Cathy McLeod

[Citizenship Act, November 2nd, 2020]

Madam Speaker, we talked about being a Canadian by birth or through naturalization. I know the curriculum has changed since I was a young girl and did not know very much about our history.

I think it was very clear in the feedback received on calls to action number 93 and 94 that as new citizens swear the oath, they really need to understand the history. That is now part of the process. We talked about the booklet and the examination.

Do we have more to do? Absolutely. However, hopefully we have a better process for new citizens and those who are here from birth.

[Citizenship Act, November 2nd, 2020]

Madam Speaker, I again want to reflect on the enormous privilege it is for a member of Parliament to attend citizenship ceremonies. I have not been to one where I have not been incredibly moved. I feel quite emotional as I look at the people who are participating.

More specifically to the member's point, this was a very simple call to action. The government did not even introduce it in the last Parliament until a week before Parliament dissolved. The government knew it was not going to move forward.

We have water systems that we need to deal with. We need an action plan for murdered and missing indigenous women and girls. If it takes the Liberals 6 years to put 19 words in a citizenship oath, I really fear for the things that are going to make a huge impact, such as an action plan for murdered and missing indigenous women and girls.

[Citizenship Act, November 2nd, 2020]

Madam Speaker, I will be sharing my time with the member for Desnethé—Missinippi—Churchill River.

I will start by talking about citizenship and the citizenship process, then I will get into what the bill would do and what it is intended to do.

We have heard a lot about the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, but it is also important to reflect on becoming a citizen of Canada, what it is and what it means.

As everyone knows, there are only two ways to become a citizen: by birth or by naturalization. In Canada, the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship released his new numbers a few days ago for those coming into Canada. Typically, it is in the 300,000 range, plus or minus. Each year, 100,000-plus, or 100,000 to 200,000, of the people who have chosen to come to Canada as permanent residents will decide to take that next step to become Canadian citizens.

There are some criteria in terms of wanting citizenship in our wonderful country. Out of those 350,000 who might come next year with permanent residency, some may choose to return home, as Canada is not where they really want to be, and some will be permanent residents forever. However, to become a citizen one has to be a permanent resident, has to have lived here for three to five years, have filed taxes when necessary and have taken a citizenship test. It would be interesting for Canadians who were born here to take that citizenship test and see how they do. I believe there are about 20 questions, and one has to get 15 out of 20 to pass the test. One also needs to have a degree of proficiency in one of our official languages but, of course, there are some exceptions in terms of older residents and some of our youth.

For those who choose to go through the process to become a Canadian citizen and take the test, the culmination of that process is the citizenship ceremony. Most members of Parliament who have been in the House for a while have had an opportunity to participate in these citizenship ceremonies. There is nothing more profoundly moving than going to these ceremonies. Often large groups of people from around the world go to these citizenship ceremonies, and it is their final step in terms of becoming citizens.

I have been to some ceremonies that were held in schools. These were really fun, because all the students would get to come and watch the process. In one case, students from grades one to six decorated the auditorium and watched the process. I have been to one on Canada Day. What better can a person do than to be outside in a park on Canada Day? In this case, 80 or 90 people from my riding of Kamloops—Thompson—Cariboo who chose to become citizens of Canada there in the park. They were not only celebrating Canada Day, but also the commitment they had made.

Unfortunately, with COVID, now there are virtual ceremonies. I have not participated in a virtual ceremony, but I would think that it would probably not be as moving as some of the in-person experiences. I remember families: moms, dads and children taking the oath. I remember one lady who had been in Canada for 40 years before she made that decision. For her, it was such a leap that it took her 40 years to decide that she wanted to become a citizen of Canada.

There are people who come to Canada as permanent residents, and their goal is to get their Canadian citizenship as soon as possible. The people who choose to become citizens of Canada, who are not privileged by birth, are perhaps the ones who most appreciate the citizenship they have.

The Truth and Reconciliation Commission indicated in its calls to action that, first of all, in the test, there needed to be more work in terms of people understanding Canada's history, understanding Canada's history with indigenous peoples, understanding treaties and, quite frankly, in the case of British Columbia, understanding the lack of treaties. That was a call for action.

It is interesting to see that the oath has not changed in over 40 years. I was looking through the history of our oath. People have often looked at changing it over the years, and there were some very interesting oaths proposed in the early 1990s and 2000s. However, we have had the same oath for 40 years.

The oath is, as members know, the final legal requirement to become a citizen of Canada. I want to say quickly what the oath is currently, and then I will say what the proposed oath is. It is very simple. I was surprised at how short it was.

The current oath is:

I swear (or affirm) that I will be faithful and bear true allegiance to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Second, Queen of Canada, Her Heirs and Successors, and that I will faithfully observe the laws of Canada and fulfil my duties as a Canadian citizen.

There was a modification that the Truth and Reconciliation Commission proposed. I understand that what we have in the legislation is not actually what the Truth and Reconciliation Commission proposed, but is a modification made after consultation with indigenous groups and also immigration groups across the country. It will be interesting when this bill gets to committee.

