Kyle Seeback

[St. Elias the Prophet Ukrainian Catholic Church, April 9th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, this past Saturday, St. Elias the Prophet Ukrainian Catholic Church in Brampton tragically burned to the ground. I have attended services at St. Elias many times. It was an exceptionally beautiful and striking church. The woodwork and craftsmanship were extraordinary.

Anyone who attended a service there will attest to the solemn and angelic hymns that seemed to lift one to a heavenly place. When people take part in celebrations or services at St. Elias, they are filled with peace.

Father Roman Galadza of St. Elias, who I am privileged to call a friend, demonstrated great wisdom and leadership amidst this tragic event. He told his parish not to grieve; that they will build again.

He reminded them that the temple of God lives in each of us, so despite losing the building, they have not lost their church.

If the devotion and faithfulness of the Ukrainian Catholics at St. Elias are any indication, St. Elias will be rebuilt and again be the magnificent and holy place it once was.

[Justice, April 7th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, my constituents regularly tell me that Canada's justice system needs to better respond to the needs of victims rather than offenders. That is one of the reasons I was so pleased last week that our Conservative government made the historic announcement of the Canadian victims bill of rights. This week is the ninth annual National Victims of Crime Awareness Week. Can the Minister of Justice please update the House on what we are doing to raise the awareness of rights for victims?

[Law Enforcement, March 31st, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, on Friday morning chaos erupted at the Brampton courthouse, on Hurontario Street.

After showing up to do his job, just like any other day during his 29-year career working to keep the people of Peel Region safe, Constable Mike Klarenbeek found himself confronted with an armed gunman. He pursued the individual and was shot in the stomach. Thankfully, he is recovering in hospital and is well on his way to recovery.

I want to let Constable Klarenbeek and his family know that our thoughts and prayers are with him as he recovers.

I want to thank all law enforcement officers for the good work that they do each and every day protecting Canadians.

[Black History Month, March 6th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, black Bramptonians have a rich cultural history and one that I had the pleasure of experiencing during Black History Month at a number of local events.

Praise Cathedral Worship Centre offered an evening of education and entertainment in honour of Black History Month. The theme of Praise Cathedral's celebration was “Dream, Dare, Do”. It was an exceptional event. I want to extend special thanks to Bishop Lennox DaCosta Walker, Lady Dorett Walker, and Karen Cunningham, who all played important roles in making the event such a success.

I also attended a Black History Month concert put on by the Brampton chapter of the Congress of Black Women and the United Achievers' Club. It was a great night that included musical and dance performances.

I want to thank Fiona McNeil, the president of the Brampton chapter of the Congress of Black Women and Lucinda Sloley, the president of the Brampton United Achievers' Club, for inviting me to participate in this great evening. These events epitomize the pride that black Bramptonians have in their cultural heritage, and I was proud to be part of their celebrations,

[Points of Order, December 4th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday I used some very unparliamentary language in the chamber and for that I unreservedly apologize.

[Prime Minister's Award for Teaching Excellence, November 28th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, I stand in the House today to speak about an exceptional Bramptonian and of course that is difficult because there are so many fantastic Bramptonians.

Sukhdeep Kaur Chohan is a teacher at Hickory Wood Public School. Ms. Chohan is one of this year's much deserving recipients of the Prime Minister's Award for Teaching Excellence.

Ms. Chohan has received this honour not only for her ability to inspire her students, but also for the advancements she has made in early childhood education.

As a leader in her field, as well as her community, Ms. Chohan has developed internationally acclaimed programs to support children, teachers and parents.

Of particular note is her home-based reading program, “Smarties Read with Me”, that helps parents read with their children.

I call on my colleagues here today to join me in congratulating Ms. Chohan on receiving the Prime Minister's Award and thanking her for the important work she does in early childhood education.

[Respect for Communities Act, November 18th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, I have a couple of questions for my colleague.

First, does he support the provisions that require community input before a safe injection site is put into a neighbourhood? I sent out 5,000 direct mail letters to my constituents, asking them what they thought about that idea, and 87% of them wrote back saying that they liked that idea.

Second, if he is not in favour of that aspect of the legislation, has he polled his constituents to find out if he is representing them in this matter?

[Respect for Communities Act, November 18th, 2013]

It is a charter rights issue.

[Immigration Success, November 8th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, today I am going to speak about an exceptional Canadian, Luigi “Loui” Marcon. We will not read about him in a textbook, but we should. He is the epitome of the Canadian immigration success story.

Loui was born on October 31, 1939, a special Halloween treat for his parents. His dream was to come to Canada. His dream came true. He immigrated in 1958 and started working almost the same day. He was a highly skilled bricklayer, respected by his employers and his colleagues. Loui worked all across Ontario on many landmark projects in the Niagara region, including Ridley College, the Pen Centre, and Niagara Square. He worked until the day he retired, never requiring government assistance.

Loui has always been grateful for the life he made for himself and his family here in Canada and has always been a very proud Canadian. If there is one thing we can hold against him, it is that he is a Boston Bruins fan.

I am proud to call Loui my father-in-law and feel privileged to have been welcomed into his family.

[Not Criminally Responsible Reform Act, June 18th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, I hate to say it, but my colleague has made an excellent point. It is hard to give these praising statements. I have done it twice today, so it is a good day.

The member spoke the truth. First of all, the number of people who are NCR in the criminal justice system is quite small. Let us look at the other factors. First, a crown attorney has to bring the application. That is going to whittle that number down significantly, for the reasons I raised in my speech. Second, crown attorneys do not win 100% of their cases. Being the husband of a crown attorney, I wish they did win 100% of their cases, but they do not. That will whittle it down again, because the judge will determine whether or not the person should be high risk.

When we talk about things like stigmatization, it is not the case. I want to make it clear and have it on the record that this would not stigmatize mental illness. It would do the exact opposite because very few people are going to be designated as high risk. That means the Canadian public has no reason to fear people who are not designated high risk or to stigmatize them. They are not high risk. This legislation would destigmatize, not stigmitize.