Debates of Feb. 23rd, 2021

Criminal Code

[Marc Dalton, Conservative, Pitt Meadows—Maple Ridge, BC]

Mr. Speaker, palliative care is where the emphasis should be. In talking to people who have been in distress, they have been able to manage the pain mentally and physically through that.

However, the bill and the amendment do not talk much about medical assistance in dying. Rather, they talk about people who are not dying. This amendment talks about unfettered expansion of euthanasia, of assisted suicide, which we have seen nowhere else in the world. This is a very deep concern.

Right now, 4,000 people die by suicide each year. Of the people who attempt that, 7% die. This will allow thousands more a year to accomplish suicide. Three times more men than women commit suicide though two times as many women make the attempt. We are finding through MAID that two times more women are going through it. This really impacts women as well.

My question for the member is this. Does she find it perverse that what is being offered is death prior to treatment? That is what is necessary and it is lacking?

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

Mr. Speaker, yes, it is absolutely perverse to imagine that we would be the only country that is going to offer a service such as euthanasia before treatment has been accessed. We need to ensure that people are not choosing this because they are desperate. We need people to be supported by health care and mental health care so that we are not seeing them die unnecessarily.

We have heard that from all of the different professional groups and I think we need to listen to those voices.

[Tom Kmiec, Conservative, Calgary Shepard, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the member gave a great speech, laying out a very empathetic case for why the Senate's amendments should be rejected. The debate I have heard so far is not about the amendments the House has already made within Bill C-7 to the original Bill C-14. I disagreed with the House and voted in the minority because I felt that our response to the Truchon decision went too far at the time.

What the Senate has done is to go far, far beyond what the original debate was in the House and the witness testimony that we heard and the considerations in the justice committee. Could the member perhaps just comment on that point?

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

Mr. Speaker, I have to say that it was shocking to see what sort of a “Frankenstein” bill the Senate back to us. We have not even had a chance to discuss or debate any of those other things and here they are in the bill. It is absolutely unbelievable and we need to stop it in its tracks.

[Mark Gerretsen, Liberal, Kingston and the Islands, ON]

Mr. Speaker, this is just in response to the back-and-forth intervention with the previous member about palliative care.

Out of curiosity, does the member believe that the pain of all people who are at the end of their life can be relieved through palliative care measures? Does she believe that every person's pain can be relieved by various palliative care measures?

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

Mr. Speaker, what I do believe is that because only 30% of Canadians can access palliative care, we are failing our seniors. We need to make a change. We have been begging and asking. My dear friend, Mark Warawa, was begging for us to look at palliative care and the needs of seniors. We need to get on that right away.

Long-Term Care

[Peter Fonseca, Liberal, Mississauga East—Cooksville, ON]

Mr. Speaker, during these challenging times of the pandemic, I have heard from many families, friends and loved ones who cannot see or speak with their dying parents living in Ontario's long-term care homes.

I feel as strongly as my residents do regarding the long-term care crisis. I strongly agree that things need to change. The report of under-staffing, COVID-positive residents sharing rooms with COVID-negative residents and a lack of basic care, including feeding, toileting and dressing are unacceptable and cannot happen again. Canadian families will live with these painful memories forever. The lives lost in long-term care homes during COVID is one of Canada's greatest tragedies.

Vulnerable seniors deserve to be safe, to be respected and to live with dignity. Like our Prime Minister said about national standards for long-term care, we have a responsibility to make sure that all Canadians are safe. Although long-term care falls under provincial and territorial jurisdiction, I will support seniors while working alongside our provinces and territories, and I know that Canadians stand with us on this righteous cause.

Desnethé—Missinippi—Churchill River

[Gary Vidal, Conservative, Desnethé—Missinippi—Churchill River, SK]

Mr. Speaker, when it is appropriate again, my riding in northern Saskatchewan is prepared to give a much-needed boost to the tourism industry.

Northern Saskatchewan's natural landscapes offer something for everyone. Prince Albert National Park is an all-season, natural playground. The many regional parks, and the Candle Lake, Narrow Hills and Meadow Lake provincial parks all provide a variety of camping and family-friendly options. Places like Stanley Mission, Île-à-la-Crosse, Cumberland House and the Methye Portage offer visitors a historic reminder of the role of the fur trade in our early economic prosperity. Creighton, Denare Beach and many other communities are situated in the Canadian Shield, an outdoor enthusiast's dream. The tri-communities of the La Ronge and Missinippi area are the jumping-off point for world-class canoe trips. The unique geological features of the Athabasca sand dunes and the Saskatchewan River delta are bucket-list-worthy destinations.

