Arif Virani

[Status of Women, April 19th, 2018]

Mr. Speaker, our government is committed to promoting peace, constructive dialogue, and international security. We are working and will keep working with our national and international partners to that end.

This government recognizes the suffering that all armed conflicts inflict on the people of the affected countries, especially civilians, girls, and women. The occupation of Nanjing is no exception.

We will continue our work as ardent defenders of human rights and gender rights and will encourage positive dialogue between nations to ensure a more peaceful and prosperous world.

[Status of Women, April 19th, 2018]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for Vancouver East for her efforts in raising awareness of the tragic atrocities that took place in Nanjing during World War II.

Canada recognizes compassionate efforts and encourages all countries to move forward in a positive and constructive manner. China and Japan are two important partners to Canada in the Asia-Pacific region. We are committed to increasing our ties with the region, especially on a cultural level, to ensure the prosperity of Canadians as well as security in the region.

Terrible atrocities took place during the occupation of Nanjing, which were outlined by the member for Vancouver East. The majority of the victims were Chinese civilians. We fully recognize this. Women and girls suffered in particular, as they are often the most victimized group in these types of violent conflicts.

It is well known that one of our government's core priorities is its commitment to gender equality and women's rights. At the international level, we are a leader in this regard, through our championing of the promotion and protection of human rights, as well as women's and children's rights, at a wide range of multilateral fora, including as a focus of Canada's presidency of the G7 this year, which will be taking place in Charlevoix.

As with other atrocities in history, the Nanjing massacre was predicated upon the systematic dehumanization of Chinese people as non-human, as “other”. It is important that discourse at every level not marginalize populations or portray them in demeaning or dehumanizing terms: Muslims as terrorists or LGBTQ2 community members as sexually deviant or morally reprehensible.

The Prime Minister has spoken publicly on a number of occasions on the importance of combatting intolerance and hate in all forms. It is important that political leaders and all communities support one another in facing this challenge, and that Canadians work together to promote mutual understanding and conquer hate.

In addition, protecting human rights is also a fundamental part of our vision of Canada and the world. It is in fact an important aspect of the mandate of the Minister of Canadian Heritage in conjunction with that of Global Affairs Canada. Through our efforts in this area, we are supporting diversity, inclusion, and peaceful pluralism, as well as reconciliation efforts between countries on matters such as the one raised here this evening.

In addition to government efforts, all Canadians have a role to play in countering hatred and fostering welcoming communities. Actions such as speaking out when we encounter racism in our communities, volunteering with one of the many organizations that support inclusion, and reporting any hate crimes that are encountered, can go a long way toward ensuring that all Canadians can grow together in peace and prosperity.

The Government of Canada recognizes the events and the steps that have been taken to commemorate this tragedy, including those taken by the Ontario legislature. However, it does not comment on commemorative days designated by provincial legislatures or other orders of government. That being said, the Government of Canada expresses its sympathies for those who have suffered and those who have lost their lives in armed conflict.

[National Canadian Film Day, April 18th, 2018]

Mr. Speaker, butter that popcorn, because today is National Canadian Film Day. Across the country, people will be gathering at over 800 screenings, taking in the incredible work of Canadian creators.

From Tofino to Toronto, from Whitehorse to Westmount, everyone is watching Canadian films, and this year's theme is shining the spotlight on female filmmakers.

Under the leadership of Reel Canada and executive director Jack Blum, National Canadian Film Day has been expanding the audience of Canadian productions for five years now. This year includes terrific films such as Maudie, by producer Mary Young Leckie, from my riding of Parkdale—High Park, The Breadwinner, and I've Heard the Mermaids Singing, which I will be watching tonight with my constituents at the Revue, our wonderful community cinema in Roncesvalles. There are seven screenings in my riding alone.

I encourage all Canadians, no matter where they live, to go to their local movie theatre, library, or school this evening to celebrate female filmmakers and learn more about Canada's history through the magic of film.

[Canadian Heritage, March 29th, 2018]

Mr. Speaker, I appreciate my colleague's question.

We are standing up for the CBC, which is why we reinvested $675 million. We are also defending our national anthem. We always take pride in the changes, initiated by Mauril Bélanger, to the lyrics of the national anthem. Now that they are gender neutral, they are more inclusive and better reflect diversity. This is an important symbol for us.

[Taxation, March 29th, 2018]

Mr. Speaker, changes in the way Canadians access content have disrupted many business models.

The reality is that the benefits of the digital world are not shared equally between the web giants and our artists, journalists, and creators. Our government wants to level the playing field among the stakeholders involved.

That is why we will be making amendments to our legislation to adapt it to the digital reality. This includes a review of the Broadcasting Act. We strongly believe in protecting our culture and promoting access to Canadian content on all platforms.

