Criminal Code  Mr. Speaker, the government was elected on the notion that it would do things differently. The Liberals said that during the campaign and post campaign. We are in this House debating a bill with respect to a charter rights issue. The member himself acknowledged the significant importance for this bill to be debated properly in the House, yet the government brought in closure after two and a half days of debate.

Criminal Code  Mr. Speaker, I am honoured to have the opportunity to speak to Bill C-14, An Act to amend the Criminal Code and to make related amendments to other Acts (medical assistance in dying). Let me first thank the members who were part of the Special Joint Committee on Physician-Assisted Dying for this bill and for their hard work.

Asian Heritage Month  Mr. Speaker, for over a century, Asian people have been coming to Canada and contribute to the rich multicultural tapestry of Canada. This month, Canadians will have the opportunity to learn about the diverse Asian cultures in celebration of Asian Heritage Month. ExplorAsian has brought together different organizations and has created a month-long program filled with great events from music and art shows to thought-provoking documentaries and film festivals to highlight the historic struggles Asian Canadians faced and their many achievements.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship  Mr. Speaker, the government seems to be having problems delivering on their promises to Syrian refugees. Some refugee families in Saskatoon waited nearly three weeks without money for food or rent. They had to rely on charity just to feed their families and avoid being evicted. They said they are frustrated, worried, embarrassed, and feel like they have to beg to survive.

The Budget  Madam Speaker, I congratulate the member's mother on her arrival here 50 years ago. The member talked a lot about the importance of immigration and the immigrant community in her riding. There is an injection of $25 million in this budget to process family class applications. In the last five years, from 2010 to 2015, the Conservative government cut $350 million out of processing on the immigration file.

The Budget  Madam Speaker, I too was quite struck by the budget when the documents were tabled. The information was not forthcoming, literally. We actually cannot find the information in terms of what the budgetary items are, in terms of the actual spending in comparison to previous years.

Situation in Indigenous Communities  Mr. Speaker, first I would like to acknowledge my colleague, the member for Timmins—James Bay for bringing this very important emergency debate to this House. I thank him for his relentless advocacy in highlighting the issue. This is a national emergency. Many of the members spoke about their specific experiences, what they are seeing in their own communities.

The Budget  Mr. Speaker, I am honoured to rise to speak to budget 2016. I would like to start by acknowledging the people of Vancouver East for their long-standing commitment to economic, social, and environmental justice. In Vancouver East, we have a strong history of activism. We yearn for a society where everyone can live with dignity, including those who live in the margins of life.

The Budget  Madam Speaker, as the minister knows, the missing and murdered women inquiry is a significant initiative that the government has undertaken. In my community, where the missing and murdered indigenous women and girls coalition was founded some 26 years ago, we have high hopes and dreams for the reality of the inquiry to come forward to address these historical issues.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship  Madam Speaker, it is my understanding that the processing time for such applications is counted from the time the local embassies receive the transfer application rather than from the time the application is received in Canada at the Mississauga case processing centre. On that basis, it takes, on average, five years from the time the application is submitted to the time the application is transferred to a local embassy.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship  Madam Speaker, I appreciate the opportunity to further inquire into the long wait times to process family reunification applications. First, I would like to ask the government this. When does IRCC start counting processing time for a parent-grandparent sponsorship case?

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship  Mr. Speaker, Mr. Al-Obeidi, a citizen of Iraq and former political prisoner of Saddam Hussein, managed to escape and became a government-sponsored refugee in 2002. He landed in Canada in 2007. Ten years after he fled, Saddam Hussein is no longer a threat. He travelled back to visit his family and to get married.

Citizenship Act  Madam Speaker, on the issue around the pathway to citizenship, many barriers have been put up. There are two particular ones which I wonder if the minister could support advancing to her government, and that is to eliminate the financial barrier. As the minister may know, under the previous government, the application fees for citizens went up significantly, from $100 to $520 for an adult, with an additional $100 for a child, and other associated fees.

Citizenship Act  Mr. Speaker, I would remind the member that during the campaign the Prime Minister made a commitment to the Chinese community, particularly through the Chinese media, that if the Liberals formed government he would repeal Bill C-24 in its entirety. If we use that as a barometer to what is happening right now with Bill C-6, it actually falls short.

Citizenship Act  On the contrary, Mr. Speaker. The truth of the matter is that if people commit crimes, whatever crime it might be, whether a crime of national interest or any other crime, they should go through the Canadian judicial system equally, fairly, and independently. Everyone should go through that process.