Fayçal El-Khoury

[Support for Canadians, December 4th, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to talk about a peculiar contradiction in Canadian politics.

For years, the Conservative leader and his party have been lecturing Canadians on the virtues of tax cuts. However, when this government proposes a significant GST cut to put more money in families' pockets, what do the Conservatives do? They vote against it. It is like a chef turning their nose up at their own food.

The Leader of the Opposition claims to champion affordability, but when given the chance to get behind real, tangible support for Canadians, he turns his back on it. This is not about politics; it is about priorities. The Conservatives have clearly lost sight of their priorities, not to mention their sense of irony.

[Committees of the House, November 25th, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, we have gathered together today to pay tribute to a man whose commitment, wisdom and determination have marked not only this institution, but also Quebec and our entire country.

I thank my friend, my colleague, the member for Honoré-Mercier. He has dedicated many years of his life to serving our fellow Canadians. His career is a shining example of what the word “devotion” truly means. He has risen to complex challenges with admirable tenacity, and his actions have left an indelible mark on our shared history. His vision has led to remarkable progress in a variety of areas. Thanks to his leadership, we have been able to overcome obstacles and build bridges where once there seemed to be nothing but barriers and walls.

Apart from his political achievements, we will never forget his integrity, compassion and willingness to listen. He has stayed true to his values. Today, I salute not just a colleague, but a friend who is a brother, a mentor and an inspiration.

I know my friend, my colleague, the member for Honoré‑Mercier. He has a will of iron, strong, ambitious, and robust, especially when it comes to protecting the interests of Canadians. His legacy will continue to guide us. He is a role model to us all.

I can finally thank him from the bottom of my heart for standing up for Quebec and Canada. Many, many, thanks for defending the French language in Canada.

I thank my colleague.

[Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, October 25th, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday, the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship presented the 2025-27 immigration levels plan. This plan responds directly to the changing needs of our country. We know that immigration can be a powerful tool for ensuring the vitality of francophone communities outside Quebec.

Can we have an update on our government's efforts to support immigration outside Quebec?

[Democratic Institutions, October 23rd, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, the fight against foreign interference is a priority for our government and for Canadians. Canadians deserve leaders who will take the necessary measures to protect them. However, the Conservative leader is choosing to make excuses to avoid his responsibilities and refusing to get his top secret security clearance.

Can the Prime Minister explain why it is important for the Conservative leader to step up and get his—

[Situation in Lebanon and Israel, October 1st, 2024]

Madam Speaker, my colleague's question touches my heart.

If we watch the news, we see that in Israel there are daily demonstrations, sometimes with hundreds of thousands of people, against the government, asking it to make a deal to free the hostages and to make peace. We see that on both sides. I can assure my colleague that Lebanese people have the same feeling. Lebanese people do not want war. The Government of Lebanon does not want war.

However, the only path to end this is to work together, and this will be the responsibility of the United Nations, and mainly of the most powerful country in the United Nations, the United States of America, to do their utmost in order to bring both sides, without any conditions, to the negotiating table to work together. When we think about the future generation, everyone has to come with a hard compromise for a few countries to believe in a healthy economy, healthy—

[Situation in Lebanon and Israel, October 1st, 2024]

Madam Speaker, for more than eight months, I, with the government and with the Minister of Foreign Affairs, appealed to all Canadian Lebanese who were in Lebanon to leave and to come back. We asked Canadian Lebanese in Canada not to go to Lebanon. For eight months, they did not listen to us.

Nonetheless, now we are doing our best. We are reserving seats on commercial planes, trying to help them come here. However, I can tell the member that, in this particular case, as a Lebanese Canadian and as one who spread the message, I would prefer that the money went to the displaced people, because they are mostly much more in need than the people we are talking about.

[Situation in Lebanon and Israel, October 1st, 2024]

Madam Speaker, I will be sharing my time with the member for Mount Royal.

I rise in this House to talk about the situation in Lebanon.

As we know, Lebanon is the country of cedars, often referred to as the “Switzerland of the Middle East”. Lebanon is a founding member of the United Nations and was represented at the time by Charles Malik within that organization. It is a country of builders and an active member of the international Francophonie. This beautiful country invented the alphabet and built the first ship in history to better export its knowledge and share it with the rest of the world.

