SoVote

Context: House Hansard - 283 - Feb/15/24

Feb/15/24 10:11:55 a.m.
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I remind members when we are presenting petitions, it is to provide a summary of what is on the petition. I am convinced that was not the wording used on the petition. I will ask all members to please exercise discretion in that regard.

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Mr. Ted Falk (Provencher, CPC)

Feb/15/24 10:12:18 a.m.
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Re: Bill C-270

Mr. Speaker, I have two petitions here. In the first petition, the petitioners would ask that the government follow recommendation no. 2 from the Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics' 2021report on MindGeek, which recommends that all content-hosting platforms in Canada verify age and consent prior to uploading content. Bill C-270, the stopping internet sexual exploitation act, would add two offences to the Criminal Code. The first would require age verification and consent prior to distribution; the second would require removal of material if consent is withdrawn. As such, these petitioners call on the House of Commons to pass Bill C-270, the stopping internet sexual exploitation act.

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Mr. Ted Falk (Provencher, CPC)

Feb/15/24 10:13:00 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the second petition is stating that the Trudeau government has attempted to ban and seize the hunting rifles and shotguns of millions of Canadians; that, the targeting of farmers and hunters does not fight crime; that, the Trudeau government has failed those who participate in the Canadian tradition of sport shooting—

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The Speaker

Feb/15/24 10:13:15 a.m.
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There is a point of order by the hon. member for Milton.

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Mr. Adam van Koeverden

Feb/15/24 10:13:23 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the hon. member is an experienced member, and he knows not to use the first or last names of members of Parliament.

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The Speaker

Feb/15/24 10:13:30 a.m.
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Although the hon. member is reading from the petition, we do have a firm rule in the House that we only refer to members by their riding names or the executive position they hold. Therefore, I will ask the hon. member to rephrase his presentation of the petition.

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Mr. Ted Falk

Feb/15/24 10:13:55 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, this is what the petitioners are saying: Whereas the member for Papineau's government has attempted to ban and seize the hunting rifles and shotguns of millions of Canadians, the targeting of farmers and hunters does not fight crime; and that, the Liberal government has failed those who participate in the Canadian tradition of sport shooting. Therefore, the petitioners are calling on the current government to stop any and all current and future bans on hunting and sport shooting firearms. This petition is signed by the residents of Bulkley Valley, whose member of Parliament would not present the petition.

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The Speaker

Feb/15/24 10:14:31 a.m.
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Now we are raising another issue. I am going to ask the hon. member to withdraw that point. The Chair had made it very clear that members cannot make a reference to other members of Parliament. It is a good tradition to have because any member could be a victim of that kind of statement and might not be in the position to defend themselves. Therefore, I ask the hon. member to please withdraw that last sentence.

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Mr. Ted Falk

Feb/15/24 10:14:57 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I will withdraw the last sentence and leave it as this: This petition comes from residents of Skeena—Bulkley Valley.

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The Speaker

Feb/15/24 10:15:05 a.m.
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I thank the hon. member. The hon. member for Abbotsford.

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Abbotsford

Hon. Ed Fast (Abbotsford, CPC)

Feb/15/24 10:15:09 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I, too, am here today to present a petition on behalf of the residents of Skeena—Bulkley Valley, dozens of whom have signed this petition. They draw the attention of the House to the fact that the Liberal government has attempted to ban and to seize the hunting rifles and shotguns of millions of Canadians. The targeting of farmers and hunters does not fight crime, and the very same Liberal government has failed those who participate in the Canadian tradition of sport shooting. Therefore, the petitioners are calling upon the government to stop any and all current and future bans on hunting and sport shooting firearms.

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Mr. Todd Doherty (Cariboo—Prince George, CPC)

Feb/15/24 10:15:53 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I rise to present two petitions. The first petition is on behalf of the good residents of Skeena—Bulkley Valley, the riding adjacent to my beautiful riding of Cariboo—Prince George. The petition states that the undersigned citizens and residents of Canada draw the attention of the House of Commons to the following: Whereas the current government has attempted to ban and seize the hunting rifles and shotguns of millions of Canadians, the targeting of law-abiding farmers and hunters does not fight crime and the government has failed those who participate in the Canadian tradition of sport shooting. Therefore, the undersigned call on the Government of Canada to stop any and all current and future bans on hunting and sport shooting firearms.

