Debates of April 29th, 2024

Health

[Ya'ara Saks, Liberal, Minister of Mental Health and Addictions and Associate Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the member for being a collaborative partner in addressing the toxic drug supply and the tragic overdose deaths that are taking over our country from day to day. We are committed to a comprehensive, collaborative and evidence-based substance policy approach.

We appreciate the excellent work done by the expert task force on substance use, whose mandate was to provide advice to the government on a renewed Canadian drugs and substance plan.

It is important that actions be informed by independent advice of experts and evidence. I have asked the department to re-establish an expert advisory committee and work is under way.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship

[Kevin Vuong, Independent, Spadina—Fort York, ON]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians want to know how a person with a deportation order, which was upheld by a federal court, somehow still managed to get ministerial intervention to stop his removal. The person was convicted of five criminal charges and did not like to attend much school, despite being in Canada on a student visa.

Did the Minister of Immigration intend to make a mockery of our legal and immigration systems, or was this intervention guided by the hope of getting a few more votes for his party in B.C.?

[Marc Miller, Liberal, Minister of Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, as the member well knows, these are not matters that we talk about publicly, much less on the floor of the House of Commons.

Jean-Pierre Ferland

[The Speaker, Liberal, Greg Fergus]

Following discussions among representatives of all parties in the House, I understand there is an agreement to observe a moment of silence in memory of Jean-Pierre Ferland.

I invite hon. members to rise.

[A moment of silence observed]

The House resumed from April 19 consideration of the motion in relation to the amendments made by the Senate to Bill C-29, An Act to provide for the establishment of a national council for reconciliation.

National Council for Reconciliation Act

[The Speaker, Liberal, Greg Fergus]

It being 3:15 p.m., the House will now proceed to the taking of the deferred recorded division on the motion to concur in the Senate amendments to Bill C-29.

Call in the members.

(The House divided on the motion, which was agreed to on the following division:)

Vote #741

[The Speaker, Liberal, Greg Fergus]

I declare the motion carried.

(Senate amendments read the second time and concurred in)

I wish to inform the House that, because of the deferred recorded division, Government Orders will be extended by 14 minutes.

International Trade

[Judy Sgro, Liberal, Humber River—Black Creek, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased today to present, in both official languages, the following two reports of the Standing Committee on International Trade: the 17th report, entitled the “The CBSA Assessment and Revenue Management System: An Interim Report”, and the 18th report, entitled the “The Strike in 2023 at British Columbia Ports: Selected Economic Impacts and Federal Actions”.

Pursuant to Standing Order 109, the committee requests that the government table a comprehensive response to each of these two reports.

Foreign Affairs and International Development

[Ali Ehsassi, Liberal, Willowdale, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the 25th report of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development, entitled “Strengthening Canada's Diplomatic Capacity in an Increasingly Turbulent Age”.

Pursuant to Standing Order 109, the committee requests that the government table a comprehensive response to this report.

Agriculture and Agri-Food

[Kody Blois, Liberal, Kings—Hants, NS]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the 17th report of the Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food in relation to Bill C-355, an act to prohibit the export by air of horses for slaughter and to make related amendments to certain acts.

The committee has studied the bill and has decided to report the bill back to the House with amendments.

I would like to congratulate the hon. member for Kitchener—Conestoga.

Natural Health Products

[Brad Vis, Conservative, Mission—Matsqui—Fraser Canyon, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I rise to present a petition. Last spring the government made legislative changes to allow Health Canada to regulate natural health supplements the same as therapeutic synthetic drugs, which will mean substantive new fees on the import, manufacturing and sale of things like vitamins, protein powders and even fluoride-free toothpaste. Constituents in my riding who rely on natural health products daily are concerned that these changes will result in the products they use being removed from Canadian store shelves. They are calling on the government to stop these changes and to work with the industry on issues such as labelling and fees. The petitioners are asking to save our supplements.

