Small Business  Mr. Speaker, through the heights of the pandemic, small businesses in my community, from Big Bliss yoga to Full Circle Foods, did all we asked of them. Now, during Small Business Week, they need more than a selfie. They need more time, before what they thought at first was a gran

Canadian Sustainable Jobs Act  Madam Speaker, as climate-fuelled wildfires ravage the country, this bill is barely better than a blank piece of paper. The so-called action plan the member speaks about is not even due to be written for more than two years. Who knows who might be on the partnership council that

Situation in Israel, Gaza and the West Bank  Mr. Speaker, tonight, several of our Jewish and Muslim colleagues have shared their concerns about the rise in anti-Semitism and Islamophobia here at home over the past week. What does the member for Saint-Jean think about that? Can she share her thoughts on what the Government

Situation in Israel, Gaza and the West Bank  Mr. Speaker, I would like to start by thanking my colleague from Saint-Jean for her nuanced speech and her empathy. That is so important at times like these. My question is about the fact that another young Palestinian dies every fifteen minutes. When the member thinks about that

Situation in Israel, Gaza and the West Bank  Mr. Speaker, the member for Calgary Heritage spoke about difficult times in the months and weeks ahead. I want to share some of the words of a critical care physician in Gaza right now. These words are, “The situation is catastrophic”. The hospital he works in is currently powere

Situation in Israel, Gaza and the West Bank  Mr. Speaker, I want to start by sharing how much I appreciate that the member for Toronto—Danforth spoke from her heart tonight during such a difficult time for her as a Jewish Canadian. In her comments, she spoke about empathy for Palestinian people. As she likely knows, there

Situation in Israel, Gaza and the West Bank  Mr. Speaker, I want to follow up on the question raised by the hon. member for Edmonton Strathcona. It is clear that international law was violated by Hamas. This, I think, we agree on. Would the hon. colleague not also agree that it would be inappropriate for any state to viol

Situation in Israel, Gaza and the West Bank  Mr. Speaker, I join my hon. colleague in condemning Hamas. I also noted in his speech and appreciated that he talked about protecting lives. He is also likely aware that in recent days there have been 6,000 bombs dropped on Palestinians, and almost 3,000 Palestinians have been ki

Petitions  Mr. Speaker, I rise to present a petition that is fairly timely, from petitioners who call for the Government of Canada to follow through on the calls to action of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. The petitioners note that the Government of Canada has followed through on

MT Space  Mr. Speaker, almost 20 years ago, shortly after immigrating from Lebanon, Majdi Bou-Matar founded MT Space, an incredible arts organization in the Waterloo region that centres marginalized and racialized artists and stories in our community. His goal at the time was to establis

Affordable Housing and Groceries Act  Mr. Speaker, I would say that housing is a human right and it deserves to be more than a preamble in a bill. It needs to be enshrined in legislation.

Affordable Housing and Groceries Act  Mr. Speaker, I will agree with the member for Winnipeg North on this point any day of the week: We need all levels of government to step up. However, we also need to be honest. With respect to the investment the member mentioned for co-op housing, which is one that I mentioned

Affordable Housing and Groceries Act  Mr. Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague from Joliette for his question, which is so important. The definition of affordable housing differs from one government program to the next. If one definition of affordable housing applies to just 80% of the market, we are not really talkin

Affordable Housing and Groceries Act  Mr. Speaker, it is an honour to rise to speak on behalf of the folks from Kitchener Centre with respect to Bill C-56, the signature measure of which would involve removing the GST from rental home construction. I will start by saying very clearly that I certainly support this bi

MT Space  Mr. Speaker, almost 20 years ago, shortly after immigrating from Lebanon, Majdi Bou-Matar founded MT Space, an incredible arts organization in the Waterloo region that centres racialized and marginalized artists and stories in our community. His goal was to establish an internati