Garnett Genuis

Mr. Speaker, the next petition I am tabling highlights the persecution of Falun Gong practitioners in the People's Republic of China at the hands of the CCP. It notes that the CCP has been engaged in a multidecades' long campaign to promote the eradication of this peaceful spiritual movement, a movement that is simply focused on truthfulness, compassion and forbearance. At a time of so-called [more]

Mr. Speaker, to summarize, this petition calls on the Government of Canada to block any attempt to allow the killing of children.

Mr. Speaker, this is an important debate. Members are studying a very lengthy piece of legislation. C-69 C-48 I want to ask the member about the messages the government is sending now, relative to messages the government has sent in the past. Under the Liberal government, there was the passage of Billand, which are government bills that really obstructed the development of anything in this [more]

Mr. Speaker, I will begin by presenting a number of petitions on the real horror that the so-called medical assistance in dying regime in this country has become. We have seen how this is really a matter of national shame. In debates in parliaments around the world, Canada has been identified as a cautionary tale of what can happen when things go wrong in the health care system as a result of an [more]

It's a simple question. Would you like the minister to do this work now?

Right now, if this bill.... Before this bill passes, the minister can create a framework. After this bill passes, the minister must create a framework, but if the minister does not comply with the timelines, there are no consequences. Is that correct?

Okay. What part or section of the bill can you point me to that provides the government with that new authority? I don't actually see in the bill at all what you're saying, so tell me where it says that the government has new legal authority to address trade barriers.

If the consequences are not in the bill, then there are no consequences. Do you think the minister should implement this framework now, instead of waiting for the bill to pass first? Do you think it would be better if the minister just started this work tomorrow, instead of waiting for it to go all the way through the process?

Okay. You're sure that the bill provides the government with new legal authority to address trade barriers, but you're not sure where it is in the bill. Is that right?

That's right. However, I guess the point—and you've agreed—is that, with regard to the framework, the minister does have the power to do those things anyway. Suppose this bill passed and the minister either didn't comply with the framework in general or missed one of the timelines set out. What are the consequences for a minister or for the government if some part of this new law is not [more]

You're saying that this bill provides the government with new legal authority to address trade barriers. Is that what you're saying?

Okay, but you started your response by saying, “It allows the government to continue”. My question is a simple question: Does this bill give the government any new powers?

Do you think the minister should do this framework now, instead of waiting for the bill to pass?

I'm sorry. The question is this: Where in the bill is the government given new legal authorities to address issues around trade barriers?

Okay. I'll have another round later, because I've read the bill—I've been through it several times—and I don't see any evidence that it provides the government with new powers whatsoever. Would the minister have been able to create a framework without this bill? If the bill had not been put forward, would the minister have been able to do a framework absent that?

Okay. Could the minister not simply convene tomorrow a meeting of federal and provincial leaders and say, “I would like to create a framework,” and do all of the things that are in the bill? Could the minister not do it?

What will the Government of Canada be able to do after this bill passes that it's not presently able to do?

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Thank you, Mr. Bains, for being here. The objectives of the bill are very good, and they are ones we agree with and have certainly been talking about for a very long time. Does this bill give the government any new powers?

It's a simple question. I'll ask you fairly simple and short questions, if that's okay. Does the bill provide the government with the power to do anything that it's not presently able to do?

What is that accountability? The bill says that you should follow this process within this timeline, but what is the actual accountability? What happens if that doesn't happen? You said, “Nothing”, so where is the accountability?