Fall 2022 Session of Parliament: A Recap

Plus a tribute to teaching excellence, New Year’s Levée reminder and more...

Fall 2022 Session of Parliament: A Recap

Parliament is now in recess until the end of January. Parliamentarians will be heading back to their ridings with little headway on having the federal Liberal government make meaningful moves to abandon the destructive Liberal tax increases planned for next year.

The legislative agenda this session of Parliament saw Bill C-21 drastically expanded into a hunting rifle ban. This after repeated promises by the Liberal government that their goal was a handgun ban freeze and getting rid of “assault style weapons”. That latter idea lacked a definition until a Liberal MP proposed this far ranging and expansive amendment to C-21 at the behest of the federal Liberal government. Initially supportive of this amendment, the NDP and the Bloc Quebecois eventually relented and have publicly called for changes to C-21. A major blow to the advancement of C-21 came when the Assembly of First Nations, the largest Indigenous organization in Canada, formally voted to oppose this piece of legislation. C-21 is now stuck at the parliamentary public safety committee and has not passed to the next stage with many amendments left on the table and confusion from the government side on what the future holds for this deeply flawed piece of legislation.

Like C-21, the online censorship bill C-11 has not yet been passed into law. Conservative Senators with the support of some Independent Senators have been drawing the attention of Canadians to flaws in how the CRTC will be able to censor what we see online. This entire fall, Senators heard from many more witnesses that were allowed in the House of Commons. A deeper dive into the bill revealed further flaws and censorship opportunities the federal government could exploit. An amendment was also passed by the Senate to ban the CBC from being able to promote sponsored content on any of its channels or platforms. C-11 will now be returned to MPs once again to consider the changes made by the Senate for yet another round. It’s solely thanks to conservative efforts that this flawed piece of legislation has not yet passed into law.

Two very important conservative private member’s initiatives cleared the House of Commons are working their way through the Senate. A private sector pension protection plan sponsored by my colleague MP Marilyn Gladu, known as C-228, will provide better protection during bankruptcy proceedings for retirees. The Senate will be considering it in 2023. The next one is C-242, the Reuniting Families Act. Sponsored by my colleague MP Kyle Seeback, C-242 would make it easier for visiting parents and grandparents to obtain temporary resident visas by allowing for more options for private health insurance during their stay in Canada (also an excellent measure to protect taxpayers) and allow them to stay for up to five years. It would also legislate clear minimum income requirements that the child or grandchild sponsoring must meet in order for the visiting parent or grandparent to be able to enter and remain in Canada for the extended five year period (another good policy for taxpayers).

Check out my review of this last sitting of Parliament on the economy, the cost of living and our future plans to defend your paycheques, your retirement, your homes and your country.

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My Statement in Parliament on Véronique Brunelle

I rise today to congratulate Veronique Brunelle, a constituent from my riding, who is the recipient of the 2022 Prime Minister Award for Teaching Excellence in STEM.  

Veronique teaches at William Aberhart High School and has worked as a French Immersion math teacher for grade 10, 11 and 12.

Veronique is committed to innovation and her unique teaching style. It is not uncommon to see students writing on whiteboards on the walls, and even on the windows.

Students are challenged and she especially has worked to inspire and encourage students in their university aspirations. Her encouragement has led to students joining the WISEST program at the UoA that places high school girls in research labs, providing teens with an opportunity to work on campus in a science or engineering related field.

Congratulations again Veronique. Your students, your teaching colleagues and parliamentarians are proud of you. 

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‘Resuming Debate’ On Break

With Parliament in recess, ‘Resuming Debate’ will also be taking a break. I will be back on Friday, February 3rd, 2023. Thank you for reading, engaging, and keeping up-to-date on my work on the Hill for my constituents in Calgary Shepard.

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January 2: New Year’s Levée

You are invited to my annual New Year’s Levée. It will be held at the Mahogany Beach Club, Banquet Hall, 29 Masters Park SE on Monday, January 2nd, 2023 from 1PM - 3PM. I look forward to seeing you there!

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