Paul Manly

[Pacific Salmon, February 20th, 2020]

Mr. Speaker, the 2019 Pacific salmon season was a disaster.

Pacific salmon are facing an unprecedented crisis. British Columbia is in real danger of losing its most iconic fish. Countless runs are endangered, including the Nanaimo River runs. I have heard from first nations leaders, commercial fishermen, sports fishermen and advocacy groups on this issue.

The government needs to take urgent action and restore an adequate budget for salmon stock assessments, commit more resources to the DFO's salmon enhancement program, increase the salmon conservation stamp fee on fishing licences, legislate the move to closed-containment salmon farms immediately and provide emergency relief packages for commercial fishers and first nations.

There is still time to save the Pacific salmon, but we must act now before it is too late.

[Business of Supply, February 20th, 2020]

Madam Speaker, the hon. member made an excellent speech, and it covered a lot of really good points.

The Conservative motion states that every elected band council on the Coastal GasLink route supports this. Only five of the six Wet'suwet'en first nations actually signed on to the benefits agreement. The media give the idea that the majority of the hereditary chiefs are behind this, but that is not the case. They say that the vast majority of Wet'suwet'en people support this project as well. I am looking at media links. I am looking at information. There are a lot of unknowns in this situation.

What does the hon. member think of this motion as it stands? Where are the facts? Where did the Conservatives get these numbers? Even in the media reporting, nobody is completely sure how many people in Wet'suwet'en territory support this project or oppose it.

There is a lot of information about the elected chiefs being torn about this and that they signed on to this agreement because of the cash, even though they do not really support it.

[Petitions, February 19th, 2020]

Madam Speaker, the second petition I want to table to today is regarding Falun Gong adherents. The petitioners are asking that we pass a resolution to establish measures to stop the Chinese Communist regime's crime of systematically murdering Falun Gong practitioners for their organs, amend Canadian legislation to combat forced organ harvesting and publicly call for an end to persecution of Falun Gong practitioners in China.

[Petitions, February 19th, 2020]

Madam Speaker, I am pleased to present two petitions today.

The first petition is calling on the House of Commons to create a citizens' assembly on electoral reform and require the citizens' assembly to complete its work within 12 months and adopt any recommended changes to our electoral system before the next federal election.

An Angus Reid poll found that 85% of respondents supported the citizens' assembly to deliberate on electoral reform and deal with the distorted results from our recent federal election. For example, one Green Party MP represents 378,000 voters and one Liberal MP represents 37,000 voters.

[Relations with Indigenous Peoples, February 18th, 2020]

Mr. Speaker, this situation was completely avoidable and predictable. These protests across Canada were completely predictable. There are agreements between first nations across Canada to stand together when one nation is attacked and forced into a project against its will and down the barrel of a gun.

I was in the north. My sister worked for the OPP and she was a front-line officer at Ipperwash at the inquiry and a front-line officer in Caledonia. She would tell us that the last thing to do in these situations is to escalate action because reaction will be escalated and more problems will be caused.

When I went up north, I met with the Wet'suwet'en hereditary chiefs and with the detachment commander in Smithers. I also met with the detachment commander at the community industry safety office and brought a hereditary chief with me. We had a dialogue. One of the things that those detachment commanders told me was that as long as negotiation was going on, there would not be enforcement. It was up to Coastal GasLink, which could have called off the enforcement of this action with dialogue from the government.

I asked the Prime Minister to meet with the hereditary chiefs and open a dialogue. I sent him a letter and talked to him personally and said that this needed to be done, and it was not and here we are.

[Relations with Indigenous Peoples, February 18th, 2020]

Madam Speaker, I am curious about where the member has come up with those numbers. I have gone up north and have met with the heredity chiefs. I have spent some time in the community talking to the people.

Doing a quick search, I found that of the 300 members of the Nak'azdli Whut'en First Nation, one of the Wet'suwet'en bands, 70% of the band voted no. The council voted 4:3 in favour of the project. The Witset band, the largest of the Wet'suwet'en group, which has a population of 5,000 members of which 2,000 are in the Witset band, 83% in a survey opposed this project.

Then we talk about the jobs. CGL admits there are only two dozen jobs for Wet'suwet'en people in this project. A lot of numbers are being thrown around. I am curious to know where the Conservatives are getting these numbers.

[Petitions, February 18th, 2020]

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to present a petition from voters on Vancouver Island who oppose the purchase of the Trans Mountain pipeline and do not want that pipeline to be expanded. The price tag for that pipeline has gone from $5.6 billion to $12.6 billion. The environmental destruction involved, and the way it will undermine our climate targets, is not acceptable to the petitioners and they would like to see plans for the pipeline expansion to be halted.

[Royal Canadian Mounted Police Act, February 7th, 2020]

Madam Speaker, yes, that is a concern for me as well. Parliamentarians should be able to review these reports.

[Royal Canadian Mounted Police Act, February 7th, 2020]

Madam Speaker, I agree with the member. It is a very good idea to combine the two of them, because there would be a cost savings and there is a level of expertise already.

One thing I highlighted in my speech is that the RCMP Act, under the review process with the RCMP, says former members of the RCMP cannot be part of the commission. They cannot be part of the complaints process. The bill does not specifically say that former or current members of the CBSA cannot take part in the commission. It needs to be amended so we have the same rules for the CBSA as for the RCMP. I would like to see a level playing field between the RCMP and the CBSA and that former and current members of the CBSA are excluded from this commission.

[Royal Canadian Mounted Police Act, February 7th, 2020]

Madam Speaker, it is very important that the people who step up to serve and protect our communities have adequate resources and that public complaints commissions like this have adequate resources.

To have people in positions of responsibility, like the CBSA, RCMP and any other police force, work extended overtime is not a good idea. We want people to be at the height of their ability to think and act, and to be reasonable. We want them to do their jobs adequately. Being sleep deprived and overworked is no way to do that.