Justice

[Michael Cooper, Conservative, St. Albert—Edmonton, AB]

Mr. Speaker, I rise to present a petition signed by Canadians urging Parliament to pass Bill S-281, or Brian's bill, named in honour of the late Brian Ilesic, who was brutally murdered by a co-worker at the University of Alberta. The petitioners are calling, more specifically, for Parliament to amend the Corrections and Conditional Release Act, such that convicted murderers would not be able to apply for parole year after year after serving their minimum sentence and would only be able to apply at the time of their automatic review.

Natural Health Products

[Cheryl Gallant, Conservative, Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to present a petition signed by the great people of Windsor West, Windsor—Tecumseh, London West, London North Centre and London—Fanshawe, calling on the House of Commons to immediately repeal the new regulatory constraints passed last year on the natural health products that millions of Canadians rely upon, which have since affected their medical freedom of choice and affordability.

International Trade

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

Mr. Speaker, as always, it is an honour to stand in this place and present a petition on behalf of numerous Canadians who are asking the House of Commons to reaffirm its support for Ukraine in fighting for its freedom and for its people around the world so that it can defeat the illegal invasion perpetrated by Vladimir Putin. However, they also expressed their disappointment that the Government of Canada would choose, for the first time in history, to include a carbon tax in a new free trade agreement.

It is an honour to present this petition. I acknowledge that the Canadians who have signed it are asking the government to remove the provisions in the Canada-Ukraine Free Trade Agreement that force a carbon tax upon the people of Ukraine and Canadians.

Canada Post Corporation

[Martin Shields, Conservative, Bow River, AB]

Mr. Speaker, I rise to present a petition. Hundreds of people in the community and area of Langdon lost their post office more than a year ago and everything they have done to get it back has not been successful. This is very difficult, particularly for seniors who have been redirected 30 kilometres away to deal with parcels, mail and special issues that come to the post office. The people in the Langdon area need a post office in this community of thousands and the petitioners would like it now.

Food Security

[Rachel Blaney, NDP, North Island—Powell River, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I am very proud to be in the House to table a petition on behalf of petitioners from Brooklyn Elementary School and Highland Secondary School, who have signed this petition. What they are most concerned about is prioritizing funding for a national school food program. They want to see it implemented as soon as fall 2024. They have a lot of concerns about young people going hungry at school and hope to see this dealt with, including a federal component, immediately.

Medical Assistance in Dying

[Leslyn Lewis, Conservative, Haldimand—Norfolk, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to present a petition signed by Canadians across the country. The petitioners believe that vulnerable Canadians with mental illnesses should receive suicide prevention counselling over medical assistance in dying. The petitioners are concerned about the lack of consensus among health care experts regarding what constitutes irremediable mental illness and the inadequate supports for the mental health of Canadians. As such, they are calling upon the House of Commons to cancel its plans to expand the eligibility of medical assistance in dying for those with mental illness.

Gender Equality

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise to present petition e-4666, signed by some 11,000 Canadians from every province and territory.

The petition notes that, despite legal progress made with the passage of Bill C-16 in 2017, transgender and gender-diverse people continue to be denied full equality and denied the safety and acceptance that every Canadian deserves.

The signatories call on the Government of Canada to implement the 29 recommendations of the “White Paper on the Status of Trans and Gender Diverse People” tabled in the House last June. Action to implement the recommendations in the white paper would allow trans and gender-diverse people to live free from violence and hate and to have access to gender-affirming health care, access to housing and, most of all, freedom to live as their true and authentic selves.

I want to thank the author of this petition, Fae Johnstone, trans activists and the thousands of people who stood together in solidarity with transgender and gender-diverse people by signing this petition.

Rail Transportation

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise to table a petition initiated by the folks at Transport Action Canada and signed by over 9,000 Canadians who are calling for a vibrant future for sustainable, affordable, safe and public passenger rail in this country.

The petitioners call on the government to pass my bill, the rail passenger priority act, to invest in the replacement of Via Rail's long-distance fleet, to put riders and workers on the board of Via Rail and, most importantly, to ensure that high-frequency rail on the Windsor-to-Quebec corridor is procured publicly, built publicly and operated publicly in the public interest for the good of all Canadians.

They call for government leadership and for a vibrant future for passenger rail, and I hope that the government will deliver just that.

