44th Parl. 1st Sess.
September 29, 2022 10:00AM
- Sep/29/22 11:33:14 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, we are here on the eve of the National Day of Truth and Reconciliation. I think the House's time could have been better used to talk about the pressing issues facing indigenous peoples, but instead, this is a rerun of the Conservative opposition day we had on Tuesday.
I met with the Canadian Housing and Renewal Association this week. Members from her province were in my office, calling for the creation of a national housing authority designed by and for indigenous people. We know indigenous people have been asking for an urban, rural and northern indigenous housing strategy with sufficient funds to develop it. I am hearing from indigenous elders in my riding. My friend, Nora, is an indigenous elder from Tla-o-qui-aht First Nations. She is living in her car. That is unacceptable.
Does my colleague believe we should be focusing our attention here today on addressing those very important issues?
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- Sep/29/22 11:51:54 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, I am going to start today by expressing my disappointment that what we are doing here today is talking about this motion, on the eve of the second annual National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, at a time when indigenous people in this country do not have clean water, do not have adequate housing and do not have their basic human rights met, and at a time in this country when indigenous people are finding the graves of their children. On the eve of that day, this is what the Conservative Party has brought forward.
I am shocked by this, but I want to start by telling a story. Something happened yesterday. Yesterday, I was talking to a Conservative member, and no, we were not on screen and it was not in public. She asked me why we got into the supply and confidence agreement with the Liberals. She asked me what was in it for us. That is how she put it. I sort of laughed and said that maybe she needed to sit with that for a minute and think about it. Then all last night, I thought about it. Does she really not get why we did that? Was that really not something she could comprehend?
What it comes down to for me is that we did it because we were trying to get help for Canadians. We did it because we were trying to get dental care, pharmacare, environmental care and support for workers. It was for Canadians. We did not do it to win. We did not do it to get points off the Liberals. We did not do it to increase our power. We did it for Canadians.
As we stand in the House and debate this motion, which I will get to, I want us all to remember that every member of the Conservative Party of Canada has access to a dental care program that is gold-plated. Every member has access to a dental care program for themselves and their children, and the Conservatives are voting against just the bare minimum for other Canadian families in the country. For me, that shows what we are dealing with; that shows who we are talking about.
As members of this place, we all have such privilege. We have such voice. We have such opportunity. We all have access to benefits and wages that regular Canadians do not have, and we have an obligation, when we stand in this place, to think of those people and make sure that all Canadians have access to those things, the same things we have and our families have.
With this motion, the Conservatives are trying to mislead Canadians. They are trying to turn “tax” into a four-letter word. I know and members know that “tax” is not a four-letter word. It is, in fact, a three-letter word, but we will get to that.
They are trying to convince Canadians that they are on their side with this motion, but we are not fooled. Canadians are not fooled. The Conservatives continue to side with big business and are throwing Canadians under the bus with this motion.
One thing I do like about the motion is that it gives us an opportunity to talk about taxation. We do not talk about taxation often enough in this place. However, this motion avoids the most important questions: Who is paying and what are they getting for that money?
Right now, the tax burden in Canada is on Canadian families. It is on the shoulders of working families. That is not fair. It means that even if they have two incomes, it is hard to make ends meet. It has resulted in an imbalance in our country. We have a housing crisis that is forcing more and more people onto the streets, rental costs are skyrocketing and young people have no hope of owning their own home.
This was not always the case. There was a time in this country when corporations and the wealthy were shouldering their fair share of the tax burden, and our economy was booming. Workers were able to support their families, and the government was able to provide services because it was raising revenue from sources other than working families. However, successive Conservative and Liberal governments changed that. They have lowered corporate tax rates. They have created tax loopholes. They flipped the tax system on its head.
The last time people and corporations paid the same amount in income tax was 1952. Since then, the corporate tax contribution to our society has gone down steadily. Today, Canadians are paying four dollars for every dollar corporations pay in tax, but not all Canadian are paying that.
