Military Contribution Against ISIL  Mr. Speaker, I guess I would ask the member opposite why his party thinks we can deliver humanitarian aid without having the humanitarians supported and secured. I stood on the ground in Afghanistan. I actually had to have Canadian Armed Forces members with me to make sure that w

Military Contribution Against ISIL  Mr. Speaker, I am honoured to rise to speak in the debate this evening to support this important motion. Our objective remains the same: to degrade ISIL so that it no longer poses a threat to Canadians and the international community, as the hon. Minister of National Defence just

Military Contribution Against ISIL  Mr. Speaker, obviously our Canadian Armed Forces are doing outstanding work, so let me quote the Government of Iraq's statement with respect to the Canadian Armed Forces: Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemns in the strongest terms the brutal criminal act carried out by a terror

Aboriginal Affairs  Mr. Speaker, having met with many of these families, what I can say is what they want is action, and they want it now. They do not want to wait for another study or actually even read another study. What they would like is to be supported and protected and to have preventative pr

Aboriginal Affairs  Mr. Speaker, as the Prime Minister just said, we are taking action, whether that be safety programs on reserves or providing matrimonial property rights to aboriginal women. Maybe that might be just making sure they have a supportive shelter to go to when they are in their time o

Aboriginal Affairs  Mr. Speaker, as I said yesterday in the House, the Government of Canada will have a representative at the round table. However, I want to be very clear: we do not support a national inquiry. There have been more than 40 studies. Now is actually the time for action, and that is wh

Status of Women  Mr. Speaker, as the member opposite knows, we have been focused on and reviewing the Beijing accord. Our intention is to attend the international event that is taking place, which celebrates all women and the opportunities they have in the future. The Government of Canada has be

Aboriginal Affairs  Mr. Speaker, our government is focused and committed to preventing all forms of violence against women and girls. I think all Canadians know that our focus has been on supporting, preventing, and protecting these young women. Our government has put forward a bill to make sure th

Aboriginal Affairs  Mr. Speaker, let me be clear. We will have federal representation at the table, but we do not support a call for a national inquiry. This government moved forward in September of 2014 with an action plan to support aboriginal women and the violent crimes that are committed again

Zero Tolerance for Barbaric Cultural Practices Act  Mr. Speaker, the government has taken action in a number of areas dealing with eliminating violence against women and girls. I guess what I find most concerning is that when we put forward initiatives, the opposition simply says “no”, whether in response to our action plan to sup

Zero Tolerance for Barbaric Cultural Practices Act  Mr. Speaker, I have to say that I am surprised by this comment. Women and girls deserve to be protected. As I mentioned in my speech, if the member had been listening, there have been 726 projects since 2007 that focus particularly on eliminating violence against women and girls

Zero Tolerance for Barbaric Cultural Practices Act  Mr. Speaker, I want to be very clear that early and forced marriages are simply unacceptable. I have been very clear on this. Our government has been very clear. These barbaric practices will not be practised in Canada. Young women and girls need to be protected. We know that,

Zero Tolerance for Barbaric Cultural Practices Act  Mr. Speaker, I have been very clear: early and forced child marriages should be condemned. They are a breach of basic human rights.

Zero Tolerance for Barbaric Cultural Practices Act  Mr. Speaker, what occurs many times, as I have personally seen when standing in an emergency department, is that the young girl is scared. These young girls do not necessarily know where to go and do not know what their basic rights are. They do not know that these violent acts b

Zero Tolerance for Barbaric Cultural Practices Act  Mr. Speaker, Bill S-7, the zero tolerance for barbaric cultural practices act, reflects the high priority that our government places on supporting women and girls to live their lives free of violence. As Minister of Status of Women, I am proud of the many actions our government