Rachel Blaney

[Families, Children and Social Development, November 21st, 2017]

Mr. Speaker, Campaign 2000's latest report has confirmed, yet again, staggering rates of poverty for indigenous children, both on and off reserve. The message from today's parliamentary budget officer's report is equally clear.

If the Liberals are really serious about addressing child poverty, they need an action plan that includes concrete targets and a timeline to meet them. If two whole years in office were not enough for the government to act, can the Liberals tell us how much longer they are going to ask these children to wait?

[Budget Implementation Act, 2017, No. 2, November 8th, 2017]

Mr. Speaker, recently in my riding, I had the wonderful opportunity to meet with several doctors. As the representative of North Island—Powell River, a huge challenge for us is attracting health care professionals to the region. The doctors talked about their concerns on the impacts of the small business tax to these types of communities. One thing that is really important for the House and the Prime Minister to hear is how hurt these doctors were by the comments the Prime Minister made about rich doctors and how much of a ramification that had on their offices. People have gone into their offices to chastise them for this.

What I notice is missing from the bill has nothing to do with tax fairness across the board. I see a focus on small business and not at the significant tax loopholes that the very wealthy use every day to not pay their fair share. What are the member's thoughts on this specific issue and how those impacts are meaningful in communities like I represent?

[Questions on the Order Paper, November 8th, 2017]

With regard to accessing the Guaranteed Income Supplement (GIS) when a couple may be considered to be living apart for reasons beyond their control and when the couple didn’t qualify together at the married rate: (a) could couples qualify for GIS benefits at the individual rate if living apart for reasons beyond their control before January, 2017; (b) why did the 1989 policy directive allow for couples to qualify for GIS based on individual income if it wasn’t the intent of the Old Age Security Act; (c) did the 1989 policy directive continue from 1989 to January, 2017; (d) what prompted the government to clarify its position; (e) was the government aware that this would affect seniors; (f) how many times has this topic been discussed with the government and has the question been raised with the Minister or Deputy Minister and, if so, has the Minister provided a response and, if so, what was the response; (g) has there been any briefing with detailed information on the matter and for every briefing document or docket prepared, what is (i) the date, (ii) the title and subject matter, (iii) the department’s internal tracking number; (h) has the government done any studies on the effect of this clarification and, (i) if not, why not, (ii) if so, how many studies have been conducted and which one is the latest, (iii) what are the conclusions and recommendations of these studies; (i) was a gender-based analysis completed to assess how many women would be impacted by this clarification; (j) how many seniors have been refused GIS following these clarifications in 2017; and (k) how many seniors have been grandfathered in since 2017 and will continue to receive their entitlement as per the previous rules and operational policy?

[Petitions, November 8th, 2017]

Mr. Speaker, today I would like to table a petition on the implementation of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. This is a very important issue and priority for the people of North Island—Powell River. I am honoured to represent such a large and diverse indigenous population.

It should come as no surprise that Bill C-262 has received a lot of consideration and support. I am proud to see so many people actively supporting the implementation of UNDRIP and the principles of reconciliation.

[Housing, November 7th, 2017]

Mr. Speaker, over 235,000 people are without a home in our country. In Canada, housing should be a right. Liberals like to talk about the right to housing but are unwilling to enshrine it in law. Maybe this explains why not a single Liberal spoke on my bill, Bill C-325, during its second hour of debate.

Are the Liberals keeping silent because they are just too ashamed to speak against the human right to housing?

[Ethics, November 6th, 2017]

Mr. Speaker, it did not take long for the Liberals to start acting like Liberals, placing wealthy friends ahead of everyday Canadians.

In March of this year, the Liberals voted in favour of the NDP's motion calling on the government to take action to tackle tax haven, including renegotiating tax treaties that let companies repatriate profits from tax havens to Canada tax free. Here is a spoiler alert; they have not done any of it yet.

Did the Prime Minister refuse to act on tax havens to help his wealthy friends?

[Canadian Bill of Rights, November 3rd, 2017]

Mr. Speaker, I fundamentally believe in the right to housing. When over 235,000 people are without homes in Canada, we know that housing must be a human right. It is a true pleasure to speak on the right to housing. I wish we could do it more often. As the housing crisis continues, Canadians are increasingly looking to us to deliver solutions. My bill would do this. It would amend the Canadian Bill of Rights to introduce housing as a human right.

In 1976, Canada enshrined the fundamental right to housing when the government of the day ratified the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. However, this right has never been formally incorporated into Canadian law. This bill would make it happen.

During the first hour of debate, we heard a few troubling statements from the government side regarding the right to housing. Surprisingly, in this second hour of debate, we heard absolutely nothing from a single member of the government, which I find interesting. In the first hour, the parliamentary secretary to the minister of families said, “If we read the UN report on housing, it is not simply about embracing a set of rights, it is about creating those policies..”.

Of course, we need policies, but what he does not understand is that governments come and go, policies come and go, funding comes and go, yet the need for housing is constantly there. What Canada needs is a legislative framework. My bill would ensure a level of structure that would empower people.

The parliamentary secretary also kept repeating that the right to housing was simply a slogan. I find this to be extremely troubling for a government that claims to be implementing the right to housing “through a wide range of federal, provincial, territorial, and municipal laws, policies, programs, and administrative measures.” Is the government saying that the right to housing is not a human right? It is not clear to me. The parliamentary secretary to the minister of families kept repeating, as late as yesterday at committee, that human rights are crucial in housing.