While Conservatives and Liberals were cutting tax rates for corporations and handing out corporate subsidies and tax credits, they were also cutting taxes for the richest Canadians and relying instead on regressive forms of taxation like the GST. It is not a secret. Everyone in this House knows that. We all know this, yet here we are debating a simple-minded motion that is designed to trick Canadians into believing that Conservatives have Canadians' best interests in mind. It is a motion that relies on making tax a four-letter word without addressing the most fundamental questions: Who is paying the tax, how much are they paying and why?
Which people governments tax, whom they take money from, whom they take revenue from and what governments spend it on indicate the governments' priorities. Over the past four or five decades, from Liberal governments to Conservative governments to Liberal governments to Conservative governments, on and on, we have seen a distinct pattern and an unbroken history of shuffling the tax burden to working Canadians and cutting taxes for the wealthy and for corporations.
Over and over again, Conservative and Liberal governments have demonstrated who they are and who they care about, and it is not ordinary Canadians. It is not workers. It is not students. It is not seniors. It is not indigenous peoples. It is not people living with disabilities. It is not people who are houseless.
We do not need to look back 50 years to see what is happening in this country. Within three days of the global health pandemic being declared, $754 billion went out to support financial markets, the big banks and the largest corporations. It took the government weeks and then months to get the support to regular Canadians who were actually paying for that $754 billion to big banks. Conservatives are not interested in talking about that.
While I welcome the opportunity to talk about taxation today and while I am disappointed in the simple-mindedness of this motion, I also think we need to talk about how we could reform our tax system. New Democrats have proposed an entire range of reforms, all of which the Conservatives have voted against: a steady return to reasonable corporate tax rates, a pandemic profits tax to recover some of the hundreds of billions that Canadians provided to these corporations, a wealth tax, closing tax loopholes that allow the wealthy to escape Canadian taxes and going after tax cheats.
If we enacted these reforms, we could provide dental care for all Canadians. We could have pharmacare. Canadians would not have to worry any longer about whether they can afford their prescription medicines. We could pay for a housing strategy. We could invest in our future. We could build a better Canada. Tax is not a four-letter word. It just becomes that when politicians are trying to pull the wool over people's eyes.
Finally, I will finish by talking a bit about EI and CPP. Despite what the Conservatives may think, Canadians are not fooled by their conversation and nonsense about whether this is a tax. Canadians see what the Conservatives are doing. I am from Alberta. Albertans see what is happening. We see our provincial government attacking our CPP. It is something I hear about more often from my constituents than anything else. I know how Conservatives are working to destroy the safety net that workers rely on. Workers need their pensions. They need an EI system that works. This is not government money; this is workers' money.
Last week, the EI system reverted back to its broken prepandemic status. The changes that I and my fellow New Democrats fought for so that Canadian workers were not left out in the cold in the pandemic are gone. Instead of pretending that EI and CPP are a burden on working Canadians, I invite the Conservatives to join us to make sure that 100% of workers are able to get the support they need from EI and that 100% of workers can afford to retire with dignity with adequate pension benefits.
Now is not the time for this motion. This political nonsense is designed to get the new leader of the official opposition some airtime and some retweets. Canadians do not want this nonsense. Canadians want all parties in this place to work together to make their lives better.
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- Sep/29/22 2:06:16 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, over 150,000 first nations, Inuit and Métis children were placed in residential schools. The experience was devastating and has left generational scars on so many. The children were removed from their families and their cultural traditions, and forbidden to speak their languages.
The purpose was supposedly education, but assimilation was top of mind. It was a “government knows best” approach, and the government was wrong. The legacy of Indian residential schools has been a great deal of brokenness, pain and loss. My father, my aunts and my uncles attended residential schools. Dad served in the Canadian military for decades. He kept silent about being Métis until he left. Because of societal prejudice towards Indians, he was hesitant to be identified as one.
Tomorrow is the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, a day to reflect, to pray for healing and to rebuild bridges with indigenous peoples.
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- Sep/29/22 2:15:45 p.m.
