Don Davies

[Pharmacare, October 21st, 2020]

Mr. Speaker, it has become very obvious to Canadians that the Prime Minister is trying to force an unnecessary election, but our country is facing an unprecedented pandemic. Canadians are deeply concerned about their health and also about paying their bills and feeding their families. The Prime Minister says he wants to help Canadians, but he is clearly more interested in playing politics.

My question is this: When the Prime Minister committed to pharmacare in the throne speech just two weeks ago, was he serious or was that just another hollow Liberal campaign promise?

[Judges Act, October 8th, 2020]

Madam Speaker, I listened very carefully to my hon. colleague's speech, and I want to thank her. I found the description of her real life experiences as a practising nurse dealing with sexual assault victims to be incredibly informative and, frankly, very moving. I want to thank her for sharing that with us.

The member pointed out very well and articulated in a very piercing fashion the fact that we have a system-wide problem with dealing with sexual assault in this country, and she pointed out some of the affiliated aspects beyond just the education of judges.

I wonder if the member could share with the House, out of the many areas she identified as needing reform and improvement, what her priorities would be. What would she tell this House—

[Judges Act, October 8th, 2020]

Madam Speaker, I too am a member of the bar in Alberta, albeit a non-practising one. I very much support this bill. The opportunity to educate judges in this area is very important.

Would the federal government agree to undertake initiatives to work with provinces to make sure law school curricula are expanded? We could then start to educate lawyers as they are being trained about these very important issues of context, institutional racism and sexism. They could then adopt these values as they practise, because eventually it is lawyers who are put on the bench, and we do not have to wait until they become judges before they get this very important training.

[Financial Administration Act, October 8th, 2020]

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-248, An Act to amend the Financial Administration Act (composition of boards of directors).

Mr. Speaker, I am honoured to rise today to introduce an important bill to Parliament. This legislation would amend the Financial Administration Act to require gender parity on the boards of directors of Crown corporations and agencies. I would like to thank the hon. member for London—Fanshawe for seconding this bill and for her tireless advocacy of gender equality.

Today in Canada, women make up only 27% of federal appointments to Crown corporation boards. Only 18% of director seats are held by women across all corporate boards in Canada, and 61% of boards are composed entirely of men. This is unacceptable and must change.

By adopting this legislation, the federal government can lead by example and take concrete action to advance gender equality in Canada. For systemic change to occur, we must change the system. I hope all parliamentarians will support this important and overdue initiative.

(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)

[Seniors, October 6th, 2020]

Madam Speaker, families are incredibly worried that their loved ones in long-term care will not get the support they need. They do not want to see more jurisdictional wrangling or finger pointing; they need concrete action now. The long-term care crisis is a national problem and the federal government must play a leadership role to resolve it immediately.

When the Liberal government previously struck targeted funding agreements in budgets to improve home and community care as well as mental health and addiction services, all in provincial competency by the way, it did not use jurisdiction as an excuse not to act. Long-term care residents deserve equal protection from COVID-19 no matter where they live in Canada. Therefore, when can Canadian seniors expect concrete action to improve their care in these vulnerable facilities?

[Seniors, October 6th, 2020]

Madam Speaker, Canada failed to protect long-term care residents from the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. More than 840 outbreaks were reported in long-term care facilities and retirement homes across Canada, accounting for more than 80% of all COVID-19 deaths in the country. This represents the worst record of all comparable countries.

The situation was so dire that Canadian Forces had to be called in to long-term care facilities in Quebec and Ontario. Residents there were found underfed, abandoned and afraid. In some cases, they had been left to die alone in bed covered in their own urine and feces. These stories shocked our conscience and challenged our self-image as a compassionate and humane society. However, they were entirely foreseeable and avoidable.

Experts and advocates have been raising an alarm over the state of Canada's long-term care sector for many years, but successive federal governments have failed to act. Indeed, decades of research have demonstrated that insufficient staff-to-resident ratios and the reliance on precarious working conditions have led to hurried, dehumanizing care, high staff turnover and workforce instability in the Canadian long-term care sector.

British Columbia's long-term care system entered the pandemic with several advantages because the NDP provincial government had made progress on these issues prior to the outbreak despite the void of federal leadership. This included implementing measures to promote better coordination between long-term care, public health and hospitals; increased funding for long-term care; fewer shared rooms; and more comprehensive inspections.

