Points of Order  Uqaqtittiji, I am rising on a point of order based on what the Conservative leader said today during question period regarding first peoples. He used a possessive term that means indigenous peoples belong to another nation. I need to remind the House that first nations, Inuit and Métis are not owned by governments and that this Parliament needs to make sure it is educating Canadians that we are not owned by governments.

Housing  Uqaqtittiji, there are first nations who cannot return to their home communities due to the lack of homes. They are being pushed out of their culture, family and traditions, due to the neglect from the Liberals. At the pace that the government is moving, it would take anywhere between 58 to 141 years to close the infrastructure gap, despite promising that it would close it by 2030.

Indigenous Affairs  Uqaqtittiji, the federal housing advocate has reported that the government fails to protect Inuit's right to housing. Inuit have to take shifts to sleep because of overcrowding. In the fall economic statement, the government is spending more to settle historic injustices than it is to help indigenous peoples in housing.

Committees of the House  Uqaqtittiji, that is definitely a concern, and part of the reason is climate change, as I mentioned in my statement. Elders are telling us that it is harder to teach their children and grandchildren about ice conditions when winter is arriving sooner. It is harder to teach when not to go to certain ice areas because the ice is not as thick as it used to be.

Committees of the House  Uqaqtittiji, I grew up for a portion of my life in Chesterfield Inlet as well. It is such a beautiful community. I have fond memories. Regarding the member's question on dual use infrastructure, I completely agree. I know that if Arctic security was taken more seriously, the community of Cambridge Bay, for example, which is a regional hub in the Kitikmeot region, would have a paved airport.

Committees of the House  Uqaqtittiji, I am happy to speak on behalf of Nunavummiut on this important report that my colleague, the member for London—Fanshawe, worked on. I really want to acknowledge as well the great work that she does at this committee. I have had the great honour of working with her when the announcements were made regarding NORAD improvements, and her leadership on this file is so much appreciated.

Housing  Uqaqtittiji, the federal housing advocate says the government fell short in building homes across the country. Under the Liberals, too many indigenous people everywhere, especially in cities, are homeless or sleeping in overcrowded houses. They have failed to uphold indigenous people's basic rights.

Criminal Code  Uqaqtittiji, I am proud to support Bill C-273. I thank my NDP colleague, the member for New Westminster—Burnaby, for introducing this bill in honour of Corinne's Quest. Bill C-273 will do great things if it is allowed to pass. It will protect children. It will end allowing adults to physically punish children.

Affordable Housing and Groceries Act  Uqaqtittiji, I would like to thank my colleague for reminding the House about some of the issues I have brought up regarding indigenous peoples. It is absolutely an injustice indeed that there are so many cuts being anticipated and that there are great gaps, such as the $350-billion infrastructure gap for first nations.

Affordable Housing and Groceries Act  Uqaqtittiji, I would like to thank the member for taking this debate seriously, unlike the previous MP, who chose to use her time to entertain people and possibly create some kind of platform for future entertainment. Knowing that Canada's three largest grocers, Loblaws, Sobeys and Metro, made more than $3.6 billion in combined profits in 2022, it is good to see that the Liberals are finally talking to CEOs and asking them to stabilize prices, although just nicely.

Government Business No. 30—Proceedings on Bill C-56  Uqaqtittiji, I am glad that the member was talking about prosperity. In my region, retail grocery stores outside my riding are allowed to prosper by being subsidized by the nutrition north program. I think that the bill before us is particularly important so we could ensure that nutrition north becomes a social program that would change that system so it is not subsidizing for-profit grocery stores, so my constituents can also prosper.

Government Business No. 30—Proceedings on Bill C-56  Uqaqtittiji, this bill is particularly important for Nunavut because it addresses housing and affordability, two major issues in my riding. To give an example of current grocery prices, a one-litre bottle of orange juice is $17 and one case of bottled water is $28. Even programs like nutrition north are not working.

Government Business No. 30—Proceedings on Bill C-56  Uqaqtittiji , this is such an important bill, especially for Nunavut, given that the price of housing and the price of groceries are so high and that it is so difficult in Nunavut. I would love to have seen more conversations about how we could make improvements, and I think the bill would do just that.

Request for Emergency Debate  Uqaqtittiji, I rise to request an emergency debate on an issue of great importance to first nations and indigenous peoples across the country. The infrastructure gap for first nations was recently revealed to be almost $350 billion. This figure does not include gaps for Inuit and Métis communities.

Indigenous Affairs  Uqaqtittiji, in the fall economic statement, the Liberals showed that they are ending critical programs and services that indigenous peoples rely on. These decisions will keep indigenous peoples in poverty. This is at a time when the first nations infrastructure gap stands at $350 billion.