Debates of June 7th, 2022

Public Safety

[Kristina Michaud, Bloc, Avignon—La Mitis—Matane—Matapédia, QC]

Mr. Speaker, it is official: 2021 was Montreal's most violent year in a decade. The police released its annual report, and there were 25,000 crimes against the person. Incidents where shots were fired doubled compared to last year. This wave of violence can be traced back to organized crime and its illegal weapons.

The federal government must do more than restrict legal firearms. Illegal weapons are plaguing Montreal. Will the minister admit that Bill C‑21 does not solve this problem?

[Marco Mendicino, Liberal, Minister of Public Safety]

Mr. Speaker, I completely agree with my colleague that shootings and tragic events caused by firearms are unacceptable. I am always ready to work with my Bloc colleagues.

However, today, we are studying Bill C‑21 in the House. I very much look forward to starting the debate on this bill, because the measures it contains can make all communities and all Canadians safer.

[Kristina Michaud, Bloc, Avignon—La Mitis—Matane—Matapédia, QC]

Mr. Speaker, putting a freeze on legal handgun sales is a step in the right direction, I will give him that.

As for illegal firearms, we need to face facts. Criminal groups do not buy their guns at the store, and they are the ones who made 2021 Montreal's most violent year.

The minister may well increase prison sentences, but we still need to be able to arrest these individuals, seize their illegal weapons and lay charges. The numbers show that we did not manage to do it in 2021. Organized crime groups are not worried. Does the minister realize that?

[Marco Mendicino, Liberal, Minister of Public Safety]

Mr. Speaker, my colleague is quite right. This bill is an important step. Why is that?

It is because it introduces a national freeze on handguns. It is because it introduces many criminal penalties for organized criminals. It is because we can now do what needs to be done to curb intimate partner violence. That is meaningful action. These measures need to be passed into law to protect all Canadians.

[Rhéal Fortin, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

Mr. Speaker, we need to give the police more resources so that they can take action. One of those resources is a list of criminal organizations, like the Bloc Québécois suggested. That would greatly ease the burden of proof when the police want to lay charges against members of criminal groups. Given that 2021 was the most violent year of the past decade in Montreal, the minister simply cannot afford to deprive the police of such a tool any longer.

Does the minister realize that this sad statistic obligates him to consider our proposal and create an organized crime registry?

[Marco Mendicino, Liberal, Minister of Public Safety]

Mr. Speaker, that is exactly why we introduced Bill C-21. As I already said, I am always willing to work with my colleague. I agree with the Bloc Québécois's goal, vision and concept, but we still need to examine the bill.

It is too bad that the Conservatives picked a fight on Friday when we had time to start this debate. We really need to move forward on this. We need to pass this bill as soon as possible.

Justice

[Rob Moore, Conservative, Fundy Royal, NB]

Mr. Speaker, under this government, Canada is becoming less and less safe. The Liberals have brought in Bill C-5, legislation that is soft on gun crime, while the Supreme Court has ruled that one can drink one's way out of a conviction for a serious crime and receive a discounted sentence for multiple murders.

It is about time the Liberals put victims first. Will the government provide a legislative response to these court rulings?

[David Lametti, Liberal, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada]

Mr. Speaker, our hearts go out to victims and we will always stand with victims. With respect to the Supreme Court ruling on serious intoxication, we are looking carefully at that ruling. The Court has presented us with a number of different options, and I have already said publicly that we will evaluate those options and come back to this place.

Serious crimes in this country will always carry serious consequences. The failed tough-on-crime Conservative policy needs to be put in the past, and that is precisely what we are doing.

[Rob Moore, Conservative, Fundy Royal, NB]

Mr. Speaker, the Supreme Court ruling means that the killer of three Mounties in Moncton, New Brunswick has had his parole ineligibility reduced from 75 years to 25. This will put the victims' families through future misery.

Will the government respond?

[David Lametti, Liberal, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada]

Mr. Speaker, our hearts go out to anybody, to any families and communities that suffer from the ravages of multiple murders. The Supreme Court ruling is clear and unanimous. We have said and we have pointed out that the ability of a mass murderer to get parole is extremely rare. Celebrated murderers and mass murderers like Paul Bernardo do not get parole. The system is, in itself, one that punishes criminals seriously.

[Kerry-Lynne Findlay, Conservative, South Surrey—White Rock, BC]

Mr. Speaker, not all mandatory minimum sentences have been struck down by the Supreme Court of Canada. Bill C-5 punishes legitimate gun owners and gives violent criminals a ticket back to ruining more lives. In Surrey, two men, including one wanted on a Canada-wide warrant for human trafficking, have been charged after Mounties seized a loaded handgun in a traffic stop.

Violent repeat offenders should be taken off the streets. What does this government not understand about protecting victims and putting violent criminals behind bars?

[Marco Mendicino, Liberal, Minister of Public Safety]

Mr. Speaker, if my colleague had read the bill, she would see that this initiative tackles organized crime head-on by raising maximum sentences against serious hardened criminals who would terrorize our communities.

I was in my hon. colleague's province just last week to speak with Eileen Mohan, who lost her son some 15 years ago to gun violence, unnecessary, harsh, needless, senseless violence.

If my hon. colleague is interested in protecting her community, then she will vote for Bill C-21. It enjoys the support of survivors. It enjoys the support of women's groups. It enjoys the support of law enforcement.

We should all unite behind this bill, because that is how we will protect Canadians.