On behalf of the residents of Desnethé—Missinippi—Churchill River, we look forward to seeing tourists again soon.

Black Canadians

[Tony Van Bynen, Liberal, Newmarket—Aurora, ON]

Mr. Speaker, since 2018, the Newmarket African Caribbean Canadian Association, or NACCA in short, has played a vital role in building a community network based on education and celebration of Black Canadians and neighbours.

It was NACCA's chairperson, Jerisha Grant-Hall, who once told me that in order to have a genuine dialogue with the Black community, we need to be prepared to have some difficult and direct conversations. It is thanks to these conversations with Jerisha that, since becoming the MP for Newmarket—Aurora, I have been able to build a much better understanding of the stories, concerns, contributions and achievements of Black Canadians in our community and in our country.

Today, I want to thank Jerisha and the NACCA team for their leadership and contributions in making our community much more diverse and connected, and I want to remind all that, while February is recognized as Black History Month, it is our collective duty to celebrate Black Canadians by listening and learning all year round.

Témiscaming

[Sébastien Lemire, Bloc, Abitibi—Témiscamingue, QC]

Mr. Speaker, it is an honour for me to mark the 100th anniversary of the founding of Témiscaming. The recognized strength of our builders made this flagship town located south of the Témiscamingue-Ontario border, a prosperous town close to nature, lakes and forests, a great place to live.

Upstream of the Ottawa River, also known as the rivière des Outaouais, Témiscaming is referred to as the garden city because of its countless public gardens, its artful urban landscape and its fruit trees that give this mountain town a distinct feel.

The city's primary economic activity stems from its major forestry plant, Rayonier Advanced Materials. Témiscaming is also known for its rich tradition in hockey and four of its own have made it to the NHL, which is exceptional for a population of 2,500 inhabitants. This tradition of sports excellence continues with our team, the Titans.

By honouring our roots we can build our future. I hope there will be some way to celebrate Témiscaming's centennial the way it deserves to be celebrated.

Canada's Agriculture Day

[Angelo Iacono, Liberal, Alfred-Pellan, QC]

Mr. Speaker, in my riding of Alfred-Pellan, I am very fortunate to have a lot of family farms that feed my community. At the height of the pandemic, these families demonstrated unrelenting determination and great resilience in order to continue providing us with quality produce.

On Canada's Agriculture Day, I want to applaud the outstanding work of local farmers. What better way to celebrate our farmers than buying local? By choosing local products, we are helping families with strong roots in our community. Most importantly, we are proudly supporting Canada's agricultural expertise.

I invite my colleagues and all Canadians to mark this day by buying local, not just today but every day.

Let us be proud of our Canadian agriculture.

Appalaches RCM Youth

[Luc Berthold, Conservative, Mégantic—L'Érable, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the youth of the Appalaches RCM in the riding of Mégantic—L’Érable are taking the lead, becoming involved in the community and making things happen.

Our young people are active, proactive and creative. They are go-getters. They are concerned about everything that is going on. They want to express their views and are doing so in their community.

The Stratégie ADN jeunesse was created by and for young people between the ages of 15 and 29 in all municipalities of the Appalaches RCM to help youth take their place, have a voice and tell the older generation that they are there and want to participate.

I invite everyone to watch the Rendez-vous jeunesse engagée, monthly meetings on Facebook Live, where our youth tell us about the issues that concern them, such as mental health, Internet coverage in the regions, the LGBTQ+ community, recreation and much more. They have things to say. As elected members, we must listen to them.

That is not all. Our youth are innovators. The very first Desjardins youth summit is scheduled for March 13 and will be held entirely in virtual reality, not on Zoom. Every participant will have a virtual reality headset to discuss the future of our region.

I congratulate all members of the Appalaches RCM youth committee for their involvement. The future is in their hands. It is up to them to seize it and to make this a better world for all.

Health Care Workers

[David McGuinty, Liberal, Ottawa South, ON]

Mr. Speaker, as the son of a nurse, it is a very special privilege for me to thank health care workers in my riding and across Canada. Since the beginning of this global pandemic, they have worked day and night to help their patients.

From the bottom of my heart, I want to thank everyone at the Perley and Rideau Veterans' Health Centre, the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario, the Ottawa Hospital-General Campus, the Riverside hospital, St. Patrick's Home, the COVID care centre on Heron Road; and all of the frontline health care workers at our region's hospitals, clinics and long-term care facilities.

Their dedication, commitment and courage deserve our deepest gratitude. We will never forget the sacrifices they are making to help us get through this crisis. Their professionalism and kindness are unparalleled. We can simply never thank them enough for their service.