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[Member spoke in Inuktitut, interpreted as follows:]
Mr. Speaker, first of all, I would like to acknowledge Raymond Ningeocheak and his family living in Nunavut.
Crimes, ignorance and neglect by governments continue to this day. We are the parliamentarians who can help stop the process of colonial laws. We must be the parliamentarians who transform our work from empathy to action. Reconciliation must reflect the needs of indigenous people.
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- Sep/29/22 2:16:57 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, it is important for me to rise today to commemorate the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. This is a day for remembrance and reflection, for acknowledging our present and thinking of the future we will build.
We cannot forget that reconciliation will only be possible once we have uncovered the truth. This means that reconciliation calls on us to objectively learn about the past of indigenous nations, a past at once so near and so distant, a past that still causes pain. Reconciliation also calls on us to understand this past, because we must work together with respect and trust to do the healing work that is required.
On behalf of myself and the Bloc Québécois, I want all indigenous nations to know that they have our full and complete commitment. We hear them, we understand them and they will have our unwavering support.
[Member spoke in Innu]
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- Sep/29/22 2:30:19 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, later today I will be meeting with Autumn Peltier, a global indigenous water activist and a fierce defender of water and her people. She launched a petition that has gained over 100,000 signatures, calling on the government to address the water crisis in indigenous communities.
Tomorrow is truth and reconciliation day. How can the government defend its record when so many indigenous communities still do not have access to the basic right of clean drinking water?
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- Sep/29/22 2:30:52 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to begin by thanking the member opposite for that very important question and for recognizing that tomorrow is the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. We all recognize that Canada is an amazing place, but we are a country with an original sin, and that original sin is the treatment of indigenous people in Canada. Our government is working very hard and very sincerely towards reconciliation, and I think all Canadians are. We recognize there is more work to do, and we are going to keep on working hard.
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- Sep/29/22 2:31:34 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Autumn Peltier launched this petition to get this government to address the water crisis in indigenous communities, because this government broke its promise.
Tomorrow is the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. How can the government defend its record when so many indigenous communities still do not have access to clean drinking water?
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- Sep/29/22 2:48:39 p.m.
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Uqaqtittiji, indigenous communities deserve justice and a chance to heal from the legacy of residential schools. The government promised $200 million in funding for burial site searches but has delivered less than half of that money. It is shameful that the government is denying indigenous communities the funding needed to search for their lost children and for vital mental health supports.
When will the government provide the funding indigenous communities were promised to bring these children home?
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- Sep/29/22 2:50:05 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, indigenous people in my riding of Edmonton Griesbach and across Canada are overrepresented in the houseless population. The ones who do have housing live in overcrowded homes or homes in dire need of repair.
Today, the Parliamentary Budget Officer reported that homes are now 67% more expensive than what the average Canadian can afford. The government is failing to help indigenous people, who have been hit hard by the housing crisis. Before the next budget, will the Liberals fully fund the “for indigenous, by indigenous” housing initiative that the government promised?
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- Sep/29/22 2:50:43 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I agree with the hon. member. We are committed to a “for indigenous, by indigenous” urban, rural and northern indigenous housing strategy. That is why, in budget 2022, we invested more than $4 billion to close the gap that exists in indigenous communities. This includes a $300-million initial investment in an urban, rural and northern indigenous housing strategy.
Even in existing programs, we are seeing programs like the rapid housing initiative, in which 41% of the housing is being led by indigenous people and being delivered in indigenous communities. I look forward to working with our partners to get this right, by following the “for indigenous, by indigenous” principle.
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- Sep/29/22 2:51:26 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, on September 23, the National Summit on Indigenous Mental Wellness, a first-of-its-kind event, brought together hundreds of participants to share best practices to support first nations, Inuit and Métis mental wellness.
Could the Minister of Indigenous Services update the House on the outcomes of this important summit?
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- Sep/29/22 2:51:47 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the hon. member for Cloverdale—Langley City for his really hard work on reconciliation.
