House of Commons Hansard #106 of the 43rd Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was women.

Topics

Question No.601Questions on the Order PaperRoutine Proceedings

12:30 p.m.

Conservative

Marilyn Gladu Conservative Sarnia—Lambton, ON

With regard to four corners meetings convened by the Privy Council Office or the Office of the Prime Minister since January 1, 2019: (a) what was the date of each meeting; (b) what was the subject-matter of each meeting; (c) which departments, agencies or Crown corporations participated in each meeting; and (d) which ministers or ministers’ offices participated in each meeting?

Question No.601Questions on the Order PaperRoutine Proceedings

12:30 p.m.

Hull—Aylmer Québec

Liberal

Greg Fergus LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister

Mr. Speaker, the Privy Council Office undertook an extensive preliminary search in order to determine the amount of information that would fall within the scope of the question and the amount of time that would be required to prepare a comprehensive response. It was concluded that producing and validating a comprehensive response to this question would require a manual collection, and careful analysis that is not possible in the time allotted and could lead to the disclosure of incomplete and misleading information.

Question No.604Questions on the Order PaperRoutine Proceedings

12:30 p.m.

Conservative

Marty Morantz Conservative Charleswood—St. James—Assiniboia—Headingley, MB

With regard to the statement on January 22, 2021, by the Minister of International Development regarding classroom materials provided by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) that she has instructed Canadian officials to investigate the presence in school materials in the West Bank and Gaza of references that violated UN values of human rights, tolerance, neutrality and non-discrimination: (a) which Canadian officials were assigned to conduct the investigation; (b) what is the current status of this investigation; (c) what is the timeline for when the investigation will be concluded; and (d) when will the unredacted reports related to the investigation be published and how will the public have access to them?

Question No.604Questions on the Order PaperRoutine Proceedings

12:30 p.m.

Burlington Ontario

Liberal

Karina Gould LiberalMinister of International Development

Mr. Speaker, the following reflects a consolidated response approved on behalf of Global Affairs Canada ministers.

The following is in response to parts (a) to (d). Canada is committed to focusing its international assistance on the most vulnerable communities, including those served by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East, UNRWA. Canada’s support helps over 500,000 Palestinian children who rely on UNRWA for their education.

Canada and other donor governments expect UNRWA to uphold UN values and humanitarian principles, including neutrality, in all its activities. Canadian funding reinforces UNRWA’s ongoing efforts in this regard, including work by UNRWA staff to identify, monitor, and follow up on violations of these principles.

As with all Canadian development and humanitarian assistance for Palestinians, Canada exercises enhanced due diligence on funding for UNRWA. This includes ongoing oversight, regular site visits, a systematic screening process, and strong anti-terrorism provisions in funding agreements. Canadian officials on the ground also play a key role in ensuring ongoing oversight on programming, maintaining dialogue with the agency, and engaging with representatives of like-minded donor governments that support UNRWA. Canada actively participates on UNRWA’s advisory commission, which allows for oversight, influence, and engagement on key issues.

It is deeply concerning that problematic educational materials were circulated. UNRWA recognized its error and is taking corrective actions. Notably, on April 19, 2021, UNRWA launched its digital learning platform, which is described as a centralized digital platform for online learning material for over 540,000 students in 711 schools across the Middle East, in accordance with host country curriculum.

Following the January 2021 statement by the Minister of International Development on this topic, the minister and Canadian officials based in Ottawa and in Ramallah are working closely with partners and with UNRWA’s senior management to address the issue of problematic educational materials. This extensive engagement positions Canada to insist on UNRWA’s accountability and transparency, including through taking further corrective actions, as needed.

Question No.606Questions on the Order PaperRoutine Proceedings

12:30 p.m.