The proposed oath is:

I swear (or affirm) that I will be faithful and bear true allegiance to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Second, Queen of Canada, Her Heirs and Successors, and that I will faithfully observe the laws of Canada, including the Constitution, which recognizes and affirms the Aboriginal and treaty rights of First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples, and fulfil my duties as a Canadian citizen.

Again, there has been some question as to some of the changes. The TRC just talked about the treaties. I have already noted that in British Columbia there are no treaties; however, there are certainly aboriginal rights, and there is a need to respect those rights.

From listening to the debate today, it sounds like there is general agreement in the House that the bill should move forward to committee and be further reflected upon. I think that is important.

With the time I have left, I want to talk a little more about the report. It was tabled almost six years ago. There were calls to action, and it has been six years. The day the report was tabled, the Prime Minister stood up in the House. At that time, he was the leader of the third party. He said that he would commit to implementing all the calls to action. As we know, in 2015, he became the Prime Minister. He again said that he would commit to implementing all the calls to action.

What we have here is 19 words added to an oath. There are many calls to action, and many are complex. If it has taken the Liberal government six years to add 19 words and, quite frankly, to get a relatively simple piece of legislation through the House, I really have to question the government's commitment to moving forward in the way that the Prime Minister stood up and promised to do.

I am unfortunately out of time, but I could share so many things in terms of how the Liberals have disappointed over the years.

[Citizenship Act, November 2nd, 2020]

Madam Speaker, I appreciate that my colleague from the Bloc talked about the government's legislative laziness. Five years after it committed to implementing the 94 calls to action, this bill would add 19 words to a citizenship oath. It is an important bill, but it is a very uncomplicated bill. If it takes six years to implement one reasonably easy call to action, what does she foresee in the future for the remaining 84-plus?

[Indigenous Affairs, November 2nd, 2020]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister, in 2015, stood in the House and solemnly promised to lift all long-term drinking water advisories by March 2021. He has now admitted that this is another broken promise and, quite frankly, it is unforgivable. Fifty-one advisories have been added since then and for one community, its drinking water now has compounds found in oil and coal.

When will the Prime Minister stand up, apologize and tell us his plan?

[Indigenous Affairs, November 2nd, 2020]

Mr. Speaker, the Neskantaga First Nation is on day 9,406 of a boil water advisory, the longest in Canada. The minister was there in 2016 and promised that it would be done by 2018. They are not alone.

On Friday, the Chief of the Chippewas of Nawash told CBC that their plant would not be open until 2023. This is one of over 60 communities that still cannot put clean drinking water into a glass. They cannot wash their hands in this time of COVID.

How much longer is the Prime Minister going to make them wait? If it is not 2021, then when is it?

[Citizenship Act, November 2nd, 2020]

Mr. Speaker, the minister stated that this is part of the path to trust and healing. We are talking about a change to the citizenship oath that I think is very appropriate and supportable. We talked about a statutory holiday as well. However, in the meantime, the things that are actually making a difference for indigenous people, such as clean drinking water and an action plan on murdered and missing indigenous women and girls, are missing.

The Liberals have completed 10 calls to action, so this may be a step, but does the minister not believe that trust and healing would come with following through on other commitments, such as clean drinking water?

[Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls, October 21st, 2020]

Mr. Speaker, the Liberals have failed to deliver an action plan to address violence against indigenous women and girls. It has been 16 months, and the government has been sitting on the result of the national inquiry’s final report. The government sure loves process, but again fails to deliver action.

Last week, Canada’s Ombudsman for Victims of Crime released a letter to the government indicating the time to act is now. She wrote, “We can no longer only talk about what we should do. We need to take action NOW, because Indigenous lives are at risk every day.”

The Native Women’s Association issued a report card last spring, giving the Liberals a resounding fail.

In the last election, Conservatives pledged to develop an action plan that would advance reconciliation, address violence and achieve measurable improvements for indigenous women and girls, but from the Liberals there has been nothing but talk.

Indigenous women and their families are wondering when the Liberals will deliver a plan. Will it be this year, next year, or never?

[Lobster Fishery Dispute in Nova Scotia, October 19th, 2020]

Madam Speaker, within my remarks I talked about a history that no one should be proud of, in terms of the unfinished business. There were certainly some really positive examples in the last Parliament of great goodwill as we worked in partnership, in terms of the child welfare legislation and the indigenous language legislation. Certainly, when we were government, there were matrimonial real property rights. There is example after example. When I said, “in the last number of years”, I want to remain optimistic. I want to look at those words that I quoted at the end of my speech and hope that we are headed in the right direction.

[Lobster Fishery Dispute in Nova Scotia, October 19th, 2020]

Madam Speaker, I would suggest, and I did make comments in my remarks, that there have been successive failures, since Confederation, of governments in terms of doing the right thing. The Truth and Reconciliation Commission, which a Conservative government spearheaded, was an important step. The awareness of Canadians across the country is only increasing, in terms of what the unfinished business is and what the tragic impacts have been of not doing the right thing. Therefore, I think certainly there is more positive movement in the last number of years than there has been in a long time.