House of Commons photoLost his last election, in 2019, with 34% of the vote.
Housing May 8th, 2018
Mr. Speaker, the facility that is being constructed at Lacolle is to ensure the proper handling of people who need that kind of protection, according to Canadian law. However, the needs of Canadians are extremely important to this government, wherever they may be across the country, including in northern Canada.
Our job as members of Parliament is to make sure that every Canadian shares in the wealth and prosperity of this country, including those in the north.
Public Safety May 8th, 2018
Mr. Speaker, I am very proud of Brenda Lucki as the 24th commissioner of the RCMP. She has 32 years of distinguished service in the force, all across Canada and indeed around the world. She will be an exceptional leader for the RCMP. She is the best person for the job, and she just happens to be a woman.
Public Safety May 7th, 2018
Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for Humber River—Black Creek for her long-standing advocacy for RCMP members who have faced harassment in the workplace.
As outlined in the mandate letter we released today, preventing harassment will be a major focus of the new commissioner, as will strengthening relationships with indigenous people and modernizing governance. Of course, priority number one is always public safety.
I look forward to commissioner Lucki's first appearance at a standing committee of the House of Commons later this afternoon.
Public Transportation May 4th, 2018
Mr. Speaker, the hon. member knows of course that the decision to cancel the Saskatchewan Transportation Company and to eliminate that service across Saskatchewan was a decision taken by the provincial government.
The federal government has infrastructure programming available to support transit services and facilities. The Government of Canada does not actually operate the bus system, but the Government of Canada can invest in the physical assets that are required to support the bus system. There would need to be a proponent in Saskatchewan willing to bring forward that proposition.
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship May 4th, 2018
Mr. Speaker, we have taken a broader approach. We have embedded these issues with respect to human trafficking in a broad range of federal government policies at the G7, but beyond the G7. Indeed, in the last budget is one very useful initiative that has been asked for, for a very long time, by a variety of women's organizations. It is the establishment of a national hotline for dealing with human trafficking. We are proceeding step by step on an effective plan to deal with human trafficking, and it is proving to be effective.
The Environment May 4th, 2018
Mr. Speaker, jeepers, he missed the speech too. It specifically dealt with carbon capture and sequestration. I am pleased to tell him that I was the minister in the Government of Canada, 20 years ago, who put the initial funding into carbon capture and sequestration in Saskatchewan.
The Environment May 4th, 2018
Mr. Speaker, I think the hon. gentleman missed my speech last year, where I described some of these issues in considerable detail before the Canadian Club in a meeting in Regina. The fact of the matter is that the Province of Saskatchewan has the full option to design a carbon pricing system of its own, including the exemption of farm fuel, including the exemption of small oil and gas companies, if it would choose to do so. If it does not choose to do so, the fallback position will come into effect, but the first right—
Public Safety May 3rd, 2018
Mr. Speaker, that line of reasoning is quite simply Conservative propaganda. The fact of the matter is that we are changing the wording of the legislation to make it more effective, to put in place an offence that is more familiar within our criminal justice system and has a greater likelihood of success in terms of proving the offence and getting a conviction. We want success on that front, not just bafflegab.
Public Safety May 3rd, 2018
Mr. Speaker, I think the hon. gentleman misunderstands the effect of the legislation.
What is in the existing law is a provision that is virtually impossible to enforce. What we have done is propose wording that would change that to more familiar criminal procedures that have a greater likelihood of success in stopping the very conduct he complains about.
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship May 3rd, 2018
Mr. Speaker, the issue of human trafficking is one that we have raised not only with the G7, but also in the context of the policies of the Government of Canada in relation to violence against women, both domestically and internationally.
In broadening out the scope of this very serious topic, it is not only focused upon trafficking, which is in itself serious, but a broad range of issues, which is the topic or the series of topics being addressed by the gender equality advisory council.