Niki Ashton

[Indigenous Affairs, December 9th, 2020]

Mr. Speaker, no community has been harder hit in Canada by COVID-19 than Shamattawa First Nation. It has 291 confirmed, and many more potential, cases and an 80% test positivity rate. I reached out to the ministers again yesterday. I appreciate a reconnaissance mission is heading in today, but this nightmare scenario is getting worse by the hour, and this is happening in Canada, one of the wealthiest countries in the world.

Will the Prime Minister do whatever it takes to save the lives of the people of Shamattawa First Nation?

[Health, December 7th, 2020]

Madam Speaker, the back-and-forth between the Liberals and the Conservatives on the vaccine shows what is wrong with our politics. They are blaming each other while leaving Canadians in the lurch.

It is rare that I say this, but they have a point. When the Liberals say the Conservatives privatized and ravaged our national capacity for production, they are not wrong. When the Conservatives point to the decades of Liberal austerity that got us here, they are also not wrong. However, it is Canadians who are paying the price.

Lives are at stake. When will the government invest in the publicly owned national production of the vaccine so that Canadians get what they need?

[COVID-19 Pandemic, December 4th, 2020]

Mr. Speaker, people are scared. The second wave of COVID-19 is ravaging communities. Nowhere is this more the case than in indigenous communities. Shamattawa in Manitoba has a test positivity rate of 50%. Now is the time for leadership.

I commend the many first nations, Métis and Inuit leaders. I acknowledge the engagement of the federal ministers, but things are getting worse by the hour. We need a decisive response.

Cruelly, just as there is hope with a vaccine, we are seeing a shocking abdication of leadership by the Premier of Manitoba. Indigenous people in our country should be among the first to receive the vaccine. He has made divisive statements. He refuses to acknowledge first nations people in Manitoba are Manitobans. He has refused to commit to providing the vaccines they need and deserve.

My message for the premier is that this is no time for division.

My message for the Prime Minister is that it is time to act decisively on behalf of first nations to ensure they are not the targets of this divisive agenda. Lives are at stake.

[Indigenous Affairs, December 3rd, 2020]

Mr. Speaker, Shamattawa First Nation now has a COVID test positivity rate of 50%, 106 confirmed COVID cases, a TB spread, overcrowded housing and isolation. This is an unfolding nightmare. I appreciate that the Minister of National Defence is aware and responding, but this situation is getting worse by the hour.

Will the government ensure that every possible step is taken to save the lives of the people of Shamattawa First Nation?

[Broadcasting Act, November 19th, 2020]

Madam Speaker, my question to the government member is with respect to the concern that we have raised about the documented close and collaborative relationship that this government has been proven to have with web giants, and the extent to which that relationship is coming ahead of good policy on behalf of Canadians, whether it is affordable service or Canadian content, including French content from Quebec. We are very concerned about the role that web giants have had with respect to this government. We also believe that they should be taxed, and that is something we have not seen leadership from the federal government on.

Does the Liberal government believe that web giants like Netflix, Amazon and others should be taxed like everybody else?

[Broadcasting Act, November 19th, 2020]

Madam Speaker, I would like to know what the leader of the Bloc Québécois thinks of the concerns we raised about the CRTC's capacity to do what the government is asking it to do.

I would like to know if he shares concerns about the close relationship between the Liberals and the web giants, media giants who are neither Quebeckers nor Canadians and about the repercussions of this close relationship on the ability to protect the work of Quebec and Canadian artists.

[Broadcasting Act, November 19th, 2020]

Mr. Speaker, I would also like to thank my colleague for sharing his thoughts on the bill and for sharing his own experience, which is highly relevant to our debate today.

My colleagues have already highlighted the NDP's concerns about this bill, especially about whether the CRTC will be able to take real action and whether it will have the authority needed to protect Canadian content and Canadian artists. Does my colleague share these concerns?

Also, is my colleague concerned about the fact that the Liberals have already shown they are siding with the web giants? This is a problem for this bill, but also for Canadian media in general.

[Indigenous Affairs, November 16th, 2020]

Mr. Speaker, first nations, Métis and Inuit communities have worked tirelessly to stay safe, but the second wave has hit hard, as we have warned.

OCN/The Pas, 147 cases; Arviat, up to 26 cases. For first nations, we are seeing higher rates of infection and increased severity. From mass testing to immediate contact tracing to self-isolation to ventilators, the government must pull out all the stops.

What is the government going to do for first nations, Métis and, now, Inuit communities to stop the spread of COVID-19?

[Indigenous Affairs, November 4th, 2020]

Mr. Speaker, people are scared. After months of first nations doing everything they can to stay safe, there is a COVID-19 outbreak at the Keeyask work camp where there are hundreds of workers. Manitoba Hydro has not shut down the camp. It is not sharing information with first nations, and there are concerns that it is using questionable testing techniques. This could put our entire region at risk.

Will the Prime Minister intervene directly on behalf of first nations and northern people? Will he call for immediate action to stop the spread of COVID-19 at Keeyask and throughout our region?

[Airline Industry, November 2nd, 2020]

Mr. Speaker, the government's failure to ensure passengers get their money back is turning into an international embarrassment. Now American passengers are taking Air Canada to court to get their money back.

Instead of standing up for consumers, the government keeps pretending there is nothing they can do. This is not true.

Why is the government dithering? Who in there thinks it is okay for Canadian airlines to rip off their customers?