- Member of Parliament
- Member of Parliament
- Independent
- Spadina—Fort York
- Ontario
- Voting Attendance: 62%
- Expenses Last Quarter: $144,966.01
- Government Page
- Feb/16/23 6:17:35 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the safety of Canadians is currently at risk. People are being intimidated. One need only flip open any recent paper to see that people are intimidated, people are being stalked and people are reporting it. What is with the pussyfooting around this issue when it comes to the government? Why is it such a doormat? What was the point of establishing the Security and Intelligence Threats to Elections Task Force? Are the Liberals just waxing poetic about it? Where is the action? I call upon the government, yet again, to name names and come forward with evidence of foreign interference in the 2021 federal election.
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- Feb/16/23 6:10:56 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we are back again on the issue of foreign interference in Canada. Why? Well, it is an important issue that seems to be addressed in stealth, if at all, by the federal government. Perhaps its members think that if it is ignored, it will go away, or maybe the government is aware of the extent to which foreign operatives have conducted their interference strategies. Perhaps the government is fully aware that these foreign operatives have hit close to home and have raised their nefarious heads to manipulate Canada's electoral system and brazenly violate our electoral laws, all to place in office elected representatives who would be more favourable to the interests of China or Iran. If that is the case, it would be severely prudent for the Canadian government to decisively act to expose these individuals instead of doing nothing. That would be the sensible thing to do, shine a bright light on these operatives and either arrest or expel them. Yet, we see nothing being done.
A parliamentary committee recently explored the issue of foreign interference, because Canada has become a safe haven for thugs for the Chinese and Iranian regimes who seem to intimate and threaten at will anyone they want. As one citizen put it recently, “I'm not sure how safe I feel when the man who tortured my father lived in the same neighbourhood as my family.”
Is this the Canada that we want? Is this the level of protection that Canadians want to see from their own government? I think not.
As a member of the House, I also do not want to engage with other members who do not have Canada's best interest in their hearts. What a sham Parliament that would be. What a travesty to our electoral system. What an insult to the safety of our citizens. Such indifference displayed to date by the Canadian government is tantamount to a national disgrace.
The procedure and House affairs committee has been going along for a few months now investigating the reality of foreign interference in Canada. There is no secret that it has happened and is happening.
So what of our intelligence services and their efforts to combat international efforts that destabilize our institutions and threaten our citizens? Well, as the committee was told recently, CSIS is mandated to protect Canada and Canadians against foreign interference, among other threats. To respond to threats, CSIS works in collaboration with other partners, including the RCMP. In addition, CSIS is a core member of the Security and Intelligence Threats to Elections Task Force, which coordinates efforts to protect federal elections. It is very clear that these agencies are well aware of the existence of foreign operatives in our country.
We also hear of money-laundering operations. I am sure this money is not being used by Iran or China to contribute to the making of a better world.
Why is this government a doormat to foreign interference? Why do its members continue to bury their heads in the sand?
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- Feb/16/23 3:11:47 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, yesterday, I held a town hall on community safety. I thank police officers of 14 Division for attending.
Hon. members may recall a man being swarmed and killed by eight female assailants. This happened across the street from my constituency office. Parents of children at Jean Lumb Public School were threatened for speaking out about their kids being targets of the legal cannabis shops. One even set up shop next to two schools.
Public transit is becoming a war zone. A woman was knifed on the Spadina streetcar. This is the new normal that my constituents must accept. The government legalized cannabis. It cannot just walk away. Urban centres require urban solutions.
Will the Minister of Public Safety commit to creating an urban public safety strategy?
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- Feb/10/23 10:59:44 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, I am rising today to bring to the government's attention the high level of concern being expressed by my constituents about their personal safety. There have been many incidents of violence and several have received widely covered attention, as they occurred in our community of Spadina—Fort York. For example, the tragic swarming and murder of Ken Lee, a 59-year-old man, by eight female youth assailants occurred right across the street from my constituency office. A woman was also stabbed on board the Spadina streetcar, the same transportation used by my constituents to go to school, to pick up groceries and to go to work.
My community and our city demand action. Placing a few extra police on subway platforms, while helpful, is not a definitive answer. That is why I have organized a town hall meeting in my riding on February 15 on the issue of community safety. Representatives from the Toronto Police Service will also be present. This meeting gives constituents an opportunity to voice their concerns and explore measures that could be put in place—
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- Nov/25/22 12:11:02 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we have pretend Chinese diplomats operating pseudo police stations in Canada and intimidating Chinese Canadians. We know of China's interference in our electoral process. There are also Chinese spies infiltrating Canadian businesses. A wealth of evidence also points to the Iranian regime stalking and intimidating Iranian Canadians. Our country has many exemplary citizens who left China and Iran to live in a free Canada.
Is the government going to continue its do-nothing approach with the undiplomatic actions of China and Iran, or will it act to finally stand up for our citizens?
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