Moreover, Premier Horgan acted early in the pandemic to limit long-term care workers to a single facility to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Before the pandemic, workers were forced to pick up shifts at multiple facilities that paid differing and insufficient wages. However, the B.C. government has spent more than $10 million a month to level up the wages and benefits of long-term care workers so that they earn a standard income no matter where they work. Premier Horgan has pledged to make this increase permanent.

As Canada sits on the crest of a second wave of COVID-19 and outbreaks in long-term care facilities are flaring up once again, residents remain at extreme risk due to continued federal inaction. In order to prevent another catastrophe, Canada's leading scientists and scholars are calling on the government to act immediately to implement binding national standards of care tied to new federal funding.

In its recent throne speech, the government did pledge to “work with the provinces and territories to set new, national standards for long-term care”. However, it failed to provide a timeline for action or a commitment to new federal funding.

Can the Liberal government confirm whether binding national standards and funding tied to meeting these standards for long-term care will be in place in time to protect vulnerable residents from the second wave of COVID-19?

[Resumption of Debate on Address in Reply, October 6th, 2020]

Madam Speaker, I would like to congratulate my hon. colleague on his appointment as the foreign affairs critic.

Unless I am mistaken, I am not sure I heard my colleague's views on Canada's relationship with Saudi Arabia. He mentioned some of the very serious transgressions of human rights in the world. With Saudi Arabia, we have an absolute monarchy. Not only is it not a democracy, it does not even allow its citizens to vote. It is a known misogynist country. It is interfering in neighbouring Yemen, where we have maybe the largest humanitarian catastrophe on the planet, with children starving and civilians being bombed. We know that the Saudi Arabian government was responsible for murdering a journalist in Europe.

Does my colleague have any comment about what his party's position is on what Canada's relationship should be with Saudi Arabia? Does he agree with me that we should be putting sanctions on a country like Saudi Arabia, which is violating human rights so egregiously?

[Health, October 6th, 2020]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians are experiencing the worst public health crisis in a century, one that will only end with an effective treatment or vaccine. Yet, without a public pharmacare system, they have no assurance that they will have universal access to these life-saving medications.

Yesterday, the NDP government in British Columbia announced that any COVID-19 vaccine will be provided at no cost to British Columbians. Will the Government of Canada ensure that all Canadians receive free vaccinations against COVID-19 once they are developed?

[The Environment, October 2nd, 2020]

Mr. Speaker, the climate crisis and growth of inequality represent the pre-eminent environmental and social challenges of our time. Our planet faces catastrophic impacts if we do not take strong and urgent action to reduce carbon emissions. The unjustifiable concentration of wealth in the hands of so few while so many are struggling threatens the stability of our society and challenges the morality of our nation.

The COVID crisis presents us with a unique opportunity to hasten the transition to a sustainable and just economy. It is time to implement innovative policies like a universal basic income, a full-employment strategy, a nature-first lens and adopt measures of growth that capture true well-being.

At their core is the recognition that all people matter and we have one planet, whose well-being is our responsibility to steward for all generations to come. By aligning recovery measures with environmental and social justice priorities, we can set Canada on a course to a truly sustainable future.

[Resumption of Debate on Address in Reply, October 1st, 2020]

Madam Speaker, I was pleased to hear my hon. colleague say that climate change is a non-partisan issue, because it should be.

I can tell him that the people in my riding of Vancouver Kingsway, particularly young people, are deeply concerned about the future of our planet. In fact, I would say that the climate crisis is probably the most foundational, existential issue facing them and their future. I therefore think it behooves all of us, particularly the government, to make it the number one issue we are facing. After all, if we do not have a healthy planet, it is hard to imagine how we can have a functioning society.

The member mentioned the planting of trees. Last fall, the Liberals promised to plant two billion trees and, of course, we all know today that they have not planted any. The NDP Government of British Columbia, just this year alone since the spring, managed to plant 300 million trees.

I am just wondering if the member could explain to the House and Canadians how it is a provincial government can plant 300 million trees and his government cannot meet the commitment it made to plant two billion trees. What went wrong?