Debates of May 3rd, 2023

Democratic Institutions

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

I am going to have to interrupt. Part of my job is listening to find out what is being said, and if I cannot hear it, I cannot do my job, so I am going to ask everyone to take a deep breath and let the hon. parliamentary secretary finish his response, and then we can go from there.

The hon. parliamentary secretary, from the top, please.

[Rob Oliphant, Liberal, Don Valley West, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I want to be extra clear: Our Minister of Foreign Affairs has been clear to her Chinese counterpart, as recently as a few weeks ago, when she was absolutely clear that any interference in Canada by any agency of the Chinese government is inappropriate and we will deal with it.

[Andrew Scheer, Conservative, Regina—Qu'Appelle, SK]

Mr. Speaker, for almost two years, the current government has known that an agent from the Communist regime in Beijing has been operating in Toronto. That agent orchestrated a harassment campaign against a member of Parliament because of a vote taken in this House. The government does not need to explain itself. If this does not rise to the level of expelling a diplomat, what on earth would? Why is the government more worried about the feelings of a Communist agent from Beijing than the very foundations of our democracy?

[Marco Mendicino, Liberal, Minister of Public Safety]

Mr. Speaker, it is the foundations of democracy that are being well served by the authorities and the investments that this government has made in our intelligence community, which the Conservatives never did. They brag about their record when it comes to national security. They talk tough, but they never back it up with concrete action. It is the members on this side of the chamber who are rolling up our sleeves, doing the heavy work and protecting the people who work in this chamber so that we can protect our democracy.

Justice

[Taleeb Noormohamed, Liberal, Vancouver Granville, BC]

Mr. Speaker, there are still too many victims of sexual violence.

We know how important it is for police forces to have access to tools such as the national sex offender registry, to investigate and prevent sexual violence. We also know that the criminal justice process can be daunting for victims.

Could the Minister of Justice tell us more about the bill we introduced to protect Canadians and empower victims?

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

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague from Vancouver Granville for his question and his French.

We recently introduced Bill S-12 in the Senate to strengthen the national sex offender registry. Offenders will have to register, unless they can prove that they do not pose a risk to public safety.

Bill S‑12 also gives victims more choice over publication bans by clarifying the process. Some victims want to protect their identity, others want to tell their stories. It is their voice and it should be their choice.

Democratic Institutions

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister expects us to believe that the dictatorship in Beijing donated $140,000 to the Trudeau Foundation to influence him but he knew nothing about it, even though it was his brother who arranged it. He would have us believe that Trudeau Foundation donors paid for the Prime Minister's vacations but he knew nothing about it. He would have us believe that intelligence officers knew two years ago that a member of Parliament and his family were being harassed, but the PM knew nothing about that either.

If the Prime Minister knows nothing, how is he supposed to protect us?

[Mark Holland, Liberal, Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Mr. Speaker, as the Prime Minister has confirmed on a number of occasions, he has no relationship with the Trudeau Foundation, which is responsible for scholarships.

It is irresponsible to engage in such partisan attacks against a non-profit organization. The opposition is doing so without any evidence to prove such a relationship, because it does not exist.

The member should direct his questions to the foundation.

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, we might disagree on some things, but here are the facts on which we all agree. We all agree that a foreign dictatorship had an agent organize threats against the family of an MP because of how he voted in the House. We all agree on that. We all agree that the government knew about this two years ago. We all agree, whether we like it or not, that the Prime Minister is the head of government. In other words, he is responsible for the action or inaction of his own government. In other words, he should have known and he should have taken action.

When will he finally show up for work, take responsibility and do his job?

[Marco Mendicino, Liberal, Minister of Public Safety]

Mr. Speaker, that is precisely what this government has been doing since we took the reins of government in 2015. We have put in place the authorities, the personnel and all the technology to protect our institutions from foreign interference.

We will continue to work with the members opposite, despite all of the chicanery, despite all the lobbing of insults, despite all of the distraction, and despite their incompetence of 10 years when they had the opportunity to do this work. We are doing this work and we will do it regardless of partisanship to make sure that all the MPs in this chamber can do their job.

