- Member of Parliament
- Member of Parliament
- Conservative
- Hastings—Lennox and Addington
- Ontario
- Voting Attendance: 66%
- Expenses Last Quarter: $121,555.68
- Government Page
- Sep/15/22 2:06:14 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I rise today with a heavy heart to pay tribute to the icon we lost a week ago, the only Canadian head of state most of us have ever known and a magnificent woman that many of us have had the honour to meet or see in person over the past 70 years.
Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II was so much more than just a figurehead, so much more than just our head of state. She represented an institution that has played an integral role in the development and creation of Canada, an institution whose ties to our nation bind more tightly than any other. She manifested and personified the Crown.
Today, we have heard and will continue to hear many moving speeches about what Her Majesty meant and continues to mean to us here in this place and to our constituents across this great land. The Crown, Her Majesty, is many things to many people, but I do believe it has a unique link to Hastings—Lennox and Addington. I represent two counties that were founded by United Empire Loyalists, people who lost everything south of the current border when they sided with the King during the American Revolution. The Queen was special to them and she came back multiple times to return that respect.
The King had promised United Empire Loyalists and their descendants religious freedom when they came to the colonies and delivered on that promise over many decades, keeping the colonies safe from the religious conflicts of Europe in the 17th and 18th centuries. The King had made promises to the indigenous peoples around the Great Lakes and delivered on those as well, reiterated in the Proclamation of 1763, so Mohawk, Iroquois and others supported the King in the revolutionary cataclysm. The integral role that many of our indigenous neighbours played in the creation of Canada and, in particular, to building the communities in Loyalist Township is, unfortunately, too often forgotten, but nonetheless it cannot be overstated. To them, I say meegwetch.
It was these peoples, drawn originally from more than two dozen countries and religious backgrounds, and on the surface having only heavily accented English in common, that made up the 10,000 Loyalists, for example, who founded what became Ontario, carved out of the western flank of the colony of Quebec. Like modern-day refugees, they came from established lives and towns and villages in what is now called New York, New Jersey and Connecticut, as well as from other revolting colonies, to start all over again here.
The King's surveyors were sent here in September 1783 to establish the boundaries on land grants to the Loyalists, and those boundaries continue today, many reflecting the roads we travel across Ontario, the layout of our streets and towns, the connecting byways and the locations of town squares and great public buildings. In Hastings, the first boatloads of Loyalists were Mohawk, who travelled from Fort Hunter in the Mohawk Valley in New York state. They landed in May of 1784, and they proudly have a royal chapel where they honour that arrival and the Crown they supported then and now. I had the great privilege of attending the ceremony honouring this landing earlier this year with Chief Don Maracle of the Mohawks of the Bay of Quinte.
The townships created in Hastings—Lennox and Addington were given names to honour their King. In Lennox and Addington, which every person here today has either driven through, passed over via train or been able to see from the air, whether they realize it or not, the townships along Lake Ontario and the Bay of Quinte were named for the children of King George III. Adolphustown, for example, was where the first non-Mohawk landed in June of 1784 and why Ontario proclaimed June 19 United Empire Loyalists' Day.
The road built from Kingston to Toronto knitted together the smaller roads built from the period of 1798 to 1801. It passes through Adolphustown, Fredericksburg and Ernesttown, which are three more of the townships named for the children of King George. Municipal reorganization and consolidation in the 1990s placed the first two in Greater Napanee and Ernesttown became Loyalist Township. It proudly contains Bath, Odessa and Amherstview.
It was to Amherstview, where Gord Downie grew up, where Queen Elizabeth came in September 1984 to proudly cut the ribbon of the Loyalist Parkway. This was the new name for the old roadway that had been known by different names along the route: Kingston Road, Bath Road, Toronto Road and Danforth Road, among others.
In Lennox and Addington, it was officially called the Loyalist Parkway. When one passes through the ceremonial gates at Amherstview along Highway 33, one travels over the exact spot where the Queen stood 38 years ago to thank the ancestors, the Loyalists, before those gathered that day, for the loyalty they showed to King George III and their critical role in creating Canada.
We all know what our beloved Queen has meant to every Canadian, but in my riding hearts are beating differently today as we remember and recall what she and the monarchy have meant and continue to mean to us. It is not just in the foundation and populating of our area, her ribbon cutting and kind words in Amherstview, her 1973 whistle stop at Napanee or when her yacht Britannia carried her in our waters by Amherst Island, where the Royal George escaped an American attack in the War of 1812. It is not just the local visits to next door Kingston in 1959, 1973 or in 1976, when she to opened the sailing Olympics, an event which my constituents and their parents attended in vast numbers.
No, the Queen was greater than all of that. She was an icon of service and steadfastness in the face of adversity, the one to whom we all pledged allegiance and the one who we could all imagine sharing tea with. God bless her memory and our memories of Queen Elizabeth II as we honour the second Elizabethan era.
Long live the King.
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- Dec/2/21 5:39:09 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I stand before you humbled by the enormous responsibility entrusted to me by the voters of Hastings—Lennox and Addington. In an ideal world, the people who are responsible for making this moment possible would be here with me. Though they are not here, they are certainly not forgotten.
There were dozens of volunteers and friends who put their lives on hold during our campaign. I want them to know that I count them as my political family. I will be forever grateful for their efforts and am so thankful to have them as part of my circle of trust.
I want to thank my husband Tadum for believing in me and standing beside me. Our life is beautifully chaotic, and I appreciate him for being able to support me and make it possible for me to be here.
I also want to say that I am so incredibly proud of daughters, Tori and Reese, my volleyball player and hockey player. They always strive to be authentic and genuine. To my two sisters and their families, the village of support to help with the girls is so appreciated.
Next I want to thank my parents, Daryl and Carol Ann Kramp.
