Debates of Jan. 30th, 2023

Foreign Affairs

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

Mr. Speaker, the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development is currently undertaking an important study on the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh, or Artsakh, and the blockade of the Lachin corridor. I am tabling a petition about the situation in that region.

It was a petition signed prior to the start of the blockade, but it does have a number of asks that are relevant to that ongoing situation, including a call on the Government of Canada to provide the necessary humanitarian assistance to ensure the safety and viability of the population of Artsakh and facilitate the exchange of the remains of fatalities.

It also calls on the Government of Canada to denounce aggressive rhetoric from Turkey and Azerbaijan against Armenia and Artsakh and to condemn state-sponsored hatred. Furthermore, it notes the illegal detention of prisoners of war and calls on the Government of Canada to use the tools available to it to advocate for the release of captives. I hope I join certainly all members of the House in calling for an end to the blockade of the Lachin corridor and efforts to pursue peace in the region.

Human Rights

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

Mr. Speaker, the second petition I am tabling highlights the ongoing detention of Huseyin Celil, a Canadian citizen detained in China for over a decade and a half. The Chinese government has refused to accept Mr. Celil's Canadian citizenship and continues to deny access to lawyers, family members and Canadian officials. We must continue to be persistent in highlighting this case and calling for his release.

Petitioners want to see the Government of Canada demand the recognition of Huseyin Celil's Canadian citizenship and provide him with consular and legal services in accordance with international law, to formally state that the release of Huseyin Celil is a priority of the Canadian government of equal concern to the unjust detention of Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor, to appoint a special envoy to work on securing Mr. Celil's release and to seek the assistance of the Biden administration and other allies around the world in obtaining Mr. Celil's release.

Aquaculture

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

Mr. Speaker, as it is my first chance to address you in the year 2023 and if there is no statute of limitations on it, happy new year.

I am honoured to present a petition from my constituents. As many petitions before this one have attested, residents of British Columbia are deeply concerned that the populations of Pacific salmon are in free fall. One of the proximate reasons for that is the presence of what are referred to in some context as fish farms. My constituents prefer to call them toxic fish factories.

There has been guidance from the Cohen commission and others that these operations should be removed from the migratory routes of Pacific salmon, but these petitioners point to a specific problem, and that is that the mandate for the Department of Fisheries and Oceans includes both regulating aquaculture and promoting aquaculture.

The petitioners call for this conflict of interest to be removed such that the Department of Fisheries and Oceans protects the marine ecosystem particularly for the sustainability of the Fraser River sockeye.

COVID-19 Mandates

[Arnold Viersen, Conservative, Peace River—Westlock, AB]

Mr. Speaker, it is my honour and privilege to rise today to present a number of petitions.

The first one is from Canadians from across the country who are still concerned around the implementation of vaccine passports on Canadian citizens. They note the Government of Canada has suspended these things for the time being and they are asking for the Government of Canada to abolish these things. They are calling for an end to all federally regulated COVID-19 vaccine mandates and restrictions.

Charitable Organizations

[Arnold Viersen, Conservative, Peace River—Westlock, AB]

Mr. Speaker, my next petition is from Canadians across the country who are concerned about the Liberal Party's campaign platform to revoke charitable status from pro-life organizations such as crisis pregnancy care centres, which counsel young women and save countless lives every day. Revoking charitable status would politicize charitable status and would be the first step to even more measures to eradicate the values and principles of Christian Canadians.

Revoking the charitable status of pro-life organizations would result in an explosion in the number of folks who are unable to get help in a time of crisis. Therefore, the folks who have signed this petition are calling on members of Parliament to do everything they can to prevent the revocation of charitable status from pro-life organizations.

Medical Assistance in Dying

[Arnold Viersen, Conservative, Peace River—Westlock, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the next petition is from Canadians across Canada who are appalled by the statements of Louis Roy of the Collège des médecins du Québec, who recommended that we legalize the killing of babies from birth to one year of age who have severe deformities and syndromes. The killing of infants is deeply disturbing to these Canadians and they state that infanticide is always wrong. Therefore, they call on the Government of Canada and this Parliament to block any attempt to legalize infanticide.

[Charlie Angus, NDP, Timmins—James Bay, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order. It is not up to me to tell the Speaker about the rules of House, which you have such great respect for, but I have heard one editorializing comment after another, and that is not what petitions are for. Members are supposed to simply stick to the petition. Throwing in all of these extra attacks on people who believe in women's reproductive rights is not fair game.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

I am not here to bring judgment down on what is said and what is not said. The Speaker's role is to remind members of what the rules are.

