James Bezan

[Iran and the Middle East, March 9th, 2026]

Mr. Chair, I just want to add my voice to those of other Conservatives including the leader of the official opposition, who has said that our support for the people of Iran is clear and unwavering. They deserve to have a peaceful government, democratically elected, and that is why we support the removal of the terrorist regime in Iran.

I have to reiterate that we can never forget all the illegal terrorist activities, the state-sponsored terrorism, throughout the region that the Iranian regime has conducted, not just in the last few years but over the last 47 years; and never forget that when they shot down Ukrainian Airlines flight PS752, that was the murdering of 55 Canadians and 30 permanent residents. We know that Iran is a major supporter of Russia in what it has done in invading Ukraine with the Shahed drones and the lessons learned there.

The minister talked about making sure there are consultations about ongoing conflicts. It has been part of this House to actually pronounce itself with a vote on whether we ever deploy troops. Can he guarantee that there will be a vote in this House if the government decides to deploy Canadian Armed Forces members and our kit in support of the operations against the Iranian regime?

[Sergei Magnitsky International Anti-Corruption and Human Rights Act, February 24th, 2026]

Mr. Speaker, I would ask that the House pass Bill C-219 unanimously.

[Sergei Magnitsky International Anti-Corruption and Human Rights Act, February 24th, 2026]

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank everyone who has spoken to my bill, Bill C-219, the Sergei Magnitsky international anti-corruption and human rights act. I have been listening carefully through the two hours of debate that we have had.

First of all, I have to thank my seconder, the member for Northumberland—Clarke, for the work he did in the previous Parliament on his own piece of legislation, which was folded into this one. I also have to thank the member for Thornhill for their very kind words. I thank the members for Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, Calgary Heritage, Etobicoke—Lakeshore, Etobicoke Centre, Rivière-du-Nord, Winnipeg North, Saint-Hyacinthe—Bagot—Acton and Lac-Saint-Jean, and of course, the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, who is also the member for Don Valley West, for their interventions.

This legislation will strengthen Canada's sanctions regime to better align with our allies so we can hold foreign states, foreign entities and individuals to account for their abuses of power and corruption around the world. It encompasses changes that have been advocated by the diaspora communities here in Canada for years.

What we have heard from so many people today is that we have, for far too long, been hearing about things like foreign interference here in Canada and transnational repression. The people who are in communities here are still worried, whether they are from the Iranian community, the People's Republic of China, from Sudan and other places or from Ukraine even. There are Russians living here who are pro-democracy advocates and who are getting stories from back home of the ongoing corruption, interference and abuse that is taking place.

It is fitting that we are here on the fourth anniversary of the war in Ukraine, of Russia's unjust invasion. We know that, if we had this type of legislation in place some time ago, if we were sanctioning kleptocrats and corrupt foreign officials like Vladimir Putin when he was shaking down people like Bill Browder and ordering the murder of Sergei Magnitsky, maybe they would not have become the tyrants, despots and dictators who then want to wage war on their neighbours, just like the theocracy in Tehran, Putin in Russia or what we are seeing the Communist Chinese Party doing to Taiwan and Hong Kong. This is important.

Just to quickly recap what the bill does, Bill C-219 would require that the Minister of Foreign Affairs publish an annual report to advance what they are doing to advance human rights internationally, including the names and status of prisoners of conscience who are being held around the world. This would amend the Justice for Victims of Corrupt Foreign Officials Act, the Sergei Magnitsky Law, which I had passed here in 2017, as well as the Special Economic Measures Act, changing it to the Sergei Magnitsky global sanctions act.

The bill would define what transnational repression is, and it would sanction the foreign nationals who commit it here in Canada and elsewhere. It would ban, immediately, the immediate family members of sanctioned foreign nationals so that Canada could no longer be used as a safe haven for those corrupt foreign officials to hide their families and their wealth. It would require the government to table in Parliament the names of foreign nationals and any that are added to the sanction list.

It would provide support to the Minister of Foreign Affairs at their sanctions bureau by requiring the RCMP and FINTRAC to report to the minister and give them more tools, allow parliamentary committees to hear from diaspora communities and suggest names and entities to be added to our sanctions regime, and establish timelines for the forfeiture of frozen assets. Finally, it would amend the Broadcasting Act to revoke the licences of media outlets that are in countries that have been sanctioned by Canada or that the House and the Senate have recognized as committing genocide.

In the bill, in the preamble, we are encouraging the government to continue to pursue the establishment of the international anti-corruption court at The Hague, along with our allies. If we can get at these corrupt foreign officials sooner, maybe they would not turn into warmongers like Vladimir Putin or people like Ayatollah Khomeini and the mullahs who are committing mass atrocities in Iran today and creating destabilizing impacts across the region.

