Indian Act  Mr. Speaker, this is deeply flawed legislation. The Indian Act should not exist in our books. It has hurt so many generations of people, and it demonstrates a horrible human rights record for our country. I concur with my other colleagues that the Indian Act needs to go. In the interim, it is impossible to repeal it without having the proper mechanisms in place to ensure our legal obligations, our international obligations, and our need to implement UNDRIP are met.

Indian Act  Mr. Speaker, I rise today to speak to Bill S-3, an act to amend the Indian Act. This Senate bill is in response to the superior court of Quebec's decision in Descheneaux v. Canada and has undergone several iterations. I am pleased to support this set of amendments, which will effectively eliminate sex discrimination under the Indian Act.

Budget Implementation Act, 2017, No. 2  Mr. Speaker, I am a little perplexed about the reference to money going into Asia. In the last federal election, in a pamphlet called “Building the country of our dreams”, my friend's party outlined investments of up to $600 million in foreign aid. I am quite perplexed that those members are coming back today, saying that it is outrageous that money is going into Asia.

Budget Implementation Act, 2017, No. 2  Mr. Speaker, it is very clear that the Canada child benefit, for example, has had a very important effect on the economy. In fact, it has helped ignite it. We have the lowest unemployment rate in 10 years, we have created 450,000 jobs in the last two years alone and, as I said in my speech, the unemployment rate remains quite low and the growth rate quite high.

Budget Implementation Act, 2017, No. 2  Mr. Speaker, I completely agree with the brilliant point by my friend from Saskatoon West. However, this is an amendment to the Labour Code and not necessarily to the EI system or to the other social security measures that we have. It is an important first step. For example, in my riding of Scarborough—Rouge Park, our constituency office often deals with situations of domestic violence, and one of the difficulties we face is that once someone needs to move or take time off to address the domestic violence situation, they are sometimes threatened with losing their job.

Budget Implementation Act, 2017, No. 2  Mr. Speaker, as the member of Parliament for Scarborough—Rouge Park, I once again rise to continue the discussion on Bill C-63, a second act to implement certain provisions of the budget tabled in Parliament on March 22, 2017 and other measures. I was talking about the economy, and I highlighted some of the work of our government had done with respect to tax fairness.

Budget Implementation Act, 2017, No. 2  Madam Speaker, I thank my friend from Gatineau for his speech. I am very proud to rise this afternoon to speak on Bill C-63 , a second act to implement certain provisions of the budget tabled in Parliament on March 22, 2017 and other measures. I want to start by acknowledging that we are gathered here on the traditional unceded lands of the Algonquin people.

Foreign Affairs  Mr. Speaker, Canadians have watched in horror as hundreds of thousands of Rohingya people have been forced from their homes and murdered in Myanmar over recent months in what is being described as ethnic cleansing. Last week, the government announced major initiatives to help put an end to the violence in the region.

Invictus Games  Mr. Speaker, next week, athletes from 17 countries will gather in Toronto to compete in the Invictus Games, an international sporting competition for ill and injured veterans, and armed forces members. Canadian heroes will be competing in events such as wheelchair basketball and swimming, which will be occurring in my riding of Scarborough—Rouge Park at the Toronto Pan Am Sports Centre.

Arnold Chan  Mr. Speaker, on September 14, 2017, we lost our dear friend, the hon. member for Scarborough—Agincourt, Arnold Chan. Arnold started his career as a political staffer in the 1990s. He had been engaged in the political process since the age of 13. He cherished being the member of Parliament for Scarborough—Agincourt, where he deployed a lifetime of experience, knowledge, and wisdom to serve his constituents and to elevate, in both tone and substance, the House.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship  Mr. Speaker, there are over 65 million refugees fleeing persecution around the world. Countries like Canada have a responsibility to ensure that we do our part to support and provide refuge to those in need of protection. On this World Refugee Day, can the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship please advise this House on the government's commitment to refugee resettlement?

Canada Elections Act  Mr. Speaker, I appreciate my friend's submissions. I want to ask him about access to the Prime Minister. I know the Prime Minister has been in my riding of Scarborough—Rouge Park, around Scarborough, and in Toronto a number of different times since the election in October 2015. I know he has engaged, I would say, thousands of Canadians.

Sri Lanka  Mr. Speaker, seasonal monsoon rains continue in Sri Lanka and the country is facing the worst natural disaster since the 2004 tsunami. Death toll estimates are now in excess of 200 with many more missing and injured. International aid is required to support the victims. Could the Minister of International Development inform the House of the steps being taken by the Government of Canada to help in the response?

Sri Lanka  Mr. Speaker, eight years ago today, the 26-year-old armed conflict ended in Sri Lanka, yet peace has not been achieved on the island. The scars of this war remain deep within the hearts of Tamils around the world as a result of the 100,000 lives lost, the occupation of over 65,000 acres of land, the fate of Tamils who surrendered, the thousands of Tamils who were abducted by government and paramilitary forces, and the numerous Tamils who languish in prisons under the draconian Prevention of Terrorism Act.

National Parks  Mr. Speaker, the Rouge national urban park is central to my riding, and with the passage of Bill C-18, the House of Commons is closer than ever to seeing it fully realized. Could the Minister of Environment and Climate Change please give the House an update on the steps our government is taking to complete the Rouge national urban park?