Hon. Ratna Omidvar: My question is for the representative of the government, and it is about Raif Badawi, a political prisoner in Saudi Arabia who has been jailed for his beliefs since 2012. Irwin Cotler, Canada’s former attorney general, has been advocating on Mr. Badawi’s behalf.

Eight months ago, the House of Commons passed a motion calling on the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship to grant citizenship to Raif Badawi by exercising his discretion under section 5 of the Citizenship Act, which authorizes him to grant citizenship to any person to alleviate unusual and special hardships. Six months later, on June 3, 2021, this chamber passed the same motion, led by our colleague Senator Julie Miville-Dechêne. When will the government follow the will of both houses of Parliament and grant Raif Badawi Canadian citizenship?