Black History Month

[Élisabeth Brière, Liberal, Sherbrooke, QC]

Mr. Speaker, February is Black History Month, and this month I have met with a number of leaders in this community to acknowledge the important work they do.

Two of the people I spoke to are Aïssé Touré and Angélique Goguen-Couture. They are nurses fighting COVID-19, and they also founded Black Estrie, an organization that spotlights inspiring Quebeckers from the Black community. I also met with Mariame Cissé, who has lived in Sherbrooke for more than 30 years and is a project coordinator at the Fédération des communautés culturelles de l'Estrie, which works to combat the non-recognition of credentials, domestic violence and gender inequality. I also want to mention Mélé Temguia, an incredible soccer player who is currently playing for FC Edmonton while pursuing his studies at the Université de Sherbrooke.

Black History Month is an opportunity to highlight these initiatives and success stories so that we can unite our communities and build a stronger, fairer and more inclusive Canada.

COVID-19 Emergency Response

[Cathy McLeod, Conservative, Kamloops—Thompson—Cariboo, BC]

Mr. Speaker, there is an old saying that the best predictor of future behaviour is past behaviour.

Historically, the government has responded to problems with simple symbolism and wishful thinking as opposed to well-executed plans. Similarly, its vaccine strategy has been based on one thing: hope. It hopes the Chinese CanSino vaccine comes through, hopes there is not a second wave, hopes there is not a third wave and hopes that countries counting on COVAX do not notice we are stealing their vaccines.

The reality is that I am hearing from Canadians who have lost all hope. The more the government talks about how it plans to deliver millions of vaccines, the farther we seem to move down the list compared with the rest of the world. Clearly, hope is not a strategy. Failure on the vaccine rollout means more lockdowns and more time until we can get our economy back on track.

Canadians deserve better. Canadians can trust the Conservative Party to save jobs and secure the future.

Food Policy Advisory Council

[Lloyd Longfield, Liberal, Guelph, ON]

Mr. Speaker, last week, the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food joined us virtually at the University of Guelph's Arrell Food Institute to announce the first-ever Canadian Food Policy Advisory Council.

Guelph's own Evan Fraser will co-chair the council, which will have 22 other members from across Canada, including scientists, nutritionists, food producers and processors, and academics.

In Guelph, we are already leading the way in developing Canada's first circular food economy. The Food Policy Advisory Council will help guide us in this work by advising on current and emerging issues and providing data. Modelling its work around the theme “everyone at the table”, it will work on safe, nutritious and sustainable solutions around food waste, food security and innovative policies to guide the government to become a world leader in global food to feed nine billion people by 2050.

Agriculture Day

[Alex Ruff, Conservative, Bruce—Grey—Owen Sound, ON]

Mr. Speaker, today is Canada's Agriculture Day, when we show our appreciation to our resilient and hard-working farmers and farm families. I have heard first-hand from farmers in my riding how they have overcome immense adversity since the start of the pandemic, with processing delays and border restrictions affecting the movement of workers and products.

The government has the opportunity now to take action and reduce the burdens on our farmers by implementing rapid testing at the border, to reduce the isolation period for temporary foreign workers, thus allowing workers to start on time; by adopting Bill C-206, which would cut costs for farm families by exempting propane and natural gas from the carbon tax for farmers; and by adopting Bill C-208, in order to maintain the strong tradition of family farms in Ontario and Canada. Finally, the government must stand up for Enbridge's Line 5, as it is a crucial lifeline for our farmers, other industries and the environment. Replacing this pipeline would require 2,000 trucks or 800 rail cars daily to meet the current need.

On Canada's Agriculture Day, I urge the government to implement these tangible measures to support our farmers. For all they do for us, it is the least we can do for them.

[Lianne Rood, Conservative, Lambton—Kent—Middlesex, ON]

Mr. Speaker, today is national Agriculture Day, and it is my honour to recognize the work of farmers, farm families and all those who are part of the agriculture supply chain. Their knowledge, skills, innovation, hard work and dedication put the world's highest quality food on our tables every day.

Producing food is not just a job: It is a way of life. For generations farmers, including three generations of my own family, producers and ranchers have used their passion and skill, rain or shine, through summer's heat and winter's cold, enduring floods, droughts and fluctuating markets to meet the heavy responsibility of feeding Canadians.

These are some of the most resilient people one will ever meet. There are no days off. It is a 24/7 job. Today we recognize their vital contribution to the welfare of our country and to the well-being of Canadians. The love they put into our food should never be taken for granted. Today and every day, I encourage all Canadians to thank a farmer.

