House of Commons photoWon his last election, in 2015, with 53% of the vote.
Afghanistan March 11th, 2008
Mr. Speaker, quite incorrectly, one of the previous speakers made a suggestion that I said that we negotiate with the Taliban. I would like to point out that President Karzai, at a number of press conferences, has made that very suggestion.
I have a question for the member for Bruce—Grey—Owen Sound. President Karzai has suggested several times that we negotiate with the Taliban. Under what conditions would he agree with Mr. Karzai's statements?
Afghanistan March 11th, 2008
Mr. Speaker, there have been news reports that the brother of Hamid Karzai, Mr. Walid Karzai, is one of the biggest poppy growers in Kandahar. What do we intend to do over the next two years to turn that particular situation around?
Afghanistan March 11th, 2008
Mr. Speaker, one of our colleagues from the Conservative Party across the aisle invoked the word “trust” and stated that Canadians were trusted in Afghanistan. That is quite important. There is no doubt that most Afghans, although not all, would trust the intentions of Canadians. However, there is another component to this trust. That is whether or not they trust us in our capacity to change the situation on the ground in Afghanistan.
The member for Cambridge talked of children being able to sleep at night without having to worry. He put it in a very visual way. The member for Edmonton Centre invoked the terminology of “responsibility to protect”, but responsibility to protect also comes with a responsibility to rebuild.
We see a process of rebuilding taking place in Afghanistan, but it is quite worrisome. We see that the economic situation in Afghanistan is such that for average villagers to be able to provide food for the table, they have had to take part in the drug trade, in growing poppies.
Very specifically, I would like to ask the member for Cambridge this question. Afghanistan quite clearly has now become a narco-state and we--
Visitor Visas March 10th, 2008
Mr. Speaker, I am proud to report that after three years of hard work, informing, petitioning, cajoling, my Motion No. 19 and its previous incarnation, Motion No. 238, calling on the government to lift visitor visa requirements for the new EU member states of the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Slovakia, was finally implemented in its entirety.
Nineteen years ago the Iron Curtain came down and, finally, a week ago Canada's visa curtain came down as well. It is immensely gratifying that this Easter will be the first that families and friends from Poland, Hungary, the Baltic states, Slovakia and the Czech Republic will be able to visit their loved ones in Canada, and all it will take is the purchase of a plane ticket.
It is rare for the contents of an opposition private member's motion to be adopted in its entirety by the government. I am humbled by the support I received in the thousands of communications and petitions from individuals in diaspora organizations throughout Canada.
Together we were many and we made it happen.
Employment Insurance March 5th, 2008
Mr. Speaker, discussions have taken place among all parties with respect to Bill C-254, An Act to amend the Criminal Code (hate propaganda), first introduced during the 38th Parliament and reintroduced May 24, 2007.
This bill at long last includes the legal word for “gender” in the categories protected from hate crimes.
On the cusp of International Women's Day, I hope to find consent for the following motion: that notwithstanding any Standing Order or usual practice of the House, Bill C-254, An Act to amend the Criminal Code (hate propaganda), be deemed read a second time and referred to committee of the whole, deemed considered in committee of the whole, deemed reported without amendment, deemed concurred in at report stage, and deemed read a third time and passed.
Criminal Code February 5th, 2008
moved for leave to introduce Bill C-500, An Act to amend the Criminal Code (trafficking and transplanting human organs and other body parts).
Mr. Speaker, I rise to introduce my private member's bill, an act to amend the Criminal Code (trafficking and transplanting human organs and other body parts).
This horrific underground industry in human organs and body parts is a consequence of three global trends coinciding during the last decade: first, the development of medical technology, allowing the inexpensive transplantation of virtually any body organ; second, the immense increase in global disparities and incomes; and finally, easy and accessible travel to any part of the globe.
Recent articles about the million dollar business of “Dr. Horror”, involved in the illegal harvesting of kidneys of a possible 500 poor labourers in New Delhi, India, and his Canadian connections, as well as a spotlight placed on illegal harvesting of organs of prisoners of conscience in China in the 2007 Matas-Kilgour report entitled “Bloody Harvest”, underscore the urgent need to address this modern horror.
By enacting this legislation, Canada will become an international leader in combating the sinister underground trade in human organs and body parts.
(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)
Immigration and Refugee Protection Act January 31st, 2008
Mr. Speaker, most Canadians would be stunned to hear that people have been incarcerated in Canada for periods as long as five to seven years on evidence that potentially was obtained through torture. The bill as it stands now has been amended so that evidence obtained by torture cannot be used.
We also know that evidence is provided by countries from the Middle East, developing countries and third world countries that do not have the same standards of evidence that we have here in Canada and other democracies. What guarantees do we have that evidence from countries that have different standards than ours in terms of evidence, that people will not be incarcerated as a result of that type of evidence?
Second, we also know that many of these countries are not democracies, they are dictatorships. People often seek refuge from those countries because they are political opponents to those dictatorships and seek refuge in countries such ours, Canada. We have a tradition of providing refuge.
We also know that some of those countries are quite adept at forging documentation and have in the past taken out personal vendettas against their political opponents who have escaped their grasp. What guarantees do we have--
Violence Against Women December 6th, 2007
Mr. Speaker, today marks the 18th anniversary of the massacre of 14 women at Montreal's École Polytechnique, yet the glorification of violence toward women continues. We do not tolerate incitement to violence based on ethnicity, race, religion or sexual orientation. All are protected by law, yet incitement to violence toward women is not included.
Will the minister agree today to adding one word, “sex”, the legal description for gender, to existing hate crimes legislation and end gender-based incitement to violence and hatred?
Cluster Bombs December 4th, 2007
Mr. Speaker, this week, we celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Ottawa treaty, an agreement signed by 156 countries around the world to ban the use of anti-personnel landmines. It is a ruthless tool of war, unable to distinguish between the footsteps of an enemy soldier and a child playing in an empty field.
Under the leadership of Prime Minister Jean Chrétien and foreign affairs minister Lloyd Axworthy, Canada was instrumental in the promotion and negotiation of this landmark treaty.
Today, our energies focus on the elimination of cluster bombs. Cluster munitions post the same dangers to civilian populations that landmines do, with the additional characteristics that they are easily delivered and distributed over broad expanses of land.
Too often in post-conflict regions, farmers ploughing their fields lose life and limb while trying to put food on the table. Whole regions have been made inhospitable due to their use.
On this 10th anniversary of the Ottawa treaty, let us redouble our efforts to ban the use of a barbaric tool of war: cluster bombs.
Petitions December 3rd, 2007
Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 36 I would like to present a petition signed by 85 concerned Canadians who are readers of the Polish-Canadian Independent Courier. For over two years, I have been presenting similar petitions on behalf of Polish Canadian communities to the government, to no avail.
The petitioners demand that Parliament pass and the government adopt Motion No. 19, calling for the lifting of visitor visas for all new EU member states, including Poland.
Canada's burdensome visa regime is a throwback to the days of the cold war and should be modernized to reflect new geopolitical realities, particularly the June 2007 EU-Canada summit statement that promised to ensure the free and secure movement of people between the EU and Canada.
The iron curtain has come down. It is time for Canada's visa curtain around Poland to come down as well.