Garnett Genuis
Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, Alberta · Conservative · Canada
“It is getting increasingly harder for young people to find their first job, and for young families to afford their first home and be able to afford to take those critical steps forward in life.”
“I look forward to talking to people and listening to them over the summer. I would encourage colleagues from all parts of the country to also listen to, respect and try to understand the concerns Albertans have.”
“Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my colleague for his kind words. Indeed, I would welcome him, and all members of this House from all parties, to come to Alberta this summer. Let me know. I would be happy to host. Members could spend some time talking to people in our province to understand some of their concerns.”
“This plan includes vital reforms to parental leave to make it easier for parents who are trying to start a family, maintain a connection to work and earn an income at the same time.”
“Mr. Speaker, I want to extend my best wishes for the summer to all colleagues from all sides. We have fought hard for our constituents, for our convictions and to advance the common good of this country.”
“We have always sought to be productive and constructive by putting forward these good ideas and asking the government to adopt them. Therefore, as we face these ongoing challenges, an affordability crisis and a youth unemployment crisis, will the government take a serious look at what we have put forward, including the Conservative youth…”
The complete record
Every one of 885 lines we hold for Garnett Genuis, in date order, each linked to its source. Free to read, in full, without an account. Page 14 of 18.
“Mr. Speaker, the next petition also deals with the issue of euthanasia. In particular, it highlights concerns from the disability community that proposals for the expansion of euthanasia and the existing track 2 system really undermine the experience of people with disabilities when they access the health care system and that offering medical assistance in dying as a solution for disability or chronic illness reduces incentives to improve treatment and care for people with those conditions. The petitioners want to see the House protect all Canadians whose natural death is not reasonably foreseeable by prohibiting medical assistance in dying for those whose prognosis for natural death is more than six months.”
“They want to see an investigation of foreign interference by Eritrea in Canada and the enforcement of Canada's asylum laws to ensure that those affiliated with the regime are not able to come to Canada. They also want to see Canada take action to support imprisoned journalists and parliamentarians. I have read the names before; I will not do so again, but the petitioners highlight 11 imprisoned Eritrean parliamentarians, as well as Swedish Eritrean journalist Dawit Isaak, who I believe is the journalist to be held in prison the longest anywhere in the world. The petitioners also want to see strength in sanctions against human rights abusers in Eritrea.”
“They highlight a number of instances of foreign interference being perpetrated by the Government of Eritrea. Finally, in terms of human rights abuses and international peace and security, the petitioners want to draw the attention of the House to the Eritrean dictator's alignment with Vladimir Putin and how that creates security challenges for the wider region by facilitating Russian interference in African states. The petitioners want to see the government engage Eritrean political and human rights activists and pro-democracy groups and take a leadership role among western allies to challenge the malicious conspiracy between the Eritrean dictator and Vladimir Putin, which is contributing to Russian efforts to expand influence in Africa.”
“Mr. Speaker, the next petition I am tabling highlights the human rights abuses in Eritrea and calls for a stronger response from the government and the House. The petitioners note that Eritrea has been ruled by a brutal authoritarian dictator under a totalitarian system for 30 years, with no constitution, no elections, no parliament, no freedom of the press, and no freedom of movement and association. They highlight that Eritreans flee indefinite military conscription, religious persecution and political repression, seeking asylum in other parts of the world. The petitioners also note that the government of Eritrea continues to try to perpetrate human rights abuses against people of Eritrean origin living outside the country and that Eritrean embassies have been sources of foreign interference.”
“They want to see the House support an increase in government focus on advancing compassionate, life-affirming palliative and hospice care.”
“The petitioners also note concern that advance requests could lead to coercion or undue pressure for older adults living with disabilities, and they highlight ethical concerns about how an old request would be handled. They note that it is difficult for a person to predict their experience in a situation that they have not yet experienced or do not have the context to predict. As well, the petitioners say that Canada should increase funding for palliative care, hospice care and suicide prevention. They say that offering euthanasia rather than providing support services devalues those living with chronic conditions. Therefore, the petitioners ask the government not to support any legislation related to the expansion of euthanasia, particularly along the lines of recommendation 21, the inclusion of advance requests.”
