Hon. Alice Wong, P.C.

On May 7, 2018, Alice Wong asked a question during Question Period. The topic was on Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship.

The following is a transcript:

Hon. Alice Wong (Richmond Centre, CPC):
Mr. Speaker, truly vulnerable refugees in the world do not have the means to fly to the United States and sneak across the Canadian border. Many anguish in refugee camps, waiting in a 45,000 case private sponsorship backlog. They cannot jump the line, yet the Liberals are allowing others to do just that. How is that fair or compassionate?

Hon. Ahmed Hussen (Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, Lib.):
Mr. Speaker, the Harper Conservatives would not know what compassion is if it hit them in the face.

The Harper Conservatives cut $400 million from border security operations, and they pretend to care about the border. The Harper Conservatives kept families apart, with spouses, live-in caregivers, children, and others in queues. We inherited a huge, ballooning backlog under the privately sponsored refugees.

The Conservatives have no idea what compassion is about. They did not care about the Yazidi refugees.

Some hon. members: Oh, oh!

On May 3, 2018, Alice Wong asked a question during Question Period. The topic was on Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship.

The following is a transcript:

Hon. Alice Wong (Richmond Centre, CPC):
Mr. Speaker, we have heard from vulnerable Syrian refugees. They lack resources, such as language training or the ability to find a job in Canada. One woman was begging for someone who could teach her English, and many more are using food banks.

We know these resources will be stretched further with the influx of illegal border crossers who also use these services. How is that fair?

[Translation]

Mr. Serge Cormier (Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, Lib.):
Mr. Speaker, once again, we are talking about two completely different systems.

We are very proud of the commitment our government made to welcome 50,000 Syrian refugees to Canada. We will ensure that these Syrian refugees adapt to our reality and to our country. We will give them every means to succeed in our society. We need these people and we know that they actively contribute to our society. We will do everything we can to ensure that they have the services they need to succeed in our society.

On May 1, 2018, Alice Wong asked a question during Question Period. The topic was on Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship.

The following is a transcript:

Hon. Alice Wong (Richmond Centre, CPC):
Mr. Speaker, this year thousands of people will cross into Canada illegally. The Prime Minister created this mess with his tweet, and he is providing special treatment to those who skip the line and enter Canada illegally. What message does this send to the thousands of immigrants who have followed the rules?

Hon. Ahmed Hussen (Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, Lib.):
Mr. Speaker, what the party opposite does not seem to understand is that we can protect the security and safety of Canadians while meeting our international obligations for refugee protection. We have a proud record of doing both. The party opposite wants to set one group of immigrants against another. That is the politics of division and fear that Canadians rejected in 2015.

Hon. Alice Wong (Richmond Centre, CPC):
Mr. Speaker, I have heard from constituents who are frustrated by wait times to sponsor their families. There is a strict limit on the number of family members who can come to Canada, yet there seems to be no limit to the number of illegal border crossers who are allowed in. Can the Prime Minister please explain how it is fair to keep families apart while rewarding those who break the law?

Hon. Ahmed Hussen (Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, Lib.):
Mr. Speaker, the party opposite is trying to muddy the waters. Its members know very clearly that refugees are processed in a different stream, by the Immigration and Refugee Board, and other immigrants are processed by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada.

Let us talk about processing times. Under the Conservatives, the processing time for spouses was more than 26 months. Spouses, children, and families were kept apart for a very long time. We have brought that down to 12 months or less.

Let us talk about the live-in caregiver program. Families were kept apart for five to seven years. We have reduced that to 12 months or less.

We have a great—

The Speaker:
The hon. member for Edmonton Manning.

On May 1, 2018, Alice Wong asked a question during the questions and comments period concerning the debate regarding the opposition motion on the Production of Documents on the Carbon Tax.

The motion debated was: That, given the Liberal government made a specific campaign promise to Canadians that “government data and information should be open by default, in formats that are modern and easy to use”, the House hereby order that all documents be produced in their original and uncensored form indicating how much the federal carbon tax proposed in Budget 2018 will cost Canadian families in order to put an end to the carbon tax cover-up.

The following is a transcript:

Hon. Alice Wong (Richmond Centre, CPC):
Mr. Speaker, I really enjoyed the talk by our colleague, who listed how important it is to know the impacts of the carbon tax. My question is on behalf of seniors. In British Columbia the cost of living is very high, and on top of that, the carbon tax actually increases everything. It will be a hardship for everything.

