- Member of Parliament
- Member of Parliament
- NDP
- Courtenay—Alberni
- British Columbia
- Voting Attendance: 67%
- Expenses Last Quarter: $148,159.67
- Government Page
- May/2/24 8:18:00 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I will never not take the opportunity to again stand up for military families, the important role they play and the important work they do. We all owe them a ton of gratitude.
A report that just came out from the ombudsman made it very clear that it is actually a national security threat that we do not take care of our military personnel. We need to really elevate the conversation, and we need the government to act.
One thing I continue to talk about is that one opportunity is using public lands and using them urgently. We have them at bases. We have them in communities right around our country. It actually would be prudent for the government to act on developing a plan and getting started right away to ensure that our military personnel have a safe and affordable place to live. They should be able to save money when they are in the military and actually put money aside for their retirement so they can have a good retirement. We want them to have a good retirement for the sacrifices they have made.
Does my colleague support using public lands for prioritizing military veterans, service members and their families?
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- May/2/24 8:11:16 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my colleague for his service to our country as an officer in the Canadian Air Force. His office is right across the hall from mine, so we spend a lot of time together, and I appreciate his work.
We know that no veteran should be living on the street. Someone who has served our country should not be homeless. We know that 67% of homeless people in my community of Port Alberni are indigenous. As my colleague from Churchill—Keewatinook Aski just raised, even if we were to double indigenous housing right now there would still not be enough housing to house indigenous people. That is absolutely shameful in a country like ours.
I have talked about, and the government talks about this in its budget, using public lands, but they have to be in public hands. It should prioritize military personnel, veterans and indigenous peoples.
I asked this question earlier, and a Conservative colleague said Conservatives were waiting until their platform gets rolled out in the next election. I get stuff done here all the time. I am not waiting for the next election to get things done. I think we can work together now. I do not think we can wait until an election next year.
I am putting my hand out and extending an olive branch to my colleague in the hope that he will work with me to put pressure on the government to do the right thing when it comes to public lands and getting our priorities in order. Will my colleague accept that olive branch instead of waiting until an election is called?
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- May/2/24 7:59:22 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I asked earlier and I just want an answer. What would the Conservatives do in terms of offering a plan?
We want to work with the Conservatives on this to ensure that we build housing for military personnel and their families and, of course, for those who have served, our veterans, whom we are always indebted to for the remainder of their lives. Does my colleague suggest an idea or a plan that he would like to present or discuss in the House that we could possibly work together on?
We would like to see public lands kept in public hands. Those public lands should absolutely be prioritized for military personnel, veterans and indigenous peoples. Does my colleague agree with that?
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- May/2/24 7:52:00 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my colleague for advocating for military veterans and their families. It is greatly appreciated.
I want to go back to 2015. I recall knocking on doors and meeting military personnel living in the Comox Valley in my riding, and they could not find housing. People were struggling then.
It takes long-out planning and thought, and the Liberals have failed to do that. They inherited a failed plan or no plan, if one wants to call it that, when it comes to housing for military personnel.
Does my colleague regret that his government did not put more foresight into building housing units for military personnel? What would he do differently, moving forward, so that we could honour those people who are serving our country?
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- May/2/24 6:58:18 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I cannot say enough about how hard working my colleague from North Island—Powell River is, and I will mention the advocating she has done for veterans and for the people at 19 Wing in Comox. I also represent Courtenay in the Comox Valley, where many military veterans and military personnel live. I also represent the CFMETR navy base at Nanoose. From all of us, I want to thank all those who serve, and their families. I think we can all agree that we appreciate the work they do.
Ombud Lick highlighted, in his report, the serious situation that the military is facing. He cited that how we treat military families and military personnel is “an issue of national security”. We know, during the decade under the Conservatives, that there were cuts and that the treatment of our military and of veterans was appalling.
I hope my colleague can speak about how the government has also failed and how we need to urgently repair the damage done to those military personnel and their families, and speak about how we owe it to them to ensure they have a safe place to live.
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Madam Speaker, we have heard from veterans about the gold-digger clause, which was implemented after World War I to prevent women from marrying veterans for their pensions and benefits. The Liberals promised to fix this. For eight years they have been in government. I know my colleague heard about this from veterans in her riding.
