SoVote

Feb/19/22 8:46:29 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we have to ask ourselves why they overstayed their welcome. Why did they stay there? When we have a Prime Minister who refuses to acknowledge they exist, who shows no respect, who has been basically thumbing them every time they turn around, and who is basically looking down his nose at them, why do we think they are mad? Why do we think they are angry? I agree with the member's analogy of Coutts. He is right. When the people realized there were some undesirables infiltrating their group, they said they wanted nothing to do with it and they got out of there. Fair enough. I would say that is probably 90% of the people who are sitting there in Ottawa, too. The reality is that if we showed them respect, they would have worked their way out of it, but the Prime Minister refused to do that, and these are the results of it.

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Mr. Jean-Denis Garon (Mirabel, BQ)

Feb/19/22 8:47:13 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we do not see eye to eye with the Conservative Party on a lot of things, but the Bloc Québécois believes that the fundamental role of the opposition is to monitor what the government does. Slips of the tongue can be quite revealing. Earlier today, the NDP member for Esquimalt—Saanich—Sooke said something like, this act “gives us the power as a government” to take action. I would like to know if, while I was away having dinner, the NDP merged with the Liberal Party. If not, I would like to know whether my hon. colleague feels that, by voting in favour of this act, the NDP is signalling that, come Monday when the convoy is gone, it will abdicate its fundamental role, which is to exercise oversight over government action.

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Mr. Randy Hoback

Feb/19/22 8:48:02 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, that is an interesting question in regard to the NDP. I am not in the NDP camp. I am not sure what is going on in the backs of their minds. Maybe we have to talk to a member of the NDP. I will say that the former NDP member for Regina—Lewvan said he could never support this type of act, and this is somebody who had been very heavily involved in the union world before his career as a member of Parliament. I think it comes back to the NDP having some soul-searching to do and having to wonder what the long-term ramifications are, and how the precedent-setting nature of this will have an impact on them in the future.

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Mr. Don Davies (Vancouver Kingsway, NDP)

Feb/19/22 8:48:44 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, my hon, colleague paints a picture of the blockade participants in Ottawa as 90% of the people we would see at our local arena or Costco. In 24 hours, there have been over 100 arrests, described as intense clashes with the police, of those who refused to leave the area. Ottawa police are accusing protesters of assaulting officers and attempting to remove officers' weapons. Blockade organizer Pat King asked demonstrators to walk to Parliament Hill, even though they were being asked to leave by police, and for trucks to jackknife in front of tow trucks. He also threatened to find out which companies drivers belonged to, accusing drivers of career suicide. Finally, interim Ottawa police chief Bell said today that the municipal, provincial and federal levels are all being used to conduct arrests, and that “without the authorities being provided to us by these various pieces of legislation, we would not be able to do the work we are doing today.” My hon. colleague has questioned the NDP's history. The Conservatives used to claim they were the party of law and order. They are now joining with the separatists and appear not to care about police who are being assaulted by protesters. How could he justify that?

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Mr. Randy Hoback

Feb/19/22 8:49:53 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, that is a pretty rich question, when we look at the member from the NDP. I am not getting in bed with the separatists at all. I agree on one issue with them: that this is reaching far and beyond. However, we are the party of law and order, and we have been very clear that we thought these protesters should have left earlier. In fact, if the member was in question period he would have heard our leader say that on more than one occasion. The reality is that the NDP is becoming a de facto Liberal Party, and they are just doing whatever their Liberal leader wants them to do. We are going to see that again in this vote.

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Ms. Yvonne Jones (Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Natural Resources and to the Minister of Northern Affairs, Lib.)

