House of Commons photoWon his last election, in 2015, with 43% of the vote.
Consular Affairs April 11th, 2016
Mr. Speaker, I understand a Canadian delegation met in recent days with the Reverend Hyeon Soo Lim, who remains in prison, forced to a life sentence of hard labour in North Korea. That is just outrageous. Reports indicate that his condition is deteriorating and that time is growing short for him.
My question is simple. What are the Liberals doing to bring Reverend Lim home to his family and to his congregation?
Questions on the Order Paper March 21st, 2016
With regard to the Minister of Foreign Affairs’ stated intentions in the Ottawa Citizen on November 11, 2015, that the government needs to engage with Iran much more than before: (a) has the government been in contact with any officials from the Islamic Republic of Iran with regard to re-opening diplomatic relations with that country; (b) if the answer to (a) is affirmative, what has been the response; (c) has the government indicated an intention to re-open a Canadian mission or office in Tehran; (d) has the government done an analysis of the need to protect Canadian officials and assets in the event of a Canadian mission being re-opened in Tehran; (e) has the government decided to lift any of Canada’s current sanctions against the Islamic Republic of Iran; and (f) has the government taken any measures to impose sanctions on certain Iranian individuals and companies due to recent ballistic missile tests in Iran, as did the Obama Administration?
Citizenship Act March 10th, 2016
Madam Speaker, the hon. member has alluded to this very well. This is a policy choice that is counter to other provisions that revoke citizenship or have done so historically, including for things that are similar to or even less important than this. Therefore, let us make sure the law is on all four squares and on the best ground. I think that is a better road to go.
Citizenship Act March 10th, 2016
Madam Speaker, I am also a lawyer and I can say that it is important to have provisions to protect citizens in our charters of rights. That is also part of our bill. It is the responsibility of this Parliament to come up with a decision to better protect Canadians.
Our first priority is to protect our citizenry within the framework of reasonable laws, and this does answer that reasonable framework.
Citizenship Act March 10th, 2016
Madam Speaker, all of these would be done on a case-by-case basis. No one wants to increase the possibility of terrorism by a particular act. I am sure that would be challenged in our courts if it were to be the case.
In my time as president of Treasury Board, we dealt with many cases where citizenship was revoked. Typically the cases involved people lying on their application for citizenship, that lie being found out, and therefore their citizenship being revoked. Those were most of the cases with which I dealt.
If we can kick people out of our country for lying on their citizenship form, surely we can kick out dual nationals, those with another citizenship, who have committed a terrorist act in our country. That is our point of view.
Citizenship Act March 10th, 2016
Madam Speaker, I will be splitting my time with the hon. member for Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, who has spent a great deal of time on this debate already. I welcome his words as well.
I will start off with my 10 minutes to talk a little about my background. Hearing the remarks of the hon. member for Surrey Centre and the hon. member for Brampton West, with her intervention, they are seeming to make the bill about a general immigration bill, which is of course absolutely incorrect.
We will not take our lessons from the hon. members opposite when they get on their high horse and talk about their valid backgrounds. There is nothing wrong with that, but I was born elsewhere. My mother's mother was born in Aleppo, Syria. My father was born in Cyprus. I welcome the comments of the hon. members about their backgrounds and their histories, but on the Conservative side of the House, we have proud backgrounds and histories as well.
We have a different perspective on the bill. Just as we respect their perspective, they should respect our perspective. I do not want to hear the insinuation that somehow if members vote against this bill, they are anti-immigrant, or they do not believe that the future of our country will in great part be built on people who were born elsewhere. Those are the facts of the situation. That is my personal history. I take a bit of umbrage when I hear the other side try to corner the market on that point of view.
Therefore, I am speaking as a first generation Canadian. I am speaking about the importance of successfully integrating into Canadian society to take advantage of all that our great country has to offer. However, it does concern me that it appears that one of the first priorities of the Minister of Immigration and of the Liberal government is somehow to return the citizenship to convicted terrorists. There is no refuting the fact that the person who has the most to gain from the bill is the heinous ringleader of the Toronto 18, Zakaria Amara. Those are the facts.
We believe that there is only one class of Canadian citizens and that all citizens deserve to be protected from terrorist acts.
Therefore, it is particularly alarming to me that Bill C-6 would create an unacceptable and, frankly, ridiculous double standard. Under the proposed legislation, a convicted terrorist's citizenship rights are protected, whereas someone who commits fraud is eligible to have their citizenship revoked.
The fact remains that while the Liberals are focused on ensuring convicted terrorists can have their citizenship back, we Conservatives are instead choosing to focus on maintaining Canada's strong global reputation as one of the best places to live, a bastion of freedom with jobs, hope, and security.
