Djaouida Sellah

[Economic Action Plan 2013 Act No. 2, December 3rd, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for her very relevant speech.

We are debating a bill today under time allocation. With this bill, the government will eliminate the Canada Employment Insurance Financing Board and give the Minister of Finance the power to set the premium rate. This Conservative government is once again trying to centralize things and give more power to the ministers.

Could my colleague talk about power being centralized and dialogue being cut short, and also about how they talk here in the House?

[Economic Action Plan 2013 Act No. 2, December 3rd, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, I listened carefully to the speech by my colleague opposite and I am not surprised that the Conservatives are still proclaiming loud and clear how good they are in economics.

However, I have a question for my colleague opposite. The Auditor General revealed that the Conservatives had lost $3.1 billion. Nearly six months later, they still do not know where the money has gone. What is worse, the debt continues to grow. The deficit in 2012-13 was almost $19 billion.

How can my colleague claim that the government is good in economics?

[Economic Action Plan 2013 Act No. 2, December 3rd, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his speech. Although he has a cold, he was on point and very clear.

We are used to seeing this government move to pass omnibus legislation and push through any piece of legislation in an omnibus bill. The proof is that we have a bill before us that will correct the mistakes made in using this approach. We know that this bill does not give Canadians the right to a healthy and safe workplace. However, in the NDP, we are convinced that no worker should have to jeopardize his or her health and safety to be able to work.

Does my colleague not think that this bill will put all powers related to health and safety into the minister's hands?

[Economic Action Plan 2013 Act No. 2, December 3rd, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, today we are talking about a time allocation motion for the 58th time. As I have always said, this government is becoming increasingly arrogant with respect to democratic institutions. Here we are in Parliament, and within that word is the French word “parler”, which means to talk. However, the Conservatives will not let us talk about the issues that are very important to our constituents, who sent us here to debate bills.

Once again, we are dealing with a government is even more arrogant than the previous Liberal government, even though the Conservatives criticized the Liberals for it at the time. Unfortunately, we are faced with a very arrogant government that shows contempt for our democratic institutions.

Why is this government even more arrogant than the Liberals were back in the day?

[Respect for Communities Act, November 28th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, after listening to my colleague's speech, it seems to me that these sites have very clearly and demonstrably received worldwide recognition. There are sites like these in 70 cities around the world, particularly in Australia.

As a health professional, I am thoroughly familiar with the beneficial aspects of these sites, particularly for a vulnerable drug-addicted population. These sites build bridges and help these people.

There is also an office above InSite that helps these people fight their addiction and that, sooner or later, will direct them to the kind of care that could ultimately eliminate blood-borne diseases like HIV/AIDS.

I am puzzled about something, and have a question for my colleague.

Would this bill not run counter to the Supreme Court's ruling?

[Status of Women, November 27th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Status of Women appeared before our committee yesterday. It was only the second time that she had come to discuss her department's plans and priorities.

The NDP asked her about how women's equality has declined since the Conservatives were elected, but the minister did not reply. When we asked her if she plans to launch a national inquiry into missing and murdered aboriginal women, she did not reply.

When we asked her if she plans to develop a national action plan to address the high rate of violence against women, and why her government has no moral qualms about denying abortion services for victims of war rape and young girls forced into marriage, she did not reply.

This week we learned that, in Canada, over half of all single mothers with young children are living below the poverty line. The minister did not once mention child care, pay equity or reducing poverty among Canadian women, who desperately need help.

Canadian women deserve better.

[Respect for Communities Act, November 21st, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, I listened attentively to the member for Winnipeg Centre; his articulate and heartfelt speech focused on issues that are dear to Canadians. The benefits of supervised injection sites and their positive impact on communities are known across the world.

The Conservatives have launched a campaign with the slogan “keep heroin out of our backyards”. Furthermore, it does not take an MBA or a medical background to see that, with Bill C-2, the Conservatives are doing everything they can, not only to stop new supervised injection sites from opening, but also to shut down the Vancouver site.

Would this not bring heroin back to our doorstep, our parks and our neighbourhoods?

[Respect for Communities Act, November 21st, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague for his pertinent remarks.

We all know Conservatives always try to get what they want, and they intend to put their moral values ahead of the lives of the most vulnerable Canadians. My question is for my colleague.

Does this bill not fly in the face of the Supreme Court decision?

[Respect for Communities Act, November 21st, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his pertinent question.

As he said, this is the 21st century. Things have changed, as has our way of viewing this societal problem of drug use. The problem is there. We cannot put our heads in the sand. The NDP wants to help people who have drug addictions. We want to offer them a safe place and avoid the transmission of infectious diseases. We also want these centres to be a gateway for directing vulnerable persons to withdrawal treatment so they can receive guidance from nurses and specialized physicians. We want to offer them good health practices so they can live in dignity.

I have visited Vancouver East, and I can say that it left me devastated. What I saw there were human wrecks, people wandering the street. Is that what we want for our fellow citizens? We want a medical framework that can help these vulnerable people get out of their situation, but that is contrary to the ideology of the Conservative government.

[Respect for Communities Act, November 21st, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, I apologize, but I am very passionate about this.

The member mentioned scientific evidence. I am a scientist. I am a health care professional. You have to have collected conclusive data to be able to talk about scientific evidence. I am no better than my Canadian medical colleagues or the Supreme Court, which has examined this issue.

If the member is claiming that the NDP does not believe in science, I have to think that she did not understand my speech.