Feb/19/22 8:50:42 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, it makes me sad to rise to speak to the Emergencies Act that is before Parliament tonight because I wish that it was not needed in this country. I want COVID to be over, and yes, we are getting to the end. I do not want to see mandates and masks any more than anyone else. However, we know that we are in a pandemic, and we have to make our way through that pandemic. I think all Canadians know that we are getting near the end. I am very sad that in a country like Canada, which prides itself on its ability to uphold the rule of law, Parliament is being forced to bring forward such legislation, but we have all seen, in recent weeks, the ongoing occupation of border crossings and of cities and towns, businesses being forced to close, people living in fear in their own homes, our economy being interrupted, and people's lives being interrupted. The occupation in downtown Ottawa, the capital city of this country, over the past three weeks has been felt by Canadians right across the country. Many people expressed to me their concern for their families, for the people of Ottawa and for all Canadians. I have heard many stories of people having to leave their homes in downtown Ottawa in order to have some peace, to feel safe, and many others endured because they had no other option. I have heard so many stories from individuals and families who felt insecure in their own homes. They did not feel safe to go to work or to walk the streets. This is not a simple protest, as some of my colleagues on the opposite side like to indicate, this is a cruel, unreasonable and arbitrary use of power and control in a democracy. This is tyranny. It is intentional. It is an attempt at anarchy, and I am sorry, but there is no level of frustration that can justify these actions. We see what is happening and we know that those who call it a “peaceful protest” are turning their heads in the other direction and ignoring the facts that these so-called protesters with have alleged ties to extremists groups who have now been charged with conspiracy to commit murder, the murder of police officers. It is so disturbing. My brother and sister-in-law are police officers in this country. They are just two among thousands like them who get up every day to go to work to uphold the laws of our country, to keep peace, to protect citizens, yet they were targeted by a group as part of this whole protest. A large cache of guns and ammunition was seized by the RCMP from occupied blockades in this country, which is extremely alarming. We continue to see harmful displays of violent behaviour, and attempts to minimize and discount the harm that is being done to others. It is completely negligent, in my opinion, of people who think this is actually peaceful. We cannot discount these actions, and anyone of civility cannot uphold these actions. We are a country that prides itself on open democracy, peaceful protest, one's ability to be heard, our ability to speak freely and openly and to express ourselves in ways that do not bring harm to others in our country. No, this is not a peaceful protest. There is no civility when others fear for their safety—

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The Deputy Speaker

Feb/19/22 8:54:37 p.m.
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I hate to interrupt the hon. member, but I was wondering if she will be sharing her time with another member.

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Ms. Yvonne Jones

Feb/19/22 8:54:56 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thought I had indicated that at the beginning, but if not, my apologies. I am sharing my time with the member for Vancouver Centre. I want to highlight what has been happening with so many small businesses. They have seen illegal obstructions right in their own neighbourhoods. They have had patrons who have had to endure harassment. Many of them have had to shut down their businesses. So many Canadians have had to endure radical comments, rhetoric that has been very toxic, hateful, dangerous. This really has no place in our society, in any town or city in this country. It has no place in Canada. I cannot stress that enough. My heart sank in the early days of this protest when I saw swastikas and other deplorable signs of white supremacy and anti-Semitism displayed in this country, in front of Canada's Parliament, the freest country in the world. It was a blatant disregard of civil liberties of our country's neighbours. On Monday when the federal government declared a public emergency order, it was simply because the situation in Ottawa and elsewhere in the country had exceeded beyond the breaking point. My own riding of Labrador and many other communities like it across Canada are so far removed from downtown Ottawa, but MPs were receiving many messages. I received so many messages from people across my riding because they were worried and scared. They were scared for our country and they wrote to me. One person said, “As a Canadian citizen, I hate the way our country looks right now, how we are made to feel unsafe by radical protesters. Please, please, can government do something to end this protest that is going on?” This is just one of many messages that I received from Labradorians. It was obvious not only in my riding, but in many other ridings that they were concerned as well. They were concerned about border crossings. They were concerned about what was happening to so many other residents in downtown Ottawa. It was clear that there were serious concerns being expressed, but it was also very clear to our government that there were serious challenges in law enforcement's ability to effectively enforce the law. They were not moving with the urgency that Canadians reasonably expected and there was, and remains, a serious threat to the security of Canada and all Canadians. It is for these reasons the federal government has stepped in and has used the tools at its disposal to address this very unique and unprecedented situation in the country. When we deal with unprecedented situations that risk the safety and security of the country, it requires unprecedented measures and unprecedented action. The resources are now available to bring a safe conclusion to this illegal occupation. As the Minister of Justice said a few days ago, Canada is a rule of law country, so by declaring a public order of emergency under the Emergencies Act, our government is following the law and is acting within it. Many of my colleagues already spoke to this part of the legislation, but under this act the federal government is now able to temporarily regulate and prohibit public assemblies that lead to a breach of the peace and go beyond lawful protests, because these are not lawful protests. It allows the government to temporarily designate and secure places where blockades are to be prohibited, which includes borders and other critical infrastructure to the country. It allows temporarily for government to direct persons to render essential services to relieve the impact of blockades on Canada's economy, which we have seen already being the case. It includes allowing them to access tow trucks and drivers to ensure the job can be done safely and strategically. It also allows government to temporarily authorize or direct financial institutions to render essential services to relieve the impacts of blockades, including regulating and prohibiting the use of property to fund or support the blockades. It gives temporary abilities to the RCMP to enforce municipal bylaws and provincial defences where required and to temporarily impose fines or imprisonment on those who do not follow the law. These special measures are necessary, despite what others may say, and they are temporary. Moreover, these measures, like all other government actions, are subject to the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and the Bill of Rights, which many of my colleagues have already spoken of. They give very clear, definitive definitions of those acts and what they mean. We are operating within the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and the Bill of Rights. That brings me to what this “freedom convoy”, as it has been known, really is. My idea of freedom in this country is having the freedom to express myself in a peaceful manner, having the freedom to walk outside my door and feel safe, having the freedom to go to bed at night unimpeded by honking horns, street parties and fireworks waking me up at all hours in the middle of the night. My idea of freedom in Canada is to be able to go to work—

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The Deputy Speaker

Feb/19/22 9:01:08 p.m.
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We are out of time. Questions and comments, the hon. member for Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke.

