Marco Mendicino

[Democratic Institutions, May 16th, 2023]

Mr. Speaker, I want to begin by thanking my colleague for her work and her leadership on this issue. Obviously, any form of foreign interference is unacceptable, and we have a concrete plan that is focused on prevention, protection and accountability, including and up to expelling foreign diplomats when they cross the line, but we are not stopping there. We are going to continue with the creation of a foreign agent registry, but we are going to do it in the right way, so that communities are not stigmatized or marginalized. We are going to do this work to protect Canadians, and we need to do that work together.

[Democratic Institutions, May 16th, 2023]

Mr. Speaker, I share my hon. colleague's concerns. That is why the government, with help from CSIS, will continue to provide briefings. That is why, in budget 2023, there are federal resources to set up a coordinator to fight foreign interference. That is why there are additional resources for the RCMP to protect all Canadians.

We need to protect our democratic institutions. That is not just the job of the government, but of all members of the House.

[Criminal Code, May 16th, 2023]

I did.

[Criminal Code, May 16th, 2023]

moved:

That Bill C-21, in Clause 45, be amended by adding after line 5 on page 51 the following:

“(1.11) The portion of paragraph 117(k) of the Act after subparagraph (ii) is replaced by the following:

of firearms, prohibited weapons, restricted weapons, prohibited devices, ammunition, prohibited ammunition, cartridge magazines and components and parts designed exclusively for use in the manufacture of or assembly into firearms;”

[Criminal Code, May 16th, 2023]

moved:

Motion No. 10

That Bill C-21, in Clause 36, be amended by replacing lines 16 and 17 on page 45 with the following:

“must deliver to a peace officer any firearm that they possess within 24 hours or”

Motion No. 11

That Bill C-21, in Clause 37, be amended

(a) by replacing line 4 on page 46 with the following:

“or a chief firearms officer”

(b) by replacing line 19 on page 46 with the following:

“cer the firearm to which”

(c) by replacing lines 29 and 30 on page 46 with the following:

“ferred to in subsection (4), deliver to a peace officer any firearm that they pos-”

[Public Safety, May 15th, 2023]

Mr. Speaker, supported by federal government initiatives and investments, the RCMP is keeping a close eye not only on foreign interference, but also on all public safety priorities. The Conservatives are the only ones who continue to impede the government's national security priorities. We must work together to protect our democratic institutions.

That is our government's priority.

[Public Safety, May 15th, 2023]

Mr. Speaker, the opposition needs to listen to the government's responses, including my responses in committee.

As I said, the RCMP is taking decisive action to disrupt the foreign interference activities associated with those so-called police stations. Now it is important to continue to put in place the authorities to protect our democratic institutions.

The Conservatives are the only ones impeding progress on this important issue.

[Public Safety, May 15th, 2023]

Mr. Speaker, by now, I hope my Conservative colleague will have heard the answers, which have been consistent. The RCMP took decisive and concrete action to disrupt the foreign interference activities in relation to those so-called police stations. It will continue to do the same going forward.

The bigger question is about what the Conservatives did on foreign interference when they last held the reins of government. The answer is that they did nothing. On this side of the House, we will continue to make the investments and put the authorities in place so that we can protect our democratic institutions.

[Democratic Institutions, May 15th, 2023]

Mr. Speaker, we take the issue of foreign interference very seriously.

To protect our democratic institutions, we established independent panels that worked well in the last two elections. Now we very much look forward to receiving the recommendations from Mr. Johnston, a former governor general who was appointed by a Conservative prime minister.

Those recommendations, along with all the other initiatives we have already put in place, will ensure that we continue to protect all our democratic institutions.

[Public Safety, May 11th, 2023]

Mr. Speaker, as the Prime Minister already stated earlier this week, CSIS decides what information it shares with departments and with the Prime Minister. The 2023 budget provides funding for the establishment of a national counter-foreign interference coordinator and for the RCMP. That is how to protect not only democratic institutions, but also all Canadians