SoVote

Ms. Lisa Hepfner (Hamilton Mountain, Lib.)

Feb/1/22 4:39:55 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, it is an honour to address this House in my introductory speech. Today I am fiercely proud to speak to several elements in the Speech from the Throne that are particularly close to my heart: our government's plan to improve life for women and all Canadians by addressing the housing crisis and creating a national child care system, and our efforts to bolster our democracy and civic discourse by reforming the Broadcasting Act. Before I discuss the throne speech, I would like to thank a few people who helped me get here. My son, Ty, has been with me every step of the journey, making the experience profoundly more meaningful. I could not have been here without him or my partner Michael, whose unwavering support made the campaign possible and made our family's transition to my new life as the member of Parliament for Hamilton Mountain as smooth as possible. My heartfelt thanks go to my campaign team and the many volunteers who showed up every day. As the Governor General explained, we are here to honour the trust placed in us by our constituents by representing and serving them. I think the throne speech exemplifies this by its commitment to fairness for women and all Canadians. The throne speech is good for women. It outlines our government's plan to take strong action to support Canadian women, and supporting women has always been a major priority for me. That is why I am delighted that our government has chosen to examine its policy and spending through a gender-based lens. I have been volunteering with women-serving organizations since the early 1990s, starting with a year in Honduras in support of vulnerable women in Tegucigalpa and La Mosquitia and continuing in my years in Hamilton through community organizations like the YWCA. I have seen the life-changing impact of programs that support women, from helping women become financially independent to accessing services and supports to finding safe permanent housing for themselves and their children to finding affordable child care. These supports not only help women and their children; these supports also improve communities. On the subject of women’s safety and security, indigenous women have suffered much in Canada, so I am pleased that our government will accelerate work with indigenous partners to address the national tragedy of missing and murdered indigenous women. Investments in women are important, because the COVID-19 pandemic has been particularly difficult for us. We need a just recovery, one in which everyone has a chance to succeed and realize their potential. That means an inclusive and equitable recovery. The Speech from the Throne supports this by highlighting our government’s two major priorities, housing and child care. There is a housing crisis in Hamilton and across Canada. Far too many people have been forced out of their homes by dramatically rising rents and renovictions. Many women who were trapped at home with their abusers during the pandemic fled their violent situations, and shelters are operating at full capacity or over their capacity. That is why our government is moving forward with a 10-year national action plan on gender-based violence and will continue to support organizations like YWCA Hamilton and Good Shepherd, which are providing women with critical supports. Every Canadian deserves safe, stable housing and access to social and health services. Our government believes this. That is why we have a national housing strategy, working with community partners like Good Shepherd to ensure more Hamiltonians experience the safety and dignity of a home, and can keep that home thanks to wraparound support services. This government is delivering on that commitment, as shown by the recent announcement by the Minister of Housing and Diversity and Inclusion of more than a hundred new supportive homes for marginalized people in Hamilton. The national child care program introduced by this government is another reason I was inspired to run for office. In Hamilton Mountain, our government’s plan will save a typical family more than $11,000 a year in the first year. By 2026, families with infants will be saving almost $18,000 a year. Imagine the impact these savings will have on the quality of life for families in Hamilton and across Canada. The early learning and child care plan will ease the financial burden on parents, create new jobs and allow parents, especially women, to re-enter the workforce. This plan will make life better for children, parents and ultimately our communities. Studies show that for every dollar invested in childhood education, the broader economy receives between $1.50 and $2.80 in return. I had the chance to visit one of the non-profit Umbrella child care centres in my riding with the Minister of Families, Children and Social Development and I have stayed in touch with executive director Darryl Hall. He says that hundreds of Hamilton families are on wait-lists for licensed, not-for-profit child care. Wait times range from two months to two years. He says that this wait absolutely affects a parent's ability to re-enter the workforce, and it also has a negative impact on child development. Darryl says, “Families are being forced into unlicensed and unregulated care for their children.” He says the Conservative plan for child care tax credits does nothing to address the staffing and infrastructure challenges. This is especially important in Hamilton, where we have a larger percentage of children from marginalized communities compared to the rest of the province. In some parts of the city, more than 50% of kindergartners are considered vulnerable in terms of development or skills. A higher proportion of kids are from low-income families compared to the national average. Darryl says that these kids need access to a diverse and qualified system to support their unique needs. These kids cannot wait. Our government has a plan for hundreds of thousands of new child care spaces that would ease that wait-list and a plan to increase the number of qualified staff, address low wages and stabilize the workforce. As we move on to the recovery phase, our government will adapt support measures and programs to help small businesses keep their doors open. Thanks to our emergency programs, employment levels have recovered and are now higher than they were before the pandemic. We will continue to ensure that Canadians have access to good jobs, that workers get decent wages, and that people can develop the skills they need to find and keep good jobs during the recovery, after the pandemic and beyond. The government knows that the best way to grow our economy and make life more affordable is to end the threat of COVID‑19. We procured enough vaccines for every adult in Canada two months ahead of schedule, and we now have enough supply to vaccinate our children and provide boosters to all those who are eligible. Finally, I would like to address another government priority that is close to my heart: reform of the obsolete 1991 Broadcasting Act. For more than two decades, I had the privilege of engaging with people in Hamilton Mountain through my work as a journalist, first with the Hamilton Spectator and then with CHCH TV News. People in Hamilton and across Canada depend on local news to keep them informed about their community. It is a crucial part of our democracy, and working in journalism afforded me the privilege of learning about and hearing from communities and people across Hamilton and beyond. Now I am here to give Hamilton Mountain a strong voice in this chamber and to be a steadfast voice for the value of local news in this country. As we heard in the throne speech, the government will ensure that web giants pay their fair share. We will level the playing field and protect Canadian culture and creativity. This is the moment parliamentarians must work together to get big things done and shape a better future for coming generations. This is what I have heard from the people of Hamilton Mountain, and they are the reason I am here. This throne speech outlines our government's plan to support Canadians so that everyone can participate in shaping our better, fairer and more prosperous future. Thank you.

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Context: House Hansard - 21 - Feb/1/22

Ms. Lisa Hepfner

Feb/1/22 4:49:52 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I am so proud to be part of this Liberal team. It has had a 50% gender-diverse cabinet since it started six years ago and has maintained that proportion. We have a female Deputy Prime Minister and finance minister. We have a woman who is the head of defence. We have women in key positions in cabinet. That says for itself that this is a feminist government, a government that believes in women, a government that believes in things that support women, such as child care.

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Context: House Hansard - 21 - Feb/1/22

Ms. Lisa Hepfner

Feb/1/22 4:51:43 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I will try to answer in French, but please excuse any errors I may make. I love Quebec and have spent a lot of time there. However, I think the problems my colleague mentioned exist across the country. For example, I talked about the risk of homelessness in Hamilton. The minister recently promised $26.7 million to build over 100 housing units for people in Hamilton who are at risk of homelessness—

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Context: House Hansard - 21 - Feb/1/22

Ms. Lisa Hepfner

Feb/1/22 4:53:33 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I did hear our minister responsible speaking to these issues today. He spoke about how much he has been able to accomplish in terms of the immigration system and how many immigrants we have been able to bring to Canada despite the pandemic. We have obviously more to do always, but I think we have done a fair job.

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