National Anthem  Mr. Speaker, next week we will vote on an act to amend the English version of our anthem to make it more inclusive. The government said it would oppose the bill based on the results of a question in a 2013 poll. That question was, “It has been suggested that the wording of O Ca

Interparliamentary Delegations  Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 34(1), I have the honour to present to the House, in both official languages, the report of the Canadian delegation of the Canada-Africa Parliamentary Association respecting its bilateral mission to the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan and the R

Instruction to Committee on Bill C-51  Mr. Speaker, would it not be accurate to believe that the bill, which is a Crown bill—a government bill is a crown bill—ipso facto has the royal support for expenditures?

Instruction to Committee on Bill C-51  Mr. Speaker, I have always believed that a royal recommendation is required when it is a private member's bill that introduces legislation that would incur Crown expenditures. However, if a government presents a bill, which is what we are talking about with Bill C-51, is not the

Congregation Beth Shalom  Mr. Speaker, I rise today to express my solidarity with a venerable Ottawa—Vanier institution, Congregation Beth Shalom, which has been located in the core of Ottawa, at Chapel and Rideau Streets, for almost 60 years now. It still remains very active, dynamic and open to all ages

Rise in anti-Semitism  Mr. Chair, last year I had the good fortune to attend a seminar in Budapest that my colleague from Mount Royal chaired with four other European parliamentarians from Poland, Spain, Greece, and, I believe, the Netherlands. The seminar was on dealing with the rising anti-Semitism i

National Anthem Act  Mr. Speaker, I suspect what happened in 1913, as I mentioned, was that we were at war. We joined World War I and sent our soldiers. At that time, only men were on the front lines as soldiers. That is no longer the case today. Women and men serve as soldiers on the front lines.

National Anthem Act  Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for her question. We must not forget that the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, which was introduced in 1982 and came into force in 1985, guarantees gender equality. Cabinet decided not to vote in favour of this bill, and that is why I a

National Anthem Act  Mr. Speaker, again, I have said that it is two simple words, however, they are very meaningful ones. If we are to respect our charter, if we are to respect the equality of men and women in our country, we should do so in our national anthem. I know some colleagues think by singi

National Anthem Act  moved that Bill C-624, an act to amend the National Anthem Act (gender), be read the second time and referred to a committee. Mr. Speaker, it is an honour to speak to the bill entitled “an act to amend the National Anthem Act”. The bill proposes a simple change in the English v

Victims Bill of Rights Act  Mr. Speaker, before asking my question, I would like to comment on the question posed by my colleague from LaSalle—Émard. In previous parliaments, it was normal for the government, even one with a majority, to accept a number of amendments proposed in committee. Up to two-third

Anti-terrorism Act, 2015  Mr. Speaker, we share some of the concerns expressed by the leader of the official opposition. We also intend to put forward amendments to ensure parliamentary oversight and to add sunset clauses or a mandatory review, for example. Does the Leader of the Opposition really believ

Mark Goldblatt  Mr. Speaker, since becoming the Liberal advocate for co-operatives, I have had the privilege of meeting many community leaders dedicated to the co-operative cause. One of the most dynamic of them was Mark Goldblatt, former executive director of the Co-operative Housing Federation

Parliamentary Precinct Security  Mr. Speaker, it would have been better if I had received a written response. I have not. I have had discussions today with some members of the governing party. I think they would not disagree with this way of going about it; that is, that the RCMP do it within a contractual agree

Parliamentary Precinct Security  Mr. Speaker, I also agree that a united security force would be the way to go, and that we must respect our current employees, both in the House and the Senate, who have protected us, our visitors and staff. If the government whip is saying that is what they will do, I would be