Hon. Marc Gold (Government Representative in the Senate), pursuant to notice of December 12, 2023, moved:

That, pursuant to rule 7-2, not more than a further six hours of debate be allocated at third reading stage of Bill C-21, An Act to amend certain Acts and to make certain consequential amendments (firearms).

He said: Honourable senators, I rise to speak to Government Motion No. 150, which proposes to allocate an additional six hours to the debate on Bill C-21.

This bill seeks to better protect Canadian communities from gun violence in all its forms, including gangs, domestic violence, mass shootings and suicide. It is, without exaggeration, a matter of life and death, and we have a duty to deal with this bill without delay, while studying it thoroughly.

[English]

Bill C-21 is vital legislation that aims to better protect Canadian communities from gun violence in all its forms. It was a key electoral platform committed by this government. It has been a government priority throughout this mandate, and it has been thoroughly studied in both chambers of Parliament. As such, I am now moving this motion seeking agreement on a road map to get Bill C-21 to the finish line at long last.

Applying time allocation to an item of government business is not a decision I take lightly. This is only the second time that the Government Representative Office has done so, and it is not our preferred way of dealing with legislation. However, on occasion, it is the appropriate way, and I will explain why I believe that this is such an instance.

Bill C-21 was introduced in May 2022, over a year and a half ago. It was extensively studied by members of Parliament with numerous amendments proposed — some withdrawn, some defeated, some adopted — and the bill was ultimately passed by the other place in May of this year with support from over 200 members of Parliament representing four different parties.

We received the bill in our chamber on May 18. Over the course of three weeks in June, eight senators spoke on debate before we referred the bill to the Standing Senate Committee on National Security, Defence and Veterans Affairs. That committee studied Bill C-21 for 33 hours over 12 meetings this fall. It heard from more than 60 witnesses and received 34 written briefs. It reported the bill back to the chamber last week unamended, although with extensive observations. We’ve now been debating it at third reading for several days.

[Translation]

All that to say that this bill has undergone a meaningful review. I’d like to thank the many senators who took part, especially the members of the Standing Senate Committee on National Security, Defence and Veterans Affairs. After a year of study in the other place, six months of study in the Senate, and more than two years since an election campaign in which one of the government’s main commitments was to ensure better gun control, it’s high time to proceed with the final stages of the process.

This is all the more true in light of the years, even decades, of hard work put in by victims of gun violence and activists, who have never stopped calling for tangible measures to better protect our communities.

[English]

Colleagues, we just marked December 6, the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women. On that day in 1989, 14 women were murdered at École Polytechnique in Montreal; another 10 women and 4 men were injured. In the 34 years since, the survivors of that shooting, along with friends and family members of the victims, have been calling for legislation like Bill C-21, and during that time, they’ve been joined by people whose lives have been turned upside down by far too many shootings in places all across this country. They have been joined as well by survivors of intimate partner violence and those who work with and advocate for them. They’ve been joined by medical professionals, from emergency room doctors to pediatricians to those who specialize in suicide prevention. They have been joined by mayors and police chiefs who work every day to address the scourge of gang violence in their communities. And they’ve been joined by people vulnerable to — as Professor Pam Palmater described at committee — the link between hate groups and gun violence.

They were joined this fall by Brian Sweeney whose daughter Angela was murdered in Sault Ste. Marie. Mr. Sweeney took the stage at the December 6 commemoration in Montreal last week as one of the newest members of the community of victims, advocates and survivors that no one wants to be part of. No one wants to be part of that community.

From the podium, he said he travelled to Montreal “. . . to support the other victims here that have been suffering for a lot longer than myself.” In a letter to senators about Bill C-21, he wrote:

Implementing these measures is urgent. The bill is the result of years of advocacy from victims and women’s groups, and women have died while the bill has been debated.

Colleagues I would not be moving this motion for time allocation if we were at the start of the process, but at this point, the Senate has conducted a thorough and conscientious review. We have analyzed the bill from all angles. We are very well aware of all the arguments for and against. So, after a lengthy parliamentary process and after decades of hard work by advocates, it is time to agree on a road map that gets us to a final vote.

Pursuant to rule 7-2, I have spoken with the Leader of the Opposition, but we’ve not reached an agreement to allocate time for the remainder of the debate. Accordingly, I urge and encourage honourable senators to support this motion to allocate an additional six hours for the third reading debate of Bill C-21. Thank you for your kind attention.