I was going to remind members before the next presentation that they should present a very short synopsis of every petition and not go on for a while. I am going to leave it at that. I will remind hon. members the next time I ask for petitions what petitions are for. I have let them run on a bit, and I will admit to that.

I thank the member for bringing that up.

I will let the hon. member for Peace River—Westlock continue.

Falun Gong

[Arnold Viersen, Conservative, Peace River—Westlock, AB]

Mr. Speaker, my final petition comes from Canadians across Canada who are concerned about the treatment of Falun Gong by the Chinese Communist Party. Millions of Falun Gong practitioners have been arbitrarily detained. Family members of Canadians have gone missing. Extrajudicial imprisonment, forced labour, torture, rape, killing, forced abortion and these kinds of things have happened to Falun Gong practitioners in Canada.

The petitioners note the 2016 report by the late David Kilgour. They also note that the U.S. House of Representatives and the European Parliament have passed resolutions recognizing the terrible treatment of Falun Gong practitioners by the Chinese Communist Party. Therefore, they call on Canada to take every opportunity to call for the end of the persecution of Falun Gong and to ensure that the Chinese Communist Party's mass murder of innocent people for their organs is not allowed here in Canada.

Questions on the Order Paper

[Kevin Lamoureux, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Mr. Speaker, the following questions will be answered today: Nos. 967, 969, 974, 979, 980, 983, 986, 987, 1000, 1001, 1008, 1009, 1013, 1015, 1019, 1021, 1026, 1034, 1038, 1040, 1048 to 1050, 1053, 1059, 1060, 1064, 1065, 1067, 1068, 1070, 1074 to 1076, 1078, 1079, 1082, 1087, 1091, 1095, 1097, 1098, 1100, 1109, 1110, 1112, 1118, 1123, 1131, 1133, 1136, 1137, 1141 and 1143.

Question No.967—

[Melissa Lantsman, Conservative, Thornhill, ON]

With regard to the government's response to recent media reports that the registered not-for-profit entity Samidoun has ties to entities that the government has listed as terrorist entities, including the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP): (a) when did Public Safety Canada (PS) first become aware of Samidoun's ties to the PFLP, and what specific actions, if any, did PS take after they became aware; (b) when did PS first become aware that events hosted by Samidoun glorified terrorist and armed militants from the PFLP and other designated terrorist entities, and what specific actions, if any, did PS take after they became aware; (c) when did PS first become aware that Samidoun was raising money for (i) the Union of Health Work Committees, (ii) other entities tied to the PFLP, broken down by each entity; (d) when did PS and the Canada Border Services Agency become aware that the Samidoun organizers, who currently reside in the Vancouver area, have been (i) denied entry to the European Union, (ii) deported from the United States; and (e) what actions, if any, is the government taking to ensure that Canadians are safe from the threat posed by Samidoun, including whether or not the government will be listing Samidoun as a terrorist entity?

[Pam Damoff, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Safety]

Mr. Speaker, the Government of Canada takes terrorist threats against Canada and its citizens seriously. Security and intelligence agencies are continuously monitoring entities that could pose such a threat and are taking appropriate action. The government cannot comment specifically on the activities of individual groups or what groups are being assessed or considered for listing.

One of the underlying objectives of the Criminal Code list of terrorist entities is to ensure terrorist entities do not use Canada as a base from which to conduct terrorist activities, including fundraising, and to prohibit individuals from supporting terrorist entities. Assessing entities for possible listing under the Criminal Code is continuous. The process is rigorous, thorough and involves interdepartmental consultations. Pursuant to subsection 83.05(1) of the Criminal Code, if there are reasonable grounds to believe that an entity “has knowingly carried out, attempted to carry out, participated in or facilitated a terrorist activity” or “has knowingly acted on behalf of, at the direction of or in association with an entity” involved in a terrorist activity, then the Minister of Public Safety may recommend to the Governor in Council that it be added to the list.

With regard to part (d)(i), the CBSA does not track individuals who have been denied entry to the European Union.

With regard to part (d)(ii), the CBSA does not have any involvement with deportations from the United States.