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Mr. Todd Doherty (Cariboo—Prince George, CPC)

Feb/15/24 10:16:39 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I also rise to speak regarding the thousands of correctional workers, guards, within our prison system. I ask this today, on behalf of the correctional officers in Mission—Matsqui—Fraser Canyon and surrounding areas who are concerned about the prison needle exchange program currently being operated by Correctional Services Canada. I have met with these officers and those who are on the front line. They truly are frontline heroes. They say that drugs and drug paraphernalia are considered contraband in prisons, yet the Liberal government is forcing our correctional officers to simply turn a blind eye and to allow dangerous drugs to be used inside prisons. They also say that these drugs and contraband needles and syringes can be used as dangerous weapons against the officers and their members. These correctional officers are calling on the government to immediately cancel the prison needle exchange program, to stop permitting the use of illicit drugs in Canadian prisons and to focus efforts on helping inmates recover from their addictions. I will add, too, that I received an impassioned letter signed by members of a female prison in Alberta who called on us and said that when they are incarcerated, it is their time to get clean, and the prison needle exchange does nothing to facilitate recovery. They ask that the government end its prison needle exchange program.

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Mr. Alexandre Boulerice (Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie, NDP)

Feb/15/24 10:18:10 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I have three petitions to present today. The first is signed by more than 70,000 citizens who say that blockades in Gaza have continued for two decades. Since October, air strikes have been carried out in densely populated areas in Lebanon and Gaza, which is a violation of international law. Journalists have been killed by Israeli forces, and thousands of children have died or have been killed in these strikes too. These 70,000 people are calling on the government to sanction the State of Israel for violating international law, to impose an arms embargo and stop selling arms to Israel and to condemn the war crimes committed against the Palestinian people. My second petition concerns the 2015 arrest of a child, Ahmad Manasra, who was convicted of attempted murder in 2016 in proceedings marred by allegations of torture, and despite the fact that he was below the minimum age of criminal responsibility at the time. This teenager is still detained and has been in solitary confinement since November 2021, which constitutes cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, according to Amnesty International. Hundreds of people have signed this petition and are calling on the government to demand that Israel release Ahmad Manasra.

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Mr. Alexandre Boulerice (Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie, NDP)

Feb/15/24 10:19:34 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, my third petition is from citizens who are concerned about human rights abuses and environmental damage caused by companies based here in Canada. They are calling on the Canadian government to require companies to prevent any negative impact on human and environmental rights throughout their global operations and supply chains. They are asking that these companies be required to exercise due diligence and that there be legal recourse to bring these companies to justice in the event of any human rights violations or environmental destruction.

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Mrs. Carol Hughes (Algoma—Manitoulin—Kapuskasing, NDP)

Feb/15/24 10:20:13 a.m.
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Re: Bill C-310

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to table a petition that includes individuals from my riding, especially volunteer firefighters from Wawa. The petitioners indicate that 71% of Canada's total firefighting essential first responders are volunteer firefighters and that there are approximately an additional 8,000 essential search and rescue volunteers, who respond to thousands of incidents each year. They also indicate that the tax code only allows these volunteer first responders to claim a $3,000 tax credit if 200 hours of volunteer service are completed in the calendar year. That comes up to only about $450 a year, or $2.25 an hour, but if they volunteer more than the 200 hours, the tax credit becomes even less than that. They add that these essential volunteers not only put their lives on the line but also play an important role in keeping the property taxes low and ensuring that communities are safe. The petitioners are calling on the government to support Bill C-310, which would amend the Income Tax Act by increasing the volunteer firefighting and search and rescue volunteer service credit from $3,000 to $10,000. I am pleased to table this petition.

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Mr. Brad Vis (Mission—Matsqui—Fraser Canyon, CPC)

Feb/15/24 10:21:51 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I rise today on behalf of British Columbians who are concerned about human trafficking in Canada. The U.S. Department of State's “2023 Trafficking in Persons Report”, or TIP, indicates that “Canada fully meets the minimum standards for the elimination of [human] trafficking.” It also highlights that the range, quality and timely delivery of trafficking-specific services varies across Canada, including persistent funding shortages in certain jurisdictions. The petitioners call upon the Government of Canada to strengthen the Protection of Communities and Exploited Persons Act to address these shortcomings and to put an end to human trafficking in Canada.

