- Member of Parliament
- NDP
- North Island—Powell River
- British Columbia
- Voting Attendance: 65%
- Expenses Last Quarter: $145,542.18
- Government Page
- Feb/1/24 1:50:02 p.m.
- Watch
Madam Speaker, I am a little confused about the speech by the member today, who is also from B.C., specifically because, since 2007, B.C. has created its own carbon pricing mechanism and people in British Columbia do not pay a federal carbon tax.
Could the member clarify for the House exactly what he is talking about?
58 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Jan/29/24 6:04:51 p.m.
- Watch
Madam Speaker, I think all of this is peculiar, to be quite honest.
This is a very trying time for us, and it is a very internal process. However, it is very legitimate because we have to make sure that as we do our work, we have people who are in certain roles that provide a good context for us to move forward.
What I would say is that I still see the personal attack that is happening. It is not that I agree with the behaviour; that is not what I am saying at all in my speech and in my time here. What I am saying is that we have proof that other Speakers in the role have done similar activities. The member has asked me whether the Speaker should have said this or that. If other Speakers, at different times, have done the same thing he was doing, then why would he think it was something he had to confess? That is the problem.
The process, not the person, is the problem. That does not mean I agree with the person. It means that we have to do better in this place, to have rules or clarity or a process of training for new Speakers. I am not sure what the answer is. That is really up to the committee, if it chooses to make that study.
230 words
All Topics
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Dec/11/23 10:41:48 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Chair, the member's speech made me remember hearing testimony at a House of Commons committee from former chief Joe Alphonse, who talked about the fact that there were serious fires and everyone around them in non-indigenous communities talked to them in a very disrespectful way. Even though they had a significant plan and had worked at a high level to make that plan, these people came into their communities and marked every house on the reserve that had children in it.
I am wondering if the member could talk about how colonial practices continue to harm indigenous communities.
101 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
Madam Speaker, the member's speech was very relevant to the issues. I thought I would give him this opportunity to outline some of the concerns he has about the opposition leader's bill on housing, what the other challenges might be and how it would not meet the needs of many Canadians.
53 words
All Topics
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Nov/7/23 12:19:20 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, I was a little confused by the member's speech, and I hope I can get some clarity.
The member talked a lot about social justice and its impact. From his speech, I wonder if he understands the correlation between economic justice and social justice and how, so often, the lowest-income people are the ones working the hardest to make ends meet while the very wealthy CEOs are making money off their backs. Does he think those two things need to be dealt with if we are going to be proud of this country we call Canada?
100 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Mar/22/23 7:11:55 p.m.
- Watch
Madam Speaker, if the member would stop yelling, I would certainly be happy to answer the question.
At the end of the day, our commitment, which I noted repeatedly in my speech, is to Canadians. We feel strongly that this needs to be voted on. Canadians want to see where we are on the public inquiry. Our leader asked for it first. We have heard other leaders asked for it. It took them a while, but this is how we can be transparent to Canadians and that is our goal.
90 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Feb/16/23 4:54:12 p.m.
- Watch
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for his very powerful speech. One of the things I have heard the Liberals say today is that they announced another $200 billion for the health care system. That is absolute nonsense. The reality is that the majority of that money was already committed. It was already out there. The only addition was $46 billion, which is not enough to deal with the crisis we are in right now in this country. It is shameful for them to bring that up.
Does the member have any comments on that?
95 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Oct/24/22 8:10:00 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, the member's speech was incredibly thoughtful. As we are having these discussions, I would like to give her an opportunity to talk about how important it is to not pick and choose when it comes to human rights.
A lot of devastating things are happening in many countries, and all of us who live in safe countries, where we largely have a good life and are not worried about genocide day to day, need to stand up to voice those things so we can encourage other countries to step up and do the same. I am wondering if this member could speak a bit about this.
109 words
All Topics
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the member for her speech and the time she took to talk about the importance of especially dental care. I know in my riding, just over a year ago, I sent out a mailer talking about the need for dental care. I was shocked by how many people responded. What was most surprising was how many people actually came to the door. I remember walking into the office and having three seniors waiting outside the door, all of them there to talk about their really important need for dental care and bringing in person the mailer that I sent out, along with their responses.
I am just wondering if this member could indicate why her party, which just, over a year ago, voted against dental care is now in a position of voting for it.
141 words
All Topics
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Jun/16/22 7:58:02 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Chair, I want to thank the member for her very impressive speech in the House today. I learn something from her every time she presents here.
One of the core messages I heard is that we have never gotten to the goal. I want her to explain that to the House. Despite Conservative and Liberal governments taking turns, why is it that we still, as Canadians, have never reached this commitment to make sure that we are supporting people across the world so they do not go hungry?
