Senator Gold: I will answer your questions. I will answer them right away and then I will comment on your opening remarks.

As I mentioned yesterday, investigations continue to be under way by the RCMP. Those investigations are ongoing. When they are concluded, and action is taken, it will be made public.

Similar answer with regard to the issue of the diplomat to whom you made reference. That is a matter that the government is dealing with. It is a matter of their prerogative. They are analyzing it. Announcements will be made when they are made.

With regard to the foreign registry, consultations, as you know, are under way. Announcements will be made when decisions are taken, as will a decision on a public inquiry when we hear from the Special Rapporteur, the Right Honourable David Johnston.

I want to make it clear that I am not uncomfortable at all — and I do not purport to speak for other senators — when you ask questions about matters as important as foreign interference in our democratic institutions. I have said time and again these are serious matters that deserve to be treated seriously and responsibly.

If you ask me if I am uncomfortable with how you ask the questions, the assumptions that you package into your questions, the disrespect that you show for our institutions, that is another matter, which we can discuss on another occasion.

With regard to the other assertion in the preamble to your question — “When will the government do something and why is it not doing anything?” — I have repeated on many occasions, but I guess, since this is Question Period, I am going to give you the answer yet again, because it is clearly not being registered or taken into consideration. The Government of Canada is doing a great deal to combat the serious problem of foreign interference. It is investing serious money into combatting foreign interference, including the creation of a national counter-foreign interference office in the Department of Public Safety and providing nearly $50 million to the RCMP to combat harassment of Canadians who are targeted by hostile actors.

It has mandated NSICOP, the National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians, to continue its work in assessing the state of foreign interference in our federal electoral processes.

The National Security and Intelligence Review Agency, NSIRA, will set its own mandate and scope for its study of the forty-third and forty-fourth parliamentary elections in regard to foreign interference. Their findings will be reported to Parliament.

I will not have to repeat, yet again, the appointment of the Special Rapporteur, whom I shall continue to name as the Right Honourable David Johnston, not the “made-up Special Rapporteur.”

Senator Plett: Clearly, leader, again the Prime Minister’s answers are in direct contradiction to what his own chief of staff said at committee meetings. “The Prime Minister,” she said, “is always informed.”

The Prime Minister is always looking for someone else to blame for his failures, and then, going forward, he will make changes. He blames whistle-blowers. Now he is blaming CSIS. He blames political polarization. He and you blame the opposition. He never wants the transparency that a public inquiry would provide.

I ask everyone who may be watching this today, especially all honourable senators in this chamber: How would you feel if threats were made against your family, and your government knew about it but kept it from you? Today it is Michael Chong, but one day it could be any one of us. You would be outraged. I certainly would be.

Do you want answers? Do you want better than the answers given so far? So does the opposition.

I have two questions, leader. Are there any other parliamentarians or their families under threat from Beijing? If a whistle-blower hadn’t given those documents to The Globe and Mail, Mr. Chong would still be in the dark about Beijing’s threats to his own family. Is that not right, leader?

Hon. David M. Wells: Honourable senators, I rise today to pay tribute to our colleague — and he has no idea I’m doing this — the Honourable Senator Fabian Manning, who on this day exactly 30 years ago, at the tender age of 28, was elected as a member of the House of Assembly of Newfoundland and Labrador in the district of St. Mary’s-The Capes.

His time in the provincial legislature wasn’t his first entry into politics, as his time as an MHA was preceded by three terms on the St. Bride’s town council. He also served on the local regional development association, 15 years as a volunteer firefighter, as a member of the local parish council and much more. Senator Manning has been serving the people of his community, his province and his country for most of his life and all of his career.

Mostly everyone here knows Senator Manning as a tireless advocate for victims of abuse, as the skillful Chair of the Senate Standing Committee on Fisheries and Oceans, a master storyteller of all things Newfoundland and Labrador and, of course, as a trusted colleague.

But, colleagues, there’s more. Eighteen years ago this month he was kicked out of the provincial Progressive Conservative caucus for daring to voice his opinion on important fisheries policy. Publicly, he stood alone in his views on a critical issue — and Senator Marshall knows about that, but she won’t tell me because of caucus confidence. His principled stand landed him outside the governing PC caucus in a high-stakes move filled with threats, ultimatums, political intrigue, a brief stand-off and, ultimately, a vote. Senator Manning didn’t cross the floor and join another party. No, his principles were unshakeable, and they still are. He sat as an independent Progressive Conservative. If he had joined another party, he would also have been kicked out of his family — probably the staunchest PC supporters that our province has ever seen. They’re generations deep in this game and all with the same team.

In the political realm, Senator Manning won more than he lost. He was elected in the 2006 federal election and lost in the 2008 election. He was appointed to the Senate in January 2009 and he resigned from the Senate two years later to run again in 2011 — and he lost. A short time later, he was reappointed to the Senate in what can only be described as winning the lottery twice. When he called his father to tell him the news, his father gave him wise advice: “Now Fabian, when you get up there this time, just sit down and shut up!” It’s solid advice that he takes from time to time.

