Government Accountability

MEDIA RELEASE: NDP forces Liberals to finally start cracking down on tax evasion

That’s why, for years, New Democrats have been pushing and advocating for the establishment of a public beneficial ownership registry to make it harder for wealthy tax dodgers, corrupt businesspeople and sanctioned Russian oligarchs to hide their assets in Canada. This registry will ensure transparency so the government can ensure everyone pays what they owe in taxes and put a stop to money laundering that is increasing real estate speculation which makes it harder for families in Canada to find a home they can afford.

The NDP used the Confidence and Supply Agreement to force the Liberals to stop dragging their feet on combating tax evasion and money laundering and implement a registry this year.

New Democrats would welcome the swift passage of this bill so the government can begin negotiating with the provinces and territories to get the public beneficial ownership registry implemented as soon as possible.”

MEDIA RELEASE: Conservative block an important vote for a public inquiry into foreign interference

OTTAWA — On Tuesday, Pierre Poilievre and the Conservatives blocked an important vote for a motion calling on a public inquiry into foreign interference. The motion was supposed to be moved in the House of Commons this morning but the Conservatives shut it down, proving that they’re not interested in getting results for Canadians.

New Democrats want the inquiry to call ministers, former ministers, chiefs of staff to the prime minister and to the leader of the official opposition during the 2019 and 2021 federal election campaigns as well as both parties’ campaign directors so that Canadians have the answers they need and confidence in their institutions moving forward.

Hill Times: Immigration minister defends department’s multi-million-dollar contracts with McKinsey, but lawyers describe resulting product as ‘crappy’

NDP MP Jenny Kwan (Vancouver East, B.C.), her party’s immigration critic, attended the Feb. 15 House Government Operations Committee meeting so she could question Fraser, who appeared virtually from his constituency in Nova Scotia. 

Kwan pointed out that immigration consultants and lawyers have testified at the House Immigration Committee “to talk about what a disaster the transformation in digital processes is,” Kwan said. “In certain areas, they are saying that they can’t upload documents, and when they do spend hours doing it, the system crashes.” 

“The minister, I’m sure, is aware of all of this. And so this is what we bought? $24.8-million?” she queried. 

Fraser acknowledged the system isn’t running smoothly right now. 

“I would suggest that we’re in the middle of a major transition and the system we’re working with now is predominantly the legacy system … rather than a fully modernized system, which will be available and fine-tuned after a few years,” he offered. 

“I appreciate the new system, but the reality is it’s not working very well,” Kwan retorted. “So if McKinsey was actually spearheading this, $24.8-million of tax dollars on this is not a very good job, I have to say.” 

CBC: Poilievre accuses Trudeau of ignoring election interference by China

NDP MP Jenny Kwan said Friday the government should be more transparent when it's briefed on foreign interference.

"They cannot try to shield this information just because it may be that it's the Liberal who will be benefiting, potentially, from these activities," Kwan said in an interview.

"The issue here, for me, fundamentally — irrespective of parties — is about our democratic system. Something that I think sometimes we take for granted, but for me, as an immigrant … is something that I absolutely cherish.”

HANSARD: Jenny asks when the government will fix the housing crisis

Media Release: Liberals are falling behind in delivering homes Canadians can afford

OTTAWA—NDP Housing Critic Jenny Kwan issued the following statement in response to a report by the Parliamentary Budget Officer (PBO) on the Liberals’ failure to meet their housing goals for Canadians, while a recent report shows a 10.7 per cent hike in rent prices since one year ago:

“The NDP is echoing a major concern raised by the PBO in a report: the Liberal government is failing further and further behind its own housing goals because it isn’t accounting for inflation. Meanwhile, the Liberal government’s failure to keep up with the housing needs of Canadians amid a housing crisis is contributing to a whopping 10.7 per cent hike in rent year-over-year.

IN COMMITTEE: Government Operations Committee on Federal Government Consulting Contracts Awarded to McKinsey & Company

Media Release: NDP blasts Liberals for failing to crackdown on greedy corporate landlords

“Under this liberal government, the cost of rent for Canadians went up 60 per cent,” said Kwan. “Liberals are letting corporate landlords rip off Canadian families by jacking up rent when they bring in a new tenant, and vacancy rates are lower than ever.”
Kwan says that the Liberals are making it easy for corporate landlords to get a profitable pay day on the backs of Canadian families struggling to find a home they can afford in their own communities.
“Letting corporations and speculators turn our housing market into a casino for the ultra-wealthy is wrong,” added Kwan. “But the Liberals have turned their backs on renters. When are the Liberals going to crackdown on the profiteering of corporate landlords that is keeping families from finding a home they can afford?”

Canadian Press: Critics pan government plaque praising Canada's evacuation efforts in Afghanistan

NDP MP Jenny Kwan, who sat on the committee, said Canadian public servants and soldiers put their lives at stake to help people and should be commemorated — but not while Afghan is suffering ongoing tumult.  "This is about the lack of planning and thought that the government had put into this (evacuation)," she said.

"I'm very dismayed that the Liberal government was busy finding ways to congratulate themselves when the aftermath is so dire for the Afghans who have risked their lives and that of their family members, who helped Canada with our missions.”  Kwan argued a plaque commemorating Afghans who served Canada would be more appropriate.

Canadian Press: As critics push Trudeau on China interference, Liberal MP says he has become ‘target’

NDP MP Jenny Kwan said the Liberals need to take the allegations of interference more seriously.  “What has created a vacuum on the details of the information, in my view, is not the media but the prime minister himself,” the Vancouver MP said in an interview.
Kwan, who was born in Hong Kong, said the allegations “go to the heart of our democratic system” and argued that Trudeau and his ministers have given contradictory statements about them.  She noted that security officials have briefed Vancouver’s former mayor about possible Chinese influence in last fall’s municipal election. 

“The threat is real. Something is happening; we don’t know exactly what,” she said. “If the Liberals persist in hiding this information, they are not helping to clear the air.”