Debates of Jan. 29th, 2021

Health

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, mental health has remained a priority for this government since the beginning, since 2015. In fact, national standards work is under way with provinces and territories, as she well knows.

Through the pandemic, the federal government is fully funding wellnesstogether.ca, which is an important tool to help Canadians get access to free, confidential care no matter where they live, in both official languages with translation to 60 others.

I encourage every Canadian to check out wellnesstogether.ca today so they can see for themselves the resources that are available to help them and their family members and loved ones.

Oral Questions

[Warren Steinley, Conservative, Regina—Lewvan, SK]

Mr. Speaker, I would ask for the unanimous consent of my colleagues to table the layoff notices that have been received by employees in Regina.

It seems the minister is not aware of these layoff notices. I would like to table them so he could be made aware of the contradiction he had in question period today, saying that no report had been finalized and that all safety reports were taken seriously. However, the layoff notices the employees have received in Regina are also very serious.

[The Deputy Speaker, Conservative, Bruce Stanton]

Are any members opposed to the hon. member for Regina—Lewvan tabling said document?

[Some hon. members]

Nay.

National Defence and the Canadian Armed Forces

[Harjit S. Sajjan, Liberal, Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 32(2), I have the pleasure to table, in both official languages, copies of the 2019-20 annual report for the office of the ombudsman for National Defence and the Canadian Armed Forces.

Procedure and House Affairs

[Ruby Sahota, Liberal, Brampton North, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the ninth report of the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs.

The committee advises that, pursuant to Standing Order 91.1(2), the Subcommittee on Private Members' Business met to consider the order for the second reading of a private member's public bill originating in the Senate and the items added to the Order of Precedence on Friday, December 11, 2020, and recommended that the items listed herein, which it has determined should not be designated non-votable, be considered by the House.

[The Deputy Speaker, Conservative, Bruce Stanton]

Accordingly, pursuant to Standing Order 91.1(2) the report is deemed adopted.

Petitions

[The Deputy Speaker, Conservative, Bruce Stanton]

Before we proceed, there are a number of petitions today, so I would ask members to be concise with their descriptions and not debate them.

The hon. member for Central Okanagan—Similkameen—Nicola.

Human Rights

[Dan Albas, Conservative, Central Okanagan—Similkameen—Nicola, BC]

Mr. Speaker, it is an honour to present a petition on behalf of concerned Canadians who have taken issue with the treatment of the Uighur and other Muslim minorities in China by the communist Chinese government. Specifically, they are concerned around arbitrary detention, separation of children from families, invasive surveillance, destruction of cultural sites, forced labour and even forced organ harvesting. I share their concerns and ask the government to respond.

[Ziad Aboultaif, Conservative, Edmonton Manning, AB]

Mr. Speaker, I am also presenting a petition on the Uighur community genocide.

The Chinese Communist Party is subjecting the Uighur Muslims to atrocities, which meet most, if not all, the criteria for genocide as outlined in the UN Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide. Both the Trump and Biden administrations along with members of Canada's committee on international human rights support the genocide designation.

The petitioners call on Parliament to formally recognize that Uighurs in China have been and are being subject to genocide and to impose Magnitsky sanctions on those responsible for the heinous crimes being committed against the Uighur people.

[Brad Redekopp, Conservative, Saskatoon West, SK]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour today of presenting another petition on the Uighur situation in China. Petitioners are calling on the government to formally recognize that Uighurs in China are being subjected to genocide, and to impose Magnitsky sanctions.

The world was slow to react in Rwanda when there was a genocide there, and now the situation of the Uighurs meets most, if not all, of the criteria for genocide as outlined in the UN convention. The petitioners are calling on the government to do that and recognize that.

[Garnett Genuis, Conservative, Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB]

Mr. Speaker, it is a pleasure for me today to be joining my colleagues in tabling a petition calling on the government to recognize that Uighur Muslims in China have been and are being subjected to an ongoing genocide. There is clear evidence that there is forced abortion, forced insertion of IUDs, mass incarceration, and various other crimes that meet the criteria of genocide. Petitioners are also calling on the government to impose Magnitsky sanctions, holding accountable those who are responsible for this genocide.

Indigenous Affairs

[Paul Manly, Green, Nanaimo—Ladysmith, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I am honoured to table a petition signed by constituents of Nanaimo—Ladysmith. The petitioners call upon the House of Commons to commit to upholding the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada's calls to action by immediately halting all existing and planned construction of the Coastal GasLink fracked pipeline project in Wet’suwet’en territory and prioritizing the real implementation of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

The Environment

[Elizabeth May, Green, Saanich—Gulf Islands, BC]

Mr. Speaker, it is an honour to rise virtually in the House today to present a petition from constituents who are concerned about an issue of sewage in the area of the Gulf Islands.