I ask everyone to support this bill. I am looking forward to our work at committee and to seeing the amendments that may be proposed.

[Ukraine, February 24th, 2026]

Mr. Speaker, it is an honour for me to rise on behalf of his Majesty's loyal opposition to speak on behalf of the Conservative Party of Canada.

Conservatives have always stood with Ukraine, from Macdonald to Mulroney to Harper. Today, in solidarity with everyone in the House and across this country, we stand proudly with Ukraine.

Four years ago, we watched Putin launch his full-scale invasion of Ukraine, a war he said that he would win in three days. It has been a barbaric war and invasion that has been gut-wrenching to witness. It is unjust what Russia is doing in Ukraine. Russia is bringing destruction and bloodshed to Europe that we have not seen for generations.

Russian soldiers have been killing innocent civilians. Over 15,000 Ukrainian civilians have been killed. We have witnessed them use rape as a weapon, and we have seen them dig mass graves. Russia has been targeting civilian infrastructure. We recently witnessed different energy systems being knocked out, including all the electrical generation plants, water infrastructure and rail. They have also targeted things such as Kyiv's Okhmatdyt children's hospital and Odesa's Transfiguration Cathedral. I do not think any of us will ever forget the Mariupol theatre.

Over 19,000 Ukrainian children have been kidnapped by Putin and his barbarians. They have been taken back to Russia, where they have been reprogrammed. Through this brutal war, over 55,000 Ukrainian soldiers are dead and over 600,000 soldiers have been wounded. Families have been torn apart as they have mourned their lost and cared for those who have been hurt. Vichna slava heroyam. May the memories of these heroes be eternal.

For four years, we have been inspired by the resilience and strength of the people of Ukraine. We have watched the entrepreneurs run their businesses within earshot of the front line. We have witnessed the ingenuity and innovation of everyone in Ukraine, how they have been able to keep in this fight for four years, how they are fighting and how they continue to evolve in this brutal war that the Kremlin thought it would win in less than a week. We have witnessed the courage and selflessness of members of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. They are fighting not only for Ukraine, but also for our shared values of democracy, freedom and human rights.

For four years, we have been grateful for all the Canadians from coast to coast to coast who have stood up to help, the volunteers who are serving and who are getting money raised to help those who were left behind in Ukraine. I thank all of those unwavering Canadians. They have opened up their hearts, wallets, homes and businesses to all of the Ukrainians who have sought refuge here.

I thank the Ukrainian Canadian Congress and all of the provincial branches, as well as all of the organizations they work with, for their tireless efforts to ensure that newcomers could receive settlement services, to find them employment, to be there as their conduit back to Ukraine and to coordinate so many fundraising activities for the efforts in Ukraine.

I thank the Government of Canada, on behalf of the Conservatives, for the efforts that it has done in supporting Ukraine through all of this, as well as the provincial and territorial governments for the programs they have offered to everyone who has sought refuge.

To the Ukrainians who have come here and now call Canada home, I thank them for all their contributions. We know that, while they are here working in their jobs and participating in Canadian society, they are still worrying about their loved ones who were left behind. As the Conservative leader stated earlier today, we look forward to the day when they will once again raise their sons and daughters under a peaceful sky in a free and sovereign land.

On Sunday, across Canada, there were rallies held in support of Ukraine, and at many of these rallies, we prayed for peace, but we know that Vladimir Putin does not want peace as long as he thinks he is winning. The minister talked about trust, and no one trusts Vladimir Putin. All wars end at the negotiating table, so we have to make sure that Ukraine has a strong hand. We have to make Ukraine strong. We can do more as Canadians and as a government. Conservatives are asking the government to continue to use all the sanction tools it has at its disposal to align with our allies to hold Putin, his kleptocrats, his oligarchs and the Russian military to account for all of their war crimes.

We need to help defund Putin's war machine by displacing Russian oil and gas by selling Canada's ethical oil and LNG to Europe. Former prime minister Stephen Harper led the charge in kicking Putin out of the G8. We have to remain steadfast and not let anyone try to convince them to allow Russia back into the G7. Putin and Russia do not belong at the major tables in the world.

We thank the government today for its announcement about Operation Unifier and Operation Reassurance, which were started under the Harper Conservatives. The continuation of those programs is paramount to the success of Ukraine and the defence of our NATO allies, but we also have to invest in Canada. We need to make sure that our Canadian Armed Forces get the equipment and build up the stockpiles that we need to defend ourselves here. As we ensure that the Canadian Armed Forces are ready to stand up to Moscow and its authoritarian allies, we need to make sure that we do more with what we already have.