Blair Meadows, a veteran from Qualicum Beach in my riding, cited, “If I marry after the age of 60 and pass away before my spouse, she won't receive any of my benefits.” This 100-year-old law needs to be abolished. It is an archaic regulation that really needs to be fixed.
Does the member not agree that this is discriminatory against veterans, people who put their lives on the line, and leaves spouses in poverty? This is unacceptable. Does my colleague agree that this needs to be fixed by her government?
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Mr. Speaker, first, I want to thank my colleague from Joliette, with whom I have worked for many years now on tax fairness, trying to make sure that those who are not paying their fair share do pay their fair share.
I want to talk about mental health fairness, especially for first responders and military veterans in our country.
I got a message from Blair Meadows, who is a veteran and a strong volunteer and committed citizen at the Qualicum Beach Legion, in my riding. He talked about the important costs associated with PTSD service dogs for military police and first responders and that they need to be fully covered by the federal government, including training, maintenance and aftercare. As Mr. Meadows has pointed out, “These dogs are part of our medical care and well-being. Personally, my service dog saved my life and you can't put a price on that.” Others have said similar things. These dogs save lives. When it comes to the people who put their lives on the line for our freedom and democracy, who put the sacrifice on, the government has a duty to ensure that the costs associated with these dogs are covered. It actually saves our health care system money.
I know this is an issue for my good colleague from North Island—Powell River, which hopefully should be North Island—qathet if she gets her way with the electoral boundary commission, which she should, in the future. I would like to say to my colleague that this was not in the budget.
We saw the Conservatives cut a third of Veterans Affairs when it was under their watch.
The government has failed to deliver the critical services that Blair Meadows and many other veterans and first responders need. Does my colleague agree that this should be covered and that it actually saves money when it comes to the mental health care system in our country?
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- Feb/16/23 12:17:28 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, we are learning about Veterans Affairs' mental health rehabilitation services treatments being outsourced to a company owned by Loblaws.
My good colleague from North Island—Powell River has been calling on the government to deliver that through Canada's health care system, not privatize it. Meanwhile veterans, people who have put their lives on the line, are not getting the services and treatment they need and deserve.
Does the member think that this privatization of veterans' services should be included in the health care system for Canada and Quebeckers rather than outsourced, where profits are actually flowing to investors while veterans wait for services? It is absolutely absurd. It is unconscionable that the government is doing this.
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Mr. Speaker, my colleague talked about supports for people with mental health issues. One group we have not talked about is public safety personnel. This is definitely not partisan; it is about us both coming from rural communities. That includes border services, corrections services, firefighters, operational intelligence personnel, paramedics, police, public safety communications and search and rescue personnel. Half those individuals experience some sort of mental disorder in their career in their lifetime and one in 10 will actually consider death by suicide.
These professionals and their families have remained decades behind. We know about the military and veterans with regard to supports for their well-being, and we are just scratching the surface in addressing their considerable mental health needs. Their core funding comes from the Canadian Institute for Public Safety Research and Treatment and concludes on March 31, just six weeks from now. Without a renewed commitment on that funding, it will end.
Maybe my colleague can speak about some of those public safety personnel in his riding who have suffered through PTSD or some trauma and how important it is we get the proper resources to support them, especially those heroes who have put their lives on the line and the sacrifices they made, as we know coming from rural Canada.
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Madam Speaker, I do appreciate my colleague talking about lapsed spending and ensuring the men and women who serve in Canada's military get the right equipment. When he talks about lapsed spending, I remind my colleague that the Conservatives left $1.2 billion unspent that was dedicated to veterans. He just scolded the Liberal government when it was the Harper government that cut a third of Veterans Affairs, which led to the backlog today. The Liberals are just as guilty for not fixing the mess the Conservatives created.
My question is about young people and students. This legislation includes a framework for removing the interest on the federal portion of student loans, which is something New Democrats have been fighting for. Can the member explain to—
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Mr. Speaker, I always laugh when I heard Conservatives talking about smaller governments and for the government to get out of the way.
