- Member of Parliament
- Liberal
- Eglinton—Lawrence
- Ontario
- Voting Attendance: 64%
- Expenses Last Quarter: $83,797.98
- Government Page
- Jun/6/23 3:13:54 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, this is a government that has made historic investments in first nations policing, over $860 million, which we are rolling out in communities right across the country. We know that the path to reconciliation lies in empowering first nations and Inuit communities right across the land so they can drive the solutions that will best protect their communities. That is precisely the work we are committed to doing, in trust and in respect, with first nations and Inuit communities right across the land.
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- May/4/22 8:55:20 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I wholeheartedly agree with the comments of my hon. colleague. I assure him that this transformation has already begun and that there is a commitment to ensuring that there is indigenous representation in our police forces. I have explained the work that we are doing in the first nations and Inuit policing programming, but I agree with him that there is more work to be done, not only in terms of oversight but on the ground. That is work I am committed to doing with the commissioner of the RCMP.
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- May/4/22 8:51:38 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, my hon. colleague's question allows me to elaborate on the work the government is doing to ensure that we are working closely, collaboratively and respectfully with indigenous communities right across the country, through the first nations and indigenous and Inuit police programming initiative.
We have invested about $1 billion. This is a historic amount of financial support that will be channelled in partnership with indigenous communities so that they can be empowered to provide public safety for themselves.
In addition to that, there is a commitment from the government to work, again in a very respectful and collaborative manner, with indigenous leadership across the country to co-develop legislation that will recognize that indigenous policing is an essential service.
This is another important step on the path to reconciliation that we are committed to taking, along with indigenous individuals right across the country.
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- May/4/22 8:46:16 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I will be splitting my time with the member for Labrador. Before I proceed with the substance of my remarks, I want to take a moment to acknowledge and thank the hon. member for Winnipeg Centre for sharing her lived experiences and those of her family. It crystallizes why it is so important that we continue the work of reconciliation, to ensure that the rights of indigenous people are respected and that we have a relationship that is based on dignity, equality and the recognition of the right to choose their own paths. That is why this debate is so important.
Violence against indigenous women, girls and the LGBTQ2+ community is a devastating reality across Canada today. It is one of the most significant public safety issues facing our country, and has taken far too many sisters from indigenous communities across Turtle Island. That is why the entire Public Safety portfolio is engaged in extensive efforts to prevent and end the violence and to protect indigenous women and girls, as well as their rights.
Today, I want to outline a few of those efforts. The calls for justice from the national inquiry point toward the need for urgent reform to policing. That is why we are investing over $1 billion over the next five years in culturally responsive and sensitive policing and community safety services in indigenous communities.
We are stabilizing and improving the First Nations and Inuit Policing Program by improving the RCMP police services funded through this program.
In addition to our investments in indigenous policing, we are devoting more than $80 million over the next five years to indigenous-led crime prevention strategies and community safety services, stopping crime before it starts by supporting initiatives that have already helped nearly 60 indigenous communities to keep themselves safe, and empowering them.
This initiative supports the healing of first nations communities through a facilitated community process that seeks to solve the many problems of security and well‑being.
An area of particular concern that was raised during the national inquiry is the horror of human trafficking and its disproportionate impact on indigenous women and girls.
In 2019, the Government of Canada launched the national strategy to combat human trafficking. The strategy, led by Public Safety Canada, is based on internationally recognized pillars, namely prevention, protection, prosecution, partnerships and empowerment.
The national strategy provides over $22 million in funding to 63 organizations that deliver trauma-informed and culturally relevant supports and services to survivors of human trafficking. Thirty-three of these serve indigenous people and 10 are indigenous-led.
The RCMP has a unique role to play in reconciliation and is committed to improving relationships with indigenous communities, supporting survivors and families, and ensuring investigations are robust, professional and respectful.
In response to the final report of the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls, the RCMP has deployed the following efforts: it developed courses for RCMP employees on trauma-informed approaches as well as on cultural awareness and humility; it updated courses on human trafficking at the Canadian Police College to include elements of first nations awareness and preventing human trafficking; it created a pilot project to recruit Innu police officers in Nunavut; and it enhanced the mobilization of first nations leaders and elders at the national, divisional and local levels.
The RCMP has also established new partnerships with the Pauktuutit Inuit Women of Canada and the Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami, both of which include co-operation to address violence against Inuit women, girls and two-spirited people.
Work to address the national tragedy of missing and murdered indigenous women and girls and LGBTQ2+ people and to respond to the calls for justice cannot be done overnight, but it is some of the most important work the Government of Canada has on its agenda. That is why I am so honoured to participate in this debate and to continue to shed light on the work that the government has committed to doing with all members of this chamber, indigenous communities and indeed all Canadians in the path to reconciliation.
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