[Kerry-Lynne Findlay, Conservative, South Surrey—White Rock, BC]

Mr. Speaker, Surrey, B.C., has seen a troubling spike in gun violence, with 28 reports of shots fired and three confirmed deadly shootings by April of this year. Fatal gun violence by gangs linked to the drug trade continues to rise in my riding, putting our community in jeopardy, yet this government chooses to play politics at the expense of people's lives.

Why does the Prime Minister refuse to protect victims—often racialized and indigenous Canadians, by the way—by ensuring repeat violent offenders go to jail for their crimes?

[Marco Mendicino, Liberal, Minister of Public Safety]

Mr. Speaker, what playing politics looks like in this chamber is exactly what we saw last Friday and what we are pretty sure we are going to continue to see from Conservatives. Rather than allowing for debate to commence on Bill C-21, they are stalling it, filibustering it. which is

Notwithstanding that, we are going to continue to have this debate—

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

Order.

Can we continue?

I will ask the hon. minister to take it from the top, please.

[Marco Mendicino, Liberal, Eglinton—Lawrence, ON]

Mr. Speaker, as I was saying, what playing politics looks like in this chamber is when there is filibustering, which is exactly what the Conservatives engaged in last Friday when we were supposed to start debating Bill C-21.

What we need to do is move forward with a national freeze on handguns. We need to move forward with the tools that will allow us to take on organized crime and gun violence.

When we actually look at the Conservatives on this issue, they have no plan except for legalizing AR-15s and assault-style rifles, which will make our communities more dangerous. Our bill will protect communities. That is why they should vote for it.

Airline Industry

[Taylor Bachrach, NDP, Skeena—Bulkley Valley, BC]

Mr. Speaker, security workers continue to bear the brunt of the chaos at our airports. In Vancouver on Friday, I met directly with airport workers who told me about missed breaks, excessive overtime and low wages. It is no wonder this government is having trouble filling positions. Now, in Amsterdam, the public airport just reached a deal with the union that sees a pay raise during the busy summer travel season, but this government leaves workers at the whim of private contractors.

Will the minister tell us if he is concerned about the working conditions faced by our airport workers? Does he even care?

[Omar Alghabra, Liberal, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, of course our government is concerned about working conditions for all employees, including those who work for CATSA. We are also concerned about the experience of travellers.

My hon. colleague mentions Amsterdam. Let me read this headline: “Amsterdam Airport Boldly Asks Airlines to Cancel Flights to Alleviate Chaos”.

We are witnessing a global phenomenon, and in order for us to serve the public properly, we need to increase resources and be there working with the airlines, working with the airport, working with CATSA to ensure that we address these issues.

Foreign Affairs

[Heather McPherson, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

Mr. Speaker, it has been over 100 days since the illegal war in Ukraine began, and this government still is not transparent on sanctions imposed on Russian oligarchs. Global Affairs will not tell us what assets have been frozen, because it says that its data may not be complete, so the government does not know what has been sanctioned and Canadians do not know what has been sanctioned. Do the Russian oligarchs being sanctioned know what is being sanctioned?

When will the minister finally tell us the number and the amount of assets seized so Canadians can tell if the government's plan is actually working?

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

Mr. Speaker, one thing that has brought this House together over this last number of months is our solidarity in our support for Ukraine and our condemnation of the illegal invasion by Russia into Ukraine. What we have also done is work in an unprecedented fashion in imposing sanctions upon Russia to level that playing field and bring Russia down as we lift Ukraine up in this battle of their lives.

Those sanctions are unprecedented. Since February 24, we have levelled sanctions at over 1,400 individuals and entities, and we will continue to do that until the job is done.

Housing

[Valerie Bradford, Liberal, Kitchener South—Hespeler, ON]

Mr. Speaker, on April 7, our government put forward its plan to make life more affordable for Canadians through the 2022 budget. A top area of concern in my riding of Kitchener South—Hespeler is the issue of housing affordability. We know that Canadians deserve a safe place to call home and that it should be affordable.

Can the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance tell us what the government is doing to make the dream of owning a home a reality for more Canadians?

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the hon. member, my colleague, for the very hard work that she is doing in her constituency.

We are committed to making housing more affordable for all Canadians. That is why the budget included a tax-free first home savings account, a ban on foreign buyers for two years, a one-time payment of $500 to help people in need, $1.5 billion to support new housing co-ops and a new $4-billion housing accelerator fund.

I look forward to working with my colleague on these important projects.

Health

[Stephen Ellis, Conservative, Cumberland—Colchester, NS]

Mr. Speaker, the government clearly does not know its own policies with respect to travel on federally regulated boats. The Marine Atlantic policy clearly states that travel is open to unvaccinated Canadians because the voyage is less than 24 hours and the service is essential. Clearly, all plane trips in the world are less than 24 hours. Also, the parliamentary secretary's assertion that the hardy folks of Newfoundland will spend the entire voyage outside on the North Atlantic in the wintertime is nothing short of ridiculous.

Canadians need a commitment that this government will put an end to their hypocritical and vindictive political mandates.

[Adam van Koeverden, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Health and to the Minister of Sport]

Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the hard work and the advocacy of the member opposite.

As I said yesterday, it is a lot different travelling on a boat versus a plane. When we are in an airplane, we are in a confined space, seated right next to somebody, as we are here in the House of Commons. That is why we on this side wear masks. When somebody is on a ferry, they can be far more socially distant. They can go outside. Windows are available. I would not recommend opening the window when one is up in the air.