“Mr. Speaker, the next petition I am tabling deals with the issue of euthanasia. I have tabled petitions on this topic before, but this is a different petition that highlights, in particular, concerns about recommendation 21 from the 2023 report by the Special Joint Committee on Medical Assistance in Dying. Recommendation 21 deals with the issue of so-called advance requests. The petitioners note that persons who have made an advance request might no longer be able to confirm their wishes at the time of their death, especially if those wishes have changed. The petitioners express concern that advance requests rely on written documents describing a person's future suffering condition. Doctors and families might interpret the request differently from what the patient wanted.”
“Mr. Speaker, the next petition highlights a private member's bill that I tabled in the last Parliament. It is Bill C-257 from the previous Parliament. This petition is in support of that bill, a bill that would add political belief or activity as prohibited grounds of discrimination in the Canadian Human Rights Act. The petitioners note that being free from political discrimination is a fundamental right here in Canada but that people do face political discrimination in certain situations. The petitioners want to see the House support the previous bill, Bill C-257 , which would ban discrimination on the basis of political belief or activity. They also want to see Parliament act to defend the rights of Canadians to peacefully express their political perspectives.”
“The petitioners call on the Government of Canada to put in place a plan for an east-west corridor to replace foreign oil so that Canada's source of oil and gas remains Canadian and helps to stimulate our economy, provide for greater environmental protection and advance our strategic interests. These are pro-pipeline petitioners, and I am pleased to table this on their behalf.”
“Mr. Speaker, I am grateful to have this opportunity to present a number of petitions to the House today. The first petition is on a subject that is very important to my constituents, on the issue of pipelines. The petitioners are no doubt sick of the incessant teasing but failure to deliver from the members opposite. They say that the government continues to import foreign oil even though oil and gas companies are struggling in Canada, that Canada extracts and refines the most ethically sourced oil in the world and that the importation of foreign oil is worse for the environment and undermines our economy and our strategic interests.”
“I wonder if the member would like to reflect on the results of that vote today and what message the Liberals' opposition to our constructive proposal sends to victims of crime.”
“Mr. Speaker, those statistics are alarming, for example, that we continue to see a very low conviction rate. That is discouraging, no doubt, to those who have been victims and might be considering coming forward or in instances in which we have perpetrators who are repeatedly released on bail, even though they are repeat violent offenders. We had an opportunity today to try to take some action on that, when the Conservatives put forward a constructive proposal through our opposition day motion to move forward the jail-not-bail private member's bill. The government is trying to create anticipation around a bill that has yet to come forward whereas we, as Conservatives, have already prepared a bill and put forward a solution. The Liberals voted against even advancing that to committee. Victims cannot wait any longer.”
“It is not hard to identify what might have been a significant contributing factor to that change in trajectory. Would the member have any thoughts on how the bill fits into the larger trajectory of events around violent crime in this country?”
“Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for her excellent work. It is almost 10 years that we have been together in Parliament, and I think she has been involved in the work of the status of women committee for all or most of that time. One observation I would have about this debate is that the Liberals are speaking a lot about the changes they are making to military justice, in particular, bringing this into a civilian context. However, this is also about a context in which we have a dramatic increase in violent crime across the board in this country. We are seeing more burden placed on our police officers and courts. This follows the application of a failed Liberal ideology to the justice system. One needs only to consult violent crime data to see that violent crime was going down prior to 2015 and started going up after 2015.”
“Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my colleague for her excellent speech and for her important work in Parliament. A former member of the House, who was, as it happens, from the same province, former defence minister Sajjan, was given an opportunity to receive some information about very serious issues of this nature from the ombudsman and tragically chose not to deal with that information at the time. I do not think we have heard anything from the Liberals thus far in today's debate about how that unfolded or contributed to where we are today on these issues. I wonder if the hon. member has comments on what happened then and why action was not taken when information was initially available.”