Conservative

Tim Uppal Conservative Edmonton Mill Woods, AB

With regard to Global Affairs Canada and its anti-racism training documents which state that wearing blackface is an overt act of white supremacy, as reported in the Toronto Sun on April 8, 2021: (a) who approved this training; (b) how much did this training cost; (c) was this contract sole-sourced, and, if so, what was the rationale for sole sourcing this contract; (d) who participated in this training; (e) what was the rationale for the department offering this training; (f) is it the official view of the government that wearing blackface is an overt act of white supremacy; (g) are officials who provide anti-racism training permitted to discuss the Prime Minister’s history of wearing blackface and its impact on racism in their training, and, if not, why are there restrictions against discussing the Prime Minister’s history; (h) how often did this training occur and on what dates; and (i) who provided this training?

Question No.606Questions on the Order PaperRoutine Proceedings

12:30 p.m.

Don Valley West Ontario

Liberal

Rob Oliphant LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs

Mr. Speaker, the following reflects a consolidated response approved on behalf of Global Affairs Canada ministers.

With regard to part (a), the course was designed in-house with the input of internal and external subject matter experts, including self-identified Black, indigenous and other racialized employees.

With regard to part (b), as of March 31, 2021, the department invested $148,365 to develop and deliver 32 virtually facilitated sessions to 397 executives. This amount includes work for the design of the course and for the development of the supporting material, as well as the facilitation of the sessions. In future offerings, only facilitation costs will be incurred.

With regard to part (c), this was not a sole-sourced contract.

With regard to part (d), 397 employees in the executive cadre at Global Affairs Canada participated.

With regard to part (e), the training was designed to strengthen the competencies of Global Affairs Canada’s management cadre with a view to develop an understanding of what racism is, to recognize the negative impacts of racial discrimination and how it can manifest itself in the workplace, and to develop a shared understanding of the role and actions managers can take to combat racism and promote an equitable and inclusive workplace.

With regard to part (f), participants in the training were presented with research, studies and opinions from various sources in order to elicit self-reflection and discussion among themselves. These were not presented as an expression of the view of the government.

With regard to part (g), trainers and participants were free to raise and discuss subjects that were of interest to them and relevant to the objectives of the training.

With regard to part (h), the half-day training was offered in February and March 2021, as follows: February 1-4, February 8-11, February 15-18, February 22-25, March 1, March 3-4, March 8-11, March 15-18, March 23-25 and March 29-30.

With regard to part (i), the training was provided by the learning and development division of Global Affairs Canada.

Questions Passed as Orders for ReturnsRoutine Proceedings

12:30 p.m.

Winnipeg North Manitoba

Liberal

Kevin Lamoureux LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the President of the Queen’s Privy Council for Canada and Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs and to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons

Madam Speaker, if the government's responses to Questions Nos. 596, 597, 599, 602, 603 and 605 could be made orders for returns, these returns would be tabled immediately.

Question No.596Questions Passed as Orders for ReturnsRoutine Proceedings

12:30 p.m.

Bloc

Denis Trudel Bloc Longueuil—Saint-Hubert, QC

With regard to the initiative to dispose of surplus federal properties to create affordable housing, since it was established in 2018: for each project, which organizations or corporations benefited from the initiative, broken down by (i) the name of the recipient organization, (ii) the city where the organization operates, (iii) a short description of the project and how many housing units will be built or renovated, (iv) the properties disposed of and the address, (v) the date the renovation work began, (vi) whether the housing is currently occupied or, if not, the anticipated date when prospective tenants may move in?

(Return tabled)

Question No.597Questions Passed as Orders for ReturnsRoutine Proceedings

12:30 p.m.

Conservative

Richard Bragdon Conservative Tobique—Mactaquac, NB

With regard to illegal fishing in Canadian waters by foreign commercial vessels, broken down by year since 2015: (a) how many instances or suspected incidents of illegal fishing activity in Canadian waters is the government aware of; and (b) what are the details of each such incident, including the (i) date, (ii) description of illegal fishing activity, (iii) specific enforcement action taken, including what type of charges or fines were levied, if applicable, (iv) origin country of the vessel, (v) country the vessel was registered in?

(Return tabled)

Question No.599Questions Passed as Orders for ReturnsRoutine Proceedings

12:30 p.m.

