Sheri Benson

[The Budget, April 14th, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague for his speech and comments, and particularly for the emphasis he put on the importance of first nations people in Canada—the first people of Canada. Therefore, like many of us on this side, I am surprised that the promise and the reality between election and becoming government meant that there was a shortchange for education. Although we saw a promise during the election of $2.6 billion over four years for first nations education, post-secondary education, and skills training, what we see is a shortchange. As budgets are about choices, I am wondering why the government decided to make that choice for this budget.

[The Budget, April 14th, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, on many points the member raised, we would agree.

There are many barriers for parents to be able to access employment. Child care is not just about spaces; it is about being able to afford it. On that point, we would agree.

However, it is more than that, because it is about child care spaces. It is not an either/or situation, certainly for the folks in my riding. The single biggest barrier, regardless of whether parents can afford child care in Saskatoon West, is that spaces are not available. The single biggest barrier to being able to be employed or go to school is child care spaces.

During the election campaign, we heard a lot from the Liberals about child care spaces and that the investment was going to be immediate. In this budget, we see that there is no child care funding for this year and we are going to have to wait.

I would like to hear the member's comments on why we have to wait.

[Federal Public Sector Labour Relations Act, March 22nd, 2016]

Madam Speaker, I will be splitting my time.

As the labour critic for the New Democratic Party, it is my pleasure to rise in support of Bill C-7. However, as the labour critic, it is also my duty to rise to point out important aspects of the bill that I see are missing and need to be addressed.

Like many opportunities I have had to stand and speak to labour bills, I commend the Liberal government for moving forward, but I would ask it to move forward a bit faster, sooner, and to address issues that are missing.

The RCMP members have been prohibited from collective bargaining since 1918, and to this day remain the only police force in Canada without the benefit of a collective agreement to regulate and protect their working conditions. As we have heard in the House, 2016 is a good year for many things, and it is a good day for collective bargaining and the rights of working men and women in this country.

For our police officers working in the RCMP, the wait is finally over. Unfortunately, this group of police officers had to fight all the way to the Supreme Court to get this right, a right that their fellow officers and working men and women have had for a very long time. Like many victories, it is bittersweet, but it is a victory for these working men and women all the same.

In January 2015, a Supreme Court ruling found that the government had failed to establish permission for meaningful collective bargaining for the RCMP members that would not disrupt the stability of the police force or affect the public perceptions of its neutrality. Therefore in its ruling, it declared that the prohibition of collective bargaining for the RCMP members to be in violation of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and gave the previous government one year to modify the legislation. I feel that the previous government showed its disrespect for these workers and this decision by not moving on this, leaving little time after the election to respond. Now we find that the Liberals are looking to push the bill through before the May 16 deadline.

The Supreme Court said that the limits on collective bargaining should be acceptable, if it could be shown that those limits are reasonable, demonstratably justified, and necessary to achieve the goal of maintaining an independent and objective police force.

This, of course, brings us to today and Bill C-7, and to my point about what is missing in the bill for working men and women in the RCMP. We have heard from others who have risen to speak and support the bill, but also from my colleagues on this side of the House, of our need to point out the important things that we feel are missing from Bill C-7 and need to be addressed.

They include a number of issues that most working men and women include in their collective bargaining, have a right to be involved in, and have as rights within their workplace. We feel that the most important exclusions are issues around staffing, deployment, unfortunately harassment, and discipline. These issues have the largest impact on the health and safety of RCMP members and are central to most of the public complaints that RCMP members have made about their workplace.

It would not come as a surprise that people would know that as the labour critic and a member of the New Democratic Party, we support and have supported the collective bargaining of the RCMP members. We have always recognized workers' rights to meaningful collective bargaining, and that those issues extend beyond the issues of pay and benefits alone. Good collective bargaining and good collective agreements also include a discussion and decisions with the employer and the employees on important issues around workplace safety and health issues. These can sometimes be as important, if not more important, to employees in bargaining.

As we know from the RCMP members, and from what we know about what is going on within the police force, these are some of the most pressing issues for these particular workers. They are very much linked to their working conditions around deployment, harassment, and discipline.

Instituting a collective bargaining system—

[Housing, March 11th, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, the UN is warning of a housing crisis affecting communities across Canada, a crisis that has been ignored for far too long. In fact, the last Liberal government slashed social housing. Now, we see the Government of Saskatchewan putting homeless people on a bus to B.C.

Does the minister agree with the NDP that buying a one-ticket is not a solution, and will he commit to a social housing strategy that ends homelessness in communities across Canada?

[Indigenous Affairs, February 26th, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, thousands of indigenous children abused in residential schools have been denied justice after the government used a legal loophole against them. It has been a month since the Liberals promised urgent action. Not only has this not happened, but today we learned that the oversight committee will not investigate why the government was allowed to use a legal technicality to deny these legitimate claims.

Will the Minister of Justice now direct her officials to abandon their legal loopholes and instead start working to bring justice to these victims?

[Pink Shirt Day, February 24th, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, today, New Democrats from across the country will proudly wear pink in solidarity with victims of bullying in Canada.

The pink shirt movement was established in 2007 by two Nova Scotia teens who bought pink t-shirts to show their support for a boy who was bullied for simply wearing a pink t-shirt. Like them, we want anyone who feels lonely or desperate because they are a victim of bullying to know we support them.

OUTSaskatoon is an organization in my riding on the front lines of helping those impacted by bullying. Its vision to live in a community that values and supports people of all gender identities, expression, and sexualities provides us a way forward.

New Democrats believe the federal government has a leadership role to play in eliminating all forms of bullying. That is why we are calling on the government to take immediate steps to adopt a national anti-bullying strategy.

[Canada's Contribution to the Effort to Combat ISIL, February 22nd, 2016]

Madam Speaker, I would like to get the hon. member's comments on the fact that in the announcement and plan that the government presented around the action against ISIL, there was nothing included around domestic action, deradicalization efforts here in Canada. I am wondering if he would stand with me and ask the government to include this type of investment in helping people right here in Canada not become part of that terrible action.

[Canada's Contribution to the Effort to Combat ISIL, February 22nd, 2016]

Madam Speaker, I appreciate the government's comments about having an integrated approach, working in partnership with our allies and collaborating with them. I wholeheartedly support that.

I have been trying to get an answer to the following question, that the government has promised to sign the UN Arms Trade Treaty, yet has not done so yet. To me this is a pillar of co-operation and collaboration, working with all our partners together, but I have yet to get an answer as to why we have not signed it.

I do believe the government has said that it is taking a whole-of-government approach, so my expectation is that the parliamentary secretary should know what is going on and be able to respond to my question as to why it has not signed the Arms Trade Treaty.

[Canada's Contribution to the Effort to Combat ISIL, February 22nd, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. member for the good description of the devastation we see there, and for her comment on the course of humanitarian assistance.

Her comments about the fact that the interventions need to be integrated were important to me. One way we can protect individuals is by assisting to ensure the arms that go over there do not fall into the wrong hands.

We have heard a promise that the government will sign the UN arms trade treaty, which will help prevent the flow of arms to terrorists and insurgent groups, and protect innocent people in the region. Could the member explain why the delay in signing that treaty?

[Labour, February 19th, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives' attack on labour rights included stripping the rights of workers to refuse unsafe work, and rolling back health and safety protections for federally regulated workers.

These are fundamental labour rights that took generations to achieve. Yet, despite the Liberal election promises, the new government has failed to act.

Instead of patting themselves on the back, will the Liberals give working Canadians a straight answer today for why they are refusing to reverse these Conservative attacks on the protection of workers?