Hélène LeBlanc

[Victims Bill of Rights, June 6th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the hon. member for his speech. Because of his professional background, he is able to provide far greater insight into certain provisions included in this bill.

I would like to hear his thoughts about some of those provisions in the bill. At some point in time, will there not be a certain amount of overlap or some issues concerning the decision-making process within the legal system? Does he think that the government is meddling in decisions that should be made by judges, lawyers, and crown attorneys?

[Housing, June 6th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, 200,000 co-operative housing units will be lost even as thousands of Canadians are adding their names to the waiting lists. The need is growing, but this government does not care. If the government does not do something before 2020, co-operative housing will no longer be affordable for low-income residents.

Why is the government not helping to make access to affordable housing a priority for Canada?

[Housing, June 6th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, thousands of Canadians are at risk of losing their homes because of this government's indifference. As we say, “a roof, a right”, but the government seems to think that is a joke.

The Co-operative Housing Federation of Canada, the Federation of Canadian Municipalities and the NDP are calling on the government to restore funding for social and co-operative housing.

Why is the government ignoring this issue?

[Strengthening Canadian Citizenship Act, June 6th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in the House to speak to Bill C-24, An Act to amend the Citizenship Act and to make consequential amendments to other Acts.

I would first like to speak about LaSalle—Émard, the riding that I have the privilege and honour of representing. My riding is located in the southwest region of the Island of Montreal and it is quite diverse. Each year it becomes home to approximately 1,000 new citizens. Once a year for the past three years, I have organized an evening event to welcome new citizens. The event this year was held on May 22, and slightly more than 350 people attended. They attended along with their friends and family and they happily thanked me for welcoming them to Canada. They told me they chose to come to Canada because it was a democratic country with a good standard of living where people can freely express their views and work. These were the sentiments conveyed to me by these new citizens on this occasion held in their honour.

I would like to thank them from the bottom of my heart for helping me to appreciate once again how fortunate and privileged we are to live in Canada, a country that throughout its history has welcomed newcomers with open arms.

In 2017 we will be marking 150 years of Confederation, but well before then, Canada welcomed French explorers and Anglo-Saxon settlers to its shores. Later on, Ukrainians settled in Saskatchewan. I had an opportunity to visit the Ukrainian Museum of Canada during a stop in Saskatoon.

Year after year, my riding welcomes newcomers and refugees who come to Canada because of its highly democratic values and its tradition of welcoming people from every country in the world.

However, the bill now before us would slam the door in their faces. Since the Conservatives came to power, it has become increasingly difficult for people to come to this country. While I did welcome some new citizens to my riding, I have to mention the over 350 cases of people who sought the assistance of my riding office. These people are upset with the lengthy delays they have encountered. They are waiting to be reunited with their spouses and families. There is good reason to be seriously concerned about this state of affairs.

Since March 2008, over 25 major changes have been made to immigration practices, rules, laws, and regulations, adding even more confusion to the situation and making things even more difficult for refugees and applicants. The government wants to make waiting times even longer.

Since the Conservatives have had a majority government, there has been a moratorium on sponsorship of parents and grandparents. The number of family reunifications has declined. Vulnerable refugees are being penalized, while the number of temporary foreign workers, who have no rights and no chance of settling permanently in Canada, has increased. They are brought here to work and then sent home.

One would have thought that a bill to amend the Citizenship Act and make consequential amendments to other acts might have addressed all of these issues and all of the system’s inherent problems. Alas, the bill is silent on this score.

As my colleague, the official opposition critic for immigration and citizenship, so aptly said, some provisions of the bill do address important issues and will bring about certain improvements.

On the one hand, some effort has been made to resolve long-standing problems. However, as has been noted in the speeches made in this House, some of the bill’s provisions do raise extremely important questions and very legitimate concerns. Specifically, there is the fact that Bill C-24 gives the minister many new powers, including the power to grant or revoke citizenship in the case of persons with dual citizenship. Some witnesses said that they are very concerned about this new provision, because people will not have access to the proper recourse. This provision is indeed cause for some concern.

Furthermore, as I said, the bill offers no real solution when it comes to reducing wait times, which continue to grow, and citizenship application processing times.

Another provision mentioned earlier is the requirement to state one’s intention of residing in the country. Under Bill C-24, a person who is granted citizenship by the minister must intend to reside in Canada after being granted citizenship. This raises the question as to whether—

[Strengthening Canadian Citizenship Act, June 6th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the hon. member for his speech. I know he has been campaigning for years for human rights and for the rights of refugees and newcomers to Canada. I am also aware of his deep respect for all these Canadians, for these newcomers who continue to build today's Canada.

I wonder whether the hon. member could elaborate on very contentious issues such as the revocation of Canadian citizenship, which would be put in the hands of the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration.

[Strengthening Canadian Citizenship Act, June 6th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to recognize the work of my colleague, the NDP critic on citizenship and immigration. I know how seriously she studied this bill and proposed amendments during what little work could be done in committee.

I wonder if she could elaborate on the Conservatives' lack of respect for the work that would have resulted in an in-depth study of the bill before us. Perhaps she could also tell us how, as a member of Parliament, she was deprived of her right to such a study.

[Housing, June 5th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, co-operative housing is more than housing; it is a community. Roughly 52,000 people across Canada might end up homeless because of this government's choices. However, having a roof over one's head is a right.

When will this government renew funding for co-operative housing?

[Economic Action Plan 2014 Act, No. 1, June 5th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague for his excellent speech. He mentioned the Champlain Bridge and railway safety, two very important subjects.

He also highlighted the government’s lack of transparency. It is exactly this kind of budget that illustrates this lack of transparency, especially with issues such as the Champlain Bridge. The government wants to make Canadians pay not only for the cost of using the Champlain Bridge, but also the cost of our airports, by imposing all kinds of taxes and hidden costs. Ultimately, Canadians will be hit twice to use the airports or the bridges to which they are entitled.

[Economic Action Plan 2014 Act, No. 1, June 5th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, I heard another Conservative member praise this budget implementation bill. The title is rather narrowly focused as many other laws will be amended by this 475-page bill on which a guillotine has just been brought down.

I have a question for the member, who is once again praising this budget as well as previous Conservative budgets. Why has Canadians' debt continued to rise and reached a record 167% since this government came to power? How does he explain that? At the same time, the Conservatives are making ill-considered cuts to many public services to which Canadians are entitled.

In fact, they are offloading the national debt onto Canadians. Canadians have a debt level of 167%. How will this budget tackle Canadians' record debt of 167%?

[Economic Action Plan 2014 Act, No. 1, June 5th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, I have been listening very carefully to the Minister of State for Finance. I also often listen to him during question period, which is called that because we never get answers, except to be told that our economy is fragile.

With this 70th time allocation motion, it is Canada's democracy that is becoming fragile, just like the economy.

I would like to ask the Minister of State for Finance how it is that the Conservatives have adopted the same bad omnibus bill practices as the Liberal Party. Not only do these bad practices weaken our democracy, but they also weaken our economy. In fact, the Conservatives have been in power for some time. How is our economy doing? They keep saying that it is fragile and that the recession was serious. They have been here since 2006 and what have they done? They have created precarious jobs, part-time jobs and low-paying jobs. The manufacturing industry has gone from 60% to 40%. We have an economic deficit.

Therefore, I would like to know how a 475-page budget implementation bill that affects all kinds of different areas can improve our fragile economy. It has been proven pretty much everywhere, particularly in Europe and Great Britain, that austerity budgets do not create economic growth, but stifle the economy.