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Mrs. Cheryl Gallant (Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke, CPC)

Feb/19/22 9:01:20 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the demonstrators started out as a demonstration over the mandate for truckers to have to be vaccinated in order to go back and forth across the border. Why is it okay for truckers who have had their COVID shots but who are bringing medical devices and other pandemic supplies across the border to not have to be quarantined or tested, but the other truckers who have not had their COVID shots are put into quarantine? Is one more dangerous than the other or are either dangerous at all?

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Ms. Yvonne Jones

Feb/19/22 9:02:16 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, realistically, when looking at the facts of what is happening here, this is not about a peaceful protest. This is about upholding the rule of law. I have been involved in many protests in my day and I have seen many hard-working men and women who were convicted in their thinking, who walked protest lines for days and nights to bring their points to the government and to the ears of people who were listening, but they never brought harm to anyone around them and they certainly never confronted those in a violent and aggressive manner. What we are dealing with in Canada today is the complete neglect of the law, of Canadian—

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Mr. Denis Trudel (Longueuil—Saint-Hubert, BQ)

Feb/19/22 9:03:07 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, if we set aside the racist symbols, which have been discussed at length, I see quite a bit of distress among the protesters over these past few weeks. Canada is one of the most vaccinated countries in the world, with a 90% vaccination rate. People have followed the health rules. Despite this, Canada has been one of the slowest countries to lift restrictions. The main reason is that the health care system has been underfunded for the past 30 years. Does my colleague agree that if federal governments, whether Liberal or Conservative, had properly funded the health care system for the past 30 years, the country might have been able to come out of lockdown a few months ago, and we might have avoided the mess we see out there right now?

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Ms. Yvonne Jones

Feb/19/22 9:04:04 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I think we all recognize that the pandemic we have gone through in the last two years had no blueprint. There were no directions. There was not a plan for medical care or medical teams in this country or anywhere in the world to respond to a pandemic like we have just seen. I think the people in our health care system have done an exceptional job. I think the people who work there have stood up with tremendous resilience. They have neglected, in many ways, their own health to provide that care to so many other Canadians. As the government, these mandates were necessary. It was necessary to protect all Canadians from—

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The Deputy Speaker

Feb/19/22 9:04:49 p.m.
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I would like to get a few more questions in here before the end of the night. I apologize. The hon. member for Esquimalt—Saanich—Sooke.

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Mr. Randall Garrison (Esquimalt—Saanich—Sooke, NDP)

Feb/19/22 9:05:06 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. member for Labrador for drawing attention to the distortion that is caused by calling the protest in Ottawa “peaceful”. I made the mistake of walking through the group wearing a magenta mask and had a seven-letter f-word hurled at me. I witnessed journalists being physically intimidated. Did the member ever hear the leaders of the so-called protest condemn these kinds of intimidation that were going on as part of the occupation of downtown Ottawa?

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Ms. Yvonne Jones

Feb/19/22 9:05:28 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, it is unfortunate, but I have heard so many members of Parliament express support for this protest and I find it very disturbing. This is radicalism. These are people who have not shown respect for other Canadians or for the cities that they have occupied. They have not at all upheld the rule of law in terms of respecting other human beings. I am always disturbed when I see any—

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The Deputy Speaker

Feb/19/22 9:06:06 p.m.
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I want to try to get one more question in. I know the member for Scarborough—Agincourt has been trying really hard to get a question in.

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Ms. Jean Yip (Scarborough—Agincourt, Lib.)

Feb/19/22 9:06:13 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, many constituents have heard about the racial slurs against Ottawa residents. This is worrying for many people, especially people of colour. Could the hon. member elaborate on how the Emergencies Act can contain these extremist elements?

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Ms. Yvonne Jones

Feb/19/22 9:06:34 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, there is no room in Canada for these extreme behaviours and opinions. I really believe that the people who are in the protest are bringing to it all the issues that have plagued them for many years and many decades. This is not the place for it, and their actions have demonstrated that this is not acceptable in Canada. I support the actions of the government and I support the Emergencies Act.

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The Deputy Speaker

Feb/19/22 9:07:04 p.m.
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I just want to say we are getting a little long in our questions and answers, so let us keep up the speed. I know we are getting later on in the day and we want to make sure that we get as many people as possible represented. Resuming debate, the hon. member for Vancouver Centre.

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