44th Parl. 1st Sess.
February 15, 2022 10:00AM
- Feb/15/22 10:06:31 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, on the day the Prime Minister called a federal election, Afghanistan's capital fell to the Taliban. In the chaos of that evacuation, many of our brave Afghan allies were left behind. My constituents call on the Government of Canada to partner with the Veterans Transition Network and others to launch an immediate evacuation effort for our remaining allies left in Afghanistan and to safeguard them from Taliban retribution.
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- Feb/15/22 10:07:32 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the second petition I am presenting today is from Canadians who also hold citizenship in the U.K.
Approximately 127,000 Canadians receive state pensions from the United Kingdom. While British expats living in some countries, notably the United States, receive annual inflationary increases, the pensions of those residing in Canada are frozen. My constituents are calling on the Government of Canada to ensure any future trade agreement between Canada and the U.K. includes a provision to unfreeze the pensions of British expats living in Canada.
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Madam Speaker, I thank the hon. minister for her work on this file and the agreement in the House of Commons. I would be remiss if I did not acknowledge the fact that we are only here today debating a motion of closure because the government screwed up. It is because the government did not allow for the due process of committee. We rushed through legislation, and now we have to make up for the mistakes of the government to protect seniors.
Will the member acknowledge that we are here today because the government screwed up and tried to do too much too quickly, while restraining the rights and duties of parliamentarians to effectively review parliamentary legislation in a parliamentary committee?
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Madam Speaker, on a point of order, we are debating in the House the closure of a bill. We are debating whether we are going to move forward with this legislation or not, yet the minister, in all of her responses, continually refers to a policy decision made over six years—
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- Feb/15/22 2:08:39 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, almost eight months ago, Canadians watched in horror as a devastating wildfire destroyed Lytton. Sadly, there are still no permits issued to rebuild homes or businesses. We are still waiting on debris removal. Residents are still waiting to hear if the land they once called home is ready to rebuild on. Many are worried that the living expenses covered by their insurance companies and the Red Cross will run out before construction begins.
The municipality itself faces the onerous task of replacing its records lost in the fire. Today, it is still lacking electricity, water, wastewater, telecommunications and even a reliable post office.
I would like to recognize the B.C. government's $8.3 million in funding, but more needs to be done. Lytton needs help. The village cannot wait any longer. My constituents cannot wait any longer. We need to return the community to the people who made Lytton what it was.
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Mr. Speaker, throughout the member for Calgary Skyview's speech, he said that the minister held a consultation. During the minister's remarks throughout the debate, she talked frequently about the previous Conservative policies. The first policy she failed to mention was that fixing this mistake was actually in her platform.
It is the second time this week that the government has invoked closure on legislation, and we all agree that this needs to pass quickly. However, the member opposite says that the minister held a consultation. We often think the legislation could be simple, but there is something that could be missed. The more we avoid parliamentary scrutiny through the committee process, which gives members time, in detail, to do a clause-by-clause analysis, we do not have that extra scrutiny and oversight. Therefore, I find it a little rich that the government is saying we are playing politics. The Liberals delayed the return of Parliament. We know this needed to be acted upon.
First, can the member outline that the government made a mistake but it is trying to rectify it now? Second, why do we need to rush this today when the Senate is not even sitting? Even if it is passed tonight in a bill, the Senate is not going to debate it until next week.
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Madam Speaker, I would like to thank the member for Nunavut, because I learned something tonight in this debate. That was one of the best speeches I have heard this entire evening. It goes to show what the member outlined in terms of the miscommunication from the government on what programs were accessible to Canadians and speaks to why I wish closure had not been enacted on the bill.
I do support this legislation and agree that we need to get it finished this week, but a more detailed committee study could have outlined in further detail some of the struggles Canadians and the Nunavummiut in the north have with the bill. If the member would comment briefly on that, it would be very helpful.
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Madam Speaker, this is such a riveting debate. I especially enjoyed the at-length comments from my friend from Battle River—Crowfoot on diversity and how we represent 338 unique corners of this world. I happen to think my riding is the number one riding in Canada. I have glaciers, ski hills and all sorts of great things.
One of the things that we all come here to do as members of Parliament is go to committees. I love committees, but with this bill we have been prevented from going to committee. What I am worried about with this legislation, and with the other bill that passed the other day, has to do with the importance of committees in debating legislation. Why should we not bring this bill before committee? Would Canadians not be better served if we spent one day to debate this bill at committee and go clause by clause before the other House returns next week?
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