Project Toronto Welcomes  Mr. Speaker, I would like to recognize an amazing group of people that is making a difference in my riding of Scarborough Centre. The more than 30 members of Project Toronto Welcomes came together through Facebook out of a desire to do something concrete and practical to help e

Transport  Mr. Speaker, today is Halloween and many children will be on the streets trick or treating. However, we must remember that roads can be dangerous and that our children must be protected. Could the minister please update the House as to what he is doing to improve the safety of

Diwali and Bandi Chhor Divas  Mr. Speaker, this past weekend, Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, and Buddhists in my riding of Scarborough Centre and across Canada celebrated Diwali, the festival of lights, and Bandi Chhor Divas. I had the pleasure of taking part in several Diwali celebrations this weekend in Scarborough.

Small Business  Mr. Speaker, this year marks the 37th anniversary of Small Business Week to recognize the hard work, talent, ambition, and determination of Canada's small business owners and entrepreneurs. Small Business Week is also an opportunity for small business owners and entrepreneurs t

Status of Women  Mr. Speaker, gender-based violence remains a tragic reality for many women and girls in Canada. Statistics show that women continue to be at high risk of being victims of certain forms of violence. Experiencing violence has significant health and social impacts on the abused and

TAMIL HERITAGE MONTH  Mr. Speaker, it is a pleasure to rise in the House today to speak to Motion No. 24 to recognize every January in Canada as Tamil heritage month. I will resume where I left off back in May. Tamil Canadians are making a difference in all walks of Canadian life. They are the busine

Archery  Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to Scarborough Centre's own Olympic archer Crispin Duenas. Competing in his third Olympics for Canada, Crispin did Scarborough and Canada proud by competing in the men's individual archery event in Rio. When Crispin is not representing C

Act to Establish the National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians  Mr. Speaker, a Governor-in-Council designated chair reflects the status of the committee as a non-parliamentary body. The member for Ottawa South is an experienced and eminent parliamentarian. He is an excellent choice to chair that committee.

Act to Establish the National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians  Mr. Speaker, we can debate the mechanics of how this oversight mechanism should be established and I welcome that debate, but I would note that Bill C-22 represents a commitment to an unprecedented level of transparency and oversight that this country has not seen before. It is a

Act to Establish the National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians  Mr. Speaker, last year during the election while knocking on doors we heard from almost every door that Canada has to be a model of openness, of tolerance, and of diversity, where people of different religions, different cultures, can come here and live together. Bill C-22 is an

National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians Act  Mr. Speaker, I will be sharing my time with the hon. member for Louis-Hébert. I am pleased to rise in the House today to speak to Bill C-22, a piece of legislation that would bring overdue changes to our country's approach to national security and put the lie to, once and for al

Housing  Mr. Speaker, access to affordable housing is a problem for many Canadians. In Scarborough Centre, one in three people are spending 30% or more of their income on housing compared to the national average of one in five. The lack of affordable housing is especially challenging for

Budget Implementation Act, 2016, No. 1  Mr. Speaker, I totally agree with my hon. colleague. I represent the riding of Scarborough Centre, which faces infrastructure debt for transit and affordable housing. It is not only an economic issue, but it is a social issue. Families cannot get back home in time to sit down and

Budget Implementation Act, 2016, No. 1  Mr. Speaker, right now Canada is going through an infrastructure debt. We cannot pass that debt on to our future generations. It is time to invest now, not tomorrow, but today. The interest rates are low and we need to invest in our economy. That is exactly what we are doing thro

Budget Implementation Act, 2016, No. 1  Mr. Speaker, the member is right. In the budget, the government promised to monitor the economic situation after the budget, and, as a result, three other regions have been added. This is an evidence-based process, based on the data available. We will review the numbers, and wher