Pam Damoff

[Public Safety, April 28th, 2022]

Madam Speaker, I want to thank the member for Cowichan—Malahat—Langford for this important question and for his continued excellent work on the public safety committee. As he mentioned, I have served as a member of the committee since being elected to this place, and I am incredibly proud of the work our committee achieved in the last Parliament through our report on systemic racism in policing.

I would be remiss if I did not also thank the hon. member for bringing a motion to the committee that received unanimous support, for the chair to retable that report. The work done in the previous Parliament was important. The committee made 42 recommendations, and it is essential that the government provide a fulsome response to that report. I look forward to that response being tabled in this place soon.

Tonight I am pleased to speak to the steps the government has already taken to begin to address systemic racism and increase accountability in policing. Police services in Canada are entrusted with a broad mandate and significant powers to enforce the law, keep the peace and maintain public safety. Maintaining the trust of the public through accountable, transparent policing is crucial to effective policing.

Incidents of excessive use of force by law enforcement in Canada and the United States against indigenous, Black and racialized people prompted demands for change in 2020. We know that systemic change is needed. That is why concrete action has been taken to modernize the RCMP, transform its culture and identify and eliminate systemic barriers and systemic racism.

In budget 2021, the government allocated $75 million over five years and $13.5 million ongoing to support the RCMP to take action to combat systemic racism, including through reforming recruitment and training, improving the collection, analysis and recording of race-based data, more rapidly evaluating the impact of police activities on marginalized communities and improving community engagement and consultation with Black, indigenous and racialized communities.

The RCMP is also piloting the use of implicit bias testing as part of the recruitment process. Following the launch of the equity, diversity and exclusion strategy in January 2021 and the application of a GBA+ review, new and modernized entrance exams assessing applicants' cognitive and personality attributes were added and will roll out in the coming months.

Additional reforms are needed, including external reviews of the RCMP's sanctions and disciplinary regime and modernizing de-escalation training to include training on implicit bias, specialized training for experienced officers, updated training for cadets, and mandatory training on cultural awareness and humility and anti-racism.

In addition, through the launch of the Independent Centre for Harassment Resolution, we have committed to greater externalization to ensure that there can be no conflicts of interest while reviewing complaints against RCMP members. In addition to internal reforms, independent civilian review bodies like the Civilian Review and Complaints Commission are key to keeping the RCMP accountable to the public they serve. That is why the Minister of Public Safety has been mandated by the Prime Minister to bring forward legislation that establishes defined timelines for the RCMP to respond to recommendations made by the CRCC.

Additionally, in support of greater police accountability, we are committed to enhancing the management advisory board to be in line with other Canadian police services. These are some of the important measures we are taking to address systemic racism, and I look forward to working with the hon. member on this critical issue to ensure that all 42 recommendations are implemented.

[Housing, April 26th, 2022]

Mr. Speaker, it takes a village to build a community. There are five tiny homes being built in Halton as part of a pilot program to serve the Chippewas of Nawash Unceded First Nation. This means affordable emergency housing options will be available on reserve, giving community members a sense of dignity, independence, safety and so much more.

Notre Dame Catholic Secondary School is one of the schools where students have explored skilled trades and are getting hands-on experience. Over 57 students have participated in the project across two semesters, plus an additional 38 students who joined the after-school program, all led by inspirational teacher Mr. Allan Nason. Recently, I joined the Minister of Housing, the Chippewas of the Nawash chief, Veronica Smith, partners from Habitat For Humanity and Notre Dame students and teachers to tour the tiny homes and speak of the impact that these homes will have.

Congratulations to all involved in making a difference.

[Questions on the Order Paper, April 25th, 2022]

Mr. Speaker, in response to part (a) of the question, the RCMP considers that the Costal GasLink drill site would have met the definition of critical infrastructure set out in section 1 of the emergency measures regulations while they were in force, as a place or land on which infrastructure for the supply of utilities such as gas are located.

In response to part (b), no actions were taken under the emergency measures regulations to prevent, mitigate or respond to these acts. Existing authorities were sufficient. Given that an investigation is ongoing into the events, the RCMP will not comment further on this matter at this time.

