Pat Martin

[Tougher Penalties for Child Predators Act, November 20th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, I want to say at the outset that I appreciate both the tone and the content of the speeches made to date. I think it is a reflection of how seriously we all take this issue.

My question will be brief and quite specific. The hon. parliamentary secretary was speaking about the difference between consecutive and concurrent sentencing, which those of us who are not lawyers maybe do not have a full grasp of.

However, as I understand the parliamentary secretary, he was saying that in the case of someone making child porn, there would be three offences, perhaps, including the actual abuse of the child, the documenting or the making of a record of that abuse, and then the broadcasting of that abuse. They may be separate crimes but the problem is that the judge might see fit to impose only one sentence for those three offences, or three sentences served concurrently, rather than consecutively.

I would like him to expand a bit further on that.

Also, the notion of volume discounts surely is offensive to the sensibilities of anyone in this room, given the nature of the crimes. What in Bill C-26 would stop this notion of volume discounts?

[Petitions, November 20th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to rise to present a petition signed by literally tens of thousands of Canadians who call upon the House of Commons and Parliament here assembled to take note that asbestos is the greatest industrial killer that the world has ever known. In fact, more Canadians now die from asbestos than all other industrial and occupational causes combined.

Therefore, these petitioners call upon the Government of Canada to ban asbestos in all of its forms and institute a just transition program for asbestos workers in the communities they live in; end all government subsidies of asbestos, both in Canada and abroad; and stop blocking international health and safety conventions designed to protect workers from asbestos, such as the Rotterdam convention.

[Petitions, November 19th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, I am proud to present a petition signed by literally tens of thousands of Canadians who call upon Parliament to take note that asbestos is the greatest industrial killer that the world has ever known. The petitioners point out that more Canadians now die from asbestos than all other industrial and occupational causes combined.

Therefore, the petitioners call upon the Government of Canada to ban asbestos in all of its forms and institute a just transition program for asbestos workers and the communities they live in, end all government subsidies of asbestos both in Canada and abroad, and to stop blocking international health and safety conventions designed to protect workers from asbestos, such as the Rotterdam Convention.

[Petitions, November 3rd, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to present a petition signed by literally tens of thousands of Canadians who draw upon the House of Commons and Parliament here assembled to take note that asbestos is the greatest industrial killer that the world has ever known and that more Canadians now die from asbestos than all other occupational and industrial causes combined, yet they point out that Canada has not banned asbestos.

Therefore, these petitioners are calling on the government to ban asbestos in all of its forms, end all government subsidies of asbestos both in Canada and abroad, and stop blocking international health and safety conventions designed to protect workers from asbestos, such as the Rotterdam Convention.

[Ceremonial Guard, October 29th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, the man standing next to Corporal Nathan Cirillo at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier was his best and closest friend, fellow reservist Corporal Branden Stevenson, son of my constituents Jim Stevenson and his wife Kelly-Ann.

Nathan and Branden attended school together. They joined the reserves together, and together they volunteered to perform the tremendous ceremonial honour of standing guard at our cenotaph.

The shooter fired at Branden and missed. He then fired two shots at Nathan and shot him in the back. Branden chased the coward briefly before returning to his friend, where he tried, along with several bystanders, to revive the wounded reservist. Witnesses say he never wavered when it came to giving help. “Put pressure here. He's been shot twice”, he said, as he instructed those helping Nathan, showing both courage and professionalism in the face of crisis and emergency.

Branden Stevenson returned to his post standing guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier today. I ask my colleagues in the House to recognize and pay tribute to a brave young man who has suffered a terrible, emotional trauma and a great loss in seeing his best friend murdered at his side.

[Petitions, October 20th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, I am proud to rise again to present yet another petition signed by literally tens of thousands of Canadians who call upon Parliament and the House of Commons to take note that asbestos is the greatest industrial killer that the world has ever known. They point out that more Canadians now die from asbestos than all other industrial and occupational causes combined.

Therefore, the petitioners call upon Parliament to ban asbestos in all of its forms, institute a just transition program for asbestos workers who may be affected by such a ban, end all government subsidies of asbestos both in Canada and abroad, and stop blocking international health and safety conventions designed to protect workers from asbestos, such as the Rotterdam Convention.

[Petitions, October 3rd, 2014]

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, for this opportunity to introduce a petition signed by literally tens of thousands of Canadians, who call upon Parliament and the House of Commons here assembled to take note that asbestos is the greatest industrial killer that the world has ever known.

The petitioners further point out that more Canadians now die from asbestos than all other industrial and occupational causes combined. They point out that Canada has not banned asbestos and still allows it to be used in construction materials, textile products, and, shockingly, even in children's toys.

Therefore, the petitioners call upon Parliament to ban asbestos in all of its forms, end all government subsidies to asbestos, both in Canada and abroad, and to stop blocking international health and safety conventions designed to protect workers from asbestos, such as the Rotterdam Convention.

[Health, October 3rd, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, the whole country is very proud of our national microbiology lab in Winnipeg, most recently because of the role that it is playing in the Ebola outbreak. It is a world-class centre for excellence and scientific research, due largely in part to the outstanding performance and directorship of the outgoing national director, Dr. Frank Plummer. However, that was in March.

Can the minister tell us why it is taking so long to fill this important position in this important institution and why the job posting looks like the government is contemplating hiring a mid-level bureaucrat instead of a top-notch scientist like Dr. Plummer?

[Petitions, September 30th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to present a petition signed by tens of thousands of Canadians who call upon Parliament and the House of Commons here assembled to take note that asbestos is the greatest industrial killer that the world has ever known. In fact, they point out that more Canadians now die from asbestos than from all other occupational or industrial causes combined, yet Canada still allows asbestos to be used in construction materials, textile products and even children's toys.

Therefore, the petitioners call upon Parliament to ban asbestos in all of its forms and institute a just transition program for asbestos workers to end all government subsidies of asbestos, both in Canada and abroad, and to stop blocking international health and safety conventions designed to protect workers from asbestos, such as the Rotterdam convention.

[Canadian Museum of Human Rights, September 16th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, the Canadian Museum of Human Rights is the first museum in the world dedicated solely to the evolution, celebration, and promotion of human rights.

This magnificent building, designed by architect Antoine Predock, stands as the manifestation of the vision and profound generosity of lzzy Asper, whose dream of a better world will now be his permanent legacy and will serve as a daily reminder of the values that guide and underpin Canadian society: equality, tolerance, inclusion, and, yes, the inalienable human rights of all the people of the world.

It is a reflection of the incredible community support for lzzy Asper's dream that this museum has raised more donations than all other museums in the country combined in their entire histories.

Today, on behalf of the grateful people of Winnipeg, I recognize and pay tribute to the Asper family, the Friends of the Canadian Museum of Human Rights and its many generous donors, the skilled tradesmen who executed this architectural triumph, and the Government of Canada, which saw fit to sponsor the first national museum outside the capital region.