Criminal Code  Mr. Speaker, certainly I would defer these very important questions to the Minister of Health. However, I know that in speaking and working with her throughout the course of the development of this legislation, in every town hall I have been at and every meeting I have had with organizations, individuals, or through the recommendations that have come out of the number of panels, palliative care has been a primary importance to Canadians.

Criminal Code  Mr. Speaker, the conscience rights of medical practitioners is of the utmost importance. In every aspect of the consideration of this legislation, we have taken that into account. I recognize the work of the justice and human rights committee of the House of Commons, which considered substantive amendments and in fact voted in favour of 16 amendments, including having the conscience rights of medical practitioners in the preamble of the legislation.

Criminal Code  Mr. Speaker, first, there has been substantive debate on this topic. This has been a national conversation and it has been under way for many months. I and the government have the utmost respect for the Supreme Court of Canada and the June 6 deadline that it has imposed. We are doing everything we can to ensure we meet that deadline.

Criminal Code  moved that Bill C-14, An Act to amend the Criminal Code and to make related amendments to other Acts (medical assistance in dying), be read the third time and passed. Mr. Speaker, I want to begin today by acknowledging the contributions of all members of the House, in particular, the members of the Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights, for how they have approached our debate on Bill C-14.

Criminal Code  moved that the bill, as amended, be concurred in at report stage.

Physician-Assisted Dying  Mr. Speaker, we are committed to working with all parliamentarians and have done so on this piece of legislation as we move forward. We have the utmost respect for the Supreme Court of Canada. We are ensuring that we do everything possible to meet the deadline of June 6. We have the utmost confidence that this is the best public policy approach to medical assistance in dying in this country right now.

Physician-Assisted Dying  Mr. Speaker, we are committed to ensuring that we have in place by the Supreme Court deadline of June 6 a legal framework for medical assistance in dying in this country. I know that there is an incredible diversity of opinion around this incredibly complex and challenging issue.

Physician-Assisted Dying  Mr. Speaker, we are committed to moving forward with Bill C-14 and have engaged very broadly on this really complex and deeply personal issue. We have a deadline of June 6 to meet that has been directed by the Supreme Court of Canada. We are committed to having in place, it is our responsibility as parliamentarians, a legal framework in this country that ensures we find the right balance between personal autonomy, protection of the vulnerable, and ensuring there is access in this country.

Physician-Assisted Dying  Mr. Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague for his substantive engagement in the discussion around Bill C-14. We are confident that we have made and put forward a public policy decision around medical assistance in dying in this country. This is a transformative piece of legislation on which we have engaged with many Canadians and many members within this House.

Medical Assistance in Dying  Mr. Speaker, as has been said many times, this is a deeply complex and personal issue. We have been working incredibly hard with all members in the House to have detailed discussions to ensure we comply with the Supreme Court of Canada's deadline, to ensure that we have in place a legal framework for medical assistance in dying in our country, a framework that will ensure there is balance between personal autonomy and protections of the vulnerable.

Canadian Human Rights Act  moved for leave to introduce Bill C-16, An Act to amend the Canadian Human Rights Act and the Criminal Code. (Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)

Physician-Assisted Dying  Mr. Speaker, this a deeply personal and complex issue, which I have been working on with the Minister of Health and with every member in the House. We are committed to ensuring that we move forward with Bill C-14, to hear robust dialogue and debate, and to ensure that we strike the right balance between ensuring personal autonomy and doing as much as we can to protect the vulnerable.

Justice  Mr. Speaker, we are committed to ensuring we make appointments to fill the vacancies. Our government recognizes the concerns that have been raised, including the concerns raised by Chief Justice Wittmann. We are moving forward to ensure that we have short-term procedures in place to fill some of the most needed vacancies, while ensuring we have a comprehensive process that will diversify the judiciary across the country.

Justice  Mr. Speaker, I would like to reassure the member opposite that we do, very much, recognize the pressing nature of this matter. As I had indicated, we will be moving forward with short-term vacancies in the very near future, and ensure more comprehensively that when we make appointments to the judiciary right across the country, we are committed to ensuring that the diversity in the judiciary reflects the diversity in our country.

Business of Supply  Madam Speaker, there have been extensive consultations with respect to medical assistance in dying. There was a federal panel, an expert provincial and territorial panel, the substantive work that was done by the special joint committee which presented a report and recommendations for consideration, as well as engagement with Canadians and experts right across the country.