OTTAWA—Yesterday, a report from the Parliamentary Committee on Transport Infrastructure and Communities recommended that the government abolish the Canada Infrastructure Bank (CIB). The Bank has widely been criticized for failing to address the needs of the communities it is supposed to help. While the CIB has received hundreds of project proposals, it has approved very few, neglecting projects which could help people in favor of a privatization agenda that helps maximize corporate profits at the expense of the public interests.
“Canadians are frustrated that the government isn’t investing in the infrastructure that communities desperately need in the face of the climate crisis. With the recommendation to abolish Canada’s Infrastructure Bank from the Transport Committee, the Liberals are at a crossroads because their current approach has failed,” said NDP Critic for Tax Fairness, Niki Ashton. “They have two options, let the Bank wither and die, having accomplished nothing but enrich their wealthy friends, or they can listen to reason, support my bill and use the Infrastructure Bank to support communities including Indigenous and Northern communities in the fight against climate change.”
MEDIA RELEASE - NDP MP pushes parliament to recognize genocide against Ukrainians
OTTAWA –Yesterday, NDP critic for Foreign Affairs, Heather McPherson, pushed Parliament to recognize that Russia is carrying out a genocide against the Ukrainian people. For weeks, there has been mounting evidence that war crimes and crimes against humanity are being committed against the people of Ukraine by the Russian Federation, including the forcible transfer of Ukrainian children to Russia. McPherson says this motion is a confirmation that all parties agree about the severity of the situation and believes this is an important step to compel the government to provide more support for Ukrainians.
"Canadians are horrified by the reports they are seeing. The violence perpetrated by Putin and the Russian federation against the Ukrainian people must be labelled for what it is– a genocide,” said McPherson. “I moved this motion today to urge the government to do everything in its power to help Ukrainians who are fleeing violence. The government has been telling Canadians they’re doing everything they can, but we recently learned that the Liberals acted so slowly with their economic measures that a Russian oligarch had time to move his wealth --over 100 million dollars--before sanctions were imposed. The point of the motion is to reiterate our solidarity with Ukrainians as they fight through unspeakable violence and atrocities, and to put as much pressure as possible on the government to address the situation with the urgency needed.”
MEDIA RELEASE - The Liberal government is failing Canadians and our communities on the climate crisis
OTTAWA – Today, NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh responded to the Environment Commissioner’s scathing reports that show the Liberal government is failing to provide credible plans to meet their climate goals or to support Canadians. The reports confirmed that, despite their promises, the Liberals are failing to address the climate emergency and they have no real plan in place to support workers, small businesses and Indigenous communities in transitioning to a greener future.
The Liberal government is letting big polluters off the hook, while the climate crisis disproportionately impacts Indigenous communities and small businesses. The reports shows that the Liberals are no where near reaching their climate goals and we’re lagging behind other countries on transitioning to renewable energy and meeting emission targets. Under the Liberal government, Canada is the worst greenhouse gas emitter of all G7 nations.
MEDIA RELEASE - The NDP is raising concerns about transparency for Canadians
“The use of the Emergencies Act was unprecedented, and Canadians rightly have many questions about how the government let the situation get to a point where that became necessary. Failures in leadership from several levels of government during the convoy crisis all contributed to the hardship Canadians endured. While governments argued over jurisdictions, people were abandoned. Canadians were abandoned because governments did not take the threat of this convoy seriously and took too long to act.
Canadians expect a thorough inquiry into the use of the Emergencies act and New Democrats support its broad mandate. However, the Liberals are doing everything possible to protect themselves from being held accountable for their delayed response to the illegal occupation. By claiming cabinet confidence, the Liberals are shielding themselves from scrutiny and this cannot be the government’s approach to the inquiry. Canadians deserve much better.
MEDIA RELEASE - After years of ignored reports, action on systemic racism in Canada’s military long overdue
Today’s report only amplifies what many people of colour, women, 2SLGBTQI+ and Indigenous people within the military have been saying for decades: systemic racism and discrimination is rampant in our armed forces, and real action to address this is long overdue.
