

The motion to adjourn the House is now deemed to have been adopted.

Accordingly the House stands adjourned until tomorrow at 10 a.m. pursuant to Standing Order 24(1).

(The House adjourned at 7:34 p.m.)