Andy Fillmore

[Veterans Affairs, November 8th, 2018]

Mr. Speaker, Angus “Gus” Cameron is a veteran and a devoted veterans advocate in Halifax.

Last year, Mr. Cameron came to me because he and fellow veterans were rightly disappointed that the former Conservative government had cancelled the veterans identification card. To veterans across the country, that card was a symbol of a nation's gratitude, one that they could carry with them wherever they went, giving them access to the benefits they had earned through their courageous service to Canada.

It was an honour to partner with Gus and his fellow veterans to sponsor a petition to the House, calling on our government to reinstate the veterans ID card. I am proud to say that our government answered that call and reintroduced the veterans identification card.

I want to thank the Minister of Veterans Affairs and the Minister of National Defence for listening, acting quickly and delivering for Gus and all of our veterans.

This Remembrance Day let us never forget the tremendous debt of gratitude we owe our veterans.

[Questions on the Order Paper, November 5th, 2018]

Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Canadian Heritage and Multiculturalism as well as his staff are involved in ongoing discussions with national indigenous organizations in their efforts to fulfill call to action 80 of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada.

[Canadian Heritage, November 1st, 2018]

Mr. Speaker, on this side of the House, we will always be there for our artists and creators. That is exactly what we demonstrated with our cultural policy last year. We have made historic investments of $3.2 billion in the cultural sector, including in the CBC, the Canada Council for the Arts, Telefilm, the NFB and the Canada Media Fund.

Due to the previous Conservative government's inaction, the lost decade, our laws on culture predate the Internet, which is why we are reviewing them so we can continue to support high quality Canadian content production. The principle of this review is clear: To participate in the system, one must contribute to the system. There will be no free ride.

[Canadian Heritage, October 25th, 2018]

Mr. Speaker, we will always support our culture, our artists and our creators, and that is why we doubled funding to the Canada Council for the Arts, increased Telefilm funding by $22 million and $13.5 million for the National Film Board. We restored and increased funding to CBC/Radio-Canada, with a $675-million investment. We also launched a new $125-million creative industries export fund.

After the Harper Conservatives gutted support to cultural industries during their lost decade, we have taken action to support this sector.

[Canadian Heritage, October 25th, 2018]

Mr. Speaker, on the issue of taxation, the Prime Minister and the Minister of Finance have been entirely clear, but we also know that the Broadcasting Act has not been reviewed since before the Internet was in our homes.

The Conservatives did nothing for 10 long years, so we took action. We have appointed a panel of experts to help us modernize this act. Our starting point is clear. All players that participate in a system must contribute to the system, and there will be no free rides.

[HMCS Kootenay, October 23rd, 2018]

Mr. Speaker, in Halifax, Nova Scotia, October 23 is HMCS Kootenay day. HMCS Kootenay was commissioned into the Royal Canadian Navy in 1959 as a Restigouche-class destroyer, serving until 1995.

Kootenay and her crew demonstrated great courage and ability. Sadly, she also faced moments of tragedy, like on the morning of October 23, 1969.

Forty-nine years ago today, HMCS Kootenay was passing through the English Channel when she began to perform a full-power trial. Eleven minutes in, a mechanical failure caused a deadly explosion in the starboard gearbox. The devastation took nine lives, injuring 53 more. This tragedy is still considered the worst peacetime accident in the history of the Royal Canadian Navy.

I would like to invite all members in the House to join me in expressing our utmost respect and gratitude for the crew of HMCS Kootenay and their loved ones. May we always be reminded of their sacrifice and valour.

[Canadian Heritage, October 18th, 2018]

Mr. Speaker, on the issue of taxation, the Prime Minister and the Minister of Finance have been very clear. However, we also know that the Broadcasting Act has not been reviewed since before the Internet came into our homes.

The Conservatives did nothing for 10 long years, so we have taken action. We have appointed a panel of experts to help us modernize this act, and our starting point is clear. All players that participate in the system must contribute to the system. There will be no free rides.

[Canadian Heritage, October 4th, 2018]

Mr. Speaker, on this side of the House we will always be there for our artists and creators and that is exactly what we demonstrated through our cultural policy last year. We have made historic investments of $2.2 billion in the cultural sector, including in the CBC, the Canada Council, Telefilm and the NFB.

Due to the previous government's inaction, our culture laws predate the Internet, which is why we are reviewing them so they can continue to support high-quality Canadian content production. The principle of this review is clear. If people participate in this system, they will contribute to the system. There will be no free ride.

