- Member of Parliament
- Member of Parliament
- NDP
- Churchill—Keewatinook Aski
- Manitoba
- Voting Attendance: 61%
- Expenses Last Quarter: $142,937.96
- Government Page
- Nov/24/23 1:19:43 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I rise today on a point of order. I believe that, earlier today, the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities misled the House during question period.
I asked a question as to why Canada is acting as a voice for billionaires on the world stage in fighting against an international system for tax fairness at the UN that would make the wealthy pay their fair share.
Instead of explaining Canada's shameful position, the member chose to mislead the House by saying that his government is taking issues with tax fairness seriously and pointed to the government's work in response to the Panama papers, claiming, “Convictions are up.... We will continue this good work.”
Earlier this year, I filed an Order Paper question asking exactly what Canada's response to the Panama papers was. The result is not a whole lot. Convictions are certainly not up, as the parliamentary secretary indicated they were.
The Order Paper response states:
Panama Papers:
As of March 31, 2022, there have been seven referrals to the CRA's Criminal Investigations Program (CIP) related to the Panama Papers.
Of the seven referred cases, five proceeded to criminal investigations.
Of the five cases that proceeded to criminal investigations, three were discontinued, while two are still ongoing.
I understand that the government is very comfortable paying lip service to Canadians, but this is just straight-up dishonesty. My preference would be for the government to prosecute billionaire tax cheats, including based on what is in the Panama papers. However, I guess we will just have to wait to ask the parliamentary secretary to withdraw his remarks.
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- Nov/2/23 4:22:58 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, obviously there is a lot of concern about the real hardship that Canadians are facing right now. We know that the Conservatives are playing political games, saying that they have the backs of working people. We know that time and time again when it came to taking action to show it, when they were in government, they did the opposite.
What are the Liberals doing to reinvest in the programs that Canadians need today? I asked about the $120 billion that Canadian corporations are funnelling offshore to avoid paying taxes here in Canada. The Liberal who responded said that the Liberals care about this, but what are the Liberals doing to crack down on wealthy tax cheats and to reinvest that money into Canadians who are hurting right now?
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Madam Speaker, I would like to ask a question of my colleague, who defended former prime minister Mr. Harper's legacy on foreign investment.
I am proud to say that I come from Thompson and represent this northern Manitoba town. Unfortunately, this is one of the towns that suffered major losses as a result of the deal to sell the Inco mining company to Vale in 2006. This deal, which was supported by Mr. Harper, resulted in the loss of half our jobs. They were good jobs. It forced dozens of families out of my town and caused a rift with workers in Sudbury.
The member was quick to defend Mr. Harper's foreign investment policy, but we know the cost. Does he have any comments on that?
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- Jun/8/23 9:15:50 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I would need a whole other speech to talk about what the Port of Churchill needs to survive and thrive.
I am proud to have been an advocate in support of Churchill getting rid of the American billionaire railway company that took over the rail line when the Liberals privatized it and ran it into the ground. Churchill paid the price. The communities on the Bay line paid the price. Thankfully, we were able to get them out of there.
We now have a very innovative and unique ownership model for the port. However, the reality is that we need sustained federal investment to make sure that Churchill survives and thrives. It is a gem when it comes to Canada. We talk about being a proud northern Arctic nation, and Churchill has the only deepwater Arctic seaport. We need to see sustained investment from the Liberal government and future federal governments.
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- Apr/21/23 12:08:46 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, ahead of the FIFA World Cup 2026 in Canada, we are calling on the Liberals to invest in soccer for kids in indigenous and northern communities. Now we found out that the City of Toronto cooked up a sweetheart deal that will divert public funds to Maple Leaf sports and entertainment. I know the Maple Leafs are not used to making profits come round two of the playoffs, so they want to max it out, but let us be real. This is a misuse of public funds.
The Liberals must be clear. In the lead-up to the world cup, will they ensure that any public funds go to the public good, like investing in soccer for our communities so that all kids can play the sport they love?
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- Apr/18/23 11:17:44 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, as many of us in the NDP have indicated, we are very proud that certain key commitments are made in this budget around dental care and other key areas. However, one area that requires much more support and certainly with greater urgency is investment in indigenous housing. I represent many first nations that are facing a housing crisis. There is a housing crisis that particularly impacts indigenous peoples in urban centres. While this budget commits funding, much of that funding is flowing in the back end of the commitment, so not on an urgent basis as is required.
Does the member agree that urgent investments are needed to deal with the housing crisis in indigenous communities?
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Madam Speaker, I think we can all agree that, no, communities certainly do not have what it takes, but what we do know is that the federal government has incredible resources to do the work that needs to be done.
We saw during the COVID pandemic the extent to which Canada's federal government stand up and made historic investments, and certainly part of this was the work that we did in the NDP, to keep people in our communities safe in the face of this devastating pandemic, which is ongoing.
Climate change is the greatest threat we are all facing, so let us see that same kind of bold investment. Let us use our Crown corporations. Let us do everything we can to invest boldly and take the action necessary to fight the climate crisis. That starts with supporting our communities and with seeing federal leadership on that front.
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