Kevin Vuong

[Canadian Heritage, May 5th, 2022]

Mr. Speaker, we waited for over a year for the government to honour its commitment and promise to the arts community to hold a national arts summit. We have seen the visceral economic and societal damage that this delay has wreaked upon workers. I called for it in February, and then I called for it again in March. Finally, the government got around to it.

Can the Minister of Canadian Heritage share with us what came out of the summit? What concrete action can we expect to see, and what can I tell my constituents who have lost their jobs and their livelihoods? Will we see real action, or was the year-long delay just for lip service?

[Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, April 28th, 2022]

Mr. Speaker, many of my constituents have been contacting me about the severe delays in processing immigration applications and the pause placed on the express entry draws. People have had to put their lives and careers on hold, living in IRCC purgatory, all while Canadian businesses are facing a labour shortage. IRCC is a total farce. Along with the quagmire at passport offices and the mess in obtaining social insurance cards, all are colossal failures.

Does the government have any viable plan to get “dis-Service Canada” back to Service Canada any time soon?

[Business of Supply, April 5th, 2022]

Madam Speaker, my question for my hon. colleague is informed by my lived experience. I am proud to have served seven years now in our country's largest naval reserve division, and of my role in being appointed, as one of 14 individuals, by the Secretary General of NATO to advise on what the future of NATO and our alliance will look like. As the only Canadian, it did bring me quite a bit of sadness to see that we were not spending at 2%.

Would you support the investment in an enhanced Arctic presence to fight for our Arctic sovereignty, to enhance our capabilities to defend that sovereignty and to modernize our submarine fleet?

[Health, April 4th, 2022]

Mr. Speaker, I have received many emails from constituents calling for the government to support a “people’s vaccine”. The Prime Minister had joined EU leaders to pledge that future COVID-19 vaccines, developed with government support, would be for the global public good and be made available, affordable and accessible. That pledge appears abandoned. It is unacceptable that three billion people are still waiting for their first vaccine. Fighting COVID abroad fights COVID at home. It protects Canadians, small business and jobs.

Will Canada endorse the TRIPS waiver to permit the temporary global transfer of vaccine-making technology, as called for in a motion by the hon. member for Beaches—East York?

[Criminal Code, March 28th, 2022]

, seconded by the member for Saanich—Gulf Islands

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-261, an Act to amend the Criminal Code and the Canadian Human Rights Act and to make related amendments to another Act (hate propaganda, hate crimes and hate speech).

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to introduce a bill that seeks to combat the growing incidents of hate propaganda and hate crimes and to make it a discriminatory practice to communicate hate speech via the Internet.

Racism remains alive and well in Canada, and it is especially active online. This bill would also amend the Criminal Code and Canadian Human Rights Act to better address online hate speech.

I know hate speech far too well and can provide examples when I have been called a chink and told to die. This bill would reduce such vile attacks on people subjected to racial slurs, some on an almost daily basis.

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

[Ngọc Bé Huỳnh, March 28th, 2022]

Mr. Speaker, a short time ago, it was Rare Disease Day. I want to bring scleroderma, also called systemic sclerosis, to the attention of the House. This rare autoimmune disease impacts over 40,000 Canadians.

One of those people was Ngọc Bé Huỳnh.

She was studying to become a doctor before war broke out in her country. She evaded Communist soldiers, she fought off pirates, and she survived two years in a refugee camp before being welcomed to this country. She was grateful to be here, but it was not easy. She did not speak English or French, but her indomitable spirit was not going to let her fail. She learned English. She went to college and she retrained as an electrical assembly worker, becoming the first in her factory to be a female line worker.

Ngọc Bé Huỳnh was her name. Others knew her as Belinda Vuong. I simply knew her as mom.

We do not know much about scleroderma. We know it predominantly affects women and that it relentlessly attacks the body. Life expectancy is three to 15 years. My mom lived with it for over 18 years. She passed away this morning after her courageous battle.

To my mom, who raised me to stand in my truth, to focus on doing right and to help as many people as I can: [Member spoke in Vietnamese].

[English]

I thank my mom. I love my mom. I will miss my mom.

[Interim Supply, March 24th, 2022]

Mr. Speaker, I agree to apply the results of the previous vote, voting in favour.

[Interim Supply, March 24th, 2022]

Mr. Speaker, I agree to apply the results of the previous vote, and I will be voting in favour.

[Interim Supply, March 24th, 2022]

Mr. Speaker, I agree to apply the results of the previous vote and I am voting in favour.

[Supplementary Estimates (C), 2021-22, March 24th, 2022]

Mr. Speaker, I agree to apply the result of the previous vote and will be voting in favour.