I’ve mentioned Senator Manning’s upbringing. He maintains the values that his parents instilled in him. I know his family — his brothers, his wife, Sandra, and their children, Mark, Fabian and Heather. Heather in particular is following in her dad’s footsteps with community service and outreach to those in need. She dedicates her time and raises funds for worthy causes. She is impressive and unstoppable, like her father. In fact, Heather received a Senate of Canada Sesquicentennial Medal for her outstanding community service. Of course, she wasn’t nominated by Senator Manning; she was nominated by none other than Speaker Furey and received the award at a ceremony at Government House in St. John’s. I was honoured to attend the ceremony for someone so deserving.

Finally, colleagues, while we regularly pay tribute to those deserving but who are no longer with us, it’s nice to pay tribute to someone who is so deserving and still with us. Senator Manning, on this auspicious anniversary, you are most deserving. Thank you.

Senator Gold: Senator Housakos, I answered each and every one of your questions. I stand by everything I said in my answers to you.

Let me be clear, colleagues. I will be very brief because, honestly, this is not the highest and best use of our time in this chamber. I’m not talking about Question Period, colleagues; I’m talking about having to repeat myself time and again.

I was appointed by the Prime Minister of Canada, in a letter dated January 23, 2020, as Leader of the Government. That was the first sentence of the letter. I would be happy to table the letter or send it to all of you. It makes great reading. The second sentence said, “You are to style yourself as ‘Government Representative.’”

From day one, for every single day, I have styled myself as Government Representative. But I have performed the functions, under the Parliament of Canada Act, as the Leader of the Government even though I have nobody to lead, hence the way in which I present myself.

With all due respect, Senator Housakos, it is not I who is not showing respect for the institutions of this place. Nor is it respect for the institutions, when I provide an answer and quote the Prime Minister’s direct answers to the direct questions, to hear members opposite mumbling — I hope it was not picked up in Hansard — and saying things that are distinctly unparliamentary.

[Translation]

Senator Dupuis: I see that Bill S-1001 ensures that the amalgamation of these two corporations meets the requirements of the Canada Not-for-profit Corporations Act. Do you have any guarantees, or would it be possible to get guarantees, that the requirements of the provincial legislation governing the corporation for the diocese, which falls under provincial law, have been met? I am talking about the requirements to comply with the provincial legislation.

Senator Clement: I had the opportunity to work with the archdiocese’s lawyer and the Senate’s lawyers to prepare for the discussion that was held in committee. I did not get any official guarantees, but that is certainly a point that was raised, and we would like to confirm it in committee.

Thank you for the question.

(On motion of Senator Martin, debate adjourned.)

Senator Housakos: I know you just did, but you should look in the mirror long and hard. Start answering some of our questions and stop calling into question our respect for this institution. That will be a starting point on behalf of this government.

Second, do you know the kind of respect you have for this institution, where we have information from CSIS itself that a member of Parliament and his family were targeted by an authoritarian regime two years ago, and he just sat down yesterday with CSIS to get that information, once we know that information was shared with the Prime Minister’s Office? And the only thing that we can understand are two possibilities: blatant partisanship — “We’ll just ignore it” — or incompetence on the part of this Prime Minister. It is high time that he takes some responsibility for his incompetence.

I will ask the question again: When will you call a public inquiry? When will you put into place a foreign registry, for which our party has been calling for three years? Even by your speed, you should be able to get that done in three years. Only then can you start lecturing us about respect of Parliament and this institution.

The question still stands: When will you take action? Enough rhetoric.

The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, I wish to draw your attention to the presence in the gallery of Kim Mackenzie, Marianne Hasold-Schilter and Pat Krajewski. They are the guests of the Honourable Senator Marwah.

On behalf of all honourable senators, I welcome you to the Senate of Canada.

The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, I wish to draw your attention to the presence in the gallery of His Excellency Anselm Ransford Sowah, High Commissioner for Ghana. He is the guest of the Honourable Senator Bovey.

On behalf of all honourable senators, I welcome you to the Senate of Canada.

The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, I wish to draw your attention to the presence in the gallery of students and professors from the University of Ottawa and the University of Haifa. They are the guests of the Honourable Senator Simons.

On behalf of all honourable senators, I welcome you to the Senate of Canada.

The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, I wish to draw your attention to the presence in the gallery of a group of Foreign Service officers from Global Affairs Canada. They are the guests of the Honourable Senator Ringuette.

On behalf of all honourable senators, I welcome you to the Senate of Canada.

The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, I wish to draw your attention to the presence in the gallery of our former colleague the Honourable Asha Seth, accompanied by Dr. Arun Seth. They are the guests of the Honourable Senator Ataullahjan.

On behalf of all honourable senators, I welcome you back to the Senate of Canada.

