House of Commons photoWon his last election, in 2025, with 60% of the vote.
The Environment April 18th, 2016
Mr. Speaker, the MP for Steveston—Richmond East wants to shut down the port of Vancouver and have it subject to an environmental assessment, the same environmental process that has tied up the Pacific LNG project in more and more red tape and has put the creation of thousands of well-paying jobs on hold.
How many more jobs are the Liberals willing to kill before they start approving the projects that Canadians depend on for their livelihoods?
Quesnel Community Foundation Awards April 18th, 2016
Mr. Speaker, as the member of Parliament for Cariboo-—Prince George, I have the honour of hearing about organizations in my riding that are truly remarkable.
I would like to say a big congratulations to the 15 recipients of the 2016 Quesnel Community Foundation Awards: the Alex Fraser Park Society, Baker Creek Gymkhana Club, Cariboo Hoofbeats Assisted Activity Program Society, Gavin Lake Forest Education Society, Island Mountain Arts, Lightning Creek Ski Club, Old Age Pensioners Organization Golden Center, Q City Singers, Quesnel Barrel Racers, Quesnel Curling Club, Quesnel Partnership for Student Nutrition, Quesnel Search & Rescue Society, Quesnel SPCA, Quesnel Technics Gymnastics Club, and the Quesnel Youth Association.
I would like to extend a big thanks to all of the people involved. The time and effort they give is an inspiration to others and makes our communities a better place to live.
A huge thanks and congratulations from Ottawa to Quesnel.
Natural Resources April 13th, 2016
Mr. Speaker, the evidence is that there are hundreds of thousands of jobs lost right now and hanging in the balance.
The Pacific Northwest LNG project would be the biggest private sector investment in British Columbia history. Billions in investment and thousands of well-paying jobs are hanging in the balance, yet the only thing the Minister of Environment will approve is a decision to delay the decision.
How can we expect the Liberals to be impartial when the Prime Minister's own principal secretary said he wants to shut down oil and gas development?
Situation in Indigenous Communities April 12th, 2016
Mr. Speaker, I want to thank our hon. colleague from across the way for his heartfelt speech and also apologize for the losses that he and his family and his communities have gone through.
We have heard a lot of passionate discussion tonight. My question for my hon. colleague is this. Does he feel that we are at a point where pride can be swallowed, where blame can be put aside, and that an all-party group—a special committee, or whatever the name is—can be formed so that together we can solve these issues and work together for solutions?
Situation in Indigenous Communities April 12th, 2016
Mr. Speaker, I will join my hon. colleague in imploring the government to invest more immediately.
One of the reasons I tabled my Bill C-211 is to look at a national framework to deal with PTSD for first responders and veterans, because mental health issues affect all Canadians. We need to have a national strategy. In putting forth that bill I hope to not only help those who run toward danger when others run away from it, but to have this discussion so that we can serve all Canadians and build a national framework so that we can stop this incredibly horrendous epidemic.
Situation in Indigenous Communities April 12th, 2016
Mr. Speaker, I apologize for the emotion.
We can leave a mark and we can leave a legacy. We can do better. Regardless of political stripe or background or social background—it does not matter whose name is on it and what we are doing—we need to get together. We need to get around a table and work together to find solutions. There is time for debate and there is time for arguing. There is time for us to hold the government accountable, but today we are faced with an emergency not just in Attawapiskat but across our nation. Today we need to talk. Although I used speaking notes, we need to stop using the speaking notes and speak from the heart. We need to talk about solutions, final solutions, and implement those solutions together so that we do not lose another life.
Situation in Indigenous Communities April 12th, 2016
Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague from Kitchener—Conestoga for sharing his time with me.
Mr. Speaker, I hope you will grant me a little leeway in the time, for I feel this might be a tough speech for me to get through in the allotted 10 minutes. I also want to thank our colleague from Timmins—James Bay for bringing us together tonight, for unifying us in this important debate.
It is with a heavy heart that I rise to speak to tonight's discussion on the state of emergency declared this weekend in response to the high number of suicide attempts in Attawapiskat First Nation in northern Ontario. The state of emergency was declared by Attawapiskat's chief and council on Saturday night after the community's 11th suicide attempt in April alone. This comes after 28 suicide attempts last month and 100 suicide attempts since September, and the several hundred attempts that have come in recent years.
This is a reality that many ordinary Canadians simply cannot begin to grapple with. The living conditions are of such extreme poverty, with people not knowing if they will have shelter or food to put on the table or in the fridge. Words cannot properly express these deplorable conditions, which no human being should have to suffer through—conditions that oftentimes lag behind many of those in this country in terms of employment, education, safe drinking water, access to housing, and the infrastructure that we as Canadians often take for granted. This is a community that has dealt with more than its fair share of suffering. My heart goes out to this community, and our thoughts and prayers are with the people there.
However, words simply are not enough. Only immediate action will stop another unnecessary loss of life. Sending in a few additional health workers and a minister to pay a visit is a great start, but it is not enough, and we can do better. It is a temporary solution for a very complex issue. We are here tonight to call on the government to quickly provide immediate needs in Attawapiskat. Moreover, we are here to offer our help and, more importantly, to develop a long-term prevention strategy.
On March 8, 2016, we asked the House of Commons aboriginal affairs committee to study the staggering rates of suicide among Canada's indigenous peoples. Both Liberal and NDP members of the committee disagreed and instead chose to study general health issues in one specific community.