Gaza

[Jenny Kwan, NDP, Vancouver East, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I rise to table petition e-4731, signed by 12,429 people across Canada.

The petitioners note that Canadian citizens and permanent residents have beloved family members in Gaza and that, under existing policy, these family members are subject to visa application requirements that are often impossible to meet due to limited working bureaucracy infrastructure inside Gaza and/or their inability to travel to a Canadian visa office.

They further note that current policy only allows for children and spouses to be sponsored for permanent residency, excluding siblings, parents and grandparents. They note that Canada has demonstrated an ability to facilitate visa-less travel at time of departure for spouses and children from Gaza to Canada; that Canada has supported the travel and reunification of families in international crises before, such as the Canada-Ukraine authorization for emergency travel and permanent residence policy for Ukrainian nationals with family members in Canada, including siblings, children, parents, grandparents and spouses; and that the Canadian government can update its policies governing eligibility for travel and residency as it chooses.

Therefore, the petitioners call upon the Government of Canada to immediately create direct pathways for the emergency travel of Palestinians to Canada and establish a policy for permanent residence for immediate and extended Palestinian family members in Canada.

[Bardish Chagger, Liberal, Waterloo, ON]

Mr. Speaker, it is always an honour and a privilege to rise on behalf of the good people of the riding of Waterloo. I bring two petitions that people from within the riding of Waterloo and the region of Waterloo have signed.

The first brings to the attention of the House that tens of thousands of Palestinians have been killed over the last over three months; it is 200 days now. The petitioners are calling on the House of Commons and Parliament assembled to support the case that South Africa has brought forward to the ICJ. They are asking the House to acknowledge that the deliberate starvation of the civilian population of water, food and electricity amounts to collective punishment, which we know is clearly forbidden under international humanitarian law. They are asking the people assembled in this Parliament to uphold our responsibility to prevent and punish genocide wherever it occurs and to see that the case South Africa has brought forward helps to bring an end to the killing that is taking place.

The second petition similarly calls on the House of Commons and Parliament assembled to demand an immediate ceasefire in the Israel-Palestine conflict. They are asking that the blockades be lifted so that there is a humanitarian corridor and that emergency and humanitarian intervention can be available for these people. They go further in asking us to make sure all necessary measures are taken to protect civilians, both Israelis and Palestinians, and to help foster a climate conducive to building a lasting peace in the Middle East.

Health Care

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

Mr. Speaker, I am rising to present a petition that is of keen concern to residents of Saanich—Gulf Islands. In fact, it is a petition that other petitioners within the riding have had me present to the government and to the Parliament assembly before. It is not an unfamiliar issue, I know, to members on all sides of the House. It is the crisis of the absence of family doctors, specifically in Saanich—Gulf Islands.

Where 92% of physicians across Canada work in urban areas, areas such as Saanich—Gulf Islands have 8% left to cover the needs of constituents. Within Victoria and Sidney, for example, the average wait time at a walk-in clinic is between 92 and 180 minutes. I certainly have experienced, recently, the absence of a family doctor and the impact it has had on my life.

The petitioners, specifically recognizing that this is not solely one jurisdiction's exclusive responsibility, call on the House of Commons and Parliament to work with the provinces and the territories to come to a holistic and fair solution to Canada's current family doctor shortage crisis.

Natural Health Products

[Leslyn Lewis, Conservative, Haldimand—Norfolk, ON]

Mr. Speaker, today, I rise to present a petition that has been signed by the residents of Haldimand—Norfolk. These petitioners are concerned about the legislative and regulatory changes that have significantly affected the natural health products industry.

The petitioners are concerned that the new regulations will cause consumer prices to skyrocket and consumer choices to plummet at a time when inflation is at a record high. As such, they are calling upon the government and upon the Minister of Health to adjust the regulations and to reduce the costs to the industry.

Questions Passed as Orders for Returns

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

Mr. Speaker, if revised and supplementary responses to Question Nos. 2142, initially tabled on January 29, and 2340, initially tabled on April 8, could be made orders for return, these returns would be tabled in an electronic format immediately.