Conservative

Jamie Schmale Conservative Haliburton—Kawartha Lakes—Brock, ON

With regard to cheques or payments made to individuals with addresses outside of Canada and to a CTV news report of April 2021 on a Canadian family who has been living in New Zealand for the past 18 years and received a COVID-19 benefit cheque addressed to their disabled daughter who died in 2009, despite never applying for any financial aid: (a) how many cheques or payments were made to individuals with addresses outside of Canada, broken down by program; (b) how many cheques or payments were made to people who never applied for financial aid, broken down by program; (c) what measures, if any, were taken to ensure that the payments made in (a) and (b) were not made to individuals who were deceased prior to 2020; and (d) how many COVID-19 relief payments has the government made to people who died prior to the pandemic, and what is the total value of those payments, broken down by program?

(Return tabled)

Question No.602Questions Passed as Orders for ReturnsRoutine Proceedings

12:30 p.m.

Conservative

Marilyn Gladu Conservative Sarnia—Lambton, ON

With regard to the Privy Council Office’s (PCO) 2021-22 Departmental Plans: (a) how and when was the figure established that 61 per cent of PCO employees described their workplace as psychologically healthy; (b) how did the remaining 39 per cent of PCO employees surveyed describe their workplace, broken down by responses; (c) were there any write-in answers to the question which generated the figure referred to in (a), and, if so, what were they; (d) what sources or causes are attributed to the responses of the 39 per cent of PCO employees who did not describe their workplace as psychologically healthy; and (e) what measures are in place to increase the proportion of PCO employees who describe their workplace as psychologically healthy?

(Return tabled)

Question No.603Questions Passed as Orders for ReturnsRoutine Proceedings

12:30 p.m.

NDP

Jenny Kwan NDP Vancouver East, BC

With regard to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) and the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA): (a) broken down by month, gender, location of processing office, and country of origin, what is the total number of Humanitarian and Compassionate applications since 2016 that were (i) submitted, (ii) accepted (iii) rejected; (b) how many applications in (a) included gender-based violence considerations; (c) how many people are in CBSA's detention and alternatives to detention programs, broken down by (i) year since 2012, (ii) month since 2020, (iii) associated immigration applications streams, (iv) province, (v) region, (vi) facility, (vii) age group (e.g. minor, adult, potential minor without ID to confirm) and type of detention (e.g. detained in a provincial or federal facility, voice reporting, community case management, supervision and electronic monitoring, etc.); (d) broken down by application stream, which IRCC processing center is still facing long backlogs of transferring files from mail into digital systems; (e) since 2019, broken down by month, how many Temporary Resident Visa Applications have been (i) submitted, (ii) accepted, (iii) rejected, (iv) rejected under paragraph 179(b) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations; (f) how many of the applications in (e) indicated dual intent; (g) since 2020, broken down by month and stream for all immigration streams, what is the average processing time for (i) the issuance of an acknowledgement of receipt (AOR), (ii) the issuance of a modified AOR, (iii) finishing the completeness check after a modified AOR, (iv) a final positive decision, (v) a final positive decision on applications once security, criminality and eligibility have all been passed; (h) broken down by month, how many medicals have expired since March 15, 2020; (i) since 2019, broken down by month and stream, what is the number of family reunification applications under asylum seeker streams that have (i) been received, (ii) been accepted, (iii) been refused, (iv) landed; (j) since 2018, broken down by month, stream, processing office, country of origin, province, gender, and whether it is inland or outland, what is the total number of applications under the Open Work Permit for Vulnerable Workers program that were (i) submitted, (ii) accepted, (iii) rejected; (k) since 2019, broken down by month, processing office, country of origin, province and census metropolitan area, what is the total number of Interim Pathway for Caregiver, Home Child Care Provider and Home Support Worker applications that were (i) submitted, (ii) accepted, (iii) rejected; (l) since 2016, broken down by month, stream, processing office, country of origin, gender, province, length of permit and census metropolitan area, what is the total number applications for Post Graduate Work Permits and Work Permit for Spouses of Students and Post Graduate Work Permit holders that were (i) submitted, (ii) accepted, (iii) rejected; and (m) broken down by year since 2010, by month since 2020, and by country of origin, gender, province, age group (ie. minor, adult, potential minor without ID to confirm) and associated immigration stream, what is the total number of deportation orders that were (i) issued, (ii) revoked, (iii) resulting in the deportation of an individual?