Question No.969—

[Niki Ashton, NDP, Churchill—Keewatinook Aski, MB]

With regard to Indigenous Services Canada and programs and services offered to promote mental health and wellness in First Nations and Inuit communities, broken down by community and fiscal year since 2015-16: (a) what was the total amount of funding requested for recreational activities, programs, and activities; and (b) how much funding was delivered for the requests in (a)?

[Vance Badawey, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Indigenous Services]

Mr. Speaker, insofar as Indigenous Services Canada, or ISC, is concerned, the response to part (a) is as follows:

The Mental Wellness program of ISC does not have targeted funding specific to recreational activities; as such, recreational activities are not part of the reporting requirement for Mental Wellness program funding recipients.

ISC’s Mental Wellness Program provides annual funding to support First Nations and Inuit access to mental wellness services to reduce risk factors, promote protective factors, and improve associated health outcomes. This includes mental wellness promotion; substance use prevention and treatment; life promotion and suicide prevention; crisis response services; harm reduction; and emotional and cultural support services.

ISC funds mental wellness services that include: a network of 45 treatment centres, as well as drug and alcohol prevention services in the majority of Indigenous communities across Canada, which began in 1975-76. Many treatment centres have reopened with reduced occupancy due to local public health measures. However, many centres are finding alternate ways of delivering services, including virtual approaches; a network of 71 Mental Wellness Teams began serving 359 First Nations and Inuit communities in Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Québec, Atlantic, Northwest Territories, Nunavut and the Yukon in 2013-14; access to mental health counselling, emotional, and cultural support services to former students of Indian Residential Schools began in 2007-08, and to former students of Federal Indian Day Schools began in 2020-21, and their families and those affected by the issue of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls began in 2018-19. Services include access to cultural and emotional supports, professional counselling services – individual and family – and assistance with the cost of transportation services to access counselling services and/or cultural supports; the Hope for Wellness Help Line began in 2016-17 and offers immediate help to all Indigenous peoples across Canada. It is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to offer counselling and crisis intervention; access to harm reduction measures including naloxone, and funding wraparound services at 72 opioids agonist therapy sites began in 2017-18. Opioid Agonist Therapy involves taking opioid agonists such as methadone or buprenorphine-naloxone to prevent withdrawal and reduce cravings for opioids. Wraparound services work to address underlying or associated issues through counselling and traditional practices.

With respect to part (b) of the question, funding for the Mental Wellness Program has increased from an approximate annual amount of $325 million in 2015-2016 to $580 million in 2021-22. An off-cycle amount of $107 million in 2021-22 to expand trauma-informed supports to all forms of trauma increases this investment to approximately $687 million in 2021-22. Funding is allocated to communities based on priorities and needs established through regional partnership structures and decision-making processes.

Question No.974—

[Michelle Rempel, Conservative, Calgary Nose Hill, AB]

With regard to the list of 70 mining projects provided to U.S. counterparts that Canadian officials believe could warrant U.S. funding that was mentioned in the Canadian Broadcasting Company (CBC) article entitled "U.S. military weighs funding mining projects in Canada amid rivalry with China": (a) what criteria was used to determine which projects were selected for the list; (b) what are the details of each project included on the list, including (i) the name and location of the project, (ii) the scope of the project, including the type of natural resource development proposed to be undertaken (e.g. gold mining, lithium, oilsands, etc.), (iii) the name of the parties involved in the project development (government, corporations, etc.), (iv) the location of the parties involved in the project development; (c) what U.S. funding programs or mechanisms does the Canadian government believe these projects should be selected for; (d) what is the breakdown of (c) by specific project; (e) what is the current state of approvals within the Canadian regulatory system for each project; (f) what is the amount of funding that is being sought for each project from the U.S. government; (g) which government official (i) decided to develop and send the list to the U.S. government, (ii) decided which projects would be included in the list, (iii) gave the interview to the CBC; and (h) which of the projects that the government assessed (i) require U.S. government funding to be completed, (ii) can be completed without U.S. government funding?

[Jonathan Wilkinson, Liberal, North Vancouver, BC]

Mr. Speaker, Canada is working with allies around the world to develop secure critical minerals value chains. Collaboration with the United States on critical minerals has been driven by the Canada-U.S. joint action plan on critical minerals, finalized in January 2020 and renewed in 2021. Collaboration between Canada and the United States on mineral and metal supply chains extends beyond this given integrated supply chains. For example, in 2021 alone, there was over $94 billion U.S. in two-way minerals and metals trade between the two countries. It is in this context that the government shares information on Canada’s mining sector with allies.