Could the hon. member comment on the impact to seniors? Ironically, the government actually took away the credit for taking mass transit. What is the government doing right now?

Mr. Robert Sopuck:
Mr. Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague for commenting about seniors. Being one myself, it is very close to my heart. The Liberal federal government wants to take us to where Ontario is: high energy prices, high costs, devastating impacts on low-income people. We read stories in Ontario of seniors who look at their hydro bill and say to themselves, “Do I heat or do I eat?” That is the stark issue they are facing.

I represent a fairly low-income constituency. My constituents are tough as nails. They live on low incomes and are self-sufficient and very proud, but they will suffer under the burden of a carbon tax at a time when costs are high everywhere else. When they get in their pickup trucks and drive, it is going to cost even more. The effects on seniors will be more devastating than on anyone else.

On February 14, 2018, Alice Wong made a statement in the House of Commons on the topic of the Canada Summer Jobs Program.

The following is a transcript:

Hon. Alice Wong (Richmond Centre, CPC):

Mr. Speaker, here in Ottawa we are in the deep throes of winter, but in my beautiful riding of Richmond Centre spring is just around the corner. Soon the blooming crocuses of spring in Richmond will give way to the sunshine of summer, but not all is “sunny ways”.

The Canada summer jobs program plays a crucial role in handing valuable workplace experience to the youth of Canada and has been used by some agencies combatting social isolation among seniors. However, many agencies involved in this important work cannot and will not sign on to the Liberals’ values test.

I, as well as the numerous constituents of Richmond Centre who have petitioned me, urge the government to remove its shameful attestation and return some of the brightness into the lives of our most valuable resources, the elderly and the young.

On February 13, 2018, Alice Wong made a statement in the House of Commons on the topic of Lunar New Year.

The following is a transcript:

Hon. Alice Wong (Richmond Centre, CPC):
Mr. Speaker, it is with great pleasure and honour that I extend greetings to my House colleagues and Canadians from coast to coast to coast on the occasion of the lunar new year at the end of this week. It is the tradition of Canadians with Chinese, Korean, and Vietnamese heritage to celebrate this wondrous occasion, and I invite all Canadians to celebrate together.

This lunar new year is the year of the dog, an animal that is renowned for its loyalty, honesty, and justness, qualities that I strive to achieve every day in representing the people of Richmond Centre. I encourage all members of the House to reflect upon those very important traits of the dog in the service of their communities and their constituents in the year ahead.

On behalf of my beautiful riding of Richmond Centre, I wish each and every Canadian a happy lunar new year.

Gong Hey Fat Choy.

On November 7, 2017, Alice Wong asked a question during Question Period. The topic was on Health.

The following is a transcript:

Hon. Alice Wong (Richmond Centre, CPC):
Mr. Speaker, during the first quarter of this year, opioids killed over 900 Canadians. The government needs to help. The Liberals gave only $10 million to fight the opioid crisis but has no problem giving $500 million to the Asian infrastructure bank.

Why is the government sending $500 million to foreign billionaires, when we have Canadians dying in our streets by the hundreds? Canada is our home.

Mr. Bill Blair (Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada and to the Minister of Health, Lib.):
Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased that the member opposite has given us an opportunity to talk about some of the things our government is doing to address the opioid crisis. For example, our government has provided $10 million in urgent support to our provincial partners in British Columbia and $6 million to the Province of Alberta to assist with its response. That is in addition to $22.7 million ongoing of the $100-million commitment in budget 2017 to support national measures associated with the Canadian drugs and substances strategy to respond to this terrible health crisis.

On November 2, 2017, Alice Wong made a Point of Order in the House of Commons. The topic was on the Alleged Actions of Member for Spadina—Fort York.

The following is a transcript:

Hon. Alice Wong (Richmond Centre, CPC):
Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order to bring to your attention a grave and disturbing matter that occurred yesterday while riding the House of Commons bus.

I stand with a very heavy heart for this point of order because it was exactly for that reason I went into politics, to be a voice for the most vulnerable and fight for the rights of women, especially immigrant women, and bring their voice to Ottawa to fight against racism, agism, and sexism.