89 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the member for his very impassioned speech and his advocacy on this issue continuously throughout many Parliaments.
I could not agree more. We need to get this out the door for sure so that we can see jurors across this country supported in a meaningful way.
I want him to expand on one of the things he touched on. This is a civic duty. That is what jurors are doing, yet we are leaving them in this country at this point with a great amount of suffering. It is like being wounded while serving one's country.
Could he talk about how important it is to recognize that and make sure that is not the legacy we leave?
124 words
All Topics
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Jun/1/22 9:14:35 p.m.
- Watch
Madam Speaker, I want to recognize the amazing work of the member for Edmonton Strathcona this evening. I really appreciate her thoughts on this issue and certainly hope that all people in this House listen to what she has to say.
I want to start this speech today by talking a bit about the fact that while growing up, I lived part of the time at my grandfather's house. He owned a large piece of property, and in the whole community, which spanned many acres, there were 25 people who lived there.
The reason that is so important to me is that as a young person I would go and visit Mary and Dobbie. They lived about a 45-minute walk from my house, and I would visit them regularly and help them out with things. As I got older, I started to understand that their accents were from where they grew up, which was in Europe, and the reason they were there was that during the Second World War, they fled Nazi Germany. I remember Mary telling me stories about her family being taken when she was young and how she had to hide in a suitcase to get through parts of Europe to eventually get to safety in Canada. She talked about the reason she lived in such a small house on such a big piece of land. It was because she always wanted an exit so that if anybody came for her again, she would be able to hide and get away, and there was enough space for her to do that.
I remember as a young person really being impacted by what that meant, understanding that for this person and her husband every day was a precious gift, yet every day they were slightly afraid of what they had lived through and afraid that it could happen again. I think of every Remembrance Day in my riding, when I go to multiple communities to stand and be with them to remember the history of the Second World War and understand how important it is that we create as much peace as we can.
I remember Mary saying to me one time, “I no longer believe in a god. I cannot believe in a god when I saw what happened in my community, when I saw people that I thought were friends tell on our family and get some of those people taken away.” She said, “Even though I do not believe in God, I pray for peace unceasingly.” Often when I think of her legacy for me personally, I think about peace unceasingly and I am really grateful for that lesson.
I too am one of the members who spent time in Lithuania just a few days ago with the Canadian NATO Parliamentary Association. I think it is really important that as we sit in those rooms and listen to the interesting debates, discussions, education and papers that are presented to us, we always remember that even in those places where we are talking about security and how to stay safe, we also remember peace. I think about that space and about how many of us listened to ministers who were being televised from Ukraine, their images projected on the wall, and I think every single one of us who was there will never forget how exhausted those faces looked—how determined they looked, and how exhausted they looked.
I think of the deputy prime minister for European and Euro-Atlantic integration of Ukraine and government coordination of humanitarian aid, who spoke very passionately about the huge violations that were happening across her country and how she had to wake up every day, when she could actually sleep, and deal with those issues again and again and try to find solutions, in a situation in which I think most of us cannot even imagine trying to think of solutions, knowing that her communities and people were not safe and that children and women in particular were being attacked.
I also think of the work that was done and presented to us on NATO's approach to women, peace and security. I think we need to keep talking about these things. We know that when there is an investment in women in all of these situations, whether it is an act of warfare or international aid while people are rebuilding, if women are not lifted up, given supports and given power, things do not get better. In fact, they get worse. We heard very clearly that women play such a large part in communities, in leadership and in resources, and that when there are limited resources, they are better at negotiating so that everybody can be okay. I think about that a lot.
I also think of a presentation from Konstantin von Eggert, who is an independent journalist recognized in many countries for the profound work he has done, especially in relation to Russia. He talked about how one of the biggest challenges that we have in building up understanding and knowledge of Russia is people's indifference, because their focus is so much on survival and getting through day to day that they really do not have the energy to even think about what is happening outside of those borders. They are dealing with a lot of propaganda that is very concerning, and we need to fight that misinformation, which is hard to do in trying to educate people behind Putin's walls.
He also talked a lot about continuing to expand sanctions and that this needs to keep happening. We have to build that unease. He talked so much about how much power Putin has within his own country and with the oligarchs, and how hard it is to build up that pressure. I think it is incredibly important that we remember that our process in terms of sanctions is still very weak in this country. We need to do much, much better so that we can have better accountability and of course make sure that resources that are coming in are going back home to Ukraine, which desperately needs them right now.
