Pablo Rodriguez

[Interim Estimates, March 21st, 2019]

moved:

That Vote 1, in the amount of $6,738,739, under Canadian Museum for Human Rights — Payments to the Canadian Museum for Human Rights for operating and capital expenditures, in the Interim Estimates for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2020, be concurred in.

[Interim Estimates, March 21st, 2019]

moved:

That Vote 1, in the amount of $1,420,343, under Canadian Intergovernmental Conference Secretariat — Program expenditures, in the Interim Estimates for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2020, be concurred in.

[Interim Estimates, March 21st, 2019]

moved:

That Vote 5, in the amount of $277,032,052, under Canadian Institutes of Health Research — Grants, in the Interim Estimates for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2020, be concurred in.

[Interim Estimates, March 21st, 2019]

moved:

That Vote 1, in the amount of $14,407,586, under Canadian Institutes of Health Research — Operating expenditures, in the Interim Estimates for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2020, be concurred in.

[Business of Supply, March 20th, 2019]

Madam Speaker, I rise on a point of order to table the government's responses to Order Paper Questions Nos. 2192 and 2211, and a revised response to Question No. 1720.

[Indigenous Affairs, February 21st, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for Yukon for his amazing work.

Our language represents who we are. It is how we tell our stories to our children. Most indigenous languages are in danger and many have been lost. We need to act and we need to act now, hand in hand with indigenous peoples.

I hope all parties will join indigenous peoples and pass this bill, which recognizes indigenous languages as a fundamental right. This is a clear response to calls to action 13, 14 and 15. Furthermore, this bill provides for stable, long-term funding.

Let us do this together.

[Indigenous Languages Act, February 20th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, it is rather amusing to hear my colleague ask questions and then answer them himself.

I said this is an important bill because we have been working on it for a year and a half. We introduced it now because we have taken a year and a half to draft this bill with various national groups and indigenous representatives from across the country.

As I said in the beginning, my predecessor and I could have drafted this bill with a few friends or colleagues, but we did not. We got out there, held 50 collaborative engagement sessions and even held online consultations. More than 1,200 members of indigenous communities were consulted and shared their views on this bill, while hundreds more did so online. As a result, this bill has the support of indigenous peoples across Canada. This is a fundamental starting point.

In conclusion, I encourage my colleagues from all parties to work together to help make this bill a reality.

[Indigenous Languages Act, February 20th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his thoroughness on this file. We had the opportunity to discuss it yesterday. I could tell how important this is to him.

I want to come back to the question raised by his colleague.

As I already said, we have been in discussions with all the national groups, including the Métis, Inuit, and first nations peoples from the start. We consulted various band councils, other organizations, organizations that represent indigenous women and elders. The door remains open to further discussions, including with the Inuit.

As I said earlier, we have to start somewhere. The bill will allow us to accomplish a great deal from the get-go. We are responding to the calls to action 13, 14 and 15, we are building on the objectives of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. Those objectives are applied here in Canada. For the first time, we are acknowledging that indigenous languages are a fundamental right under section 35 of the Constitution.

While we debate this bill in the House or in committee, my door remains open to those who want to contribute to the discussion. I am thinking in particular about the Inuit, but also anyone else who might want to participate in the discussion.

I also want to mention that clause 9 of the bill allows for further negotiation and agreement with various groups on different themes.

To answer my colleague's question, I would say that it is clear that the things we will end up agreeing on by the end of the process, or later, could absolutely be incorporated in the bill.

[Indigenous Languages Act, February 20th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, my hon. colleague started his comments by saying that the Prime Minister, in his campaign promise, said that we would do things differently. That is exactly what we did.

We have been consulting for almost two years with the Inuit, with the Métis, with first nations, with modern treaty bands, with self-governing nations. We have been consulting across the country, and we are discussing this here. We will be going to committee, where we can discuss and evaluate the possibility of amendments, but as we speak, languages are being lost across the country.

My colleague said very eloquently that we have to do something, and he is right. What we are doing here is extremely important. If my colleague does not believe me, maybe he will believe National Chief Perry Bellegarde, who said that this bill “is landmark legislation.” He said, “Today, there is hope” and “This work is good for all Canadians.”

Clément Chartier, president of the Métis National Council, who is a well known and respected leader, said “...this is reconciliation in action.” He salutes the Prime Minister for acting on this priority.

Clara Morin Dal Col, president of Métis Nation British Columbia, said “The bill marks a giant first step” and “It's a historic moment for our people and for our nation.” These comments come from very respected people. They are the ones saying this, not me, and of course I agree with them.

The fundamental thing about this is that we are starting with something strong, something extremely strong. We are advancing the objective of UNDRIP, the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. We are responding to three calls to action: number 13, number 14 and number 15. We will provide stable and long-term funding. We are recognizing for the first time that language rights are based on section 35 of our own Constitution. This is huge.

Is it an answer to everything? No. Can we do more? Of course, and we will always try to do more. However, this is fundamental. We are starting on a very solid basis, and we will do it for all indigenous people in the country.

[Indigenous Languages Act, February 20th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, the codevelopment process from day one has involved everybody, meaning the Inuit, the Métis and the first nations. The four groups, including the government, all agreed that 12 principles are the basis of this project. We agreed that we have to respond to calls to action 13, 14 and 15, which this bill does. We all agreed that we need stable and long-term funding, which this bill provides, and this bill has the support of the Assembly of First Nations and of the Métis.

With regard to our Inuit friends, they would like this bill to contain other segments. We have discussing this with them and are continuing this discussion. As I mentioned to them in one discussion when we were sitting together in New York a couple of weeks ago, my door is always open. They know that.

We will keep discussing. If there are things we can agree on, we will definitely be able to integrate them into the bill. However, to be able to modify something, we have to have something on the table. This bill is that something. It is something that is extremely important, something that responds to many of the concerns and the priorities of indigenous peoples across the country, and I am very proud of the work that we have done together.