Senator Ataullahjan: The Prime Minister acknowledged the existence of systemic Islamophobia in the Canada Revenue Agency, or CRA, and referred the review to the Office of the Taxpayers’ Ombudsperson. The ombudsperson has testified before the Human Rights Committee and admitted that he’s working with one arm tied behind his back. The much-publicized National Summit on Islamophobia in 2021 didn’t achieve anything. Once again, this government is all talk and no action. Leader, what are this government’s real plans to finally tackling systemic Islamophobia?

Hon. Salma Ataullahjan: My question is for the government leader.

The Standing Senate Committee on Human Rights has been working extensively to understand the extent of Islamophobia in Canada. Recently, testimony by officials from the Canada Revenue Agency as well as from the Office of the Taxpayers’ Ombudsperson shed light on systemic biases in the Canadian government. We learned that the CRA has been obstructing the ombudsperson’s investigation on the grounds of national security and his lack of jurisdiction. The CRA Charities Directorate’s director general shared that the framework used for audits was not established or created at the CRA.

Leaders in the Muslim charity sector have been speaking out against systemic biases for years now, and their fears have since been confirmed by reports by the University of Toronto Institute of Islamic Studies and the International Civil Liberties Monitoring Group.

Leader, why did it take a Senate study on Islamophobia to finally get the ball rolling on this issue?