44th Parl. 1st Sess.
November 29, 2021 11:00AM
- Nov/29/21 12:44:30 p.m.
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- Re: Bill C-2
Madam Speaker, I had the privilege of attending university with the member more years ago than I care to admit. I want to welcome him back to the House. I always appreciate his thoughtful speeches.
My question concerns something that I think is most important to Canadians when we talk about the economy, and that is jobs. For Canadians, that is their economy. It is how they get their revenue, it is how they afford their expenditures. My questions are directed towards that.
First, does my hon. colleague think that the Bank of Canada should be looking at amending its mandate, which is coming up soon, to include a full employment strategy? Second, does he not agree that, if businesses are having a hard time finding employees right now, this is a market signal that perhaps employers in those industries need to increase their wages and working conditions in order to attract more people to those jobs, in line with classic economic theory?
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- Nov/29/21 2:29:15 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, no one is protected from COVID-19 until everyone is protected. The omicron variant makes this clear. For months, health experts, the WHO and New Democrats urged the government to ensure vaccines are available around the world. This is not just for equity reasons, but because it is essential to keep Canadians safe from new COVID variants. Not only did Liberals ignore this advice, but also they opposed developing countries manufacturing vaccines for their own citizens.
Will the Liberals stop defending big pharma and start protecting Canadians?
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- Nov/29/21 5:55:17 p.m.
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- Re: Bill C-2
Madam Speaker, my hon. colleague mentioned housing, and I think I speak for every member in the House when I say that it is the dream of every Canadian, and their right really, to have access to affordable, appropriate, secure housing. If there is any issue that speaks to a failure of public policy at all three levels of government, it is the fact that in this country we have a housing crisis. This did not happen this morning. This has taken years and, in some cases, a few decades to develop.
I am wondering what my hon. colleague thinks of the impact of foreign capital has as a destabilising factor on residential real estate and whether or not his party has any recommendations as to how they might curb that destabilizing impact on residential real estate markets.
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- Nov/29/21 6:25:15 p.m.
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- Re: Bill C-2
Madam Speaker, as this is the first opportunity I have had to speak at any considerable length in this House, I would ask the indulgence of my colleagues for a couple of minutes. I have some words of appreciation that I really must put on the record.
First, I have to thank the wonderful people of Vancouver Kingsway for doing me the honour of giving me the privilege of representing them for the fifth time. It is truly the deepest honour one could have, to be put in service to others, and I deeply appreciate the faith and trust they have placed in me. I will work hard to represent everybody in my riding.
Second, I would like to thank my entire campaign team. There are some key people who played pivotal roles in this election. One was my campaign manager, Ryan Hurley, who is just a sensational person. He led my campaign at a time of great personal difficulty, with his father being terminally ill. One thing we all know about politics is that we can get involved in the issues and the policies, but we are all human beings, and we have personal lives. I want to extend my deepest appreciation and sympathies to him and his family, as he lost his father the morning of election day.
I would like to thank my official agent, Joel DeYoung, who, as has been said by other people in the House, does not only a very extensive job but also keeps us out of prison, which is one of the most important things an official agent has to do. It takes a lot of work.
I do not know if many Canadians know that our campaigns are really run by volunteer power. These are people who donate untold hours and untold skills, with no pay, so that our democracy can keep running. Joel has done that through several elections. I am deeply appreciative to him and his partner, Michelle.
Finally, I would like to thank Carrie Burcic, our office manager, who kept us all organized, which is not easy. As we all know, during a campaign we have many hundreds of people volunteering and there is a lot going on every day.
I would like to thank all of the volunteers who worked on our campaign, whether it was for an hour on election day or for many, many days. Once again, our democracy is powered by the volunteer efforts of ordinary citizens who have taken an interest in their country, and who come to donate their time, skills, talents and passions to all parties represented in the House. I am blessed with a particularly talented and committed group of volunteers in Vancouver Kingsway.
I need to thank my family. I think we all know that no one gets elected to any position at any level in this country without the support and, frankly, the sacrifice of their family. I have to thank my partner, Sheryl Palm, who has been an outstanding campaign partner and who is far wiser, has far better political judgment and is far more popular than I am in Vancouver Kingsway. I hear lots of support for that statement on all sides of the House.
I thank my children, Jaime, Jordan and Cerys. I think we all know that our children play very interesting roles in our lives because they do not get agency. They do not get to make any decisions or give any speeches, but they have to suffer, sometimes the fame, sometimes the infamy, which we all go through. It puts a lot of pressure on our children. I want to give a shout-out to not only my children but also the children of everybody in the House.
I have to thank my sisters, Cheryl and Dyan, who have always been extraordinarily supportive, and my nephew Devon Golchin.
Finally, I want to thank my granddaughter, Sophia Linssen. She is my only grandchild, and it is her future for which I work. She is 11 years old, and she has decades in front of her. I think quite frequently that the decisions we make today in this chamber will impact not only our country but also future generations, for decades and decades to come. We would all do well to remember that when we are deliberating on the issues of the day.
I have to thank the best sign crew in the country, which is in Vancouver Kingsway. People say that whoever comes into Vancouver Kingsway during a federal election will be blinded by orange, and that is what happened. Sandy, Leo, Wally, Max and Renato are the best and I want to thank them.
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