Both the Liberals and Conservatives have failed to make systemic changes as numerous stories of discrimination and rising extremism within the military have gone unchecked. In the past 20 years, 41 panels and 258 recommendations alerted the government on the gravity of the situation, but just like reports of sexual misconduct within the Canadian Armed Forces, these calls for help were largely ignored. Service members and employees at the Department of Defence should not have to continue to wait for concrete steps to be taken to address systemic racism within the army ranks.
MEDIA RELEASE - Liberals fail to fix delays in our immigration system
“In his announcement today, the Minister failed to acknowledge the real reason why Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada quietly stopped the Federal Skilled Worker Program. Through an Access to Information and Privacy request, it was revealed that “These reductions are due to admissions space required to accommodate the Temporary Resident to Permanent Resident stream and the resettlement of Afghan nationals to Canada.”
The truth is the Liberal government failed to listen to calls from the NDP and those affected by these delays to ensure adequate staffing and immigration levels are available to meet the announcement of these two new immigration measures.
The lack of transparency and communication from this government is appalling and an insult to the people who are trying to balance important life decisions around possible outcomes of their applications. It should not take an Access to Information request for those aspiring to come to Canada to learn the truth about the processing delays.
MEDIA RELEASE - Liberals side with Big Pharma while Canadians struggle to get by
“Today’s news reveals that Liberals are backing down on drug price reforms that would make life-saving medication more affordable for Canadians. While many Canadians are forced to make the difficult choice between buying their medication or putting food on the table, the Liberals choose to protect the interests of large, profitable pharmaceutical companies.
New Democrats have long called on the government to bring our drug prices into line with other countries. The reality is that federal policy keeps drug prices high for Canadians already struggling to get by with the rising cost of living. The lack of courage of the Liberals to stand up to Big Pharma means millions of Canadians will continue to go without the medication they need. This must change. No Canadian should ever go without the medicine they need.
MEDIA RELEASE - Indigenous Peoples still need the resources to heal as more unmarked graves are found
“Today, my heart goes out to the George Gordon First Nation in Saskatchewan as they process the devastating discovery of 14 potential unmarked burial sites close to the former George Gordon Indian Residential School. Indigenous Peoples across Canada feel this pain as we are once again reminded of the genocide that was perpetrated and still goes on to this day.
The Prime Minister has promised to take significant steps to help communities heal and find truth, but many Indigenous communities still lack the resources they need.
New Democrats continue their calls for the Liberal government to give Indigenous Peoples the truth and justice they are owed.
MEDIA RELEASE - Liberals are failing our loved ones by refusing to fix long-term care
“During the pandemic, our loved ones in long-term care suffered or died due to a lack of proper care. The pandemic has shown us the devastating costs of government inaction and neglect in our health care system – drastic changes are needed to support seniors.
Justin Trudeau promised long-term care workers, residents, and their families better support and more funding during the 2021 campaign. He broke that promise. While the Liberals promised an $9 billion investment into improving the quality and availability of long-term care homes, Budget 2022 included only $1 million in new spending.
MEDIA RELEASE - NDP holds town hall to talk about ways to fight against hate
As part of the NDP’s effort to tackle systemic racism and discrimination, earlier this year, Julian tabled a bill that would prevent anyone from selling and displaying symbols that promote hatred. The symbols that would be banned are Swastikas and other Nazi emblems of the genocidal regime, Klu Klux Klan symbols and the Confederate flag, symbols of slavery, racism and of white supremacy.
“Symbolic gestures don’t eliminate hateful and violent crimes against Indigenous people, Black, Asian and other marginalized communities,” said Julian. “We need real action with tangible objectives. People are tired of hearing pretty words. They want their government to stop the spread of hate in our communities. And this bill is one of the tools that the NDP is putting forward to combat hate, racism, discrimination and extremism.”