[The Budget, March 20th, 2018]

Madam Speaker, briefly, with respect to doctors, other various medical professionals, and professionals, we are trying to empower such individuals to grow their businesses. We are open to exploring the mechanisms we can put in place. Part of the mechanisms we chose to implement include a reduction in the small business tax rate. That is available to the vast majority of businesses. That is the kind of mechanism we will use to ensure those businesses, such as the one mentioned by my friend opposite, can continue to grow.

[The Budget, March 20th, 2018]

Madam Speaker, I thank the member for her contributions at that committee and at the immigration committee. In all sincerity, we are not reinventing the wheel. Our country had an action plan on racism. It was implemented under Paul Martin. It fell by the wayside under the previous government's tenure. We are not trying to reinvent the wheel to drag out this process any further. The idea is to revisit the old action plan and modernize it. It is now 14 years old. It does not account for the acute rise in indigenous discrimination or Islamophobia. By consulting, we will be able to take into account the reality of racism in modern day Canada and implement it as fast as possible. That is certainly my goal, and I believe that is our government's goal.

[The Budget, March 20th, 2018]

Madam Speaker, I share a completely different perspective on what was at issue yesterday, and what is at issue in the Canada summer jobs program. First, we have expanded the Canada summer jobs program. We believe in it as an economic vehicle and we believe in empowering youth. Today in my riding and in the riding of my friend opposite more money is available to employ youth.

Second, the issue with the Canada summer jobs program is we believe all organizations employing youth should be able to do so as long as they believe in an inclusive program. This means that any sort of religious institution running a camp that provides equal access to everyone is welcome to access Canada summer jobs funding. However, a religious institution or other organization that says, for example, that LGBT youth are not welcome in camp will not be able to access funding. Why? Because that contradicts the charter values upon which our country is based. Those equality principles are not principles we will compromise with government funding. That is the principle upon which the Canada summer jobs determination was made.

[The Budget, March 20th, 2018]

Madam Speaker, on February 27, we tabled budget 2018. I am proud to rise today to speak in the House about what the budget will deliver for my constituents in Parkdale—High Park and to Canadians right across this country.

This budget is about access. It is about dismantling the barriers to success that many Canadians still face. In budget 2018, we are investing in order to advance gender equality, indigenous reconciliation, the growth of small businesses, and the strengthening of our nation's cultural diversity. These progressive investments will facilitate and promote positive economic growth across all demographics, not just for the wealthiest but for all Canadians.

These investments will help ensure that a social and economic structure is in place to propel all Canadians to success.

Let us start with women and girls. There is no doubt that women in Canada continue to face significant barriers. They carry the majority of the burden of child care. They face gender discrimination and pay inequity in the workplace. They lack equitable access to a variety of male-dominated sectors. As a government, we are determined to facilitate real opportunities for women to overcome their barriers to success.

This means implementing concrete, tangible policies and investing in the promotion of gender equality.

We are addressing the double burden placed on women of both raising children and working full time. Budget 2018 will invest $1.2 billion into the new EI parental sharing benefit, which means that there will be an additional five weeks of paid leave available for a second parent. This means that the primary parent can have the support of their partner while they transition back into the workforce. Another five weeks means that paid parental leave goes from 35 to 40 weeks of shareable time, split in any way that works for individual families. It is an arrangement that empowers families and that will also benefit children, who will have the opportunity for more direct contact with both parents during that formative first year of development.

Let us talk about pay equity and under-representation.

Our government is also committed to ensuring that women receive equal pay for equal work. In 2018, women still receive, on average, 69 cents on every dollar earned by their male counterparts on an annual basis. That is an injustice plain and simple. It is an injustice that calls for intervention at the national level. That is why in budget 2018 we are targeting federally regulated industries by introducing proactive pay equity legislation that will apply to about 1.2 million Canadians. We will also be providing an additional $1.65 billion in new financing for women entrepreneurs through the Business Development Bank of Canada and Export Development Canada.

Our government will also publicly recognize the corporations that commit to promoting women directors in order to improve gender representation in corporate Canada, building on the measures included in Bill C-25. These steps are imperative not only because they are morally imperative but because they make good economic sense.

By minimizing barriers to women’s success in traditionally male-dominated fields and by facilitating their participation in the labour force, we will add $150 billion to Canada’s economy by 2026.

When we support women’s entry into the labour force and foster their success, our society and our economy reap the benefits.

I will now turn to reconciliation with indigenous persons.

I hosted a town hall in my riding of Parkdale—High Park to discuss the importance and the work of indigenous reconciliation. What I heard from my constituents loudly and clearly is that it is unacceptable in 2018 that there are still areas in Canada, including many indigenous reserves, where people do not have access to clean drinking water.

There is no reason why anyone in a developed country like ours should not have access to safe drinking water. We are a rich nation, but for too long that wealth has not been shared equally with indigenous persons, who have suffered under colonial policies and the institutional racism of the residential school system. That is why in this budget we have invested an additional $172 million on top of the $1.8 billion committed in budget 2016 to get clean water on reserves across the country.