(Return tabled)

Question No.605Questions Passed as Orders for ReturnsRoutine Proceedings

12:30 p.m.

Bloc

Xavier Barsalou-Duval Bloc Pierre-Boucher—Les Patriotes—Verchères, QC

With regard to federal spending, since January 1, 2006: what is the total amount of federal investments to control golden nematode, broken down by (i) year, (ii) department, (iii) city, (iv) project?

(Return tabled)

Questions Passed as Orders for ReturnsRoutine Proceedings

12:30 p.m.

Liberal

Kevin Lamoureux Liberal Winnipeg North, MB

Finally, Madam Speaker, I would ask that all remaining questions be allowed to stand.

Questions Passed as Orders for ReturnsRoutine Proceedings

12:30 p.m.

NDP

The Assistant Deputy Speaker NDP Carol Hughes

Is that agreed?

Questions Passed as Orders for ReturnsRoutine Proceedings

12:30 p.m.

Some hon. members

Agreed.

Conduct of the Member for PontiacPrivilegeRoutine Proceedings

12:30 p.m.

Conservative

Karen Vecchio Conservative Elgin—Middlesex—London, ON

Madam Speaker, I recognize that Canadians have big problems and issues and many challenges right now, so it is regretful that I rise today on a question of privilege concerning the admissions published late last night by my colleague, the member for Pontiac, concerning his conduct while attending the House on Wednesday.

In a statement released on Twitter at 10:34 p.m. last night, the member—

Conduct of the Member for PontiacPrivilegeRoutine Proceedings

12:30 p.m.

NDP

The Assistant Deputy Speaker NDP Carol Hughes

Order. The interpretation is not working.

I know there are lots of technical difficulties in this part of the House.

The interpretation is now working.

I would ask the member for Elgin—Middlesex—London to restart her speech.

Conduct of the Member for PontiacPrivilegeRoutine Proceedings

12:30 p.m.

Conservative

Karen Vecchio Conservative Elgin—Middlesex—London, ON

Madam Speaker, I recognize that Canadians are being challenged right now. There are many issues and problems that we must face, but it is my regretful duty to rise today on a question of privilege concerning the admissions published late last night by my colleague, the member for Pontiac, concerning his conduct while attending the House on Wednesday.

In a statement released on Twitter at 10:34 p.m. last night, the member admitted, “Last night while attending the House of Commons proceedings virtually, in a non-public setting, I urinated without realizing I was on camera”.

This shocking event is, in my respectful view, a contempt of the House. On page 81 of the House of Commons Procedure and Practice, third edition, it explains that :

There are, however, other affronts against the dignity and authority of Parliament which may not fall within one of the specifically defined privileges. Thus, the House also claims the right to punish, as a contempt, any action which, though not a breach of a specific privilege.... ....or is an offence against the authority or dignity of the House

To do what he did within the House is quite frankly an offence to the dignity of Parliament. Though a very quick scan of our precedents does not reveal any past cases of contempt of this specific nature, I would suggest two things: First, such shocking and reckless conduct is likely unprecedented, and second, no specific precedent is required for the House to act.

On page 81 of Bosc and Gagnon, it explains:

The House of Commons enjoys very wide latitude in maintaining its dignity and authority through the exercise of its contempt power. In other words, the House may consider any misconduct to be contempt and may deal with it accordingly. This area of parliamentary law is therefore extremely fluid and most valuable for the Commons to be able to meet novel situations. Throughout the Commonwealth most procedural authorities hold that contempts, as opposed to privileges, cannot be enumerated or categorized.