While we are rebuilding our fleets, and while we are replacing our equipment, our weapons and our kit, let us not waste a bunch of taxpayer money in Canada on decommissioning those stockpiles and sending them to the scrap heap. The Conservative leader, two years ago, asked the government to send Ukraine our stock of CRV7 rockets, which were about to be sent to the scrap heap, and 87,000 rockets, because of the ask from our leader, have now been sent to Ukraine. I thank the leader for making that request and helping Ukraine save lives, and I thank the government for listening. As we look at other retiring fleets, such as our light armoured vehicles, armoured ambulances and other weapons systems, let us donate them instead of decommissioning them as we find new equipment for our military.

Finally, Putin and his barbaric military must be held to account for their war crimes and crimes against humanity. They must be dragged in front of The Hague and the International Criminal Court.

Taras Shevchenko, a poet laureate and an inspiration to multiple generations of Ukrainians, said 200 years ago, “If you fight, you will overcome”, which reminds me of Winston Churchill's “blood, toil, tears and sweat” speech of 1940 in the House of Commons. He said, “victory at all costs, victory in spite of all terror, victory, however long and hard the road may be; for without victory, there is no survival.” I can say that without victory, there will be no peace in Ukraine.

Slava Ukraini.

[Business of Supply, February 10th, 2026]

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my colleague from Edmonton for his great advocacy and work on this file for so many years and for standing up against extortion and all other crime.

Can he point out even one situation where the Liberals have taken action? They like to make all sorts of claims, but is any one of those claims true?

[National Defence, February 3rd, 2026]

Mr. Speaker, the Liberals are shamefully increasing rent and other charges for our soldiers, sailors and air crew. With one hand they promised a pay raise, but with the other they are clawing it back with rent hikes and a new post-living differential. Often our troops are ending up with less take-home pay than they made before.

The defence committee recommended the rent increase be reversed, but the Minister of National Defence said no.

When will the Liberals stop clawing back the hard-earned pay of our troops and reverse this unfair and unnecessary rent hike?

[Business of Supply, January 27th, 2026]

Madam Speaker, the member for Winnipeg North is always up on his feet in the chamber. He speaks the most words in Parliament but never says anything. All we ever hear is Liberal propaganda and misinformation that really does undermine the seriousness of debate on the motions before us.

During his entire speech, the member refused to recognize that over the 10 previous years of the Liberal government, the Liberals chased away $690 billion of actual investment that was going to go into natural resources and pipelines across this country. Because of their mandate, regulations, overreach and antidevelopment, all those dollars left. For the only pipeline they built, they had to go into the pockets of Canadian taxpayers to expand the western pipeline into Vancouver. We are still in the hole and are never going to see those dollars recouped, because of their mismanagement and incompetence.

The member has also been sitting quite quietly. He talks about interprovincial trade, but meanwhile, Manitoba makes the best whisky in the world, called Crown Royal. He has been completely silent as the Government of Ontario has threatened to pull Crown Royal off its shelves. If he is so adamant that Liberals stand up for interprovincial free trade, will he push back and force his government to stand in the way of the Province of Ontario's pulling Manitoba-made Crown Royal whisky off its shelves?

[Internal Trade, January 26th, 2026]

Mr. Speaker, every drop of Canada's iconic award-winning Crown Royal whisky is proudly made in Gimli, Manitoba, using Manitoba grains and pure Interlake water. Unfortunately, Manitoba employees and farmers are worried because the Government of Ontario is threatening to pull Crown Royal off the shelves of its liquor stores.

The Prime Minister incorrectly claimed he has torn down interprovincial trade barriers, when, in fact, he has been sitting on the sidelines. His silence on Ontario's threat to Manitoba is deafening.

Will the Liberals stand up for Canadian jobs and pass the Conservatives' Canadian sovereignty act to remove barriers to interprovincial free trade?

[Sergei Magnitsky International Anti-Corruption and Human Rights Act, November 26th, 2025]

Madam Speaker, I would just say that this is not about trying to force other governments to change their regimes. This is about changing the behaviour of individuals. This is about going after those who ultimately go and rob from the people they are supposed to be serving and then commit atrocities against them. We want to make sure that they are held to account. If we do not do that, they will turn into even worse criminals, worse human rights abusers and, ultimately, monsters.

[Sergei Magnitsky International Anti-Corruption and Human Rights Act, November 26th, 2025]

Madam Speaker, we are going to work with all members of this House to make sure we are not putting at risk anyone who is in a delicate situation. However, from what I am hearing from those who have been political prisoners, like Michael Kovrig and Vladimir Kara-Murza, it is the extra spotlight shined through the media and through statements made in this House and elsewhere that puts the governments holding these people falsely in a very uncomfortable position.

I know there are sensitivities around some prisoners of conscience and some families. We definitely do not want in any way, shape or form to disrupt any negotiations and discussions taking place that will result in their safe release.