“Why, in particular, has the government put in place titanium sanction waivers to allow the Russian titanium industry to continue to benefit from trade with Canada?”
“Mr. Speaker, the member spoke about many things related to international peace and security that were different from the bill, so my question will focus on those issues as opposed to the substance of Bill C-11 . The member spoke about the threat to international peace and security associated with Russia's genocidal invasion of Ukraine, and about the Canadian response. I am very concerned that the government chose to create waivers to titanium sanctions. It has a pattern of talking about sanctions and then creating big holes in those sanctions. We still have waivers to titanium sanctions in place that allow the import and use of Russian titanium, and we continue to have barriers to the export of oil and gas that could play a key role in displacing Russian gas exports. I would like to know what the member's position is on these issues.”
“The petitioners want Canada to take action to support North Korean defectors, including calling on the Government of China to allow safe passage for North Korean refugees to South Korea, where they are recognized as citizens; to monitor ongoing human rights issues; to support international efforts to defend the rights of the people of North Korea from crimes against humanity; and to do more to promote political freedom in North Korea and political change there.”
“The petitioners are also highlighting concerns about how defectors from North Korea who have gone to the People's Republic of China have been sent back. They are calling for action in response to this. The petitioners are raising concerns about how the Government of China deals with the situation of North Korean defectors. The petitioners call on the government— An hon. member: That is a long petition. Garnett Genuis: Mr. Speaker, as my colleague from Winnipeg North points out, this is a long petition. These are important issues, and I appreciate the opportunity to bring them to the House. The petitioners call on the Government of Canada to table regular reports in Parliament on the situation of human rights in North Korea, as well as their response to it, including the state of political prison camps, Kwan-li-so and Kyo-hwa-so.”
“Mr. Speaker, finally, following an event that I had the honour of speaking at earlier this week here in Ottawa, I am tabling a petition drawing attention to the horrific human rights situation in North Korea, highlighting the human rights record of the Government of North Korea and calling for action. The petitioners note that North Korea prioritizes food distribution to those considered useful to the survival of the current political regime, and this leads to extreme starvation in so many cases. There is a vast state apparatus that is associated with the suppression of dissent, public executions, forced imprisonment of citizens in political prison camps and the terrorization of the population. State-sponsored abductions of citizens of other nations also occur.”
“The petitioners therefore ask the government and the House to protect all Canadians whose natural death is not reasonably foreseeable by prohibiting medical assistance in dying for those whose prognosis for natural death is more than six months.”
“Mr. Speaker, the next petition I am tabling raises concern about the government's approach to euthanasia, in particular the dangerous effects the current euthanasia regime has on Canadians living with disabilities. The petitioners observe how the government's policy, which presents facilitated dying as a so-called solution to disability or chronic illness, reduces incentives to improve treatment and care for people with these conditions, and substantially devalues the lives and experiences of those living with disabilities. The petitioners further observe that all major disability rights organizations have expressed serious concerns about so-called track 2 MAID.”
“The changes they made in a previous omnibus bill, as well as through new so-called cost recovery provisions, will simply impose massive costs on producers of essential natural health products, undermining Canadians' access to these products. The petitioners want to see the Liberal government reverse the changes it made on natural health products. Bill C-224 , from my colleague from Ponoka—Didsbury , would do exactly that.”
“Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to present a petition today in support of Bill C-224 , put forward by my colleague from Ponoka—Didsbury . This is a bill about natural health products. I tried to submit a notice to jointly second the bill, as I sometimes do with great pieces of legislation, but the bill was so popular among Conservative MPs that all of the seconding slots were quickly filled before I had a chance. I want to table the petition to highlight my support and the support of my constituents for this excellent legislation on natural health products. The Liberals are, petitioners say, threatening access to natural health products through their new rules, which will mean higher costs and fewer products available on store shelves.”
