MaryAnn Mihychuk

[Operation UNIFIER, March 20th, 2017]

Madam Chair, there is absolutely no question that the member opposite and the party across the aisle supported Ukraine in their term. That party invested and stood as a strong partner with Ukraine. The record shows that, and I am very proud to be on this side of the House continuing the very strong support in that partnership. There could be no doubt that both parties have been strong and true partners.

The situation now with a very aggressive and active war front on the Donetsk front is very troubling. There have been 10,000 wounded and thousands of soldiers' deaths. The capacity to handle an active front like that with such a large and mobilized opposition is troubling. Is it better to use words or military weapons? Given this circumstance, given what we have to play along the whole Russian front requires very complicated and delicate diplomatic manoeuvring. It is very important that we be very cautious when we look at how we handle the situation.

[Operation UNIFIER, March 20th, 2017]

Madam Chair, it is difficult in such a short time to explain the number of linkages that we have with Ukraine.

As I indicated before, just our scientific knowledge and the sharing we do there has been significant over the years. Back in 2004, we were an active participant in a program with the UN to mobilize Ukrainian scientists who had been trained in war science to find them domestic and industrial occupations around the world. If we look at Chernobyl and the disaster left for Ukraine to manage and ensure the leakage is contained, our contribution has been significant. Canada's contribution has been in engineering and science and monitoring. We also have an opportunity every year to see a group of young Ukrainian interns come to the House, to our Parliament. Many of us have taken on those young interns, and they have gone on to become activists back at home calling for democracy.

Probably the most significant thing we did was to help Ukraine move forward on its goal to become a free, independent country aligned with the EU and Canada through the free trade agreement.

[Operation UNIFIER, March 20th, 2017]

Madam Chair, I am proud to add my voice to those we have already heard on this important topic.

I have had the fortunate experience to visit Ukraine three times: first, with my family, as our place of heritage on my maternal and paternal sides; second, as a business owner and scientist; and finally, last November, as Canada's minister of labour, to provide assistance in workplace safety, especially in the heavy industrial sector of mineral exploration. In addition, I took a tour of Chernobyl, the world's largest single nuclear disaster.

We are continuing to build our connections with Ukraine, not only military ones, but also economic and cultural ones. Today, we are talking about that military stand with the renewal of Operation Unifier. Very significantly on the other front is the fact that we have signed the Canada-Ukraine free trade agreement. It represents an important milestone in the Canada-Ukraine relationship and will bring greater prosperity, economic security, and economic independence to the Ukrainian people.

It has been three years since Russia's illegal annexation and invasion of Crimea. Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity were violated. We were right to condemn it then, and we are right to continue to condemn it now. The occupation has led to distress, economic instability, and severe suppression of human rights. Canada has called on Russia to reverse this illegal and immoral decision. Ukrainians are tough and steadfast in their desire for a free, independent, democratic country.

My grandfathers and father emigrated from the villages of Senkiw and Bridok in Ukraine, and settled in southern Manitoba, in Arbakka and a little village called Senkiw after the one in the homeland with the first wave in 1896. For me as a second generation Canadian, my connection to Ukraine is strong. There are over 1.25 million Canadians who, like me, call themselves Ukrainian Canadians. We recognize the importance of continuing to partner with Ukraine and keeping our connection to the homeland alive generations down the road. This is why it gives me a great deal of pride to have had the opportunity to participate in sending 10 Canadian ambulances, five from my home province of Manitoba, to Ukraine. This was thanks to the Ukrainian Canadian Congress whose hard work keeps the connection between our two countries alive.

I must thank John Holuk and Myroslava Pidhirnyj of the UCC whose hard work brought the ambulances and medical kits to the people who need it most at the front line and in health service centres. These ambulances are a reminder that Ukrainians are still working hard to reach the same freedoms and standard of living that we enjoy in Canada, but they cannot do it alone. Sometimes they need ambulances; other times they need training and supplies. This is why we are proud to continue Operation Unifier standing at the forefront of the international community's response to the crisis. Operation Unifier gives us the chance to partner our military expertise, delivering military training and capacity building.

Canada's continued engagement in Ukraine demonstrates our reliability as a defence partner and our commitment to European security while we are enabling Ukrainian forces to defend their country's sovereignty and contribute to regional international stability. Canada's support is not limited only to the military assistance. It is much broader and includes policing, financial, developmental, and humanitarian supports.

We look forward to working with our partner, Ukraine, in the future.