Just last Friday, the Minister of Mental Health and Addictions and I hosted a first of its kind, a mental wellness summit bringing together indigenous leaders from across the country doing phenomenal work on mental wellness and substance use recovery. We hope that this is the first of its kind. It really was about indigenous groups sharing best practices and learning from one another in a positive environment, and I am so excited to share those great programs with the rest of the country.
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- Sep/29/22 2:59:52 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I am so pleased to see the Leader of the Opposition's ambition in this space, because that is exactly what we have been showing since 2015, an ambition to move forward on reconciliation. He hits all the high notes. We are talking about things like truth, equity and self-determination, things that we know are going to ensure a brighter future for first nations communities and individuals across the country.
We have done a lot. There is a lot to say and I certainly cannot cover it in 30 seconds, but I look forward to working with the party opposite to ensure we reach those goals together with indigenous people.
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- Sep/29/22 3:02:49 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, tomorrow is the second National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. It is an opportunity for Canadians to look back on Canada's historical relationship with indigenous peoples and to reflect on the path to reconciliation that lies ahead.
Can the minister tell the House about the measures the government has taken to implement the Truth and Reconciliation Commission's calls to action, including the creation of a national council for reconciliation and the Office of the Commissioner of Indigenous Languages? Can he explain why this is a crucial step toward reconciliation?
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- Sep/29/22 3:03:33 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, reconciliation is not easy. It is neither linear nor free, but we are determined to right past wrongs and address their impact on indigenous peoples, an impact that is still felt today.
Tomorrow, we encourage all Canadians to reflect, to listen and to show compassion for indigenous voices. Tomorrow is a day for residential school survivors and indigenous communities and leaders to have their say.
Bill C‑29 will respond to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission's calls to action 53 to 56, while also promoting the implementation and independent review of the 94 calls to action.
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- Sep/29/22 3:06:15 p.m.
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- Re: Bill C-5
Mr. Speaker, I would invite the hon. member to actually look at the transcript of that Senate hearing. If he believes an indigenous woman with a problematic addiction, who is trying to keep bread on the table for her three children, sells some prescription drugs on the side and then gets tackled with a minimum mandatory penalty, is the kind of serious offender we need to lock up for that period of time, I would suggest he is absolutely wrong.
Bill C-5 would allow us to allow people like that mother to get the help they need, all the while spending more time, judicial resources and penal resources on the serious drug traffickers.
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- Sep/29/22 6:07:21 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, on May 5, I rose to ask the Prime Minister if he would take immediate action to deliver a dedicated housing strategy for indigenous women, girls and two-spirit people and end the ongoing genocide against indigenous women and girls.
The final report of the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls cites housing and homelessness over 200 times. This is the result of colonization and decades of neglect and broken promises by successive federal governments, from Liberals to Conservatives to Liberals.
Precarious housing situations contribute to increased risk of violence, trafficking and the high number of missing and murdered indigenous women and girls. Urban indigenous peoples are eight times more likely to experience homelessness compared with the general population. The national inquiry's final report calls upon governments to ensure that indigenous peoples have equitable access to basic rights, including housing, but the current government has failed to deliver a for indigenous, by indigenous urban, rural and northern housing strategy.
The Prime Minister has said over and again, “No relationship is more important to Canada than the relationship with Indigenous Peoples,” but reconciliation must be more than just words. It requires real action, commitment, listening to indigenous peoples and substantial investments. In other words, it requires action.
The Prime Minister's words ring hollow when indigenous women, girls and two-spirit people in Canada continue to disproportionately experience violence and homelessness. The $300 million over five years for the for indigenous, by indigenous urban, rural and northern housing strategy is woefully inadequate to address the urgent needs on the ground. After decades of neglect and colonization, it is a slap in the face to indigenous peoples. Ensuring access to safe, affordable and culturally appropriate housing is critical to ending this genocide against indigenous women, girls and two-spirit people.