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, this is actually not about one member of Parliament. This is not about all members of Parliament. This is about millions of patriotic Canadians of Chinese descent who face this kind of abuse and harassment every single day. We hear stories of Chinese Canadians in tears because they are being intimidated by agents just like the one who attacked this member's family. These are our people. This is our home.

When will the Prime Minister finally do his job and protect us?

[Marco Mendicino, Liberal, Minister of Public Safety]

Mr. Speaker, it is finally some measure of relief to hear that from the Conservative leader, who, for weeks and months, has been trying to politicize an issue that touches not only all members in this chamber, but all Canadians. One can only hope that now the Conservatives will abandon their hopped-up rhetoric and their counterproductive insults and work with the government to protect all members and all Canadians from foreign interference. That is our sworn obligation. We will continue to do that to defend our democracy.

Housing

[Chad Collins, Liberal, Hamilton East—Stoney Creek, ON]

Mr. Speaker, while the leader of the official opposition blames local mayors and councillors for a lack of housing supply, our government has taken a different approach. Can the Minister of Housing and Diversity and Inclusion inform this House as to the level—

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

As important as it is to hear the answers, I would like to hear the questions as well.

The hon. member for Hamilton East—Stoney Creek, from the top.

[Chad Collins, Liberal, Hamilton East—Stoney Creek, ON]

Mr. Speaker, while the leader of the official opposition blames local mayors and councillors for a lack of housing supply, our government has taken a different approach.

Could the Minister of Housing and Diversity and Inclusion inform the House as to the level of support our housing accelerator fund will provide to municipalities that expedite the planning and approval process for new developments, which increase housing supply for all Canadians?

[Ahmed Hussen, Liberal, Minister of Housing and Diversity and Inclusion]

Mr. Speaker, that is a great question, and I want to thank the hon. member for his attention to this important issue.

To get more housing supply built we need everyone at the table. The Conservatives are just not serious about this. They want to pick fights with mayors and cut funding to cities. Just yesterday, the leader of the official opposition stood in the House and attacked what he called Canada's “woke mayors”—

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

There is some noise in the chamber that is really making it difficult for people to understand or hear the minister's answer. I will have him start right from the top, please.

[Ahmed Hussen, Liberal, York South—Weston, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the hon. member for his attention to this important issue.

We know, on this side of the House, that to get more housing supply built, we need everyone at the table, but the Conservatives are not serious about this. The leader of the official opposition has picked fights with mayors and cut funding to cities. Yesterday, he stood in the House and attacked what he called Canada's “woke mayors”.

Conservative cuts and that type of far right rhetoric will not build one affordable housing unit. Unlike the Conservatives, we know that we need to work with our municipalities to get more homes—

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

The hon. member for Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie.

Disaster Assistance

[Alexandre Boulerice, NDP, Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, Quebec is on high alert. Just about everywhere, rivers are exceeding major flooding thresholds. Several families have had to evacuate their homes.

In Charlevoix, two firefighters were swept away by the waters of the Gouffre River while trying to rescue a family whose home was in danger. The body of one of those firefighters has now been found. Our thoughts are with their families, but also with all Quebeckers who are facing these floodwaters.

Will the federal government deploy all available aid to help citizens in the face of this disaster?

[Bill Blair, Liberal, President of the King’s Privy Council for Canada and Minister of Emergency Preparedness]

Mr. Speaker, first of all, the member for Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie has a very important question. I want to join him, as I believe does every member of the House, when expressing my concern and thoughts for all of the communities of Quebec that have been impacted. In particular, we extend our sincere condolences to the families of Christopher Lavoie and Regis Lavoie, the firefighters who rushed to save lives and appear to have lost their own lives.

We immediately deployed Canadian air force aircraft to search and engage in the initial search, and I have reached out to Mr. Bonnardel of the Quebec government to offer all federal support as required, and to assure him that our government will be there for the people of Quebec—

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

The hon. member for Saanich—Gulf Islands.

The Environment

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

Mr. Speaker, I extend my condolences for the loss of the people and the firefighters in this climate event.

My question is for the Prime Minister. In relation to the business that we will take up later today, the amendments to the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, known as Bill S-5, there is still time to improve this act by increasing the opportunities for public participation for science and indigenous knowledge to inform the act.

The amendments by the hon. member for New Westminster—Burnaby and myself need to be supported by the government. Will it stand for public participation and indigenous knowledge?