As we look at all of these things, one of the deep honours that I had on the trip was having a meal with some Ukrainian members of parliament, sitting down with them and again seeing how exhausted those faces are and understanding that not only are they working within their own country day by day, but when they leave their country, they are on a road show where they are talking to people, going from country to country and trying to get engagement so that they can continue to fight this fight.
One of the things that I was happy to tell them was that in my riding, people are gathering together. They are working so hard. I spoke specifically of Slav and Stefan in my riding, who are getting resources and sending them off to Ukraine every day. They are working so hard. I want to recognize that. I know that across Canada, so many people are doing that work.
One of the things we have to also be talking about is the rebuilding process. We do not know how long this is going to last. We need to do everything we can during this time, but the other part is, how do we rebuild?
I remember that the First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economic Development and Trade of Ukraine came and presented to us and talked about reconstruction and development and how they are already working on that plan, recognizing the horrendous war crimes that have happened in their country, where they have seen many hospitals and schools and infrastructure that is core to communities completely obliterated, destroyed, and they have to figure out what they are going to do in the interim and later on as they rebuild.
I think one of the things that is so clear is how scary it is to think about rebuilding during so much uncertainty. It is, again, one of the things that we all need to think about in the House as we have these discussions.
I am very pleased to support having Finland and Sweden come into the fold of NATO. I think we are always better together. I think it is always important that as we come together in these ways, we hold one another accountable, as we should in all of the countries, to make sure that our human rights standards continue to be strong, that we are respectful, that we understand the relationships and how they will impact us.
I met with members of parliament from both countries, and we had conversations about the concerns that they are seeing and the things they want to do moving forward. We can do it better together, so I look forward to that discussion.
I want to close by saying that as we do these things, we must remember humanitarian aid. We must remember that stabilizing communities as they go through conflict and as they are trying to recover from conflict must be a priority. If those resources are not there, then we will all continue to deal with this, and we are, across this planet, so let us make sure that every system we use always focuses on peace.
1568 words
All Topics
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Mar/29/22 6:03:39 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, that was a thoughtful speech. I have worked with the hon. member previously and really enjoyed the work that I have been able to do with her.
However, I have to follow along with my colleagues on this side of the House. The reality is that this is a non-binding motion that may or may not provide some sort of report. We have a lot of reports. I can think of several years ago when I was first elected. We did a great study on a national seniors strategy, where we had a lot of clear recommendations about what we needed to do next to see seniors prosper.
I am just wondering why another study instead of something that is actually going to get us into the implementation. Why should seniors continue to wait?
137 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Mar/21/22 6:20:59 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, as always, it is very interesting to listen to this colleague, who spends a lot of time in the House speaking. In fact, I would not be surprised if he does not have one of the highest speaking times of all the members here. Perhaps I should send him my congratulations for that role he takes in his party.
What I found concerning about his very long speech, which was amplified, and he does not need a mike in this place, is this discussion on the variation of truth. I want to remind the member that this is really a motion that talks largely about a commitment that they made in the last election. We are just encouraging them to do it quickly, to get it done efficiently, and to focus on the people who are hurting.
I wonder if this member actually talks to the people who cannot afford their food, who cannot afford their medication, who do not know how they are going to feed their children and who do not know if they are going to be able to afford gas to get to work. Does he talk to those workers who are paying these huge amounts every single day? I am just asking for a friend.
212 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Mar/21/22 4:36:37 p.m.
- Watch
Madam Speaker, as always, I appreciate that the member rises almost every time, after almost every single speech in this House, to ask yet another question.
I want to remind the member that it is not the opposition's job to make the government feel better about the inaction of its steps. What I really would like to see is fairness and a bar of dignity. As the great Shania Twain says, “That don't impress me much”.
80 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Feb/20/22 5:49:50 p.m.
- Watch
Madam Speaker, I appreciate being here in the House debating the very important piece of legislation before us.
I want to thank the member who just spoke. I work with her closely in our joint roles as whips, and I really appreciated the very sensitive approach she took in her speech. I also want to say that these are amazing times. I believe we should not be here, yet here we are. I also want to say that today when I was walking to come to work I saw something that really bothered me. I saw a small business owner chasing two men out of his store with a stick, yelling at them. He could not get hold of the police.
I am just wondering if the member could talk about the impacts this kind of recklessness is having in this county, when we see this extremism, when we see a blockade for three weeks, when we see people feeling so afraid and we also see the impacts of that activity, which means our social structures start to come undone. If we cannot stand up in this House and talk about how we are going to deal with that, then I do not think we are doing our jobs very well. I would love to hear her thoughtful response, just as thoughtful as her speech was.
226 words
All Topics
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- menumenu
- notificationsnotifications
- home
- mailmail
- searchsearch
