Mr. Speaker, this is the first time I have had the opportunity to speak while you are in the chair.
I want to wish you, Mr. Speaker, a very happy new year, as the statute of limitations on saying that starts tomorrow, February 1.
I am proud to present a petition regarding a very important issue for Canadians, especially those in my riding.
It is the question of the pollution of our oceans with plastic. Ocean plastics is a crisis. It is recognized globally and it was recognized recently at COP15.
The petitioners in this case call for the Government of Canada to strengthen regulatory definitions to include more single-use plastic items and close loopholes that currently allow a tremendous number of plastic items to be replaced with more problematic plastic; to remove the exemption that allows banned products to continue to be manufactured; to implement a clear action plan to eliminate all single-use plastics by 2030; and to bring proposed regulations into force within six months of their publication.