In response to part (c), no actions were taken under the emergency economic measures order to prevent, mitigate or respond to these acts. Existing authorities were sufficient. Given that an investigation is ongoing into the events, the RCMP will not comment further on this matter at this time.

[Questions on the Order Paper, April 25th, 2022]

Mr. Speaker, in response to (a), as per section 5 of the order, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, RCMP, received disclosures from the following: banks established under Canada's Bank Act and regulated by the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions, OSFI; co-operative credit societies, savings and credit unions and caisses populaires regulated by a provincial act and associations regulated by the Cooperative Credit Associations Act; entities authorized under provincial legislation to engage in the business of dealing in securities or to provide portfolio management or investment counselling services; and entities that perform any of the following payment functions: the provision or maintenance of an account that, in relation to an electronic funds transfer, is held on behalf of one or more end users; the holding of funds on behalf of an end user until they are withdrawn by the end user or transferred to another individual or entity; the initiation of an electronic funds transfer at the request of an end user; the authorization of an electronic funds transfer or the transmission, reception or facilitation of an instruction in relation to an electronic funds transfer, or the provision of clearing or settlement services.

In response to (a)(i) and (ii), the RCMP received information from a number of entities described in section 5 (a) and (b) of the order disclosed to the RCMP. This information was developed by those entities in a dynamic environment and, given the short period of time the Emergencies Act was in place, the information was received in an ad hoc manner, with no formal reporting mechanism established. As such, the information in the RCMP holdings may differ from information in other Government of Canada records, or numbers publicly disclosed by entities listed in part (a). The RCMP is currently evaluating information related to the invocation of the order and the mandated reporting. It would be premature to share preliminary data or additional information at this time, while analysis is ongoing to ensure accurate and fulsome reporting from the RCMP. The RCMP is committed to participating in the review of the Emergencies Act required by statute, and to ensuring that an authoritative common understanding of how the act was utilized is available.

In response to (b), given its mandate and specific operational requirements, the Canadian Security Intelligence Service, CSIS, does not generally disclose details related to operational activity.

In response to (c)(i), the RCMP made disclosures under section 6. The RCMP cannot provide information on other Government of Canada institutions’ disclosures.

In response to (c)(ii), the RCMP made disclosures to banks, the Canadian Bankers Association, the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada, the Canadian Securities Administrators, the Mutual Funds Dealers Association and credit unions.

In response to (c)(iii), the RCMP disclosed information on 57 entities, broken down into 18 individuals and 39 vehicles. As well, the RCMP identified and disseminated 170 Bitcoin wallet addresses as receiving funds linked to the HonkHonk Hodl crowdfunding campaign.

In response to (d), as there was no criminal enforcement mechanism under the emergency economic measures order, the RCMP did not lay any charges under the order.

[Questions on the Order Paper, April 25th, 2022]

Mr. Speaker, the operations of all police are fully independent, whether they be municipal, provincial, or federal.

This police independence is critical. The government may not attempt to influence an investigation in any way, or direct the conduct of specific police operations. Police independence, as qualified in a 1999 Supreme Court decision, Campbell and Shirose, was described as follows:

“While for certain purposes the commissioner of the RCMP reports to the solicitor general (now known as the public safety minister), the commissioner is not to be considered a servant or agent of the government while engaged in a criminal investigation. The commissioner is not subject to political direction. Like every other police officer similarly engaged, he is answerable to the law and, no doubt, to his conscience.”

Our government remains committed to ensuring that law enforcement officers have the resources they need to do their jobs and effectively address threats to public safety after years of cuts from the previous Conservative government.

From the outset, our government was focused on finding solutions that protected Canadians and affected communities and ensured the minimum risk of harm. This included consulting with officials and thoroughly assessing all federal tools and resources, including the possibility of invoking the Emergencies Act. The temporary authorities provided through the act remained in place only for the short time required to address this urgent risk to Canadians’ safety.