The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, I wish to draw your attention to the presence in the gallery of Kim Mackenzie, Marianne Hasold-Schilter and Pat Krajewski. They are the guests of the Honourable Senator Marwah.

On behalf of all honourable senators, I welcome you to the Senate of Canada.

Hon. Salma Ataullahjan: Honourable senators, I rise today to speak on maternal and newborn health, an issue near and dear to my heart for many years.

In the past, I took the lead as the rapporteur for the IPU’s Committee on Democracy and Human Rights in drafting a report on the role of parliaments in assisting women and children’s health services. I also played a critical role in the landmark resolution on the matter, and I’m proud to say that it was the first time a resolution of its kind was adopted by the IPU.

For those of you who are not familiar with the IPU, it’s the Inter-Parliamentary Union, which consists of 179 countries. It predates the League of Nations, which means it’s older than the United Nations too.

I am particularly proud of my work on the accountability mechanism meant to monitor the progress of member parliaments in implementing the resolution. We cannot simply make commitments but forget about them as new issues arise. As a result, I was named IPU’s Goodwill Ambassador for Maternal and Newborn Child Health.

Although my work on maternal and newborn health has fallen to the sidelines in the last few years, I am honoured to be hosting an event tonight, along with our former colleague the Honourable Asha Seth, who has done incredible work on nutrition. The reception will highlight Canada’s leadership in global newborn and child health, and we will have the pleasure of hearing from Nutrition International’s Director of Global Advocacy.

It will be a good occasion to remind ourselves of the importance of advocating for this often-forgotten basic human right. In Canada, about 50 to 85 women die each year in childbirth or during postpartum, and over half of those mothers’ babies die as well. Our country still has a lot of work to do to ensure that Canadian mothers and their babies get a healthy start to life.

I am grateful to the former senator Seth for her continued advocacy for maternal, newborn and child health. Thank you.

The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, I wish to draw your attention to the presence in the gallery of the Premier of Nunavut Pauloosie Akeeagok, Deputy Premier Pamela Gross, and Minister of Justice and Minister of Economic Development and Transportation David Akeeagok. They are the guests of the Honourable Senator Patterson (Nunavut).

On behalf of all honourable senators, I welcome you to the Senate of Canada.

Hon. Dennis Glen Patterson: Honourable senators, this week, the cabinet of the Government of Nunavut has come to Ottawa to meet with their federal counterparts to discuss issues of importance to Nunavut. The meetings touched on everything from infrastructure to transportation, housing, fisheries, climate change, elder repatriation and child care.

Premier Akeeagok also had meetings with the Minister of National Defence on issues relating to the important role that Inuit, Inuit-owned businesses and businesses in Northern Canada in general can contribute to NORAD modernization. The premier also met with the Prime Minister to discuss housing, health care, Arctic sovereignty, security and devolution.

I’m delighted that the premier and his cabinet were able to make this important trip here. It’s difficult to prioritize the many urgent and interconnected needs of our territory. Housing is clearly our first priority in Nunavut, reflected in the Nunavut government’s Nunavut 3000 initiative.

Improved housing and health care will lead to healthier children who will have a safe space to grow and learn. When they graduate, it will lead to more skilled workers and help ensure our economy grows, diversifies and thrives.

Supporting multi-user, multipurpose infrastructure will not only help support Arctic sovereignty and security initiatives — which are made more urgent as the world turns its attention to security in the circumpolar Arctic as the Ukraine war rages on — but it will also help us to follow through on domestic priorities like Canada’s Critical Minerals Strategy and community resupply. I’m thinking of projects such as the Grays Bay Port and Road Project, a nation-building initiative that I know Premier Akeeagok and Minister David Akeeagok will be discussing tomorrow alongside me and other stakeholders at the U.S. embassy.

Again, I thank the premier, his cabinet and their hard-working staff for their hard work on behalf of all Nunavummiut. Tunngasuqassi. Qujannamiik. Matna. Koana. Taima.

The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, I wish to draw your attention to the presence in the gallery of His Excellency Anselm Ransford Sowah, High Commissioner for Ghana. He is the guest of the Honourable Senator Bovey.

On behalf of all honourable senators, I welcome you to the Senate of Canada.

The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, I wish to draw your attention to the presence in the gallery of students and professors from the University of Ottawa and the University of Haifa. They are the guests of the Honourable Senator Simons.

On behalf of all honourable senators, I welcome you to the Senate of Canada.

The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, I wish to draw your attention to the presence in the gallery of a group of Foreign Service officers from Global Affairs Canada. They are the guests of the Honourable Senator Ringuette.

On behalf of all honourable senators, I welcome you to the Senate of Canada.

The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, I wish to draw your attention to the presence in the gallery of our former colleague the Honourable Asha Seth, accompanied by Dr. Arun Seth. They are the guests of the Honourable Senator Ataullahjan.

On behalf of all honourable senators, I welcome you back to the Senate of Canada.