Canada, its parliamentarians and the international community cannot remain silent in the face of the bloody conflict in the Middle East. We must continue to take action. We must continue to promote a just and lasting peace. Above all, we must ensure that the most vulnerable, the innocent, do not continue to be preyed on in this terrible war.

A week ago, on the first day of this conflict in Lebanon, when the pagers exploded, in one single day there were 600 dead. Among them were doctors and nurses who worked in the medical field at hospitals. More than 2,000 were wounded and the hospitals were not able to meet the needs of those patients. The day after, there was another explosion of walkie-talkies, which caused more than 400 deaths and a couple of thousand injuries.

In the operating room at the hospital, there was a doctor who is an ophthalmologist and president of the University of Balamand. I know him very well and I spoke with him. In an interview with BBC News, he said, “Unfortunately, we were not able to save a lot of eyes.” Dr. Elias Warrak added that more than 60% to 70% of the patients ended up with at least one eye removed. He said, “Some of the patients, we had to remove both eyes. It kills me. In my past 25 years in practice, I’ve never removed as many eyes as I did yesterday” in one single day. That kills me too. I am sure if any of my colleagues in this chamber witnessed such a situation, it would kill them too.

I would like to assure members that neither the Lebanese people nor the Lebanese government wants war. They are seeking peace. They are people who deserve to live in dignity, to live in prosperity and to have everything they need in their daily life. I believe the best and quickest solution is to apply United Nations Resolution 1701. It was agreed to on both sides in 2006. That resolution must be applied and respected by both parties to the conflict. That would put an immediate end to this war and let peace prevail.

I condemn the killing of any human being. I am not a religious man, but I was born and raised in the church as a Christian, and I respect all religions in the world. I respect Jews, Muslims, Christians, Buddhists and all human beings. Our Christian religion orders us to love even our enemies. How can someone ask me to approve a killing? I have a deep feeling that it is criminal, it is terrorism, when any human being, politician, leader, prime minister, president or state kills or orders the killing of a human being. We do not approve of that; we have to condemn it. We have to work together and see peace prevail.

Last week, I was touched when I spoke to one of my Jewish colleagues after our national caucus. He is the member for Winnipeg South Centre. He asked me to do a video with him, asking for peace. I am happy and proud that I did it.

I would also like to thank the people of Canada, the Government of Canada and the Prime Minister of Canada for rapid financial aid to those people who are in need. In a single week, more than one million people have been displaced, most of them in Beirut. They need drinking water, food and shelter; our government practically, and fortunately, is not there. Corruption and terrible mismanagement have also crippled the country and the population. I would like to appeal to our government and every government in the world to send the money directly either to the Red Cross or to NGOs that are registered with, approved by and reporting to the United Nations in order for the money to reach the people who are in need.

I end by saying that I hope to see a permanent, lasting peace among Jews, Muslims and Arabs in our lifetime. I hope to see peace prevail in all corners of the world; this will pave the way for generations to come to live in peace, to live in security and to enjoy life. I have a lot to say, and I will be more than happy to answer questions from my colleagues.

[Lebanon, September 26th, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, Lebanon is bleeding. The entire country is currently in an intensive care unit. The population of the country appeals to the international community to intervene, put an immediate end to the hostilities and save civilian and innocent lives. Every human being has the right to live in dignity, irrespective of their corner of the globe. Killing innocent civilians is unacceptable on both sides of the border. The hospitals in Lebanon are overstretched and lack the capacity to treat such a massive number of patients. As such, the Lebanese request that our government contribute to demanding an immediate cessation of hostilities and emphasize the need to keep the airport operational.

The Lebanese community is hoping that Canada will stand up and champion Canadian values on the global stage. Lebanese people do not want war. The government of Lebanon does not want war. We want to live in peace and security and to see peace spread and prevail in all the world.

[Innovation, Science and Industry, June 10th, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, Canada is facing an existential crisis due to climate change. Older generations are asking what we can do to preserve and maintain prosperity for the next generation, while young people everywhere are worried about their own future.

Can the Minister for Innovation, Science and Industry update the House on the government's plans for harnessing the technology sector in order to create the jobs of tomorrow and fight climate change effectively?

[Employment, May 24th, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, women are the driving force behind the economy. We have to give women even more tools to pursue their dreams, succeed and achieve their full potential. It is not just the right thing to do, it makes good economic sense.

Can the Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Official Languages tell the House what the government is doing to improve the lives of Canadian women workers?