Hon. Leo Housakos: My question is for the government leader in the Senate, Senator Gold. Over the last several weeks, we have found out that China’s Communist regime has been operating police stations right across Canada, and at least three that we know of in Toronto. Of course we know that, government leader, because the Communist regime has publicly bragged — imagine, they’ve publicly bragged — about how they’ve “convinced” many Canadians of Chinese descent to return to China to face these trumped-up charges.

Of course, I use the word “convinced” in quotation marks because we know what “convinced” means: They’re returning because of threats to the safety of their loved ones who remain in China. This is especially concerning in light of the Chinese Communist Party’s increasingly aggressive use of their national security law to reach beyond China’s borders when dealing with these centres.

Senator Gold, why is your government allowing this activity on Canadian soil? I know the RCMP has launched an investigation into these police stations, but why is it even necessary? Why hasn’t your government shut them down already and, more importantly, called in the Chinese ambassador once and for all?

Senator Housakos: I agree it’s illegal and highly inappropriate, and I’m glad the RCMP is doing what they’re doing. But why isn’t your government doing what all other Five Eyes nations are doing, such as giving them more legislative tools and authority from their parliaments and congresses, to make sure this is dealt with?

Senator Gold, do you remember the expression, “A Canadian is a Canadian is a Canadian”? Doesn’t that matter anymore? There are many Canadians of Chinese descent living in this great country who deserve to live in peace, freedom and safety.

Why does your government not care enough about them to afford them protection from the Communist regime of China? Why is your government aiding and abetting those thugs? Why doesn’t your government take action?

At the end of the day, we’ve seen on a number of occasions how the Communist regime tries to intimidate parliamentarians in this Parliament. We’ve seen it in the past, where the Chinese ambassador has attempted to intimidate. Now we see them intimidating Canadians of Chinese descent on our soil.

I’m glad the government is concerned, and I’m glad you’re happy the RCMP is investigating, but what is this government doing in terms of tools to get to the bottom of this issue?

Hon. Leo Housakos: Senator, thank you for your speech and thank you for being the sponsor of this bill. It’s obviously a bill with a specific objective. At the end of the day, the current needs of our society — especially as the economy continues to face challenges with both the inflation rate and an economic standstill that is on the verge of a recession very soon, I would venture to say — continue to grow exponentially.

There are a lot of challenges and a lot of great causes out there that currently governments don’t fund. I’ll give one example, autism, which is facing and crippling families right across the country. Hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of Canadians are touched by this. There’s no support on the provincial level by health care systems; there’s no national strategy at this particular point.

This is a great program. We’re adding a few billion dollars into the pot, but where does it end? How many other causes is the government willing to champion and write out cheques for, like autism, for example, and many others I could list if we want to get into the debate?

Senator Yussuff: Thank you, Senator Housakos, for your question. A long time ago, creating a hierarchy of rights and privileges meant the ones with the loudest voices would succeed. I don’t for one minute disagree with you that families that are struggling with autism need help. They should get that help because these are children who should have an equal opportunity to thrive and participate in the schooling system and get a leg up on life. Those are needs that we need to think about and how we address them, with both the federal and the provincial governments working together to make sure that happens.

On the issue of dental care, I think we take for granted the impact this has on working families. It truly is profound. I know stories — I will get into them at second reading — of individuals who lost their teeth because they were poor and didn’t have access to dental care. Getting a decent job without having proper teeth is a problem.

I’ve been fortunate. I didn’t have to go down that road. But I know far too many kids don’t have the same opportunity in life. I think giving them a good oral dental care experience at an early age can prevent a lot of health issues that they struggle with later in life.

Of course, the government has set this as a priority, as they have with many priorities. However, as Canadians, we still need to build a country that’s more equal. This is one step on that path. On the issue you raised about autism, I hope we can do a better job to ensure Canadian families have better support from their national, provincial and territorial governments to deal with the needs of families who require it.