Latest News

CPAC VIDEO: NDP Parliament Hill news conference to discuss humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan

Jenny Kwan, the NDP critic for refugees and citizenship, and Heather McPherson, the party’s critic for foreign affairs and international development, mark the one-year anniversary of the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan and discuss what needs to be done to help families stranded in the country. Also participating in the virtual news conference are Wadood Dilsoz, director of the Afghan Community Vancouver Foundation, and Reyhana Patel, director of communications and government relations for Islamic Relief Canada.

MEDIA RELEASE: New Democrats Force the Liberals to Act: Wins for Everyday Canadians

Whether it’s sky-high rent and housing costs, gas pump gouging, or record-high grocery bills – working families are feeling the squeeze of inflation as big box stores and CEOs earn massive profits. At the NDP caucus retreat in Halifax last week, NDP leader Jagmeet Singh reiterated ​urgent calls for inflationary relief measures ​to address the affordability crisis.
New Democrats used their power in the minority parliament to get wins for everyday people, forcing the Liberals to finally agree to ​take action on a historic expansion of Canada’s healthcare system through the establishment of a dental care program for families earning less than $90,000 without insurance and an increase to the Canadian Housing Benefit – real measures that will help household budgets. 

MEDIA RELEASE: New Democrats Force the Liberals to Act: Wins for Everyday Canadians

Whether it’s sky-high rent and housing costs, gas pump gouging, or record-high grocery bills – working families are feeling the squeeze of inflation as big box stores and CEOs earn massive profits. At the NDP caucus retreat in Halifax last week, NDP leader Jagmeet Singh reiterated ​urgent calls for inflationary relief measures ​to address the affordability crisis.
New Democrats used their power in the minority parliament to get wins for everyday people, forcing the Liberals to finally agree to ​take action on a historic expansion of Canada’s healthcare system through the establishment of a dental care program for families earning less than $90,000 without insurance and an increase to the Canadian Housing Benefit – real measures that will help household budgets. 

OPEN LETTER: Impacts of National Security Law on Canadian Veteran Journalist

We write today to raise concerns about the continuing impacts of the National Security Law that was unilaterally imposed upon Hong Kong by the government of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) in June 2020, and the erosion of fundamental human rights, democracy and civil liberties faced by the people of Hong Kong.
As you may have seen in recent news reports, a respected Canadian journalist and editor, Mr. Victor Ho, has been targeted by the current government of Hong Kong for his involvement in pro-democracy activities in Canada. Mr. Ho is a veteran journalist and was formerly the editor-in-chief of Sing Tao Daily from 2005-2018. He continues to work as an independent public affairs commentator and operates independent media outlet, Media Analytica.

IN THE NEWS: National Observer - MPs raise concerns over pipeline construction obstructing salmon run

The NDP’s fisheries critic Lisa Marie Barron, house leader Peter Julian, infrastructure and communities critic Bonita Zarrillo and Vancouver East MP Jenny Kwan signed an open letter raising concerns about the impact pipeline construction is having on the early salmon run.
The letter asks the ministers for Fisheries and Oceans, Environment, Natural Resources and Crown-Indigenous Relations to “intervene and halt construction of the TMX pipeline expansion,” adding the future health of wild Pacific salmon species may depend on their action.
The federal NDP opposes the Liberal government’s purchase of the Trans Mountain pipeline and the expansion project, though Leader Jagmeet Singh has not said whether the party would cancel it.

OPEN LETTER: Evidence of Trans Mountain Pipeline Expansion Harms to Wild Salmon

We are writing to you to raise very urgent concerns that have been brought to our attention about evidence of harms to wild salmon caused by the construction of the Trans Mountain Pipeline Expansion at work sites where the pipeline crosses the Coquihalla River.

The Coquihalla River is a tributary of the Fraser River and forms a part of the watershed that is essential for resident wild salmon species. For example, the Pacific Salmon Commission reports, as in an August 2, 2022 Vancouver Sun article (https://vancouversun.com/news/local- news/strong-sockeye-salmon-runs-bode-well-for-famed-fraser-fishery) that 2022 is expected to be a dominant year in the sockeye salmon’s four-year reproductive cycle, meaning that mature fish will be returning to the watershed to spawn. Protecting the millions of salmon expected to spawn in these rivers this year is utterly crucial for the survival of these keystone species, and on- the-ground observers have advised us that there are indications that the Fraser River is experiencing a large and early salmon run.

CBC NEWS: ‘Waiting for our death’: Afghan miliary lawyers beg Canada for help to escape

A former Canadian military legal officer says a group of Afghan lawyers and other staff who helped his mission in Afghanistan have been "left in the dark," and is urging Canada's Immigration Ministry to act quickly to help them escape the Taliban.

It's been one year since Canada began accepting fleeing Afghans through its one-year special immigration program for Afghans who helped the Canadian government, set up a few weeks before Kabul fell to the Taliban in August 2021.

To date, roughly 17,170 Afghans have arrived in Canada. Last month, the Liberal government closed its immigration program to new applicants, less than halfway toward its goal of bringing 40,000 Afghans to Canada.

NDP immigration critic Jenny Kwan has said the government's claim that other immigration avenues remain open to Afghans is "deceptive."

"That is just a rejection," she said.

 

 

IN THE NEWS: Toronto Star - Are you waiting for the confirmation of your extended work permits? It may be in a stranger’s inbox

Vancouver East MP Jenny Kwan, the NDP’s immigration critic, said what happened is a serious privacy breach and the government should know these errors have seriously consequences.
“Despite the immigration minister’s claim that the system is working, the department continues to be in complete chaos,” said Kwan. “They are putting people in perpetual distress. I can’t believe that the government has resorted to this kind of scare tactics.
“With this kind of communication, they are telling people that they are unimportant and they are not welcomed. The Liberals are completely forgetting that immigration services can impact someone for the rest of their lives. They are putting Canada’s reputation in jeopardy.”

OPEN LETTER: Urgent Housing Crisis

As you know, the lack of access to safe, secured affordable housing in Vancouver has been a longstanding challenge. This was brought on by the cancellation of the National Housing Program in 1993 and the lack of action by successive federal governments to invest in the development of social housing. The pandemic in the last 2 years and the current heat wave has further exacerbated the situation. The latest available data indicates there are currently over 2,000 identified homeless individuals in the city, and a disproportionate number of them identify as Indigenous.
In my previous correspondence with you, I have outlined the seriousness of the housing crisis in Vancouver and called for federal action. Today, I am reiterating calls for action.
Since 2018, we have seen in our community, large scale homeless encampments erected by the unhoused, first in Oppenheimer Park, then in Crab Park, followed by Strathcona Park. In August of 2020, I issued a joint open letter with MLA Mark and Mayor Kennedy calling for the federal government to urgently address the housing crisis by entering into a 50/50 cost sharing agreement with the province to build more supportive housing and acquire new housing stock

Canada Immigration NEWS: Updated Anti-Racism Strategy For Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada

MP Jenny Kwan, the immigration critic for the New Democratic Party in the House of Commons, echoed those sentiments, reportedly admitting that, while the language used by the IRCC is positive, there’s a lack of immediate action specified.

“As the government consults, as they examine and study these issues, the ongoing impact of discriminatory policies is having a real effect for people,” Kwan reportedly told the National Post.
African, South American and Asian delegates planning to attend a major AIDS conference in Montreal were denied visas, many of them because the Canadian government did not believe they would return home, Kwan reportedly claimed.
On social media, critics of the IRCC have noted African students who apply to Canadian colleges and universities are denied study permits at much higher rate that international students from other countries.