“Mr. Speaker, the minister loves self-congratulations, but I have a simple message for her: It is not working. Canadians are not working because Liberal policies are not working. It is simply in the numbers. We have the second-highest unemployment rate in the G7. We have effectively lost over 100,000 jobs in the last month. Youth unemployment is at its worst level in 25 years. EI claims among working-age women just jumped by 12%. Regardless of the Liberals' intentions, the facts show that their policies are not working. When will they change course?”
“Mr. Speaker, the minister is talking verifiable nonsense. She knows or should know that our platform clearly committed to significant increases in support for union-based training. The minister should listen better, because yesterday, business leaders from Toronto came to committee and ripped into the government. They described how 10 years of bad Liberal policies have created worsening structural unemployment. Canada has the second-highest unemployment in the fastest-shrinking economy in the G7. Will the minister now admit that failing economic policies at home and broken promises on the world stage are causing an unemployment crisis?”
“Mr. Speaker, I am presenting a petition about a very serious issue: the persecution of Falun Gong practitioners. Petitioners would like to see an end to that persecution, the protection of Falun Gong practitioners and an end to these human rights abuses.”
“Mr. Speaker, next I would like to present a petition that references Bill C-257 , which was a bill in the previous Parliament, put forward by me, that would have added political belief and activity as prohibited grounds of discrimination in the Canada Human Rights Act. Petitioners are asking the House to support the bill, or presumably a similar bill in the current Parliament. Petitioners note that Canadians can and do face political discrimination on the basis of their political beliefs and that it is in the best interests of Canadian democracy to protect public debate and to protect an environment in which people can exchange about different ideas and do so without fear of discrimination. Petitioners therefore want the House to support the bill and defend the rights of Canadians to peacefully express their political opinions.”
“The petitioners want to see the government change the existing regime to protect all Canadians whose natural death is not reasonably foreseeable. They want to see this happen by prohibiting medical assistance in dying for those whose prognosis for natural death is more than six months.”
“Mr. Speaker, the first of several petitions that I would like to present to the House highlights the ongoing tragedy of the government's failed euthanasia policy. The petitioners in this petition note ion particular the pernicious effects of the government's approach to Canadians living with disabilities. These Conservative petitioners and all major disability advocacy organizations in the country have expressed opposition to the government's presenting euthanasia as a response to disability. The petitioners say that offering medical assistance in dying as a “solution” for a disability or chronic illness reduces incentives to improve treatment and care for people with those conditions and that allowing medical assistance in dying for those with disabilities or chronic illnesses who are not dying devalues their life.”
“Mr. Speaker, the parliamentary secretary is putting a lot of emphasis on apprenticeships, which is obviously an important discussion. However, in the meantime, the government continues to block important projects. The Prime Minister supports the legislation stemming from Bill C-69 , which is blocking major projects. What is more, the government has decided not to take steps to build more homes. Providing training is necessary, but it is also necessary to ensure that there are jobs. The government has broken the immigration system and halted economic development in important sectors. Things have to change.”
“We have talent, energy and resources, but instead of unleashing that potential, the government is putting up roadblocks. My question is simple, and I will ask it directly: When will the government finally remove the roadblocks, listen to Canadians and let our workers, especially our young people, build their future here at home in Canada?”
“Bill C‑69 and other measures have blocked investments in natural resources, pipelines and mines. These projects would have provided work for thousands of families, but instead of freeing up Canadian talent, this government is tying it up with red tape and gatekeepers. While other countries are moving forward, Canada is moving backward. The result is clear. TD Bank predicts that 100,000 jobs could be lost by the third quarter this year. The Governor of the Bank of Canada says that businesses are going to scale back hiring. The numbers are there, but behind every number is a family, a young graduate and a community losing hope. This government's record is clear: More Canadians are staying out of work for longer and with fewer opportunities for the future.”