Canada has long been a trusted defence and security partner of the United States. Since its reactivation in 1985, the Defence Production Act, or DPA, Title III program recognizes this partnership, enables investments in Canadian projects and includes Canada as a domestic source for the purposes of the DPA Title III program. Information on company meetings that are being held with the DPA Title III program may involve sensitive commercial, scientific or technical information and represent potential contractual negotiations between third parties.

The development of critical mineral projects and supply chains is a key priority for Canada. This is reflected through the announcement of $3.8 billion in budget 2022 to implement Canada’s first critical minerals strategy. For more information on Canada’s critical minerals projects, visit the interactive map on NRCan’s website at https://atlas.gc.ca/critical-minerals/en/. Released on December 9, Canada’s critical minerals strategy, which can be found at https://www.canada.ca/en/campaign/critical-minerals-in-canada/canadian-critical-minerals-strategy.html, will advance the development of critical minerals value chains at home and abroad.

Question No.979—

[Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe, Bloc, Lac-Saint-Jean, QC]

With regard to the impact of the immigration levels established by the federal government on the French presence in Canada: (a) what studies have been commissioned or conducted by the government to determine what impact the immigration levels will have on the vitality of French in Canada; (b) what studies or proposals for studies have been commissioned or conducted by the government on francophone immigration targets in Canada; (c) what studies or proposals for studies have been commissioned or conducted by the government on the refusal rates of francophone immigrants to Canada; (d) what studies or proposals for studies have been commissioned or conducted by the government to assess what levels of francophone immigration were necessary to maintain the demographic weight of francophone official language minority communities; (e) what were the conclusions of these studies; (f) what is the correspondence between Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) and the IRCC Research Evaluation Office, Francophone Immigration Policy Division, on the impact of immigration on French; and (g) can the government release the correspondence between IRCC and the IRCC Research Evaluation Office, Francophone Immigration Policy Division, regarding its francophone immigration target strategy?

[Marie-France Lalonde, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, with respect to parts (a), (b), (c), (d) and (e), as well as to the establishment of immigration levels in Canada and their effect on the Francophone presence in Canada, IRCC has not conducted the type of impact studies referenced in the inquiry. The immigration levels plan is developed following extensive consultations with the provinces and territories, stakeholders and the general public. The French-speaking admission target, included in the immigration levels plan, highlights the number of francophone admissions required, relative to the overall annual targets and ranges of the levels plan, to meet the target of 4.4% French-speaking admissions outside of Quebec.

Studies, reports and analyses suggest various courses of action and recognize the need to support the prosperity of French in Canada and the need to act to strengthen linguistic duality in Canada.

IRCC also regularly monitors all of its operations and pays particular attention to Francophone immigration, which the Department strives to promote. In addition, the Department regularly monitors the approval rate of temporary and permanent resident applications around the world, with a constant focus on providing fair treatment to all its clients based on established selection criteria.

With respect to part (f) of the question, the Research and Evaluation Branch of IRCC corresponds with other teams across the department as required to support many aspects of the departmental mandate. They provide relevant, timely, rigorous evidence and strategic decision-making support to advance IRCC policies and programs. The Policy Research team of Research and Evaluation develops and conducts research designed to deepen the understanding of immigration policies, including outcomes and impacts, in order to support policy development in the department.

Finally, with respect to part (g) of the question, openness, transparency and accountability are guiding principles of the Government of Canada. The Government of Canada would provide correspondence based on the Access to Information and Privacy Act.

Question No.980—

[Eric Melillo, Conservative, Kenora, ON]

With regard to the 2022-23 departmental plan for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Northern Ontario: (a) what is the government's target for the percentage of companies engaged in collaborations with higher education institutions in Northern Ontario; and (b) what is the government's target in terms of the dollar value of exports of clean technologies from Northern Ontario?

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Minister of Indigenous Services and Ministre responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Northern Ontario]

Mr. Speaker, with regard to the 2022-2023 departmental plan for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Northern Ontario, or FedNor, the response is as follows.