In response to (a), with regard to information provided to the Prime Minister, including through his staff, about the police action taken related to the protests in Ottawa on February 18 and 19, 2022, no information was provided to the Prime Minister by either Public Safety Canada or the RCMP related to the rules of engagement for the police forces in Ottawa on those days.

In response to (b), with regard to information provided to the Prime Minister, including through his staff, about the police action taken related to the protests in Ottawa on February 18 and 19, 2022, no information was provided to the Prime Minister by either Public Safety Canada or the RCMP related to the authorization of force, either lethal or non-lethal, for the police forces in Ottawa on those days.

[Questions on the Order Paper, April 25th, 2022]

Mr. Speaker, the operations of all police are fully independent, whether they be municipal, provincial, or federal.

This police independence is critical. The government may not attempt to influence an investigation in any way, or direct the conduct of specific police operations. Police independence, as qualified in a 1999 Supreme Court decision, Campbell and Shirose, was described as follows:

“While for certain purposes the commissioner of the RCMP reports to the solicitor general (now known as the public safety minister), the commissioner is not to be considered a servant or agent of the government while engaged in a criminal investigation. The commissioner is not subject to political direction. Like every other police officer similarly engaged, he is answerable to the law and, no doubt, to his conscience.”

Our government remains committed to ensuring that law enforcement officers have the resources they need to do their jobs and effectively address threats to public safety after years of cuts from the previous Conservative government.

From the outset, our government was focused on finding solutions that protected Canadians and affected communities and ensured the minimum risk of harm. This included consulting with officials and thoroughly assessing all federal tools and resources, including the possibility of invoking the Emergencies Act. The temporary authorities provided through the act remained in place only for the short time required to address this urgent risk to Canadians’ safety.

With regard to information provided to the Minister of Public Safety, including through his staff, about the police action taken related to the protests in Ottawa on February 18 and 19, 2022, in response to (a), no information was provided to the minister by either Public Safety Canada or the RCMP related to the rules of engagement for the police forces in Ottawa on those days.

In response to (b), no information was provided to the minister by either Public Safety Canada or the RCMP related to the authorization of force, either lethal or non-lethal, for the police forces in Ottawa on those days.

[Toronto Raptors Superfan, April 6th, 2022]

Mr. Speaker, Nav Bhatia arrived humbly in Canada in 1984 coming from anti-Sikh riots in India. He struggled to find work as a mechanical engineer and decided to work as a car salesman. With dedication and hard work, Nav became a success in the automotive industry. He also eventually became a Canadian icon and the Toronto Raptors superfan.

During Sikh Heritage Month we celebrate the many contributions Canadians of Sikh heritage have made to our country and communities. We also must recognize the systemic racism many Sikhs have faced in Canada. In honour of Sikh Heritage Month, I will be hosting a free screening of CBC's Superfan: The Nav Bhatia Story on Monday, April 11 at 7 p.m. at Film.ca Cinemas in Oakville. Nav Bhatia will be in attendance to join me for a Q and A session following the screening. Though tickets are limited, I invite everyone in my riding of Oakville North—Burlington to register for this free event through my social media and attend.

[Questions on the Order Paper, April 5th, 2022]

Mr. Speaker, keeping Canadians safe is of paramount importance to this government. We are working with like-minded countries to ensure that Iran is held to account for its support of terrorism.

The Criminal Code sets out a terrorist listing regime to help prevent the use of Canada’s financial system to further terrorist activity and to assist in the investigation and prosecution of terrorist offences. The Minister of Public Safety may recommend to the Governor in Council, GIC, that individuals or groups be officially designated as “terrorist entities” pursuant to subsection 83.05(1) of the Criminal Code, on “establishment of list”, if there are reasonable grounds to believe that an entity has knowingly carried out, attempted to carry out, participated in or facilitated a terrorist activity, or has knowingly acted on behalf of, at the direction of, or in association with, an entity referred to in paragraph (a).

The term “entity” is defined as “a person, group, trust, partnership or fund or an unincorporated association or organization”. The definition does not include reference to a state.

Canada has robust measures in place to hold Iran and Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, IRGC, accountable for their support for terrorism, including some of the toughest and most comprehensive sanctions against Iran in the world. Canada continues to look at all possible options to further constrain the activities of Iran that threaten national security.

