Marwan Tabbara

[Petitions, June 17th, 2021]

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to present a petition that calls upon the government to recognize the inadequacies of its response to the Government of Israel's multiple violations of international law and Palestinians' human rights, including forced evictions, settlement buildings, unequal treatment, a tax on journalists, bombing of humanitarian and medical facilities, and the killing of civilians.

The petitioners call on the government to demand that the Government of Israel end evictions of Palestinians in Sheikh Jarrah and West Bank, end apartheid on the Palestinian people, and implement a fair government and system for all people within its jurisdictions.

The petitioners also call on the government to apply to Israel the same diplomatic tools that Canada has used in condemning activities in the Xinjiang autonomous region and in sanctioning Russian officials involved in the annexation of Crimea.

[Petitions, June 15th, 2021]

Mr. Speaker, I had the honour of speaking with over a dozen travel agents and I have three petitions to present.

The petitioners call upon this House to recognize the negative impact COVID travel restrictions have had on the economic situations of travel advisers, especially independent travel advisers. They call upon the House to respond with sector-specific remedies until travel resumes for a sufficiently long time to ensure a return to a sustainable income flow.

The petitioners call for the continuation of the CRB at $500 per week for six months past the full-time resumption of travel. Further, they call for sole proprietors to be qualified for the RRRF in urban areas. Finally, they ask the House to ensure that any financial assistance to airlines and their subsidiary travel companies will be conditional on the protection of travel advisers' commissions and that any commissions already clawed back be repaid to travel advisers.

[Telecommunications, June 8th, 2021]

Mr. Speaker, despite a ministerial policy directive requiring the CRTC to promote competition, affordability, consumer interests and innovation in its telecommunications decision, the CRTC has fallen short in reducing prices charged by the big players to the smaller, more competitive players in the telecom industry.

Can the hon. minister explain what the government is willing to do to make these services more affordable for Canadians, especially at this time?

[COVID-19 Emergency Response, May 25th, 2021]

Mr. Speaker, I am hearing from constituents who lost their jobs, very briefly collected EI, then found ways to earn income through self-employment. Now, they have once against lost their income due to COVID-19. They are being told that they cannot restart EI because they were self-employed and they cannot access CRB due to an open EI claim.

For trying to be self-sufficient, they are being abandoned with zero income, zero support and bills piling up. Can the minister explain what the government is doing to address this issue?

[Canadian Heritage, May 6th, 2021]

Mr. Speaker, I am beyond disappointed by the opposition members' fearmongering on freedom of speech, especially when they know they are spreading misinformation to Canadians. It is shameful. They are holding the Canadian cultural sector hostage for cheap political gain and are siding with web giants.

Can the minister please tell us about and clarify the importance of Bill C-10?

[Airline Industry, April 19th, 2021]

Mr. Speaker, travel agents in my constituency express their worry that they would have to return thousands of dollars in commission if airlines were required to pay out refunds to travellers for tickets unused or cancelled because of the pandemic. Could the minister please explain how the recent agreement with Air Canada will impact travel agents?

[Supplementary Estimates (C), 2020-21, March 25th, 2021]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to change my vote to yea.

[Infrastructure, March 12th, 2021]

Madam Speaker, we know that reliable, public transportation will be essential as we build toward economic recovery. Public transit links can widen people's job search area and is essential for lower-income groups who lack access to vehicles. Tech companies in the Waterloo region have also advocated for increased public transportation, as highly skilled workers are more likely to travel longer distances for well-paying jobs.

Can the minister please explain what the government is doing to help ensure that we have cleaner and more sustainable transit?

[COVID-19 Emergency Response, February 25th, 2021]

Mr. Speaker, some of my constituents were instructed by officials that in order to access the CRB they must first apply for EI. Despite not qualifying for EI, they complied. They were denied. Then when they applied for the CRB, the CRA disqualified them because the system showed them as having active EI applications.

Can the government please explain what is being done to resolve the issues between these two departments?

[Telecommunications, February 1st, 2021]

Mr. Speaker, many Canadians already found it difficult to make ends meet and this pandemic has only made things worse. To reduce the cost of living, the government asked telecommunications providers to lower their already high prices by 25% over three years.

Can the minister explain how the government will make sure those prices really do come down?