Mr. Speaker, it has become evident to me, spending some time in other parts of the world talking to legislators elsewhere, how much Canada has become an international pariah. A source of its international shame relates to the protection of the rights of people with disabilities. There has been high-level criticism of Canada, and in particular, the MAID regime, in terms of how it treats people living with disabilities.
I have spoken to disability rights organizations that are deeply concerned about how, on a regular basis, people with disabilities live with unprompted proposals for MAID from people who are supposed to be supporting them, essentially sending them the message that people in authority think they would be better off dead. This is a source of shame for our country and something we need to take seriously and change. Meanwhile, the government wants to further push MAID in spite of all of these concerns.
Why do we not take this criticism seriously and listen to people with disabilities who are raising these concerns?