Canada has maintained the listing of the IRGC Qods Force as a terrorist entity under the Criminal Code since 2012. The Qods Force is recognized as responsible for terrorist operations and for providing arms, funding and training to other terrorist groups. The Government of Canada also continues to list terrorist entities that have benefited from the Qods Force patronage, including Hezbollah, Hamas, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, the Taliban, and three Iran-backed regional militias that were listed as terrorist entities under the Criminal Code in 2019.

Canada has implemented sanctions decisions of the United Nations Security Council, UNSC, into domestic law under the United Nations Act. Among a wide range of restrictions, the Regulations Implementing the United Nations Resolutions on Iran also include a dealings ban on persons listed by the UNSC, including senior members of the IRGC.

Other existing measures against the IRGC include the sanctions imposed under the Special Economic Measures Act (SEMA (Iran) Regulations), in response to Iran's nuclear and ballistic missile programs. The regulations explicitly target IRGC organizations, including the IRGC Air Force and Air Force Missile Command, IRGC Logistics and Procurement, IRGC Missile Command, IRGC Navy, and several members of its senior leadership. The SEMA (Iran) Regulations include a dealings ban on designated individuals and entities, which include the aforementioned IRGC organizations, effectively freezing their assets in Canada. These measures are also intended to restrict Iran’s access to sensitive goods from Canada, especially with respect to nuclear proliferation and the development of ballistic missiles.

On February 21, 2020, the Financial Action Task Force, FATF, the international standard-setting body for combatting money laundering and terrorist financing, called on its members, including Canada, to impose countermeasures on Iran to help mitigate the risk the Islamic Republic of Iran presents to the international financial system. On July 25, 2020, the Minister of Finance issued a ministerial directive due to Iran’s failure to address strategic deficiencies in its anti-money-laundering and combatting the financing of terrorism, or AML/CFT, regime. The measures identified were applied to the areas of greatest risk and include the requirement for financial institutions, credit unions and money services businesses to treat every financial transaction originating from or bound for Iran as a high-risk transaction and to report all transactions, regardless of their amount, to the Financial Transactions Reports and Analysis Centre.

Finally, Canada lists Iran as a state supporter of terrorism under the State Immunity Act, SIA, which allows civil actions to be taken against it under the Justice for Victims of Terrorism Act, the JVTA.

We remain unwavering in our commitment to keep Canadians safe, including by taking all appropriate action to counter terrorist threats in Canada and around the world.

[World Autism Awareness Day, April 1st, 2022]

Madam Speaker, April 2 is World Autism Awareness Day, an opportunity to support, listen to and learn from those on the autism spectrum like Aiden Lee from my riding, their families and caregivers.

This year's theme is inclusive, quality education for all and calls to ensure that everyone has equal, accessible opportunities to learn. Our government created the Accessible Canada Act to ensure a barrier-free Canada that allows everyone to participate fully in their community, school and workplace and have an equal chance at success.

ErinoakKids in my riding of Oakville North—Burlington is Ontario's largest children's treatment centre dedicated to ensuring inclusive health and learning for children and youth with disabilities and their families, including autism. I am so proud of the work that it does in our community.

On World Autism Awareness Day and every day, let us commit to ensuring equity and inclusion in all aspects of society for everyone.

[Health, March 29th, 2022]

Mr. Speaker, over the last few months the Government of Canada has had to make adjustments to public health measures already in place at our borders in an effort to tackle the omicron variant of COVID-19. Based on a number of factors, including Canada's high vaccination rates, the increasing availability and use of rapid tests to detect infection, hospitalization rates and growing domestic availability of therapeutics and treatments, the Government of Canada is adjusting and will continue to adjust its border and travel measures.

Canadians continue to be asked to please exercise caution while travelling abroad, understand the risks that are still associated with international travel and take the necessary precautions.

Rules and public health measures can change quickly. The Government of Canada will continue to enforce public health measures at the border in response to the evolving threat of COVID-19, and we will always protect Canadians.