With respect to part (a) of the question, FedNor has not set a target for the indicator “percentage of companies engaged in collaborations with higher education institutions in Northern Ontario”. The regional development agencies, or RDAs, adopted a common Departmental Results Framework, or DRF, in 2018-19 and, as part of Innovation Science and Economic Development’s portfolio at the time, were directed to select indicators that aligned with the Innovation and Skills Plan. The RDAs continue to work with Statistics Canada to obtain the percentage of companies engaged in collaborations with higher education institutions in each RDA’s region. Statistics Canada has informed the RDAs that distribution by RDA is not available for this indicator and has provided the outcomes for the following geographies: Canada, Atlantic Region, Quebec, Ontario, and Rest of Canada. For 2017-19, the most recent years for which data is available, 14% of companies in Ontario engaged in collaborations with higher education institutions. FedNor has not set a target for this indicator, as the Agency has not been able to obtain historical data for the region. FedNor does not report on or use the result for all of Ontario given that the majority of companies and higher education institutions are located in southern Ontario, and it is not known if the data for Northern Ontario is in line with the province’s result.

With respect to part (b) of the question, FedNor has not set a target for indicator “Dollar value of exports of clean technologies from Northern Ontario” because baseline data from Statistics Canada is not currently available. This indicator is part of the common RDA DRF structure implemented in 2018-19. The RDAs, particularly FedNor and Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario, or FedDev, continue to work with Statistics Canada to obtain this data at the sub-provincial level. This indicator tracks the Innovation and Skills Plan Charter commitment to double Canada’s exports of clean tech by 2025, and supports commitments to the growth of Clean tech market share as a percentage of global exports in the Clean Growth and Climate Change Charter. Clean technology export value is based on customs data using specific Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System, or HS, codes and weights associated with clean tech. This value will be provided directly from Statistics Canada through its Clean Technology Satellite Account when it is released publicly. Clean tech is understood as any process, product or service that reduces environmental impacts through environmental protection activities; the sustainable use of natural resources; the use of goods that have been specifically modified or adapted to be significantly less energy or resource intensive than the industry standard. In future, data will be developed and provided through Statistics Canada Clean Technology Satellite Account through customs data requests. Data is not currently available for Northern Ontario. FedNor will work with Statistics Canada to obtain the necessary data.

Question No.983—

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

With regard to the Twitter account of the Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons (Senate): (a) do the views expressed by the parliamentary secretary through that account represent the views or positions of the (i) Leader of the Government in the House of Commons, (ii) Office of the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons, (iii) government, in any way; and (b) what resources, including any assistance with content, has the government provided to the parliamentary secretary?

[Kevin Lamoureux, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Mr. Speaker, with respect to part (a) of the question, the views expressed by the Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons (Senate) on his Twitter account are his own.

With respect to part (b) of the question, the work of the Parliamentary Secretary is supported by the Office of the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons.

Question No.986—

[Randall Garrison, NDP, Esquimalt—Saanich—Sooke, BC]

With regard to the Mutual Benefit Agreements (MBA) between First Nations and the Trans Mountain Expansion Project: (a) what is the legal obligation for the Government of Canada to fulfill the MBAs between First Nations and the Trans Mountain Expansion Project; (b) when will funding or resources contained within those MBAs be available to the T’souke, Sc’ianew, and Esquimalt First Nations; (c) what work has been done to fulfill the MBAs of the T’souke, Sc’ianew, and Esquimalt First Nations; and (d) how can funding or resources within these MBAs be accessed by the T’souke, Sc’ianew, and Esquimalt First Nations?

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

Mr. Speaker, the government remains committed to ensuring that First Nation, Métis, and Inuit communities directly benefit from major resource projects. With regard to the Mutual Benefit Agreements (MBA) between Trans Mountain and the relevant First Nations, the response is as follows:

With respect to part (a) of the question, the legal obligation in the MBAs is between the signatories, which are Trans Mountain and the relevant First Nation. Trans Mountain is a separate legal entity from the Government of Canada and is governed by an independent board of directors.

With respect to part (b) of the question, as is customary for agreements of this type, both Trans Mountain and the relevant First Nation contractually committed to the commercial obligations, including when and how funding is provided under the terms of the agreement. The commercial obligations are subject to confidentiality as per the terms of the agreement.

With respect to part (c) of the question, the response is the same as the one for part (b).

With respect to part (d) of the question, the response is the same as the one for part (b).

Question No.987—

[Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe, Bloc, Lac-Saint-Jean, QC]

With regard to the new immigration targets revealed by the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship in the 2022 Annual Report to Parliament on Immigration: (a) how many pieces of correspondence did the government exchange with the Government of Quebec to establish the immigration levels; and (b) what were the contents of these pieces of correspondence?