Criminal Code  moved that Bill S-12, An Act to amend the Criminal Code, the Sex Offender Information Registration Act and the International Transfer of Offenders Act, be read the first time. (Motion agreed to and bill read the first time)

Questions on the Order Paper  Mr. Speaker, public servants who disclose wrongdoing within or relating to the public sector, under either the Public Servants Disclosure Protection Act or under any other act of Parliament, are protected from reprisal for having made that disclosure. They may not be fired, demoted, disciplined or subjected to any other measure that adversely affects their employment or working conditions because they have made a protected disclosure.

Questions on the Order Paper  Mr. Speaker, the Government of Canada is working to create a diverse and inclusive public service, free from racism, harassment and discrimination, where everyone has a sense of belonging. Budget 2022 proposed $3.7 million over four years, and Budget 2023 proposed to provide a further $45.9 million over three years, starting in 2023-24, to the Treasury Board Secretariat to create a Mental Health Fund for Black public servants and establish dedicated career development programs, including to prepare Black public service leaders for executive positions.

Questions on the Order Paper  Mr. Speaker, in 2016, the Government of Canada established a mandatory non-partisan external review process as part of a commitment to strengthen the oversight of government advertising. Ad Standards, the independent, not-for-profit, self-regulatory body that administers the Canadian Code of Advertising Standards was contracted to undertake this work.

Foreign Affairs  Mr. Speaker, since day one, Canada has stood steadfast with Ukraine in its fight for sovereignty, security and territorial integrity. On the weekend, the Prime Minister announced another $500 million for Ukraine. That is going to go to extending Operation UNIFIER. It is going to go to 10,000 rounds of ammunition as well as almost 300 air defence missiles to protect Ukraine's skies.

Disaster Assistance  Mr. Speaker, our thoughts are with all Albertans during this difficult time. The Canadian Armed Forces have deployed approximately 300 members to assist with fighting fires, as well as air lifts and engineering supports. We are also making sure to match Red Cross donations. The Prime Minister is in Alberta today, and we will continue to stand with Albertans during their time of need.

National Defence  Mr. Speaker, search and rescue capabilities are at the very heart of the expertise of the Canadian Armed Forces. That is why last week I was pleased to announce the expansion and upgrade of our Cormorant helicopter fleet, which is projected to add 650 jobs annually and $79 million to our economy annually.

National Defence  Mr. Speaker, first of all, an agreement has been reached that allows the heating plant to resume operations and provide heat and hot water to those living at the garrison. On our commitment to the Canadian Armed Forces, our defence spending is increasing, unlike that of the Conservatives, who let defence spending dip below 1% when they were in power.

National Defence  Mr. Speaker, it is somewhat surprising, when the Conservatives let defence spending dip below 1%, for my hon. colleague to suggest that we are not paying attention to what we are rightfully focused on, which is increasing resources for the Canadian Armed Forces, increasing defence spending, ensuring our forces have the equipment they need to fight forest fires and floods here at home, leading the enhanced forward presence battle group in Latvia, making sure we are a leading donor to Ukraine in its time of need, contributing in the Middle East, and the list goes on.

National Defence  Mr. Speaker, I am so pleased that the member opposite brought up the very point of Canadians assisting the Ukrainian armed forces in their time of need. Not only have we trained 36,000 members of the Ukrainian armed forces, we are in England, we are in Poland; we are in Latvia continuing to support Ukraine in its time of need.

National Defence  Mr. Speaker, I am not sure if my hon. colleague heard the billions of dollars I just mentioned, including almost $40 billion in NORAD modernization and defence spending. However, let me assure this House that our government is undertaking a defence policy update. We are consulting broadly with stakeholders, and we will be back with additional plans to ensure that the Canadian Armed Forces and the defence of Canada are undertaken with the utmost integrity and stability.

National Defence  Mr. Speaker, unlike the Conservatives, who let defence spending dip below 1%, our government will continue to make investments in our military and in defence spending. For example, we increased defence spending by 70% beginning in 2017. We also invested over $8 billion in defence spending in budget 2022 and almost $40 billion in continental defence and NORAD modernization.

National Defence  Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the question from my hon. colleague. Let me reiterate that since I have been appointed, we have put on the table a number of additional reforms, including laying a road map for all 48 of the recommendations of Madame Arbour. In addition to an official apology, in addition to millions of dollars in supports for victims and survivors as well as the transfer of cases from the military justice system to the civil justice system, we will always support victims of sexual misconduct and sexual harassment.

National Defence  Mr. Speaker, last week we reaffirmed our commitment to continental defence and Arctic security by investing $7.3 billion in bases across this country, including in bases that will house the F-35. These investments will ensure economic benefits for indigenous communities and Canadians across this country.

Foreign Affairs  Mr. Speaker, since 2015, the Canadian Armed Forces have trained over 35,000 members of the Ukrainian armed forces. We are training Ukrainians in England. We are training Ukrainian engineers in Poland, and we are training them on the use of the Leopard 2A4 battle tank. As President von der Leyen said, the Canadian Armed Forces have been instrumental in terms of the resilience being shown on the battlefield in Ukraine.