House of Commons photoWon his last election, in 2025, with 65% of the vote.
Canadian Heritage September 29th, 2017
Madam Speaker, this deal with Netflix speaks volumes to the strength of the creative sector here in Canada. This is a global player that for the first time has invested outside the United States, and it chose Canada. Canadians love Netflix. Netflix loves the Canadian creative sector. This is a win-win for Canada. It is a win-win for consumers. It is a win-win for our creators. This is a good news story.
Canadian Heritage September 29th, 2017
Madam Speaker, our government is committed to growing our creative industries. The deal with Netflix is part and parcel of that. It is a huge, huge vote of confidence by a global player, for the first time ever, to make an investment. It is a vote of confidence in the strength of our Canadian creators. This is a good news story: $500 million over five years. We are world leaders, and this has now been recognized by a global player. Nothing but good news here.
Canadian Heritage September 29th, 2017
Madam Speaker, our creators and artists work every day to tell unique stories about who we are. Our government always stands up for Canadian artists.
What is more, we have already invested $1.9 million in arts and culture. We reinvested in the CMF to protect our productions, and we invested $125 million to ensure that our stories are shared with the world. We believe in our artists, and we are adapting our system to the digital age.
PEI International Shellfish Festival September 29th, 2017
Madam Speaker, the Prince Edward lsland Fishermen's Association has recently set a new world record, thanks to a beloved crustacean. We now own the title of the world's longest lobster roll, again.
For years there has been a friendly rivalry between Charlottetown and Shediac, New Brunswick. In July, Shediac set the benchmark. Their glory, I am pleased to report, was short-lived. Two weeks ago, at the PEl International Shellfish Festival, a whopping 61-metre-long savoury seafood sandwich was born.
Fifteen volunteers spent the night baking the massive baguette, and more than 100 more volunteers delicately and carefully stuffed it with 12 jars of mayonnaise and 60 kilograms of lobster meat. Festival-goers chowed down on the historic lobster roll, with funds going to the Canadian Cancer Society, but not before the official measurement, after which association president Bobby Jenkins summed it up quite nicely when he proclaimed, “Take that, Shediac!”
Canadian Heritage September 28th, 2017
Mr. Speaker, our commitment to Canada's creative industries is clear. This agreement, the first of its kind, includes an investment of at least $500 million, as the member said, in original Canadian productions in both official languages.
This investment will create jobs and opportunities for creators and producers so that they can share their content with the rest of the country and around the world. The investments planned for Creative Canada will help us ensure that our creative industries are reliable—
Canadian Heritage September 22nd, 2017
Mr. Speaker, essentially, what we want is to make sure that our artists have the support they need.
That is what our government is doing. We have allocated $22 million to Telefilm Canada, $13.5 million to the National Film Board, and $550 million to the Canada Council for the Arts. Those are tangible actions that support our artists without further taxing the middle class.
Government Appointments September 22nd, 2017
Mr. Speaker, I want to congratulate my colleague on his new role as official languages critic.
Our two official languages are at the heart of Canada's history and identity. They are a priority for us. With regard to appointments, our government is committed to a process that is rigorous, open, and transparent, and to finding the best candidate for each position.
The role of Commissioner of Official Languages is very important. We are confident that the nominee will have all the required qualifications.
Official Languages September 18th, 2017
Mr. Speaker, the vitality of official language minority communities and the promotion of bilingualism are two very important issues. By holding broad consultations from coast to coast in 2016 and drafting a new action plan for 2018, our government is stepping up and showing strong leadership with respect to promoting official languages.
For the Government of Canada our official languages are a priority. We are currently developing a new pan-governmental action plan for official languages that will provide a framework for the Government of Canada's action in a number of areas to further advance the vitality of minority communities and the use of both official languages across the country.
I would like to thank the member for Drummond for his remarks. Our government will continue to work with all members of Parliament to promote and protect our two official languages.
Official Languages September 18th, 2017
Mr. Speaker, our government is focused on the future and especially the future of our official language minority communities. The primary objective of the Prime Minister's cross-country tour was to connect with people and listen to what they had to say. The Government of Canada stands with all Canadians.
Our government is proud of the concrete actions taken since the fall of 2015 that will have positive impacts for official language minority communities and for the use of both of our official languages across the country. For example, through the 2017 budget, our government is providing $80 million over 10 years to support the construction of community educational infrastructure in official language minority communities. This is because we are committed to maintaining and supporting the vitality of our official language minority communities by supporting infrastructure projects such as school day care centres, school community centres, or cultural centres in collaboration with provinces and territories.
We also reinstated the long form census, increased funding for CBC/Radio-Canada, and reinvested in the Canada Council for the Arts. We modernized the court challenges program, implemented measures to ensure the appointment of bilingual judges to the Supreme Court, and launched the review of the regulations governing bilingual federal services. We reopened the francophone component of the Collège militaire royal de Saint-Jean, and supported the francophone heritage, culture and tourism corridor of the Réseau de développement économique et de l'employabilité.
When it comes to immigration, last March, we held the first intergovernmental forum to get the provinces and territories involved in francophone immigration issues, and we made significant improvements to our immigration system to increase francophone immigration.
From June to December of 2016, we held 22 round table discussions on official languages across the country. They were open to the media and six of them were broadcast live online. Approximately 6,300 people responded to our online questionnaire. This demonstrates Canadians' strong interest in the future of our two official languages. We are now developing a new multi-year action plan for official languages to support English- and French-speaking minorities and to promote the use of our two official languages from coast to coast.
I would like to assure the member for Drummond that the Prime Minister of Canada is the number one champion of official languages in Canada. Under his leadership, our government is working to give both official languages their rightful place across the country.
Questions on the Order Paper September 18th, 2017
Mr. Speaker, with regard to (a) to (d), the program includes an optional fun and hands-on educational workshop, offered by Junior Achievement, JA, Ottawa. The NCC provided JA Ottawa $20,000 to develop and implement this workshop for program participants. The NCC also made promotional signs at a cost of $740.
The requested information is not readily available in the National Capital Commission’s tracking systems. Extensive manual research and analyses would be necessary to provide further details. This operation cannot be completed within the allotted time frame.
With regard to (e), the concluding date for the pilot project this year is September 3.