Let me talk about section B of the bill. It would remove the requirement that if granted citizenship, an applicant would intend to continue to reside in Canada. I repeat this for the record. We believe new immigrants and new Canadians enrich our country. They make our Canadian experience more wholesome and more successful. The experiences and perspectives they can bring within our borders are integral to the Canadian experience.
We want newcomers, just as when I arrived on these shores as a four year old, not knowing anything about this country at that young age, relying on my parents' wisdom. Thank goodness they chose Canada as a place where they wanted to get ahead in their lives.
I know other members of our caucus and indeed of all caucuses may have shared experiences of the New World as a youngster, coming here not knowing anyone and many times not knowing the language. However, we want people to succeed. We want people to experience our freedoms, experience our safe communities across the country. It is not just about the freedom to succeed. In many cases newcomers are fleeing countries where they do not have the freedom to experience a safe community. That is, by and large, what Canada offers.
We want that safety as well as that freedom. That is the critical part about Bill C-6 that we find objectionable. Let me state for the record that this intention to reside provision does not restrict a citizen's mobility rights as guaranteed under the charter. Rather it reinforces the expectation that citizenship is a privilege given to those with the intention of making Canada their permanent home. That is the whole purpose of it.
The Conservative Party would support an amendment that removes this provision from the bill.
Paragraph (c) of the bill would reduce the amount of time a person must have been physically present in Canada before applying for citizenship from four out of six years to three out of five.
Newcomers to Canada should receive every opportunity to succeed in every way possible. The longer an individual lives, works or studies in Canada, the greater the connection that person will have to our country.
On this side of the House, we believe that stronger residency requirements do promote integration, a greater attachment to Canada, and ultimately success in our great country. Make no mistake. Canadian citizenship is a very special thing, not easily emulated around the world. It bestows rights, freedoms, and protections to which many foreign nationals are not privy. As Canadians, they can vote and seek elected office. As such, we believe it is very important to be an active participant in Canadian life for a significant period of time prior to being granted citizenship in order to enrich both their personal experiences within Canada as well as our country's future. Therefore, we would support an amendment that would strike this component of the bill.
What it comes down to is a conception of an open, free, democratic, welcoming society, but one that enjoys the protections under the law, one that protects current citizens, permanent residents, and newcomers as well as bestowing those freedoms.
On this side of the House, we offer a balanced approach to these kinds of issues, balancing freedoms with responsibilities and protections. That is why we have the position we do on Bill C-6.
Foreign Affairs March 9th, 2016
Mr. Speaker, Nadiya Savchenko, a Ukrainian air force pilot and member of the Ukrainian parliament, has been held illegally in a Russian prison for 21 long months.
Many thousands of people in Ukraine and around the world are demanding her release as she continues her hunger strike, yet all the efforts by the international community to advocate for her release have been brushed aside by Moscow.
Time is running out. How can Canada's call for the release of Ms. Savchenko be taken seriously when all the Liberals want to do is have happy talk with Putin?
Foreign Affairs February 22nd, 2016
Mr. Speaker, not long after the sanctions against Iran were lifted, Russia tried to sell fighter jets and missile systems to the regime in Tehran.
Our allies have clearly said that this sale violates a UN arms embargo, but the Liberal government is naively cozying up to Iran and Vladimir Putin.
Will the government condemn this massive arms sale, which threatens peace and our friend, Israel?
Foreign Affairs February 22nd, 2016
Mr. Speaker, it is being reported that 40 state-run Iranian media outlets have jointly offered a new bounty for the death of author Salman Rushdie. The renewed call for his death comes on the anniversary of the fatwa issued by the Ayatollah Khomeini in 1989.
Make no mistake. This regime in Tehran is putting on a false front. It continues to be a serious threat to peace and stability. Why is the government rushing to embrace Iran when it clearly cannot be trusted?
Canada's Contribution to the Effort to Combat ISIL February 22nd, 2016
Mr. Speaker, of course we on this side of the House know that we have to be part of the longer-term plan. Once ISIS is displaced from its territory, there has to be a plan, there is no question about that. The Iraqi government has to be able to be a force in bringing people together in that country, which, during the al-Maliki period, it was not. There is no question about that. Of course, there has to be some kind of political resolution in Syria that again brings people together, in a way that they can do safely in the face of homicidal government.
The hon. member is correct, but she should realize that as long as the Islamic State has territory and controls territory, it is a threat. It is a threat to peace in region, to stability in the region, and to stability in Libya now as its tentacles move further away from Iraq and Syria, and it projects its violence around the world. That is the point. That is why air cover is necessary for the military objectives. We have humanitarian objectives and diplomatic objectives as well, but for the military objectives, the aerial cover is not only important but absolutely critically necessary.