SoVote

Mr. Gord Johns (Courtenay—Alberni, NDP)

Feb/6/24 10:03:35 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, it is a huge honour to rise today to table petition e-4568, which was signed by over 677 constituents from Vancouver Island. They cite that recreation and wellness centres provide opportunities for communities to gather, to connect and to stay healthy through physical activity. The research shows that recreation and wellness centres promote personal health and well-being among users, that recreation facilities play a critical role in the rehabilitation of workers recovering from injuries in the workplace and that communities without adequate recreational facilities find it challenging to retain seniors, youth and families in the community, which limits the retention of highly qualified professionals and volunteerism and is a loss to communities. The benefits of recreation and wellness centres to individuals and communities have been well-researched and documented. Petitioners cite that their communities need more facilities, such as the West Coast Multiplex, which has been in planning for over 20 years, to offer diverse programs, which would be accessible by all populations and that the investing in Canada infrastructure program's previous partnership with federal and British Columbia governments provided funds need to be replenished with significant sustained increase in the capital to meet recreational needs of their communities. There is a need for expanding, creating or replacing recreational facilities on the west coast, in Port Alberni and Oceanside. The petitioners are calling on the federal government to invest heavily in infrastructure and recreational facilities to help keep people in communities and to keep them healthy.

251 words

Context: House Hansard - 276 - Feb/6/24

Mr. Gord Johns (Courtenay—Alberni, NDP)

Feb/6/24 12:22:28 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, my colleague did not answer the question. The Conservatives, when they were in government, cut $600 million to the RCMP. They got rid of the RCMP recruitment fund. They cut over 1,100 jobs at the CBSA, and we are still feeling the effects of that today. In fact, the NDP brought forward amendments today, common-sense proposals, which I would think the Conservatives would support, including getting CEOs to make sure car manufacturers change the way they are designing vehicles to make them harder to steal, but they did not do that. Also, we heard testimony from the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police. Again, the Conservatives, the law-and-order party, failed to listen to the experts. The worst provinces for car theft are Conservative-governed provinces, so maybe my colleague can explain why that is happening in Conservative-led provinces, why the Conservatives cut so seriously and so deeply on the RCMP and the CBSA, and whether they regret those cuts.

166 words

Context: House Hansard - 276 - Feb/6/24

Mr. Gord Johns (Courtenay—Alberni, NDP)

Feb/6/24 1:20:12 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives come forward today saying that one car stolen should equal a year in jail. That is not a policy. That is straight out of the books from a Texas governor, who failed in their policies in Texas. We know the Conservatives cut 1,100 jobs at the Canada Border Services Agency, in terms of officers on the front line. According to Mark Weber, the president of the Customs and Immigration Union, “We estimate that we need between 2,000 and 3,000 additional officers on the front line.” He also cited that, with the amount of money they spent on the ArriveCAN app, the scandal taking place right now, they could have hired 500 border agents. When is the government going to step it up when it comes to hiring officers at the border? Will it listen to the NDP proposal to require auto manufacturers to improve security features in the cars they sell? A memo we put forward today was shot down by the Conservatives, but this seems to be a common-sense solution to help stop car theft.

186 words