“However, after more than a year, he is still unemployed. This is the reality for far too many people. That young man is not alone. I hear the same story in Toronto, Quebec City, Montreal, small towns and rural areas. Young Canadians everywhere say they want to work, but they cannot find a job. Why is this happening? It is because the government has made choices that hurt Canadian workers. It has allowed certain immigration programs, such as the temporary foreign worker program, to be abused while genuine asylum seekers wait years for a decision. We even see fake college acceptance letters being used to circumvent the system. Meanwhile, Canadians who are here and ready to work cannot find jobs. Is this fair? No. Is it responsible? Certainly not. The government is also blocking projects that would create jobs.”
“Mr. Speaker, what a pleasure it is to have my son joining me here in Ottawa today. This country is experiencing a serious unemployment crisis. The overall unemployment rate of 7.1% is bad enough, but it is young Canadians who are suffering the most, with a disastrous rate of 15.5%. It is not just the number of unemployed people that is a problem, but also how long they remain unemployed. On average, people stay unemployed for more than 21 weeks. This means that more Canadians, especially young people, are out of work and staying out of work longer. They wait, they struggle, and many lose hope. I have spoken with Canadians who are experiencing this. A young programmer living in Vancouver told me that he had sent out over 1,000 job applications. He is educated, skilled and ready to contribute.”
“friend would agree that while we need to address the enforcement issue, we also need to address the fact that senior people in the current government have said things that have kind of tacitly lent credence to the motivations that may be behind some of these attacks.”
“Mr. Speaker, in his excellent speech, my colleague talked about the problems of enforcement. The government is trying to suggest that there is a problem in terms of a lack of things being classed as offences, but actually there is a problem of enforcement not being effective. There is also a problem of the tone that has been set by the current government when it comes to attacks, particularly against churches. Gerry Butts, the former adviser to the previous prime minister, who was intimately involved with the current Prime Minister 's work as well, basically said that these attacks on churches were “understandable”. That is a grotesque statement from a senior Liberal. I wonder if my hon.”
“Therefore, petitioners would like to see this House and the government protect all Canadians whose natural death is not reasonably foreseeable by prohibiting euthanasia for those whose prognosis for natural death is more than six months.”
“Mr. Speaker, second, I am tabling a petition that raises significant concern about the existing euthanasia laws in Canada and in particular their pernicious effect on the quality of life of Canadians living with disabilities. The petitioners observe that the existing euthanasia regime in Canada tacitly endorses the notion that life with disability is optional and by extension disposable. They note that offering medical assistance in dying, or euthanasia, as a “solution for disability or chronic illness” reduces incentives to improve treatment and care for those living with these conditions. Finally, petitioners observe that disability advocates in Canada have uniformly expressed opposition to so-called “track 2” MAID.”
“He should read that report, because it is a clear recommendation. It is one that Conservatives oppose, but it is one that, sadly, Liberals supported. The petitioners call on this House and on the government to reject recommendation 430 and to protect freedom of religion and recognize the positive contribution of faith communities in this country.”
“Mr. Speaker, I join colleagues today in tabling a petition raising concern about a proposal from the Liberal-dominated finance committee to strip charitable status from all houses of worship. This was, in particular, recommendation 430. The removal of charitable status from houses of worship would affect churches, mosques, synagogues, temples, gurdwaras and all houses of worship by removing “promotion of religion” as a legitimate purpose under charities law, and this would also result in a confiscation tax. The removal of charitable status, as recommended in recommendation 430, would lead to a confiscation tax, which would require these houses of worship to hand over their property to the government. The member for Winnipeg North seems to think that this is a ridiculous proposal. He should talk to the Liberals on the finance committee.”
“At what point will the member realize that we continue to see the loss of many jobs and we continue to see high unemployment? At some point, will he recognize that what they are doing is not working?”
“Mr. Speaker, I do appreciate what a difficult job the hon. member for Winnipeg North has. He spent the last 10 years defending every aspect of the Trudeau government, and now he is here as the spokesman for this promise, attesting that his government will fix the problems that his government created. I do not think that the Liberal fixes to Liberal problems are going to work either. They have created new bureaucracies to identify as priorities some projects that were already under way. Fundamentally, when it comes to unemployment, I will just say this: The proof will be in the results. If we include the self-employed, there were over 100,000 jobs lost last month. That is long post Trudeau, and our economy continues to shed jobs. It continues on the same trajectory.”
