Yvonne Jones

[Yukon and Nunavut Regulatory Improvement Act, June 3rd, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, I am very disappointed today to see that the government is trying to push this bill through the House of Commons and is calling time allocation, not unlike what it has done throughout this whole process on Bill S-6.

This is supposed to be an improvement of the regulatory process for Yukon. While many of the recommendations that were put forward were accepted by first nations and Yukoners, there were four that were not. They were not accepted because they were not in the best interests of the first nations governments, nor were they in the best interests of Yukoners, not did the government consult them in a fair way.

When we went to Yukon and held hearings and heard testimony from the many people who came out, the member of Parliament for Yukon was there. When we came back to Ottawa and sat in committee and made the amendments to this bill that Yukoners and first nations were asking for, their own member was not there to even vote on them or support them, and none of the government members supported them.

There is an injustice being done to the individuals who have protested this bill and have concerns about it. I ask the minister why he is calling time allocation today. Why is he stifling the people who have legitimate concerns regarding Bill S-6, namely the people of Yukon?

[Economic Action Plan 2015 Act, No. 1, May 14th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, it is unfortunate that debate on the bill is going to be limited, because there are so many Canadians who will not be getting anything from the bill, and they want to have a voice.

Why is there no northern strategy by the government opposite? In the north we hear of people looking in the dumps for food, because it is not affordable. We hear of people sleeping in vans and tents in -40° temperatures, because there is no housing for them. We hear of people going without proper medical care, because they do not have access to it.

I ask the minister, why no northern strategy? Why no strategy for Inuit people across the north? Why is his government not doing anything to help those who need it?

[Petitions, May 14th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to present a petition on behalf of people in my riding in the Labrador West area who, unfortunately, are seeing cuts to their postal services.

The petitioners ask that Canada Post Corporation not downgrade its service and leave the community with reduced levels of postal service.

They are calling upon the Government of Canada to instruct Canada Post to maintain and improve postal services, and to cease any proposal to reduce hours and diminish service to the residents of Labrador West.

[Business of Supply, May 13th, 2015]

Mr. Chair, if this was not a problem, people would have food. They would not be scrounging in the dump. If this was serious for the government, it would not be trying to cover it up.

Why is Aboriginal Affairs paying a consulting firm in Ottawa to find a solution for the north? Why not look to the north to find the solution that northerners need to ensure that they get good, nutritional, affordable food?

[Business of Supply, May 13th, 2015]

Mr. Chair, people in the north are really looking for affordable food. They are looking for access to nutritional food. So far this program has failed to deliver. We have heard stories of people in Rankin Inlet scrounging for food in the dump.

Aboriginal Affairs is giving more than $500,000 to an Ottawa-based private consulting firm to work here in Ottawa to develop new subsidy models. Where is this money coming from? Is it coming from the nutrition north program, and is this leaving less money for families that actually need it?

[Business of Supply, May 13th, 2015]

Mr. Chair, I am turning to Nutrition North and northern programs now.

I would like to ask the minister first if he believes that north of 60 programming should be available to all Inuit in the north, including Nunatsiavut, Nunavik, and NunatuKavut.

[Business of Supply, May 13th, 2015]

Mr. Chair, as many as 350 residents are still living in hotels and apartments because of last year's flood.

Does the minister not understand that these are real people whose lives are being torn apart year after year because there has been no real action taken to mitigate or prevent this serious problem?

[Business of Supply, May 13th, 2015]

Mr. Chair, an action plan with no action is just words.

Owing to predictable flooding of their community, Kashechewan residents were evacuated this spring for the fourth consecutive year and for the sixth year over the last 10 years. The community spent $21 million on the evacuation last year and millions more on repairs.

Why is the minister insisting on spending tens of millions of dollars each year on evacuations for this one community alone, rather than implementing a workable, long-term solution that the community is willing to finance?

[Business of Supply, May 13th, 2015]

Mr. Chair, it is not about a study; it is about getting to the root cause of violence against aboriginal women in our country.

I ask the minister: by not doing this inquiry, is the government sending a message that violence against indigenous women is okay?

[Business of Supply, May 13th, 2015]

Mr. Chair, it is about making choices and the government opposite made choices to not put additional funding in the budget for first nation people, but instead to move money around.

When it comes to missing and murdered indigenous women in our country, why is he not supporting an inquiry into the more than 1,000 missing and murdered aboriginal women?