On this page are selected videos of speeches, statements, debates, and questions I raise in the House.
To watch parliamentary proceedings live, you can visit: https://parlvu.parl.gc.ca/Harmony
On October 30, 2018, Jenny rose and asked this question:
On October 29, 2018, Jenny rose to ask this question:
On October 25th, 2018, Jenny rose and asked this question:
On October 23, 2018, Jenny rose and asked this question:
On October 17, 2018, Jenny rose and asked this question:
On October 10, 2018, I speak on Bill C-369
Last week, the House of Commons moved in support of the second reading for Bill C-376, a Bill that would pronounce April Sikh Heritage Month. This is the likely to be the first bill recognizing Sikh heritage at a federal level in the world and the second time in Canada. Given that the NDP is Canada's first federal party to have a leader of Sikh heritage who tabled a similar piece of legislation at a different level of government that was passed with unanimous consent, I was proud to support this Bill on behalf of the NDP government. The positive social, economic, and cultural contributions of the roughly 470,000 Sikh Canadians to Canada's multicultural mosaic can be felt across the country and passing this bill will provide Canadians from all walks of life the opportunity to learn more about the Sikh community. In my statement, I reflected upon the Komagata Maru incident. In 1914, the Government of Canada had put in place a law that prohibited passengers from disembarking in Canada if the vessel they were on had stopped at any point during its journey here. Canada denied entry to nearly 400 Sikh refugees, costing 19 of them their lives upon their return back to India. We as Canadians, have the opportunity to learn from this incident by recognizing the mistakes of our past and building toward a brighter future. The Safe Third Country Agreement aims to prevent people seeking asylum from entering Canada if they stopped in the United States during their journey here. It appears that we have still not learned from the mistakes of our past. We are continuing to turn people away, not on the basis of their claim, but on the basis of the path they took to arrive here, as they search for safety and a better life:
On Sept 17, 2018 at the Chinese Cultural Centre of Greater Vancouver - Partnership Announcement Designation for Vancouver Chinatown:
After truly disturbing reports and images were made public of migrant child being torn away from their parents, US officials confirmed everyone's worst fears: Some of the children taken away and put in these baby jails would never be able to be reunited with their families; they would be lost in the system. It is clear that under the President Trump, the United States is not a safe country for asylum seekers. I asked the Prime Minister to finally do what is right and suspend the Safe Third Country Agreement. In response, all I got was vague platitudes. That's not leadership:
MP Kwan tables petition in the House of Commons on June 11, 2018:
During the Committee of the Whole debate on Budget 2018's funding allocations to IRCC, I questioned the Minister on what was being done to address the unjust #delayediranianapplications:
Border communities are bracing for another spike in irregular crossings. We know what the Conservative plan is, to follow Trump by shutting down the border and turning away refugees. However, we have not seen any plan from the government. People are risking life and limb to cross the border, but the Prime Minister has refused to suspend the safe third country agreement. We are seeing troubling comments from the Prime Minister, suggesting that some migrants are trying to game the system: