Rob Oliphant

[Bessborough School Anniversary, April 10th, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, today I congratulate the community at Bessborough Drive Elementary and Middle School on its 100th anniversary. With its opening in December 1923, Bessborough became the first public school in Leaside, and even served as the community’s town hall.

For a century, Bessborough public school has been a place of academic excellence, committed to nurturing the minds of generations past, present and future. Through my regular conversations with students, parents and faculty, it is abundantly clear that Bessborough is more than an institution. It holds a special place in the hearts of many, with a legacy of familial ties spanning generations, from grandparents and parents to today’s students, all proudly waving the Bessborough flag.

On this great occasion, I extend my deep appreciation to the dedicated faculty, volunteers and students who have contributed to the enduring legacy of Bessborough public school. May this milestone inspire continued excellence for generations to come.

[Questions on the Order Paper, April 8th, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, the following reflects a consolidated response approved on behalf of Global Affairs Canada ministers.

In response to parts (a) to (i) of the question, given its profile, Global Affairs Canada, or GAC, takes a proactive approach and employs a variety of security monitoring measures to detect and address potential risks. In collaboration with federal cybersecurity partners, GAC has a robust cybersecurity infrastructure and works closely with partners, including the United States and other close allies, to share information to address potential threats. The Canadian Centre for Cyber Security and the federal cybersecurity community address issues as quickly as possible.

In January 2024, Global Affairs Canada discovered malicious cyber-activity on its network, as well as indications of a data breach. While investigations are still ongoing, early results suggest that many Global Affairs Canada users, including employees, may have been affected. A first message to all Global Affairs Canada employees was sent on January 24, 2024. Potentially affected individual users were advised from January 27 to 28, 2024, following forensics work by GAC and cybersecurity partners. GAC employees have been contacted directly by the department’s privacy team to share initial results and mitigation measures.

No further details can be provided at this time with respect to specific cybersecurity incidents, due to operational security considerations.

[Questions on the Order Paper, April 8th, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, the following reflects a consolidated response approved on behalf of Global Affairs Canada ministers.

Global Affairs Canada is unable to provide additional information regarding this case as it is a matter of on-going legal proceedings.

[Canada—Ukraine Relations, March 20th, 2024]

Madam Chair, I am not going to get into a recitation of everything that Canada has done, such as the military support and the training, but when I travel the world, believe me, we are thanked every day for the contributions we have done. There is no way Ukraine would have been able to withstand the massive assault it did from Russia without the training that Canada provided to 30,000 soldiers. I hear that every day.

Have we fallen short? Absolutely we can do more, but every country in the world is facing a similar situation. We are looking for armaments that are not always available. We are looking for weapons that are not always available. The ammunition needs to match the artillery Ukraine has, and it is not always available. This is not an easy task. Canada is working lockstep with our NATO allies and others to continue this fight.

We never said this was easy. I have been in opposition. It is very easy to do anything one wants in opposition and say anything. We are doing it day by day. We are working with the Ukrainian government, with the Ukrainian embassy here and with the tremendous ambassador, and we are finding ways to do that.

[Canada—Ukraine Relations, March 20th, 2024]

Madam Chair, that question is key in my mind. As someone who lived in Canada's north for six years, I am very aware of the strategic importance of Canada's Arctic, as well as the fragility of Canada's Arctic and the people who inhabit it.

I had not been to Finland until last year, but I made three trips to Finland in the last year and two trips to Sweden. Part of that was to engage with those northern countries. The welcoming of those countries into NATO has been absolutely critical. It changes the nature of our alliance. It adds more weight to the northern questions, to the near north, to the near Arctic, as well as the Arctic countries. Those voices at the table are very valuable for Canada. Of course, we were the first country to acknowledge and approve their accession into NATO. We did that not only because it is good for them and their security, but it is good for Canada and our security. Absolutely, we have to have them.

My colleague from Orleans, the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of National Defence, will be speaking after me. I am sure she will have an understanding of our restructuring, refunding and rebuilding of Canada's defence capacity in the north, both with NORAD and, I am hoping, with NATO as well, and for them to understand that our collective security resides on that front as well, not just in eastern Europe.

[Canada—Ukraine Relations, March 20th, 2024]

Madam Chair, I should say that I am sharing my time with the member for Orléans.

It is a real privilege tonight to be a part of this debate. I was hoping, as I prepared for it, that it would be a time where we, from all parts of the House, reflected on the importance of engaging with Ukraine and for Ukraine and of standing firm with Ukraine, leaving some of the other parts aside for tonight.

It is no secret that I travel the world a lot. The question of Ukraine and Canada's support for Ukraine comes up often, whether I am in the global south, eastern Europe, western Europe or other parts of the world. I often talk about the fact that it is a surprise to people how much Canada and Canadians are concerned about Ukraine. I think that is because, when they look at Canada, they think we are nice people, but they do not always get the fact that we are committed every day to the values and purposes that we want to uphold.

When it comes to Ukraine, there are three factors, I think, at least in my head. One is that we are affronted intellectually at Russia's aggression, its inhumane activity and its lack of understanding of the sovereignty of another country and the international rules-based order. Russia was a G8 member. It is now out of that group, but it is a permanent member of the Security Council and we expect more from it. We have seen the disastrous effects of the war, Russia's illegal invasion of Ukraine. It affects us and affronts us intellectually, but it is more than that. It is also in our hearts.

The other part of this is at the level of our hearts. As has been said in the House, we all know Ukrainians. If we are not of Ukrainian background ourselves, we have friends and family who are deeply affected personally by this conflict and we want to share with them, at a very emotional level, the disaster that is confronting their country of origin.

It is also a strategic issue. The reality is that, when many people look at the globe, they see Moscow over here and Ottawa over here, and they think we are very far away. Strategically, if we look at the globe on our toes and look down, we can see that we share a maritime border with Russia in the Arctic, which is already a fragile area. I am not saying that we are preparing for Russia to invade us at any time, but we are sensitive to the strategic importance of Canada maintaining its sovereignty. When we see an affront to the sovereignty of another country, we react.

It is intellectual, it is our hearts and it is also about Canadian sovereignty, so we are engaged. Tonight, we will say, once again, that we are committed not just yesterday, not just today, but also tomorrow. We will see this war through until the end. We will only stop when we come to peace, and that peace will only come when it is done on Ukraine's terms. That is our commitment and we will continue to do that.

I want to commend the previous Conservative government, which very early on, with the illegal invasion of Crimea, took steps to engage in that fight and set the stage, which we were then able, when we formed government in 2015, to continue. We began by training troops to get Ukraine ready because we knew that it was not the end of the story. The story was still continuing. As we progressed through those years, we also began to look at Ukrainian reform to help Ukraine get ready to be a part of the European Union and to become a part of NATO, which Canada has always been committed to. Ukraine is a country that we want to have as an ally, fit and ready to be a part of the groups that we are a part of, because our security is related to their security.

With the illegal invasion two years ago of Russia into Ukraine, we saw the disaster that happened. I would commend the documentary film 20 Days in Mariupol to everyone in this place to see the disaster that the Russian troops, Putin's troops, brought onto the innocent people of Ukraine. That is why we have been awakened to this disaster, which has been caused by Putin's aggression and his failure to understand their sovereignty.

We have continued for two years, but not perfectly. I am very clear that our operations have not been perfectly done, but we are a leader among nations in the world in our support for Ukraine financially with sovereign loans, with engagement and with military equipment. We are continuing to support them and to listen to them in everything that they are asking us to do. That is acknowledged daily by Ukrainian politicians, by members of Parliament and by the government itself.

Now we get to tonight's take-note debate looking at the Canada-Ukraine strategic security partnership. This is a 10-year commitment, starting with over $3 billion this year, on engaging the readiness, adaptability and resilience of Ukraine to fight for itself. It is a political document. It is military document. It is a security document. It is about co-operation and engagement. It shows our commitment to Ukraine, and we will continue to do that.

I look forward to questions. I feel like I am just starting.

[Foreign Affairs, March 19th, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, I want to begin by saying that yesterday, for me, was a day I was very proud to be a parliamentarian. In the House, four out of five parties came together to find a workable solution, to find a Canadian position that Canadians could be comfortable with. We will continue to advocate for a ceasefire. We will continue to not sell arms, as we have promised, and we will continue to make sure that we bring hostages back to where they belong: in their homes.

I invite the Conservatives to be as engaged in this as we are.

[Ilyas Mullabhai, March 19th, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, the community of Don Valley West is deeply saddened by the loss of Ilyas Mullabhai, a dear friend, valued colleague and trusted adviser.

Ilyas's unwavering commitment to advancing community-based initiatives is well recognized. He was instrumental in assisting the Islamic Society of Toronto in establishing a new religious centre and community space that will provide a safe and inclusive environment for Muslims in our community.

I had the pleasure to collaborate closely with Ilyas, particularly on our joint advocacy for youth initiatives. Our work together on the Canada summer jobs program at Masjid Darus Salam has helped a generation of young people acquire valuable skills, earn fair wages and prepare for post-secondary education.

Brother Ilyas was committed to serving others. That commitment was rooted in his belief in humanity and in his faith. I extend my condolences to his son Arshad and his family. He will be missed.

[Alan Redway and John Godfrey, February 29th, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, the people of Don Valley West are mourning the recent loss of two giants, the Hon. Alan Redway and the Hon. John Godfrey. As parliamentarians and citizens, they have left indelible marks. They were models of graciousness, intelligence and passion.

Alan Redway distinguished himself as mayor of East York and as a Conservative member of Parliament. A true red Tory, he served as minister of state for housing, and, from his home in Leaside, he remained a committed advocate for food security and housing. He offered advice and support with good humour and grace, and he always encouraged me to stay true to what he called our shared values.

John Godfrey, my immediate predecessor, served the people of Don Valley West in this place for 15 years, as well as serving Canada as minister of state for infrastructure and communities.

An educator, administrator, journalist, environmentalist, husband, father and friend, his life was committed to public service.

Together, the two of them inspired me and, I think, inspired everyone in the House with their good works.

[Canada Early Learning and Child Care Act, February 29th, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, the member went through the history of many of the attempts to get child care funded at the federal government level and ensured for Canadians. The member left out an important name, Ken Dryden, who was minister at the time when we developed a robust plan for child care.

I am wondering what the member's thoughts are with respect to how that was lost when Jack Layton, the former leader of the NDP, pulled the plug on that minority government. We went to the polls and entered the deep, dark ages of the Harper government, where we had to take this time to get back to a decent child care program.