“These are some of the things we have put forward as concrete, positive proposals to address the unemployment crisis, and the best we hear from the government is that it is increasing public subsidies for the Canada summer jobs program. In reality, the increase in public subsidies being proposed is a drop in the bucket compared to the vast unemployment numbers we are dealing with. We in the opposition have talked about what our plan and proposals are. I would like to know what the government's plan is for dealing with this escalating unemployment crisis.”
“There has been a lack of enforcement, a lack of administrative competence and a lack of prudence when it comes to immigration. This has led to an unprecedented spike in temporary migration, and it is affecting youth employment numbers. We also continue to see a failure of the government to recognize the importance of ensuring that training aligns with the needs of our labour market. The Conservatives have emphasized the value and dignity of all work. We have celebrated work in the trades and the natural resource sector, and we have encouraged policies, such as increases in funding for UTIP, that align training investments with the needs of the labour market.”
“When it comes to addressing this unemployment crisis, a critical priority needs to be removing the barriers that prevent economic development and unleashing economic opportunity. A second area where we see major problems in the government's policy is immigration. It has allowed, in particular, temporary migration to get completely out of control. Even within the intended parameters, there has been rampant abuse of the temporary foreign worker program. We have inland asylum claimants who are forced to wait years and years before their claims are evaluated. I have dealt with instances of fake college acceptance letters being used as a tool for immigration. Sometimes students have been deceived by unscrupulous consultants, and the students thought they were coming to study somewhere here when they were not.”
“In particular, as part of that plan, it should reverse some of the policies it has put in place that have led us to this point. Under the current government, things have gotten so much more difficult when it comes to investing, building a business, growing a business and employing Canadians. Many barriers have been put in place that block economic development. We have seen this especially in the area of natural resource development, but in other areas as well. The government has continuously put roadblocks in place that have undermined the competitiveness of our economy. The result of that is that it is harder to start and grow a business, and therefore fewer jobs are being created.”
“Mr. Speaker, while the Liberals are desperate to defend their jobs, my question tonight is about the jobs of the many unemployed Canadians who are desperately looking for jobs and cannot find them. We have a serious unemployment crisis in this country that is particularly affecting young Canadians. The unemployment rate has been continuously going up over the last three years. It has now hit 7.1%, but the youth unemployment rate is really at catastrophic levels, at 14.5%. Many young people are desperately looking for jobs and are unable to find them. This is a continuation of a trend that has been going on for the last three years. We have been regularly highlighting the problem of the jobs crisis and calling on the government to have a plan of some kind and present a plan.”
“Mr. Speaker, I will try to quickly get in two questions for the member about this legislation. First, has the government engaged with the Hindu community and other communities that use symbols that look like symbols that have an association, in other contexts, with hate but are used in a very different way in their tradition? We want to protect the freedoms of those communities that understand similar looking symbols in very different ways. Second, I wonder if the member can comment on the significant violence we have seen targeting the Christian community, the burning of churches, and what the government's response, or lack of response, has been to the number of churches that have been vandalized or completely destroyed during the Liberals' tenure in office.”
“Madam Speaker, the next petition I am tabling draws attention to past and ongoing abuses of human rights targeting the Hazara community in Afghanistan. The petitioners cite some of the history around the various genocides that have affected the Hazara people in Afghanistan and further describe more recent abuses. They also note the close tie between Canada and Afghanistan, shaped by the sacrifice made by many brave Canadian soldiers in fighting for the freedom of that country, as well as the resources that were invested. The petitioners are deeply concerned about the present situation facing the Hazara people under the Taliban occupation of that country. The ask in this particular petition includes recognizing the past genocides of the Hazaras and designating September 25 as Hazara genocide memorial day.”