Bill C-325 is about dignity. Human rights are that, moral principles. When our fellow citizens do not have a place to sleep or to go to the bathroom, these are incredibly dehumanizing experiences. A home is more than physical space. Housing is intrinsic to the sense of security for families and the stability needed to prevent marginalization. All of us look at a home as an anchor to our community life, a retreat and a refuge. What happens to people when they do not have that is debilitating. The ramifications have been studied repeatedly, and the stress on our communities and society can attest to this.

In fact, in government consultations, the right to housing was a recurrent theme in many comments shared by experts at the round table. Stakeholders clearly spelled out the need for the legally recognized right to housing. They insisted that a national housing strategy should examine whether our laws, policies, and practices are sufficient to prevent homelessness, forced evictions, and discrimination in accessing adequate housing. They agreed on a rights-based approach to housing, and how the right to housing must be recognized and realized through laws and policies.

We have seen the Liberal government be covetous of other people's good ideas, like the bill on abandoned vessels we saw tabled recently, after the member for Nanaimo—Ladysmith's bill was not allowed to proceed. The national housing strategy is soon to be unveiled, but let us be clear: a strategy is not legislation.

Although part of me hopes that the right to housing will be featured front and centre in this strategy, the reality is that it will not be the change that makes housing a human right in Canada. A decade from now, we will still be talking about the gaps in our housing sector if we do not take a different approach. I hope the Liberal government will be brave enough to support Bill C-325.

For the government to establish a successful long-term national housing strategy, it must be done within the lens of a right to housing. This allows a more cohesive outlook beyond the physical structure, by addressing the systemic causes of housing insecurity. There are too many people living in tents or couch surfing, people with mental health issues not having a home to provide them stability, working people who cannot find a home, people living in unsafe conditions, and seniors making decisions between food, medication, and housing.

The housing crisis in Canada requires leadership now. The lack of adequate and affordable housing is troubling, and Canadians deserve much better.

[Privacy, November 3rd, 2017]

Mr. Speaker, this week the Privacy Commissioner highlighted that the lack of heavy fines and legal penalties for privacy breaches means companies holding personal information on Canadians are unlikely to do everything they can to make sure that the data stays safe. The NDP has long advocated for stiffer penalties and to give the Privacy Commissioner actual teeth.

As more and more information is in the cloud, we need to put proper legal protections in place. Will this government commit to imposing severe fines on companies that fail to protect consumers' private information?

[Access to Information, November 3rd, 2017]

Mr. Speaker, the minister keeps repeating that his government is the first in 30 years to make improvements to access to information. However, the Information Commissioner was very clear when she said the Liberals' Bill C-58 is regressive and that the status quo would be better than what the Liberals are proposing, meaning that Stephen Harper's government was more open and accountable than the current government.

Canadians were promised more accountability and transparency. Will the government work with us and help themselves by actually keeping an election promise?

[Questions Passed as Orders for Returns, November 1st, 2017]

With regard to trapped wild finfish in fish farms on the BC coast: (a) has the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) observed an increase in trapped fish in pens and, if so, has DFO (i) quantified this increase, (ii) determined this increase to be problematic, (iii) recommended measures, (iv) implemented measures and, if so, what are they and what is the status of these recommendations; (b) what are the most, commonly identified trapped fish; (c) what is the protocol for the release of trapped fish; (d) is DFO aware of wild fish dying in pens and, if so, (i) on how many occasion, (ii) what species, (iii) what caused the fish to die; (e) is DFO aware of wild fish being disposed in a land dump and, if so, (i) on how many occasion, (ii) what species; (f) when was DFO first made aware of trapped wild fish; (g) did DFO know at the time of granting licenses that trapped wild fish could be a risk; (h) was there ever a policy directive or regulation changes to mitigate trapped fish; (i) what studies have been undertaken to determine the chain reaction of trapped fin fish on the surrounding ecosystem (i) by DFO, (ii) under contract by DFO, (iii) by independent researcher; (j) what are the conclusions and recommendations of the studies in (i); (k) what are the recommendations the government made with respect to the use and the management of trapped fin fish; (l) have the recommendations in (k) been followed or are there any failures in the implementation of these recommendations; (m) why has DFO not studied the phenomenon of fish farms acting as major fish attractant; (n) how did DFO make the determination that wild fish are minimally preyed upon by farmed fish; (o) how does DFO make the determination that wild fish are minimally preyed upon by farmed fish; (p) are trapped fish susceptible to spread viruses and parasites and, if so (i) how has DFO determined, (ii) have independent researchers confirmed DFO findings, (iii) what are the conclusions and recommendations of these studies, (iv) what are the recommendations the government made with respect to the use and the management of this resource, (v) have these recommendations been followed or are there any failures in the implementation of these recommendations; (q) is the government providing measures aimed at preventing trapped fish; (r) since 2009, has there been an increase in monitoring made by DFO; (s) has DFO identify any (i) monitoring gaps within the regulations, (ii) license conditions violation, (iii) operational policies violation; (t) has DFO officials seen the video of trapped wild fish produced by the Sea Shepherd and, if so, (i) what was DFO recommendation, (ii) has DFO investigated and, if not, why not, (iii) what action were undertaken by DFO, (iv) how many times has this topic been discussed with the government and has the question been raised with the Minister or Deputy Minister and, if so, has the Minister provided a response and, if so, what was it; (u) has there been any briefing with detailed information on the matter and for every briefing document or docket prepared, what was (i) the date, (ii) the title and subject matter, (iii) the department’s internal tracking number; and (v) how many calls has DFO received in regard to trapped wild fish and (i) has this number increased in the last ten years, (ii) what is the follow up associated calls, (iii) how many investigations have occurred in respect to these calls?