Karen Vecchio

[Criminal Code, December 13th, 2022]

Madam Speaker, on a point of order, could you tell us if we will be running out the clock or actually voting on this, perhaps tomorrow?

[Criminal Code, December 13th, 2022]

Madam Speaker, I really would like to thank the member for putting the bill forward. Ensuring that our children are safe is probably the number one priority for all Canadians and for members in the House.

I recall the work we did on Bill C-233, which was called “Keira's Law”, and the importance of getting it through, because all parties recognized the importance of the bill. At committee, at all stages, we ensured that we allowed debate to collapse so that it could move forward. I really do hope that we will be able to get this bill through immediately so that we make a change to the Criminal Code and ensure that our children are safe.

[Public Safety, December 13th, 2022]

Mr. Speaker, last week we saw in the House how divisive Bill C-21 is. I believe that everyone in the House wants to ensure that Canadians are safe. In 2021, 173 women and girls were killed in Canada. We must always stand up against violence against women, but I cannot stand and watch a government mislead survivors and victims' families.

We must work towards a violence-free Canada. Bill C-21 is targeting the wrong people. We must have stronger, safer communities, free of illegal guns, free of violence against women. Members of the LGBTQ+ community and indigenous women and girls must be violence free, as must every Canadian. Femicide in Canada has increased and violence against women has increased, but crime in Canada has also increased.

Rather than making bad policies and dividing communities across Canada, I ask the government to do better. Its policies are failing. It should scrap Bill C-21 and actually consult. Make a real difference and make Canadians safe.

[Points of Order, December 2nd, 2022]

Madam Speaker, I am sorry, but I was watching that member. It was eye-to-eye contact. I would like an apology from that member because that member knows it was directed at me. That member looked directly at me and said it to me, and the House was quiet at the time. It was not during that, and I would like to share that with you, Madam Speaker. I wish that she would reconsider her actions and—

[Points of Order, December 2nd, 2022]

Madam Speaker, I was absolutely wrong, although the member for Ajax did apologize for something he had no idea what he was supposed to be apologizing for. This was regarding the member for Pickering—Uxbridge, who stood and talked about the way women were treated in the House, yet did the exact same thing to her own female colleague, so I do find it very rich.

I would ask that the member for Pickering—Uxbridge recognize that all women in Parliament, regardless of political party, matter. All women matter, not just those from the Liberal Party.

[Points of Order, December 2nd, 2022]

Madam Speaker, I know that in today's debate, of course, we got very uptight on certain issues, but I find it very rich when we have a member talking about the rights of women who then turns to me and tells me to zip it.

I would like to ask for an apology from the member for Ajax. If they are actually going to talk about treating people with dignity and respect, then that goes for Conservative women as well.

[Domestic Violence, December 2nd, 2022]

Madam Speaker, in Calgary, families are waiting up to 112 days to access shelter and support services. According to the Discovery House, “It used to be that people would stay for six or seven months on average. We’ve seen that increase to 10 or 11 months, or even over a year sometimes. That’s because of the affordability crisis.”

With higher rates of violence and increased costs of living, families are vulnerable. Will the Liberal government end inflationary policies that are punishing Canadians and help those who are trying to escape family violence?

[National Council for Reconciliation Act, November 29th, 2022]

Madam Speaker, it truly is about working in co-operation and reaching out to these indigenous communities to see if they have solutions as well. In the case of Oneida, its people do want to work with their community partners and have opportunities. We need to ensure the federal government is not in the way, if we want to do things on the ground with local infrastructure, but that it is there to support those efforts.

[National Council for Reconciliation Act, November 29th, 2022]

Madam Speaker, it has truly been an honour to work on that committee. When we are talking about people working together, it is at committee when we ask the member for Winnipeg Centre to explain things to us. Those are the types of things we talk about. It is that interconnection where the member's stories are helping us learn. When it is my turn, maybe I can teach her something as well.

However, when it comes to this, it is exactly about having the truth and having those stories from the elders and from people who are representing organizations. The truth can only come out when people are willing to tell it and when they are invited to the table.

[National Council for Reconciliation Act, November 29th, 2022]

Madam Speaker, I come to this issue from a very different side. I come here from the point of the victim. When we talk about indigenous and racialized people, we also have to look at who the victims are. In many cases, we may find that they are from the same groups, and that is very concerning.

When it comes to mandatory minimum sentences, I have some very strong beliefs on them. When someone has impacted somebody else, murder, trafficking, sexual abuse or things like that, we should go for it. That person has taken the dignity away from another person. I do not believe we owe somebody more. I will always stand for victims. That is who I am.