Call to justice 4.6 calls upon the government to “immediately commence the construction of new housing and the provision of repairs for existing housing to meet the housing needs of Indigenous women, girls, and 2SLGBTQQIA people.”
Call to justice 4.7 calls upon the government to:
...support the establishment and long-term sustainable funding of Indigenous-led low-barrier shelters, safe spaces, transition homes, second-stage housing, and services for Indigenous women, girls, and 2SLGBTQQIA people who are homeless, near homeless, dealing with food insecurity, or in poverty, and who are fleeing violence or have been subjected to sexualized violence and exploitation. All governments must ensure that shelters, transitional housing, second-stage housing, and services are appropriate to cultural needs, and available wherever Indigenous women, girls, and 2SLGBTQQIA people reside.
Tomorrow is the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. Our country must reflect on our history of colonial violence and genocide. The government has a responsibility to end this violence and to stop perpetuating this colonial violence, this intergenerational trauma and this social and economic marginalization. We need action now.
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- Sep/29/22 6:11:07 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I would like to thank my hon. colleague for bringing up this important topic. I would also like to assure the member that the government has taken the tragic loss of indigenous women, girls and 2SLGBTQQIA+ people extremely seriously.
While budget 2021 investments continue to roll out, budget 2022 builds on these past investments to strike at the root causes and work towards eliminating violence against indigenous women, girls and 2SLGBTQQIA+ people, and to address the calls for justice.
This is a holistic approach, and this would help to build safer communities. We are investing in housing, education, mental wellness and health care, as well as economic development and employment; addressing the challenges of natural resource development and the implementation of the United Nations Declaration of the Rights of Indigenous Peoples; and investing in the gender-based violence national action plan, the LGTBQ2+ federal action plan and the anti-racism plan.
To say that we have not taken action is not true. It is simply not true. For example, in July of this year, in collaboration with the Government of Nova Scotia, indigenous communities and organizations, our government invested over $6.5 million to support the construction of a new resilience centre in Milbrook through the green and inclusive community buildings program. This centre would provide services to women, girls and 2SLGBTQQIA+ individuals seeking refuge and respite across Nova Scotia.
In regards to homelessness, the government recognizes that precarious housing conditions put indigenous women and girls, as well as 2SLGBTQQIA+ people at higher risks of violence. We worked with partners to co-develop the 10-year national first nations housing and related infrastructure strategy. The Assembly of First Nations Chief endorsed that strategy in December of 2018. We continue to work with the Assembly of First Nations to advance this strategy.
As of December 31, 2021, our government has supported first nations with the construction, renovation and retrofitting of 25,102 homes on reserve, of which 17,432 have been completed. To support housing in Inuit and Métis communities, $980 million has been announced by our government since 2016.
In the 2022 budget, we announced an additional $4 billion in funding for indigenous housing over seven years to accelerate work in closing indigenous housing gaps, including $2.4 billion over five years to support first nations housing on reserve, $845 million over seven years for housing in Inuit communities, $190 million over seven years for housing in Métis communities, and $565 million over five years for housing in self-governing and modern treaty first nation communities.
Lastly, through the indigenous homes innovation initiative, we are supporting creative projects led by indigenous peoples to design and build more effective, sustainable and culturally inspired living spaces, some of which will specifically support indigenous women and girls or other vulnerable populations.
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- Sep/29/22 6:15:02 p.m.
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Madam Chair, the government needs to face the truth and acknowledge the reality of the ongoing genocide of indigenous women and girls in this country.
One in 10 indigenous women were victims of a violent crime in 2019, and between 2015 and 2020, the average homicide rate involving indigenous victims was six times higher than that of non-indigenous people.
A 22-year-old Inuit woman, Savanna Pikuyak, who came to Ottawa to become a nurse, was murdered just four days after arriving in the city. She lacked access to safe, secure, affordable housing. That is the reality. She was away from her home community.
We still do not have a for indigenous, by indigenous urban, rural and northern housing strategy. Will the government commit today, on the eve of the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation to adequately fund a for indigenous, by indigenous—
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