Châteauguay—Lacolle  Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the people of Châteauguay—Lacolle for doing me this honour. I want the House to know that I will work very hard to be worthy of their faith in me. My riding is between the St. Lawrence and the American border. Part rural and part urban, it is b

Resumption of Debate on Address in Reply  Mr. Speaker, I wish to inform you that I will be sharing my time with the member for Fredericton. It is an honour for me to rise and speak to the House for this, my first real speech. First of all, I want to once again thank the people of Châteauguay—Lacolle for the trust they h

Resumption of Debate on Address in Reply  Mr. Speaker, this is a subject that is dear to my heart, the tax-free savings account. When I was working as a social work educator, I spoke to my students about this as a way to encourage asset-based savings to help people off of welfare and living on a month-to-month routine.

Resumption of Debate on Address in Reply  Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the member for his question. As a matter of fact, we are investing in our youth by tying the Canada child benefit to basic income. This is not charity but rather a fair redistribution of our national resources. That is precisely why we set up

Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada Awards  Mr. Speaker, I want to extend my warm congratulations to three of my constituents of Châteauguay—Lacolle, who were honoured yesterday at Rideau Hall by the Governor General, His Excellency David Johnston, during the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, NSE

Natural Resources  Mr. Speaker, last week in Winnipeg, the Minister of Natural Resources met with his counterparts from the United States and Mexico. At this meeting, they signed a memorandum of understanding on green energy collaboration. Can the minister describe this collaboration model and exp

Employment Insurance  Mr. Speaker, I will be sharing my time with the hon. member for New Brunswick Southwest. I rise in the House today to speak to this motion and express my disagreement with it. Despite its good intentions, it does not adequately address the real problem experienced by Canadian wo

Employment Insurance  Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. member for her question. It is very important that we work hard together to create jobs. Under the Canada job fund agreements, the provinces and territories receive $500 million per year. That money is used to provide employment services and support

Employment Insurance  Indeed, Mr. Speaker, I think that is a cornerstone of the employment insurance program and its ability to respond to regional needs. Because we are a big country, we are spread out over many different types of micro-economies and it is very important to respond accordingly. The

Syrian Family in Châteauguay—Lacolle  Mr. Speaker, I would like to take this opportunity to publicly congratulate and thank the people of Châteauguay—Lacolle, especially Jean-François Lavallée, founder of the Comité d'accueil de réfugiés du Grand Châteauguay, and Anik Sauvé, president of Entraide Mercier, who set up

Citizenship Act  Mr. Speaker, it is my pleasure today to be able to speak about Bill C-6. The government is committed to a Canada that is both diverse and inclusive. Canadians know and our government recognizes that historically we are strong because of our diversity, not in spite of it. The Prim

Citizenship Act  Mr. Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague for the question. Of course, the issues of fees and funding related to newcomers are very important. That is why there are different programs to welcome newcomers. The recent Syrian refugee program comes to mind. There has been some excell

Citizenship Act  Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. member for his question because it allows me to talk about my own immigration experience. Hold on, because it is not the same as the other stories we have heard here today. My ancestors came from Ireland, as my grandmother liked to say, “before the

Business of Supply  Mr. Speaker, I believe that the promotion and protection of human rights, including freedom of religion or belief, is an integral part of Canada's leadership in the world. Our government is committed to reviewing and enhancing the human rights protections at home and abroad. The

Business of Supply  Mr. Speaker, I will be sharing my time with the hon. member for London North Centre. As we come together on this opposition day, we must recognize that this act in itself illustrates the strength of Canada's system of governance and the lessons we have learned by creating an inc