[Committees of the House, February 24th, 2017]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the fourth report of the Standing Committee on Indigenous and Northern Affairs entitled, “Supplementary Estimates (C) 2016-17: Votes 1c and 10c under Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development”.

[Agriculture and Agri-Food, February 23rd, 2017]

Mr. Speaker, trading is crucial to our Canadian agricultural sectors. We are the fifth largest agricultural exporter in the world, and our agricultural and agrifood industries employ 2.2 million Canadians. In Manitoba, most of those producers are SMEs.

Could theMinister of Agriculture and Agri-Food tell us what steps he is taking to promote our agrifood SMEs and expand Canada's agricultural trade around the world?

[Preclearance Act, 2016, February 22nd, 2017]

Mr. Speaker, I want to congratulate the Conservative government of past for the good work that it did which we are building on. These kinds of relationships take a lot of years, a lot of meetings, and a lot of hard work. A system was established that is working well. There is no indication that we have actually seen a negative turn. There is speculation that the present government in the U.S. has an agenda very different from ours, but when it comes to actual facts, our Prime Minister had a very positive and productive meeting with the President of the United States. In fact, deals were made and a commitment to work together was made.

This is a positive step. It is one that we should be celebrating. Until we see something different, we should all celebrate the expansion of pre-clearance for both parties.

[Preclearance Act, 2016, February 22nd, 2017]

Mr. Speaker, part of the issue here is that sometimes we play politics, which leads to misunderstandings and raises fears that are unjustified.

We are looking at a system that is going to enhance the ability of people to cross the border in a way that is going to respect our Constitution, our laws, and in a way that will allow people to go into the United States more efficiently. This will enhance tourism, create small businesses, and build the bridges stronger than they are even now.

[Preclearance Act, 2016, February 22nd, 2017]

Mr. Speaker, it illustrates the fact that it is absolutely essential that we maintain strong links with our trading partners. In doing that, there have been numerous ministers taking trips across the border to meet with their counterparts, including, and most formally, our Prime Minister. He made the trip to Washington and began a good relationship with the Trump administration and with the President himself.

It is important that we continue the dialogue. We are not going to enhance trade or our relationship by taking a closed, inward look. It is important for Canada that we maintain an outward looking view, and that we continue to reach out to our neighbours to the south.

[Preclearance Act, 2016, February 22nd, 2017]

Madam Speaker, I will be splitting my time with the member for Surrey Centre.

I am happy to speak about pre-clearance, and what it means for my riding of Kildonan—St. Paul. Every time I am at home, I see more trucks on Winnipeg's roads heading to CentrePort. These are signs of growth, trade, jobs, and these jobs are, many of them, in my riding of Kildonan—St. Paul.

My good friend and fellow Ukrainian Canadian, the hon. Minister of Foreign Affairs, has stressed how important it is to make our border thinner. The Prime Minister has worked with our American neighbours to bring our two countries closer together.

During her recent meetings in Washington, the foreign affairs minister stressed that making trade easier with Canada was a priority, including extending pre-clearance for product shipments. She is quoted in The Canadian Press as saying:

Our conversations focused on ways to make that border thinner. We talked about pre-clearance for cargo as an area that we might want to be working on, going forward.

Right now, Canada hosts 15 international pre-clearance stations at its airports. A Canadian government spokesman said:

Any U.S. pre-clearance activities in Canada have to be carried out in a manner consistent with Canadian law, including the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, the Canadian Bill of Rights and the Canadian Human Rights Act.

U.S.-Canada trade is very significant for Canada. U.S. goods and services trade with Canada totalled an estimated $662.7 billion in 2015 and exports were $337.3 billion, with imports at $325.4 billion. U.S. goods and services have a trade surplus with Canada of only $11.9 billion in 2015.

Looking at Manitoba trade exports, who was our number one partner? The United States, of course, with $16.291 billion exported to the United States while we import $9.527 billion worth of products.

Therefore, it makes good sense for Kildonan—St. Paul, for Manitoba, and for all of Canada to look at ways to make our relationship with the United States better.

I am very proud to say that our current Prime Minister had a very successful mission to Washington where he was able to make renewed friends with the new President, and in fact, talked about a number of issues including how we can enhance trade between our two countries, an issue that the President and our Prime Minister both recognized as having benefits for both countries.

Today, I want to focus on what more open borders will mean for businesses in my riding of Kildonan—St. Paul. Winnipeg's James Richardson Airport has had U.S. pre-clearance for many years, and in the last decade the increase in cargo pre-clearance has made a huge difference for Manitobans.

