Government Accountability

IN THE NEWS: CITV - NDP 'Greedflation' motion calling for grocery pricing probe gets unanimous support from MPs

An NDP motion calling on the federal government to take steps to tackle "greedflation," and investigate grocery chain profits, received unanimous support from MPs on Monday. 
The motion called out grocery store giants for making "massive profits in the last year," while the cost of groceries keeps rising. It also calls on the government to "recognize that corporate greed is a significant driver of inflation, and to take further action to support families during this cost-of-living crisis." 
While not binding—meaning the federal government is not forced to act, but will have to take note of the House of Commons' unanimous request—the motion calls on the Liberals to:

•  Force CEOs and big corporations to "pay what they owe" by closing tax loopholes;

•  Launch an "affordable and fair food strategy" to tackle "corporate greed";

•  Ask the competition bureau to investigate grocery chain profits; and

•  Support a previously-agreed upon House committee study calling grocery CEOs to testify about "high food prices and the role of 'greedflation.'"

“After standing by for months, the Liberals and Conservatives finally agreed today that corporate greed is a problem,” said NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh in a statement following the vote.  

CIMM#35: Talk about if CIMM would undertaking a study of the coming into force date for the College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants act

CIMM#35: On the issue of the coming into force date for the College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants act

I think at issue here is the question around the OIC coming-into-force date. If you look at the documents that were sent to committee members—and a member asked me to table these documents—you'll see these documents were sent to the clerk. I received a copy as well, separate and apart from that, so committee members, if they have not received them from the clerk already, will, I assume, at some point in time be getting these documents. 

IN THE NEWS: Canadian Press - Federal immigration committee to discuss allegations department misled a judge

The House of Commons committee on immigration has called an urgent meeting next week to discuss allegations that the department and former minister misled a federal judge during a trademark infringement case — an allegation former immigration minister Marco Mendicino has categorically denied.

The allegations stem from the creation of a new college to regulate immigration consultants in 2020.

CIMM#34: Should government announced new immigration measures include additional resources intact?

My question really centres around this. What happens a lot is that the government takes the approach of robbing Peter to pay Paul. That is to say, they will introduce new immigration measures without actually providing additional immigration levels or resources to accommodate those new immigration measures. As a result, you have a huge backlog that would be impacted. This means that existing applications would be further delayed. The reality is that, with the privately sponsored refugee stream, there were significant delays even prior to the Afghanistan crisis.
When the government introduces new immigration measures, should they introduce them without ensuring that there are new resources and immigration level numbers to accommodate them, or should they do those special immigration measures with additional resources intact, both level numbers and staffing for processing?

CIM#34: What government should do to address the processing delays crisis

I'd like to ask the representative from LUSO Community Services this question. You raised, I think similarly to the other witnesses, the significance of the delay in processing and what it means. Oftentimes, the government does not even follow its own processing standards. If you look at the website right now, they don't even give you a time; they only say not to expect your application to be processed expeditiously.
Given that this is the situation, I wonder what you think the government should do or what your recommendation is for the government to address this crisis in processing delays within immigration.

CIM#34: Addressing the nature of a new amendment

CIMM#32: Addressing the casue of processing delay and backlog

IN PARLIAMENT: Video - Speech on the passing of Queen Elizabeth II

IN THE NEWS: CanIndia - Trudeau announces $2B for creation of nearly 17,000 homes, new 5-year rent to own stream

“The housing supports announced today were secured by New Democrats for everyday people as part of the supply and confidence agreement. While this is good news for Canadians, we know that more needs to be done to help families afford to keep a roof over their heads. Since 1993, the housing crisis has been ignored by Liberal and Conservative governments who abandoned federal affordable housing programs people relied on. It’s wrong that families who need help now have been ignored by decades of Liberal and Conservative governments,” Kwan said.
“New Democrats will continue using our power to push the Liberals to make life more affordable for everyday people. This means pushing to reverse Liberal and Conservative cuts by restoring the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation’s role in building social and co-op housing. We will continue to fight for meaningful investments that address the urgent homelessness crisis in communities struggling with encampments. It also means pushing the Liberals to ensure immediate relief to renters who need it and crack down on investors treating housing like a stock market instead of a human right,” she added.