We can look at Phoenix. They farmed out the payroll system for the government to save $70 million a year. It is going to cost $2.2 billion by the end of next year. They gutted Veterans Affairs by a third, which has led to a backlog of 50,000 applications for disabled veterans, the people who put their lives on the line. These are applications that are not even open yet. They were also a train wreck for DFO. They gutted DFO. I live in a coastal community. I know how that plays out.
One thing the member said in his speech was about those of us who buy our own groceries. What about the MPs who do not pay for their own dental care? It is unconscionable. Ted in my riding from Parksville is 77 years old. What did the Conservative member for Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan say? He said that Ted should go back to work.
Ted's teeth have fallen out. Does this member believe Ted should go back to work?
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Madam Speaker, one thing my colleague's party promised in 2019 was to make sure that the CBSA had the resources it needs to detect and stop the flow of weapons at our borders. Just like the Conservatives did with Veterans Affairs when they cut a third of the staff, which has led to a backlog of over 40,000 disability applications for veterans, they cut 1,000 positions at the CBSA, which are required to stop the flow of weapons at the Canada-U.S. border.
My colleague touched on some of the improvements the government is going to make at the CBSA, but when will it fully restore all of the positions that were cut by the Conservatives, and in fact bolster them, given the increase in gun violence and the illegal importation of weapons coming into Canada?
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- May/19/22 7:46:54 p.m.
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Madam Chair, the announcement of a strategic review of the public service and potential cuts of up to $6 billion has prompted concern from hard-working public servants and Canadians who rely on public services. The last time a strategic review happened, the Harper government cut service delivery for veterans, people on EI and many others, while going after 19,000 public service jobs. The lack of details about this review is concerning.
Can the minister reassure Canadians that this review will not impact service levels, and that the federal public service unions will be consulted throughout the process?
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- May/19/22 5:05:32 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, there are things I truly appreciated in my colleague's speech and things I do not agree with. One thing he touched on were the wait times at the airports. When we see the wait times at airports or passport services, we know the government has not adequately staffed the resources to respond to the increase in the amount of travel.
We have constantly heard complaints like these from Conservatives over the years. It is always a surprise to me when Conservatives say there are not enough public servants. They cut services, then they complain about it. The repercussions are delays in service. We saw that happen with Veterans Affairs under the Stephen Harper government. It cut a third of Veterans Affairs, and that made a backlog that exists even to this day.
Does my good friend and colleague not agree in the importance of investing in public services to support Canadians and make sure that they get the services they deserve and need?
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Madam Speaker, it seems there is commonality in that not just veterans, but seniors are being targeted, and there needs to be more work. The gold-digger clause absolutely needs to be revoked. It is discriminatory to Canada's veterans, the people who put their lives on the line so that we have a fair and free society. We are indebted to them, and we owe them the benefits that every Canadian deserves. This is an unfair penalty on the very people we should be supporting the most.
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- Apr/5/22 1:06:41 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I am really glad that today we are talking about making sure that the men and women in the Canadian military are actually getting support so that they have the equipment they need to do the jobs they need to do. What we are not talking enough about today is the most important piece of equipment we have: That is the men and women in the Canadian military. I want to thank every one of them for their service and sacrifice to this country.
We saw the Conservatives cut a third of Veterans Affairs. They closed veterans offices, which led to a major backlog. Over 40,000 veterans are still waiting for their disability management applications to be opened. Now, the Liberals have promised to fix it, but they have been partially doing it through casework managers who are on temporary contracts.
My question is this. When are the Liberals actually going to rehire all of those employees who were cut from Veterans Affairs and end the backlog, so that veterans who have put their lives on the line to serve our country and do the hard work are getting the support that they deserve and need?
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- Mar/24/22 3:30:19 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I served on the veterans affairs committee with this colleague. I respect him and thank him.
The government always talks about science and evidence-based decision-making, but that also has to come with transparency. Canada's chief public health officer, Dr. Tam, has indicated that the government is currently engaged in a broad interdepartmental approach to reviewing all vaccine mandates under federal jurisdiction.
Does my colleague not agree that the government needs to provide Canadians with a timeline for this review and needs to do it soon, and that there needs to be transparency in its decision-making?
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