Thus far we have lifted 54 long-term drinking water advisories in Canada, and with these additional funds committed in this budget, we will be able to fast-track the eradication of the 81 long-term advisories that are still in place. By increasing this funding, we are committing to completing 25 water infrastructure projects by 2020 rather than 2021 as was originally planned.

This is an important, indeed, I would say, a vital step in the right direction. Without providing access to clean water, the broader goal of truly advancing indigenous reconciliation could never be realized.

Now I want to talk about small businesses.

After hearing the concerns of constituents and small business owners from my riding of Parkdale—High Park and indeed right around the country, our government has revised our approach to small businesses. First, we have lowered the small business tax rate to 10%, and we will further reduce it to 9% by 2019. Second, we have eliminated the proposal to tax capital gains on the transfer of a small business to a family member. Third, we have revised the proposal as it affects passive income. We heard loudly and clearly from business owners that invest in their businesses, create prosperity in our economy, and employ Canadians and boost productivity. We heard from Canadians that they use passive investment income to save for a rainy day, a bad year, sick leave, or parental leave.

These are the types of businesses we will help prosper. To ensure the tax reforms are targeted at only the wealthiest 3%, we are limiting our tax reform proposals to only those corporations that have more than $1 million in passive investments. This amounts to about 40,000 of the 1.8 million businesses in this country. It targets 3% of all Canadian corporations, so that 97% of all Canadian businesses will not be affected by these tax reforms. That is critical because we know that 97% of businesses are working to help the Canadian economy grow, are reinvesting, and are creating jobs.

I want to talk about new Canadians and how they are layered into this new budget. In this country we are strong, not in spite of our differences but because of our differences. New Canadians contribute immensely to the vibrancy of our culture and undeniably to our economic success. This economic contribution is not always attainable, because of the many institutional and systemic barriers that newcomers continue to face.

To overcome some of those barriers to employment that visible minority newcomer women face, budget 2018 will invest $31.9 million as part of a three-year pilot project to provide additional settlement support. That is a critical measure to setting newcomer women up for success, success for themselves, success for their families, and success for their new home, Canada. In addition, to ensure that newcomers have access to better supports in dealing with their immigration cases, $12.8 million will go to the Department of Justice to deal with the pressure currently on immigration and refugee legal aid.

I want to speak about multiculturalism and combatting racial discrimination. Over the past few years, we have seen an escalation of division and intolerance in this country. Despite the fact that the majority of Canadians value our diversity and pluralism, we have witnessed a rise in hate crimes, particularly those that target the Muslim community and continued anti-Semitism. As a government, we know that it is not sufficient to simply talk about championing our diversity. We need to be vigilant in defending it so that we can move beyond tolerating difference and move towards celebrating difference.

To this end, budget 2018 commits nearly $50 million to programming that will advance Canadian diversity; $23 million is dedicated to multiculturalism programming that will enable our government to empower communities and build capacity; $19 million is dedicated to the black community alone, to address mental health issues, youth, and combatting racism; and $6.5 million is allocated to a new centre for diversity statistics.

For the first time ever, Canada will be collecting and disseminating disaggregated data to allow us to accurately pinpoint and thereafter address the obstacles faced by racialized persons in this country. As the parliamentary secretary for multiculturalism, I am proud of this financial commitment of our government in budget 2018. It will allow us to conduct nationwide consultations on the development of a new national anti-racism plan. Although the previous government abolished this plan and reduced funds to the multiculturalism program, our critical investment in budget 2018 underscores our commitment to unifying our nation, rather than dividing it.

As I mentioned at the outset, the growth that we have been witnessing in the Canadian economy has not been shared by all. Budget 2018 is about overcoming barriers. It benefits no one when some Canadians are prevented from succeeding based on their gender, race, culture, or socio-economic standing.

The progressive policies and investments contained in budget 2018 are here to support all of us, to push us forward as a nation, and to ensure that all of us share in the growth being created. I know that my constituents in Parkdale—High Park want to see strong, socially conscious investment from our government, because these types of investments benefit all of us.

[Multiculturalism, March 20th, 2018]

Mr. Speaker, tomorrow marks the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination.

On March 21, let us remember the 69 black South Africans who were killed in Sharpeville because they opposed apartheid. The theme this year is promoting tolerance, inclusion, unity, and respect for diversity in the context of combatting racial discrimination.

As Canadians, we know that our diversity is our strength, but as a government, we know that combatting racial discrimination takes more than words. It requires action and the funding to support programming.

That is why budget 2018 commits nearly $50 million to multiculturalism, to supports for the black community, and to the collection of disaggregated race-based data.

I am proud that these commitments will allow us to develop a new, national anti-racism approach and work toward the goal of reducing discrimination to build a stronger and more united Canada.