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Ms. Lisa Hepfner (Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Women and Gender Equality and Youth, Lib.)

Feb/15/24 10:22:41 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I ask that all questions be allowed to stand.

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The Speaker

Feb/15/24 10:22:46 a.m.
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Is that agreed? Some hon. members: Agreed.

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The Speaker

Feb/15/24 10:22:58 a.m.
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I am now ready to rule on the question of privilege raised on February 6 by the House leader of the official opposition concerning allegedly misleading statements made by the Prime Minister about invitations during the visit to Canada of the President of Ukraine. In his intervention, the House leader argued that the Prime Minister offered misleading responses to questions in the House about the invitation offered to Mr. Yaroslav Hunka for President Zelenskyy's joint address to Parliament. The member referred to several exchanges where the Prime Minister reiterated that neither he nor his government had any knowledge of the invitation that was made to Mr. Yaroslav Hunka. He pointed to recent media reports establishing that an invitation was sent under the Prime Minister's name to the same individual for a separate event to honour President Zelenskyy. This, according to the member, demonstrated the Prime Minister was, in fact, aware of this individual. The House leader of the official opposition claimed that this constituted contempt of Parliament, in the sense that the Prime Minister's statements were misleading, that he knew that they were misleading and that he delivered them with the intention to mislead the House. The House leader asked the Chair to find a prima facie case of privilege so that a motion could be moved to deal with this matter. His comments were later echoed by the member for La Prairie. The Government House Leader, for his part, disagreed with the premise of the question of privilege, arguing it was based on speculative assumptions. He argued that the House leader of the official opposition was conflating two separate events, leaving the impression that these events were planned together by the Prime Minister, his office, or both. The Government House Leader stressed that only the former Speaker had knowledge of the invitation to Yaroslav Hunka to Parliament, and that there were no facts presented that would suggest otherwise. In his view, this was a matter of debate and not a question of privilege. He also reminded the House that the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs was currently examining the matter of the invitation of the individual by the former Speaker, and he suggested that the House should allow the committee to complete its work. In the past, members have raised questions of privilege alleging that other members made misleading statements to the House. As was referenced in the various interventions pertaining to the present case, the Chair considers three essential conditions before making a positive determination that a member has deliberately misled the House: It must be proven that the statement was misleading; it must be established that, when making a statement, the member knew it to be incorrect; and finally, it must be demonstrated that the member intended to mislead the House. As one of my predecessors stated on February 26, 2015, at pages 11707 of the Debates, and I quote: The conditions are admittedly and deliberately not easily met. This is because, as Speaker, I must take all members at their word. This underscores the way we function every day in our proceedings; all members rely on this and draw advantage from it. I assessed the facts that were brought to this House through the lens of our stringent three-part test. The Chair is mindful of the recent media reports about another invitation sent to Yaroslav Hunka for a separate event, a government reception in Toronto. While that provides additional information to the general controversy from last September, it was not referenced during the exchanges in the House between different members and the Prime Minister last fall. On January 31, 2008, Speaker Milliken made a useful point about what the Chair can consider for such disputes. He said, at page 2435 of the Debates: ...any dispute regarding the accuracy or appropriateness of a minister’s response to an oral question is a matter of debate; it is not a matter for the Speaker to judge. The same holds true with respect to the breadth of a minister’s answer to a question in the House: this is not for the Speaker to determine. Based on the evidence that has been presented and my own review of the proceedings last fall, the Chair has not been able to establish that the statements made by the Prime Minister were in fact deliberately misleading. Accordingly, I do not find there to be a prima facie question of privilege. The Chair does note that the issue of the second invitation has surfaced in public debate, which offers members many opportunities to raise it in the House, in the context of debate, in any number of ways, including through additional questioning of the Prime Minister during question period. There is also an ongoing study of the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs to examine the issue surrounding Yaroslav Hunka's invitation to and recognition in Parliament on September 22, 2023. Both the House leader of the official opposition and the government House leader referred to this study in their interventions. It might also offer members an opportunity to raise these new issues that have recently come to light. I thank all members for their attention.

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