SoVote

Decentralized Democracy

Member of the Subcommittee on Review of Parliament’s involvement with associations and recognized Interparliamentary groups Deputy whip of the Bloc Québécois Member of the Joint Interparliamentary Council

Marilène Gill

  • Member of Parliament
  • Member of the Subcommittee on Review of Parliament’s involvement with associations and recognized Interparliamentary groups Deputy whip of the Bloc Québécois Member of the Joint Interparliamentary Council
  • Bloc Québécois
  • Manicouagan
  • Quebec
  • Voting Attendance: 64%
  • Expenses Last Quarter: $175,049.14

  • Government Page
Context: House Hansard - 20 - Jan/31/22
Mrs. Marilène Gill
  • Jan/31/22 11:45:46 a.m.
  • Watch
Mr. Speaker, I will answer my colleague's question, which she did not get to finish, but yes, it is due to a lack of funding, a lack of foresight, and a failure to listen to first nations, who have been talking about it for the past 20 years. Quebec alone is short more than 10,000 homes. Those 10,000 homes represent the shortfall that needs to be made up in just the next five years, and that number does not even include additional needs. It is quite obvious that nothing was planned or invested, and the government now has a problem it does not seem to know how to solve.
113 words
  • Hear!
  • Rabble!
  • star_border
Context: House Hansard - 13 - Dec/8/21
Mrs. Marilène Gill
  • Dec/8/21 9:54:30 p.m.
  • Watch
Madam Chair, I am very glad to hear the minister talk about the pandemic, which might have exposed and exacerbated needs and challenges in various sectors. I would like to remind that minister that the Viens commission report said the housing problem had “emerged as the epicentre of many of the issues faced by the First Nations and Inuit”. According to the indigenous leaders I speak to in their capacity as community representatives, one of the biggest problems they have to tackle is housing, which is the root cause of many other problems, difficulties and even tragedies. I would like to know if housing is a priority for the government, if not its top priority, as it is for band councils and chiefs.
125 words
  • Hear!
  • Rabble!
  • star_border
Context: House Hansard - 13 - Dec/8/21
Mrs. Marilène Gill
  • Dec/8/21 9:52:32 p.m.
  • Watch
Madam Chair, I agree that it can be complex. That is why we separatists like it when things are simpler, when there are fewer levels of government and fewer parties involved. Overall, the AFNQL is representative. It represents its members and knows what is going on. It has an excellent view of what is happening in communities, and it knows what they need. Is the government not concerned that by under-investing, it is deferring expenditures that will become even more significant in future? We spoke about northern communities. Construction is an issue in the north, whether it is on the territory of the Naskapi in Quebec or in Cree and Inuit communities. At the same time, the reality is that indigenous communities are very young. There are many families and many children, and we are unable to house them. It is not necessarily about geography, but about demographics. With money, I would hope that we can do it. We are not fighting the climate but a dire lack of funding. There is already a shortfall. In the minister's view, if we fail to make sufficient investments now, will we be further postponing investments of even greater amounts in housing for indigenous communities?
204 words
  • Hear!
  • Rabble!
  • star_border
Context: House Hansard - 13 - Dec/8/21
Mrs. Marilène Gill
  • Dec/8/21 9:50:19 p.m.
  • Watch
Madam Chair, I completely agree with the minister. That would be a luxury for me; I cannot split myself in three. There are just not as many of us, as my colleagues know, so we always have to do more. In fact, as the minister said—and this is just an aside before my next question—the AFNQL has figured it out already and has been aware of these needs for decades now. I invite the minister, his staff and all the teams of people who could work together to address those needs to get in touch with the associations. They already know the details, so I am sure they would be delighted to collaborate. Everyone agrees that there is a major gap and that it cannot just be closed. There is no plan for after those five years are up. We need a long-term plan. Five years is not a long time. It is very likely one Parliament given that this is a minority government. How is the government planning to close the resulting gaps?
179 words
  • Hear!
  • Rabble!
  • star_border
Context: House Hansard - 13 - Dec/8/21
Mrs. Marilène Gill (Manicouagan, BQ)
  • Dec/8/21 9:48:08 p.m.
  • Watch
Madam Chair, as the indigenous affairs critic for the Bloc Québécois, I do not have the luxury of being able to split the minister across the way into three so I will address him on different topics. First, I would like to talk about housing. In its budget statement, the government allocated $6 billion over five years to be invested across Quebec and Canada. After the announcement, the Assembly of First Nations Quebec-Labrador, or AFNQL, indicated that this was a step in the right direction but that it was not enough to build, repair and maintain housing in indigenous communities. In 2018, the AFNQL determined that Quebec alone needed $3.9 billion for five years. Not to speak for the first nations, they are saying so themselves, but the Bloc Québécois used the AFNQL projection and determined that a $4.3‑billion investment over five years was needed for Quebec communities alone, including $400 million for Inuit communities. With inflation and the growing problems resulting from the housing shortage, which we we saw in indigenous communities during the COVID‑19 crisis, we can expect that estimate will need to be even higher. Does the minister agree with me and the AFNQL that $6 billion is not enough to meet the housing needs of first nations in Quebec?
232 words
  • Hear!
  • Rabble!
  • star_border