Now I will state the facts.

I was sitting on an outside seat when the member for Spadina—Fort York entered the bus. The member stopped and hovered over me. He began to wave his hand in my face, chastised and intimidated me for something I said in the House earlier in the day.

Yesterday, during question period, the Prime Minister was giving one of his non-answers to a question about the government transferring up to half a billion dollars into the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, while at the same time the PBO reported the government was behind on infrastructure spending within Canada. With great emotion and pride, I said “Canada is our home”. For some reason, the member took issue with my statement and began to intimidate me for raising it, making suggestions to alternative statements I could have made.

I did not have time to give you the proper notice of a question of privilege, Mr. Speaker, but I reserve the right to do so. I do so for the following reasons.

Responding to threats was among the first matters of parliamentary privilege dealt with in Canada. Page 198 of the second edition of Joseph Maginot’s Parliamentary Privilege in Canada tells us of an incident in 1758 where the Nova Scotia House of Assembly proceeded against someone who made threats against a member.

In a ruling on September 19, 1973, Mr. Speaker Lamoureux, at page 6709 of the Debates, stated that he had:

no hesitation in reaffirming the principle that parliamentary privilege includes the right of a member to discharge his responsibilities as a member of the House free from threats and attempts at intimidation.

Mr. Speaker Bosley, on May 16, 1986, at page 13362 of Debates, ruled that the threat or attempt to intimidate could not be hypothetical, but that it must be real or have occurred. I have a whole bus of passengers who witnessed this whole incident.

On March 24, 1994, at page 2705 of Debates, Mr. Speaker Parent said:

Threats of blackmail or intimidation of a member of Parliament should never be taken lightly. When such occurs, the very essence of free speech is undermined. Without the guarantee of freedom of speech, no member of Parliament can do his duty as expected.

This attempt to intimidate me was directly linked to what I said in the House earlier in the day, and that, Mr. Speaker, should be grounds enough to warrant a favourable ruling for a question of privilege.

Hiding behind a prime minister who claims to be a feminist does not give the member the right to intimidate another member of the same House of another party. Female members of all three parties were on the bus. They witnessed everything he did and how he intimidated me. Therefore, I reserve the right for a question of privilege with proper notice.

The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mr. Anthony Rota):
I want to thank the hon. member for her intervention. We will look into it, dig a little deeper, and get back to the House if we deem it necessary.

On October 4, 2017, Alice Wong made a statement in the House of Commons. The topic was on the Mid-Autumn Festival.

The following is a transcript:

Hon. Alice Wong (Richmond Centre, CPC):
Mr. Speaker, I am thrilled to join all Canadians of Chinese, Vietnamese, Korean, and Japanese descent to celebrate the mid-autumn festival today. It is the time of the year when the moon is at its brightest and fullest. This celebration dates back centuries and is associated with fertility, rejuvenation, and gratitude for a bountiful harvest.

Tonight, families and loved ones will gather under the full moon to light beautiful lanterns, exchange gifts and stories, and share traditional foods.

Canada is home to a number of vibrant Asian communities who have helped shape our society for the better and contributed tremendously to Canada’s success.

I encourage all Canadians to participate in these community celebrations with our Asian friends and neighbours and to learn more about this holiday. On behalf of the riding of Richmond Centre, I wish all those celebrating a happy mid-autumn festival.

On October 2, 2017, Alice Wong asked a question during Question Period. The topic was on Seniors.

The following is a transcript:

Hon. Alice Wong (Richmond Centre, CPC):
Mr. Speaker, in celebration of National Seniors Day, I visited many seniors homes, talking and listening to their concerns.

One concern of seniors is identity theft. In light of a major security breach in a credit agency, when will the Liberal government take action to stop identity theft of our vulnerable seniors?

(1500)

Hon. Jean-Yves Duclos (Minister of Families, Children and Social Development, Lib.):
Mr. Speaker, the importance of seniors is not only very clear in our mandate letter, but it has also been very clear in our actions since April 2016. We increased by almost $1,000 the guaranteed income supplement for 900,000 vulnerable seniors. We brought the age of eligibly for old age security back to 65 years old, which is preventing 100,000 vulnerable seniors from falling into severe poverty. We have launched, and will be launching again, important investments in housing, in health care, and all sorts of things that will produce—