Studies have indicated suicide and self-inflicted injuries are among the primary causes of death among first nations, Métis, and Inuit people. In fact, Statistics Canada reported in January that more than one in five off-reserve first nations, Métis, and Inuit adults reported having suicidal thoughts at some point in their lives.
This is a subject close to my heart, as for a time I worked with at-risk youth and at-risk adults. I worked in their first nations communities at a time when fear paralyzed the discussion for fear it would only get worse, at a time when medication was the only preferred method of dealing with the issues. I know first-hand the experience of the importance of the availability of services such as counselling and mental-health support for those at risk or those silently suffering.
We need action to provide resources now. We need action to provide training for our communities, for our families, and for our schools so we do not lose another life. We need to break the stigma where, if people say they are hurting and in need of help, they are not seen as weak. We need to be better, all of us, because this can mean the difference between life and death. I have sat with teenagers who felt that their only way out was death. I have sat with families grieving because they had missed the signs; we could not reach their son or daughter to save him or her. I have missed the signs. Today, so many years later, I still bear the guilt—if only. Could I do more? What did I miss?
I have a quote from Attawapiskat First Nation Chief Bruce Shisheesh:
We are trying to be positive here, but at the same time we are emotionally drained. Our staff is breaking down emotionally, I’m talking about counsellors.
I’m homeless, leading my own community, I sleep on a couch. How would you feel if you were leading Attawapiskat and you didn’t have a home?
More needs to be done. Just overnight, we have learned that another 13 youth in Attawapiskat were part of a suicide pact. As a father of four, I find this truly heartbreaking. Kids should not have to grow up in poverty, and they should not have to feel that the only choice they have is life or death. They should not have to grow up in an environment where addiction, depression, and suicide are the norm.
Outlined in the Liberal budget 2016 is this:
To ensure that investments reflect the needs of Canadians and Canadian communities, the Government of Canada will consult with stakeholders in the coming months to determine where future investments in social infrastructure should be made.
We have a state of emergency declared. We have a first nations chief trying to lead from a couch. I am not sure what further consultations need to be done to demonstrate that this community and others facing the same dilemma are in dire need of resources. Do we have to lose another life? Do we have to have another La Loche?
Budget 2016 shows us that the Liberal government has no plan to ensure investments are reaching those who are in need and who need it the most. There is no plan to help first nations build economic opportunities on reserve, the most reliable solution for addressing the chronic poverty that leads to such tragedies.
While I commend the Liberal government on setting aside $8.4 billion to deal with aboriginal issues, this money is spread out over five years. We are only elected for four years. First nations need funding certainty. They need a budget that sets a plan for the next year, even for the next four years. A plan for year five, which the government does not have a mandate for, is ludicrous. It just goes to show that the Liberals have no idea where or how to get the money that these communities need the most.
The Minister of Health said in this House yesterday, “It is these funds that would actually restore hope to communities”.
Hope is not enough. A state of emergency means governments need to implement a course of action to address the emergency, and unfortunately, hope is not tangible. A plan is tangible; actions are tangible; both of which we have yet to see.
We need a national strategy that deals with the immediate emergency, one that looks at how we as a nation deal with current mental health issues affecting all Canadians.
We sit here tonight because an emergency debate was called, and it involves a community that needs help. A crisis likes this opens our eyes to the fact that we still have so much to learn. After all these years, we have so much to learn. Sadly, it takes a crisis to bring us all together, as citizens, as community members, and for those of us sitting in this House, as parliamentarians.
I think I speak for all of my colleagues when I say we took this job as a member of Parliament with the hope of leaving behind a better country, a better Canada for the next generation, a better Canada for all. First nations communities deserve the same level of services that the rest of Canadians have.
Sometimes partisan politics need to be put aside and members need to come together to find solutions to prevent another unnecessary loss of life, to give a voice to those who feel they are not being heard, to give every Canadian equal opportunity to succeed, and give every Canadian the resources to lead healthy lives, and if faced with the unimaginable, that we never miss those signs.
Situation in Indigenous Communities April 12th, 2016
Mr. Speaker, we are all gathered here today because of a state of emergency and we all need to step away from our speaking points for a moment. We have two communities that are facing difficult times in the ridings of our hon. colleague from La Loche and our hon. colleague from Timmins—James Bay. The communities are facing grievous emergencies. It has been two months since the incident in La Loche and it is still waiting for services.
Let us step away from our speaking points. I know that both ministers have great passion for this file, there is no two ways about it, and I commend them for that. However, as leaders within our communities, as leaders within our nation, as leaders in the House, let us step away from our speaking points and talk about what we are going to do for these two communities that are facing emergencies today. I implore the Minister of Indigenous and Northern Affairs and the Minister of Health to please tell us what we can do to help now.
The Budget April 12th, 2016
Mr. Speaker, the government is throwing around words, saying that it has followed through with its promises. What we see is a string of broken promises. It misled Canadians during its campaign by saying that it had a plan.
The Liberals like to point out the promises they think they have followed through on, but going through their budget, some key areas are missing, some of the things that resonate for Canadians from coast to coast to coast. One is that the government campaigned on a promise to invest $3 billion over the next four years to deliver more and better home care services for all Canadians, palliative care for all Canadians who are facing terminal illnesses and challenges within their end of days and, indeed, some of our seniors.
Is this something that was merely overlooked, or is this not important for the government?
The Budget April 12th, 2016
Mr. Speaker, the Liberals campaigned on a number of promises that have been broken over the last six months. Could my colleague tell me if they misled Canadians or if they simply do not have a plan?