[Alistair MacGregor, NDP, Cowichan—Malahat—Langford, BC]

Mr. Speaker, today we mark Canada's Agriculture Day, which was launched in 2016 and allows us to pay tribute to the hard-working men and women in agriculture and their important role in putting fresh food on our plates.

As the owner of a small-scale farm, I am incredibly proud to represent a region that is continually making a name for itself as a place capable of producing a wonderfully diverse range of high-quality, farm-fresh produce, artisanal foods and beverages.

Across this great country, Canadian farmers have what it takes to be world leaders in agriculture, sustainability and the use of technology and innovation to tackle the great problems of our time, such as climate change and food security.

As the NDP's critic for agriculture and agri-food, and on behalf of my entire caucus, I want to wish everybody a very happy Agriculture Day.

Federal-Provincial Relations

[Stéphane Bergeron, Bloc, Montarville, QC]

Mr. Speaker, in 2000, the current U.S. President, Joe Biden, remarked that Canada's foreign policy was limited to a single issue, namely fighting Quebec, in his words. Now, documents declassified by the U.S. State Department prove he was right.

After the Parti Québécois was elected in 1976, then prime minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau spoke to Washington about his plans to sabotage Quebec's economy in order to undermine René Lévesque's government. The documents reveal that Trudeau asked billionaire Paul Desmarais to move his operations and investments out of Quebec in order to double the unemployment rate. He encouraged Desmarais to make things “as tough as possible” for Quebec. A prime minister of Canada plotted against Quebec's economy with the stated intention of making Quebeckers lose their jobs.

Pierre Elliott Trudeau brought shame upon himself. Quebec recognizes that and will not forget it.

COVID-19 Emergency Response

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

Mr. Speaker, small businesses, families and seniors in York—Simcoe and across Canada have been feeling the strain after months of lockdowns and restrictions. These restrictions have separated families from loved ones, kept kids out of classrooms and threatened the livelihoods of millions. We have to get the vaccine rollout right in order to secure jobs and secure our future, but the Liberals' inability to get vaccines to Canadians and their repeated failures to manage the pandemic mean our future remains uncertain.

How much longer can the great small businesses in our communities hold out before they are forced to shut their doors for good? How much longer can we expect seniors to be confined to their homes? When can we expect life to get back to normal?

To get there, more must be done. We need a plan that goes beyond restrictions. We need a path forward that reopens our economy, protects our most vulnerable and, above all else, gives Canadians confidence and hope for the future. Fear may be contagious, but we must always remember that hope is contagious too.

Foreign Affairs

[Candice Bergen, Conservative, Portage—Lisgar, MB]

Mr. Speaker, the only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men and women to do nothing.

Yesterday, while the Prime Minister and his cabinet did nothing, the House united under the leadership of our Conservative Party and we did something. With one voice, we said genocide is happening in China. What we do next matters. We have used Magnitsky sanctions against some others, but never against members of the Chinese government.

Will the Prime Minister admit his approach to China has failed to defend Canadian values? Will he impose sanctions against those running Uighur detention camps?

[Rob Oliphant, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, our government takes any and every allegation of genocide extremely seriously.

Yesterday's vote in Parliament ensured that every member in the House could make a determination for themselves on available evidence, and express that honestly and clearly.

The government welcomed the voice of Parliament yesterday and the voice of parliamentarians united on this issue, but the government has additional responsibilities and will continue to work with international partners and multilateral bodies to ensure we find a way to bring health, justice and fairness to Uighur people in western China.

Public Services and Procurement

[Candice Bergen, Conservative, Portage—Lisgar, MB]

Mr. Speaker, the government's lack of a voice yesterday, and its lack of speaking out, spoke volumes. It was very weak and it was disappointing.

Yesterday the health committee heard that the Liberals' vaccine response is slow and a risk to national security. It is a chaotic process that has left Canadians 54th in terms of vaccinations. Other countries are planning their reopening in the next several months, while Canadians are stuck in lockdowns with no end in sight.

How in the world are 300,000 Canadians going to get vaccinated every day at this rate? Does the government know how many Canadians need to be vaccinated so the lockdowns can end?

[Anita Anand, Liberal, Minister of Public Services and Procurement]

Mr. Speaker, 643,000 doses of vaccines are arriving in Canada this week, the majority of which have been delivered. This is our largest shipment to date.

By the end of the week, 2.5 million doses will have been delivered and another 3.5 million are arriving in the month of March. We will see six million doses cumulative this trimester. We will see 29 million doses cumulative in the second quarter, and 84 million doses of Pfizer and Moderna prior to the end of September.

All Canadians who wish to have a vaccine will—