[Canadian Heritage, September 28th, 2018]

Mr. Speaker, our government has been clear. The cultural exemption must stand with a renegotiated NAFTA. The Prime Minister has stated it, and I am repeating it today.

Protecting our creative industry means protecting our culture. It means protecting a $53.8 billion industry representing over 650,000 quality jobs for middle-class Canadians. We will defend our cultural sovereignty in the cultural sector within a future deal, because it is the right thing to do for Canada.

[Multiculturalism Act, September 26th, 2018]

Mr. Speaker, I am rising today to address Bill C-393, an act to amend the Canadian Multiculturalism Act (non-application in Quebec).

It is well known that Canada is one of the most diverse countries in the world. Our country is a place where indigenous peoples, including first nations, Inuit and Métis, live alongside people including refugees from all corners of the globe who have chosen to make their lives in Canada as well as with long-standing Canadian citizens.

Ours is a land of many faiths, many languages and many cultures. It is a place where Muslims, Sikhs, Buddhists, Hindus, Jews, Christians and members of numerous other religious groups live in harmony. It is home to proud francophone and anglophone traditions and communities and to native speakers of an array of indigenous languages, such as Mi'kmaq, Inuktitut, Ojibway, Cree and many others. Millions of other individuals have a mother tongue that is neither French nor English in Canada.

Canada's capacity to prosper and grow within the context of this diversity is the result of a commitment we have made to respect and protect our differences. As a result of this commitment, Canada has developed a broad and evolving legislative and policy framework that supports various elements of diversity and inclusion, including the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, the Canadian Human Rights Act, the Employment Equity Act, the Official Languages Act, and the Canadian Multiculturalism Act.

I would like to remind the House that Canada's federal multiculturalism policy was adopted in 1971 following the Royal Commission on Bilingualism and Biculturalism. Significantly, it recognizes the French and English languages on equal terms.

In 1982, with the repatriation of the Canadian Constitution, the Government of Canada reaffirmed the value of multiculturalism in section 27 of the charter, which refers to the “preservation and enhancement of the multicultural heritage of Canadians.”

In 1988, the Canadian multiculturalism policy was enshrined in the Canadian Multiculturalism Act. The Canadian Multiculturalism Act gives the Minister of Canadian Heritage and Multiculturalism the mandate to develop and deliver programs and practices, which, among other things, will “recognize and promote the understanding that multiculturalism is a fundamental characteristic of the Canadian heritage” and Canadian identity. The act promotes “the full and equitable participation of individuals and communities of all origins in the continuing evolution and shaping of all aspects of Canadian society” and assists “in the elimination of any barrier to that participation.”

Other Canadian jurisdictions have also adopted policies that promote, preserve and protect diversity and foster inclusion. Overall, the protection of equality rights is an underlying objective of these provincial and territorial laws, and some are supported by specific funding programs.

Quebec, for example, promotes and emphasizes interculturalism as an approach to integration and cross-cultural understanding. As we might expect, Quebec's approach to interculturalism proposes a model of integration that aims to ensure, and places priority on, the continuity of the francophone identity and culture while respecting minority cultures and diversity.

Both multiculturalism and interculturalism place a high degree of importance on integration and respect for common civic and democratic values, and both have been invaluable to Canada's social fabric since the 1970s. I believe strongly that Canada's federal multiculturalism policy is flexible enough to allow for their co-existence.

We should be mindful that Bill C-393's passage could undermine the application of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms in Quebec, given that section 27 of the charter officially refers to multiculturalism as a Canadian value.

Our country continues to become even more diverse. I highlight our diversity today not simply to reiterate well-known facts about our multicultural society but to emphasize that our country has benefited immensely from the increasing diversity we have experienced over centuries. Our diversity is a leading source of creativity and innovation that fuels sustainable economic growth. Our diversity generates creativity by ensuring a variety of thoughts, experiences and perspectives. This is key to generating the out-of-the-box thinking and experimentation that is foundational to our creative economy.

Even as we move toward a more diverse and inclusive society, there is a considerable amount of evidence on the persistence of racism and discrimination in Canadian society. The proposed amendments to the act could reduce the government's legal authorities to disburse funding for community support, multiculturalism and anti-racism initiatives in Quebec.

It is important for all of us in this nation of diversity to continue to foster an environment where the multicultural heritage of all Canadians is valued.