On page 83, it continues:

Just as it is not possible to categorize or to delineate every incident which may fall under the definition of contempt, it is also difficult to categorize the severity of contempt. Contempts may vary greatly in their gravity; matters ranging from minor breaches of decorum to grave attacks against the authority of Parliament may be considered as contempts.

Even though it is impossible to complete an exhaustive list of what might constitute a contempt of Parliament, the United Kingdom's Joint Committee on Parliamentary Privilege included in a 1999 report a collection of various categories of contempt. At the top of the list was: “interrupting or disturbing the proceedings of, or engaging in other misconduct in the presence of, the House or a committee”

That list, including the item I quote, is favourably cited by Bosc and Gagnon at pages 82 and 83. The actions of the member for Pontiac without a doubt represent the engagement in misconduct in the presence of the House.

I know that some could be quick to stress the part of the member's statement that he was “in a non-public setting”, but frankly, there is no part of the House of Commons that is non-public. While I am speaking right now, the cameras are on me and more than 95% of the rest of the chamber is not in the camera shot. That does not mean that what is happening outside of the camera shot is non-public or what not happening inside the chamber. It certainly does not stop us from properly calling to order those who are disorderly, wherever they may be.

I would also refer the Chair to paragraph (c) of the special order adopted on January 25, 2021, which authorizes our current hybrid proceedings, as follows:

any reference in the Standing Orders to the need for members to rise or to be in their place, as well as any reference to the chair, the table or the chamber shall be interpreted in a manner consistent with the virtual nature of the proceedings

Consistent with the decision of the House and by all logic, to turn on our camera and to log onto the House Zoom feed is the same as opening one of those doors behind me and walking down to any of the 338 seats in this majestic room. The use of our webcams in our proceedings is less than an year old and, if I have anything to say about it, only temporary.

The television cameras filming us have been here since 1977. The House of Commons is, on the other hand, an ancient institution and its rules and its rights long predate cameras and broadcasting equipment. To claim that what happens in the House is only what is broadcast on the outgoing television feed is nonsense and it cheapens what is the institution and what it represents.

Whether something happens right here on the floor of this chamber, either in or out of the camera shot, or in the extension of the chamber through the video conferencing, we must apply equal treatment to members' conduct. It falls to us to respond to offensive behaviour in the same manner too.

The member's behaviour, whether committed right here or via Zoom, cannot be condoned.

Finally, let me address one further technical matter. On Wednesday evening, the House was sitting in committee of the whole, though it is not clear whether the misconduct of the member for Pontiac occurred before or after the House resolved itself into the committee of the whole. In normal practice, questions of privilege arising in committee shall first be reported to the House from the committee itself. However, given the practical realities surrounding how committees of the whole conduct their business, you ruled on July 22, 2020, at page 2,701 of the Debates:

I accept that the particular circumstances of this situation, notably the challenge surrounding the committee of the whole format, do make it appropriate to bring the matter to the Speaker.

In closing, this is not the first time the member for Pontiac has exposed himself while virtually attending a sitting in the House. It is not even the first time this spring. I recognize that he has apologized, and acknowledged that he requires some form of assistance or intervention, but it does not absolve him of the responsibility for his conduct and his choices while attending a sitting in the House.

Even if the member's conduct was unintentional or lacking in malice, we must also recognize that it still puts his colleagues, plus all of the hardworking staff of the House of Commons administration, in a very uncomfortable position. It is incumbent upon us to ensure that the House of Commons is, and remains, a safe and respectful workplace.

Canadians send us to Parliament to represent them because they believe we possess the good judgment necessary to make these important decisions on their behalf. The reckless conduct the member for Pontiac admitted completely undermines that for himself, for each of us and for the institution of Parliament as a whole.

What is more, it is becoming clearer by the day that we must draw a bold, bright line that confirms that logging into the virtual House is the same as entering into this room, and that standards of behaviour in both places must be the same. Perhaps the procedure and House affairs committee would be able to make this point should the matter eventually be referred to it.

Madam Speaker, should you agree with me that there is prima facie contempt, I will be prepared to move an appropriate motion, even if I wish these circumstances had never happened.