House of Commons photoWon his last election, in 2021, with 52% of the vote.
Democratic Institutions April 18th, 2023
Mr. Speaker, yesterday, the FBI arrested two individuals connected to the PRC's foreign interference threat activities. The FBI said that one of the individuals was connected to the illegal police stations that the PRC established in Canada.
Why does it take the FBI to take action to protect Canadian sovereignty on Canadian soil?
National Defence March 31st, 2023
Madam Speaker, in the year before Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Canada was spending 1.28% of GDP on defence. According to NATO last week, in the year since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Canada has spent 1.29% of GDP. I read the budget document, but I could not find any information about defence expenditure as a per cent of GDP over the next five years.
Will the government commit to providing this very important information to the House as soon as possible?
Fisheries and Oceans March 31st, 2023
Madam Speaker, members of this House have worked for years on funding and governance for the Great Lakes Fishery Commission. As a result, the budget last year promised $44.9 million to DFO for the commission. However, every step of the way it seems like DFO is obstructing the will of Parliament. Last year, it dragged its heels in transferring that money to the commission.
When will the President of the Treasury Board crack the whip and ensure DFO complies with the will of Parliament and best practices on governance?
Democratic Institutions March 23rd, 2023
Mr. Speaker, again, for the eleventh time, on what date did the Prime Minister first learn about the allegation that a Liberal MP suggested to Han Tao, the PRC's consul general in Toronto, that the PRC delay the release of Mr. Kovrig and Mr. Spavor?
Democratic Institutions March 23rd, 2023
Mr. Speaker, on November 7, the first report appeared about the PRC's interference in our elections. Since then, 19 weeks have passed. Since then, hundreds of questions have been asked in question period, in debate and in committee.
Despite these hundreds of questions, despite 19 weeks having passed, the Prime Minister has not told us much of anything. The government has responded with non-answers, denials, obfuscations, and accusations of racism and partisanship. The only reason why we know anything is because whistle-blowers have leaked to the media.
This is appalling. It is contemptuous of Parliament. By denying Parliament the most basic answers to the questions about a serious national threat, by forcing whistle-blowers to leak to the media, by going outside Parliament, the government is undermining Parliament and the very foundations of our constitutional order.
Democratic Institutions March 21st, 2023
Mr. Speaker, these are serious questions that I think the public deserves real answers to, so I will ask another question I hope the government can answer.
CSIS documents obtained by The Globe and Mail suggest that Beijing's consulate in Vancouver took credit for the defeat of at least two Conservative candidates in the 2021 election.
Was the Prime Minister or any other member of the government ever briefed on Conservative candidates being targeted by Beijing, successfully or unsuccessfully, and, if so, when?
Democratic Institutions March 21st, 2023
Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Prime Minister. According to reports in The Globe and Mail around the time of the 2021 federal election, CSIS outlined a sophisticated strategy to disrupt our democracy and back the re-election of the Liberal Party and the Liberal government.
Has the Prime Minister ever been briefed on the activities of Beijing or its affiliates in support of the Liberal Party in any election, and, if so, when?
Committees of the House March 21st, 2023
Mr. Speaker, it is hard for me to give a specific answer to that question, because we are not presently in government and I do not have access to that information, unfortunately.
The minister should sit down with frontline CBSA officers and, obviously, the head of the CBSA, to talk about what resources and tools they actually need to start blocking these cargo container shipments. Ninety-eight percent or so of the world's trade arrives on these cargo containers. There has to be a way to implement computer systems, training and other measures in order to interdict these shipments. The United States has been doing it and they are further improving on their record. There is no reason why Canada cannot do the same.
Committees of the House March 21st, 2023
Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for her question. I believe that the government needs to provide us with more information. I believe that is a problem here in Ottawa. We could even say that this place is information-free compared to the capitals of other G7 countries.
It is a huge problem with the lack of transparency and information. It is very difficult to find out from the government whether or not shipments have been interdicted and blocked. We often have to get that information through access to information requests or other investigative techniques, rather than the government being transparent about what is going on by default.
That adds to the problem. People are generally not aware that we are not upholding our treaty obligations. We are not upholding the rules-based international order when it comes to preventing imports using forced Uighur labour. Part of that problem is the lack of transparency from the government about what exactly is going to be interdicted at the border.
We do know one thing, which is that no shipment has been blocked from Xinjiang that has been produced using forced Uighur labour.
Committees of the House March 21st, 2023
Mr. Speaker, the government does not need new legislation. It has immense powers under existing framework legislation. It has immense powers under the Customs Tariff Act and its regulations.
The government needs to get its hands dirty and figure out exactly what it needs to do to empower the Canada Border Services Agency officers to interdict these shipments. It needs to sit down with frontline officers and ask what they need, in terms of training, computer systems and personnel. Let us get this done in the next six months so we can stop bringing in these products that have been produced using Uighur forced labour.