To clarify quickly, it is not an issue of municipal sewage treatment, but of recreational boaters and other vessels and their ballast. The petition calls on the government to declare that the Gulf Islands is a no-discharge zone, so it would primarily affect boaters, including recreational boaters, and ensure a higher water quality and a higher protection for this very sensitive ecosystem.

Human Rights

[Tamara Jansen, Conservative, Cloverdale—Langley City, BC]

Mr. Speaker, it is with a heavy heart that I present this petition calling on the government to recognize the genocide of Uighur Muslims in Xinjiang, China.

I do so on this day when we remember the horrific attack on Muslim worshippers in our country, who were gunned down as they peacefully kneeled in prayer. We have an opportunity to do more than just remember; we have a responsibility to eradicate such horrific religiously motivated violence, both here and abroad. We have heard at committee that Chinese Muslims are being subjected to forced labour, invasive surveillance, and forced abortions, sterilizations and organ harvesting.

If we are committed to assisting in the development of religious freedom around the world, we need to strongly condemn religious persecution, so today, on what will be the national day of remembrance of the Quebec City mosque attack and action against Islamophobia, the petitioners urgently call for justice for Uighur Muslims in China as well.

Farmers' Protests in India

[Kevin Lamoureux, Liberal, Winnipeg North, MB]

Mr. Speaker, the petition I am tabling deals with the farmers from India. I represent hundreds of families that have both direct and indirect family connections to India's farmers, most of whom are located in the Punjab. We respect the legislative independence of sovereign nations, but Canada must always stand for the protection of fundamental freedoms both at home and around the world.

As peacefully protesting is a fundamental right in a democracy and India is the world's largest democracy, the petitioners are calling upon Canadian parliamentarians to stand in support of Indian farmers who choose to have peaceful protests.

Human Rights

[Damien Kurek, Conservative, Battle River—Crowfoot, AB]

Mr. Speaker, it is my honour to present two petitions to the House today.

The first is with regard to the persecution of Uighur Muslims in China. Certainly this is especially poignant as we remember the tragic deaths of those in the Quebec City mosque shooting on this date.

These petitioners call upon the Government of Canada to formally recognize that Uighurs in China have been and are being subjected to genocide and to use the Justice for Victims of Foreign Corrupt Officials Act, known as the Magnitsky act, to impose sanctions on those who are responsible.

Child Care

[Damien Kurek, Conservative, Battle River—Crowfoot, AB]

Mr. Speaker, I also present a petition signed by hundreds of Canadians regarding the promise that was made in the government's throne speech and in the ongoing conversation about the need to ensure that there is accessible and affordable child care across the country, and how this is not a political issue but something on which Canadians are expecting leadership.

Tourism Industry

[Jag Sahota, Conservative, Calgary Skyview, AB]

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to rise here today to present my very first petition to this House. It is on behalf of travel agents across Canada.

The petitioners are bringing to the government's attention that when the travel industry issues refunds, the suppliers are requiring that travel agents return the commissions they made from work done up to a year ago. They are calling on the government to consider travel agents as external staffing for the travel suppliers and to include this in any bailout terms so that travel agents' commissions that were paid previously are not subject to clawbacks.

Pefferlaw Dam

[Scot Davidson, Conservative, York—Simcoe, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to present a petition on behalf of the residents of Pefferlaw, Ontario, in my riding of York—Simcoe.

The petitioners are calling on the government of Canada to rehabilitate the historic Pefferlaw dam and ensure that the Pefferlaw River flows again.

Built in the 1820s, the Pefferlaw dam has cultural, historical, environmental, economic and recreational significance to Pefferlaw residents and visitors, which is why these efforts are so important.

[The Deputy Speaker, Conservative, Bruce Stanton]

That is the last of the petitions. I thank all hon. members for making short, precise presentations. I would remind the hon. members who presented their petitions in person that they must bring their petition documents to the table.

Questions Passed as Orders for Returns

[Kevin Lamoureux, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the President of the Queen’s Privy Council for Canada and to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Mr. Speaker, I have two points, the first one being that if the government's revised responses to questions Nos. 208 and 251, originally tabled on January 25, 2021, could be made orders for return, these returns would be tabled immediately.

[The Deputy Speaker, Conservative, Bruce Stanton]

Is that agreed?

[Some hon. members]

Agreed.

Question No.208

[Philip Lawrence, Conservative, Northumberland—Peterborough South, ON]

With regard to each contract signed by the government since March 1, 2020, with a value greater than $10 million: (a) what specific measures, if any, were taken by the government to ensure that taxpayers were getting value for money, broken down by each contract; and (b) what are the details of each contract, including (i) vendor, (ii) amount, (iii) description of goods or services, (iv) whether or not the contract was sole-sourced?