My mom has taught me to be fearless, respectful and responsible. She is an incredible role model, and I certainly know where I get my energy from.
My father has earned a tremendous amount of respect here in Ottawa, and the impact he has made in my riding over the years is remarkable. My dad and I share something very unique to Canadian politics. My father is our current MPP for Hastings—Lennox and Addington, while I now hold the federal seat. He is my political mentor, and more importantly he is my dad. May I follow his lead but mark my own path moving forward.
To the people of Hastings—Lennox and Addington, know that I will remain laser-focused on the task that has been given to me: holding the government accountable. I will be more than just a critic. I will propose solutions while representing my constituents, and I will never stop being an advocate for our riding. There are those who have grown tired of politics, and I hope to inspire them and restore their faith in this great institution.
Last Tuesday, the Governor General read the Speech from the Throne, the document that sets out the government's agenda and vision for the upcoming session. Unfortunately for the people of Hastings—Lennox and Addington, as well as other rural ridings across this great country, the speech did not appear to include them. Whether it is rural broadband Internet, the agricultural sector or rebuilding main street, the government has signalled that these issues are not areas of concern for it.
There is no plan to lower inflation, nor to address labour shortages and supply chains. There is no plan to ease the financial burdens of struggling business owners. The current government loves to talk about money. It talks about the amount of money promised, committed or spent, but the results are just not there. We have more consultants, more studies, more bureaucracy, more debt and more disappointment. Accountability and transparency matter. In my opinion, we are experiencing the most corrupt and divisive government in history. This matters and we need to do better.
Too many Canadians are suffering from depression, anxiety and burnout. Canada's mental health crisis has deepened. Mental health is health, and we should be collectively supporting it in a non-partisan manner. For those personally affected, please reach out. Surely the six people who may be the pallbearers at someone's funeral would rather lift them up now in their time of need. We send our love to Matt.
Allow me now to address the outlook for our agricultural sector. It is bleak. The farmers and livestock and dairy producers who are found in every corner of Hastings—Lennox and Addington are once again an afterthought of the government. In a nearly 3,000-word document, our agricultural sector was mentioned one single, solitary time. Let me be clear: Our united Conservative caucus knows it is farmers, like those found in Stirling and Napanee, who feed Canadians from coast to coast to coast. It is high time the members on the other side of the House recognized this fact.
I was pleased that the throne speech spoke to the issue of reconciliation with Canada's first people. I have the good fortune to count the Mohawks of the Bay of Quinte among my communities.
During my very first week as a member of Parliament, the people of Tyendinaga voted to ratify a partial land claim returning 300 acres to the Mohawk territory. In the spirit of reconciliation, I call on the government to settle the remaining land claims expeditiously, with fairness to all concerned.
As shadow minister for seniors, I would like to now focus on an area that is very close to the hearts of many Canadians. With this Speech from the Throne, the Liberal government has sent a chilling message to Canada's most vulnerable. With only a single mention in passing, the government chose to completely ignore some very serious issues. There was no mention of combatting social isolation, no mention of cracking down on elder abuse, no mention of improving access to palliative care and no mention of fixing the rising costs of critical goods such as groceries and medicine. This is a troubling trend.
During the previous Parliament, members of this place from every party and every province were receiving frantic phone calls, emails and letters from seniors in their ridings. The complaints were nearly identical: The GIS had been severely reduced or, in many cases, completely eliminated after the July recalculation period. Seniors who depended on the guaranteed income supplement to pay for food to eat, a bed to sleep in and medicine to live had their financial safety net torn out from underneath them overnight. The people who built this country suddenly found themselves abandoned by it as a result of poor communication from the government.
Realizing the very serious consequences of such a sudden and unforeseen reduction in disposable income, my colleague, the member for Battlefords—Lloydminster, quickly took action and sent a letter to the then minister of seniors asking her to address the situation. She never received a response.
Not only are seniors' dollars not going as far as before, but they now have fewer to start off with. On top of this, many seniors are embarrassed to come forward. They are embarrassed to go to food banks or to ask for help. Traditionally, seniors and our country have been self-reliant. This is becoming increasingly difficult. On page 14 of the 2021 federal budget are the words, “We owe our elders a great debt. This is a partial repayment.” What the government has done in the intervening months is not only a spectacular failure to partially repay our elders, but rather it has increased the debt we owe to them. I know the government does not have the best track record on balancing budgets, but as a former financial adviser I can assure the government that it is not difficult to figure out that its policies have added to the debt it owes our seniors, not repaid it.
Being elected as a member of Parliament to represent the people of Hastings—Lennox and Addington, or anywhere across this great nation, is a privilege. We must never forget the people who sent us here and we must never stop fighting for them. It is my sincere and perhaps naive belief that every person who comes through the doors of this chamber has the intent to make our country a better place to live for ourselves, our children and our seniors. I grew up having so much pride in Canada being a self-reliant, resilient and resourceful nation. I ask members to join me in wanting to earn this back. Let us work together to give our young leaders the tools and resources to continue to make this country strong and free.
We all have a different approach as to what progress looks like, but it is that personal drive, that core tenet of public service, that unites all of us. This is what makes this place such a profound and powerful institution. Regardless of people's paths in life, they should do it to the absolute best of their ability. They must never stop learning, improving and making a difference.
In closing, I was fortunate to learn a great deal from an amazing parliamentarian. That knowledge and relationship shaped me into who I am today and is why I am here. The growth I was able to achieve learning from one parliamentarian was profound, and I cannot wait to see what learning from 337 others will do.
I thank my mom and dad for their kind words of wisdom: we should always believe in ourselves and always keep our doors open. Things do not happen unless we make them happen. We should be kind, love life and seek happiness along the way. God bless.
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