Also in my riding is Palliser Furniture, which produces outstanding furniture, and the owners and many of the workers at Palliser live and work in my riding. This is a growing company that has grown through Canada's policy of free and open trade. As our government moves to ratify the Canada-Europe and Canada–Ukraine free trade deals, it is possible that in the future I will be speaking about Palliser's location in Kiev and Warsaw.

In Winnipeg, we built CentrePort, North America's largest inland port. CentrePort is a hub that connects our local businesses with their partners all over the world through air, road, and train systems.

Our open trade policy means that CentrePort has been rapidly growing. At 20,000 acres, there is a lot of room for more investment. In the last year, CentrePort has seen several new developments, including the announcement of a new $25 million grain handling facility, and a partnership with Mexican business and government leaders to bring investments to Manitoba.

All of this growth has meant that CentrePort has had to expand its existing infrastructure, water, telecommunications, and natural gas, so there can be new opportunities for businesses and to create new jobs for all of the new workers.

In fact, new needs of CentrePort are roads and infrastructure. Particularly important for my riding is the Chief Peguis Trail, and I encourage the Conservative government of Manitoba to come to the table, to take our generous offer of building infrastructure in Manitoba to create jobs and new investments in Manitoba, like other western provinces where more infrastructure is needed.

Trading hubs like CentrePort are important because they keep our connections strong and our economy moving. In Manitoba, almost 40% of our economic activity is the result of trade with American partners. As a manufacturing hub, we export over $16 billion worth of goods every year. In fact, Manitobans trade almost as much with international partners as they do with Canada's other provinces. This has made Manitoba a centre for trade, which connects our world-class trade infrastructure with our world-class manufacturing.

One of its most interconnected imports is busing. In fact, many of us and our constituents ride those buses every day, with components that are built in Winnipeg. For example, New Flyer Industries, a highly innovative and dominant player in transit bus and motor coach manufacturing, employing over 4,800 people, produces buses and components for both Canadian and American jurisdictions. Buses and parts are built in Winnipeg and Minnesota, and provide stable, middle class manufacturing jobs on both sides of the border.

Manitoba is also famous for its aerospace sector. Winnipeg's connection to aerospace is so famous that its hockey team is called the Winnipeg Jets. It has the largest aerospace sector in western Canada and the third largest in the country, with companies like Boeing, StandardAero, and Magellan, with major plants in Winnipeg. These are high quality, middle class jobs. Aerospace workers are expert manufacturers, and build some of the world's most complicated machines. Annually, Manitoba imports over $660 million in jets and turbines, and exports over $550 million in aircraft parts, which is over $1 billion in trade.

The aerospace industry nears $2 billion in revenue each year, and directly employs over 5,000 Manitobans. Beyond the numbers, Manitoba's aerospace industry means a lot for Canadian innovation. In Winnipeg, General Electric and StandardAero, both U.S.-based companies, took advantage of Manitoba's unique weather and opened a $75 million cold weather testing facility. It also employs some of the brightest engineers.

Winnipeg is also home to the Centre for Aerospace Technology & Training. Once again, thanks to international partnerships with Red River College, StandardAero, and the federal and provincial governments, the Centre for Aerospace Technology & Training prepares Canada's middle class for the future.

We all know that manufacturing has been changing in a big way. Students use the latest manufacturing technologies, like 3D printing, to prepare for long-term, stable manufacturing jobs. For manufacturers in my province, improved pre-clearance means less lineups, a more efficient use of time as they travel across the border, and less traffic holdups. It is making it easier for people and cargo to cross the border.

As I have already said how important open borders are in my province, I am proud that pre-clearance will create more jobs for all Canadians.

[Louis Riel, February 16th, 2017]

Mr. Speaker, on Monday, Manitobans remember our founding father, Louis Riel.

Born in Winnipeg in 1844, he studied for the priesthood and law in Montreal. In 1868, he returned to the Prairies, and like his father, became a Métis leader.

He fought for all Manitobans. He was the head of our provisional government, which negotiated the Manitoba Act that established the Province of Manitoba. He was elected three times to the House, but was unable to take his seat. He believed and fought for bilingualism and multiculturalism. He is a hero to the Métis and all Manitobans. He is a father of Confederation.

Manitobans will remember him as a hero on Monday. In 1885, on the way to the gallows, he said, “I have nothing but my heart and I have given it long ago to my country.”