United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act  Mr. Speaker, I am incredibly honoured to rise in support of Bill C-262 and the hon. member for Abitibi—Baie-James—Nunavik—Eeyou. Much has already been said about this bill, but as we embark on the third and final reading, I would like to pay tribute to the sponsor of this bill.

Youth  Mr. Speaker, this winter I held a contest for grade 11 and 12 students. Using the theme of reconciliation, students were asked to submit their ideas for a private member's bill they felt would make a better Canada. Brody Beuker and Camilo Silva from Bethlehem High School will be

Budget Implementation Act, 2018, No. 1  Mr. Speaker, I had the pleasure of working with my colleague from Sarnia—Lambton at the pay equity committee on one of the very first initiatives of this Parliament. I loved her theme of promises, priorities, and plans. With respect to her initiative on palliative care, we did th

Indigenous Affairs  Madam Speaker, when the federal government unveiled its national housing strategy last November, it did not include an indigenous housing strategy, despite the fact that 87% of indigenous peoples in Canada do not live on reserve and face almost 10 times the risk of housing insecu

Criminal Code  moved for leave to introduce Bill C-407, an act to amend the Criminal Code (sentencing). Mr. Speaker, I am honoured to rise today to introduce a bill that would reverse harmful effects brought on by the mandatory minimum sentencing. My thanks to the member for London—Fanshawe fo

Impact Assessment Act  Mr. Speaker, one of the criticisms of this bill is that it does not include a legal requirement for free, prior, and informed consent. I know that my colleague, the member for Edmonton Strathcona, tried to have that inserted at committee stage, and of course we find ourselves he

Budget Implementation Act, 2018, No. 1  Mr. Speaker, I do not think of myself as naive, so when a budget speech talks about things like pay equity and there is actually nothing in the budget implementation act for pay equity, I do find it a bit disingenuous There are a lot of pronouncements and announcements, but very

Budget Implementation Act, 2018, No. 1  Mr. Speaker, I want to offer my hon. colleague an opportunity. I wonder if he reflected on this, as I did. When the Prime Minister said “This pipeline will be built”, what an amazing event it would have been if he had said that he would end homelessness or that he would implement

Asbestos  Mr. Speaker, 96% of Canadian workers in construction and the skilled trades are potentially exposed to asbestos in the workplace. We have known for more than 30 years that asbestos is a carcinogen and that its toxic fibres are a leading cause of workplace-related death in Canada.

Business of Supply  Mr. Speaker, I want to state in this House I am supportive of my colleague from Windsor—Tecumseh's comments that emphasize the importance of using diplomacy and building relationships on the ground as a way to move forward and support people living within regimes and nations wher

Housing  Mr. Speaker, today, in Toronto. there is an inquest into the death of Grant Faulkner, who died homeless when his shelter caught on fire in January 2015. For too many Canadians, a lack of housing is a matter of life or death. Despite yesterday's announcement, the national housing

Impact Assessment Act  Madam Speaker, I do want to make the comment, to be clear, that by including UNDRIP in the preamble to this bill, it is included in the part of the bill that does not have anything binding. The opportunity to include UNDRIP in the parts of the bill that would actually give it te

United Ways of Saskatoon and Area and Regina  Mr. Speaker, last week, the United Ways of Saskatoon and Area and Regina launched the province-wide 211 phone, chat, and text line, connecting everyone in Saskatchewan to over 5,000 helping services. With a truly province-wide connection, everyone in the province can pick up the

Housing  Mr. Speaker, earlier this year I asked the government to follow through on its promise of housing rights being human rights. Instead, the government has shown time and time again that it does not embrace the rights-based approach. This was clearly demonstrated when the national h

Housing  Mr. Speaker, I do not feel that it is for Canadians or the opposition to pat the government on the back for what I feel are half-measures when it comes to addressing the crisis of homelessness. A government that is committed to a rights-based approach would not have a goal of a