Week in Review: June 15 – 19 (le français suit)
This week MPs participated in the final week of regular parliamentary sessions before the summer adjournment, a time when MPs can concentrate on work in their ridings for more than a few days at a time. Given the ongoing pandemic, this summer will be very different. During the summer, MPs will meet for four pre-scheduled meetings of the House. There will be two in July and two in August, in addition to any ad-hoc meetings required to review emergency measures related to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
On Wednesday, MPs debated the Supplementary Estimates put forward by the Liberals. When previously approved budgetary programs encounter unforeseen spending requirements, such as during the COVID-19 pandemic, the government can seek the approval of Parliament to add or reallocate funds to these programs through supplementary estimates.
In her response to the supplementary estimates, Elizabeth asked the government to explain an $18 million increase to the RCMP operations’ budget. She also asked that there be more funding for Indigenous people’s friendship centres, VIA rail, and why there had not yet been a response from the government to the National Inquiry on Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls.
In his questions this week, Paul focused on Canada’s justice system and police force. He asked the government to reduce spending on the RCMP, decriminalize drugs, and ban the use of tear gas. He also asked the government how much the recent Trans Mountain Pipeline oil spill would cost taxpayers. In his Member’s Statement on Tuesday, Paul urged the government to consider the lessons of the COVID-19 pandemic, and to remember that no one will be immune to the impacts of the climate crisis.
On Wednesday, Paul hosted another Community Conversation with Nanaimo Aboriginal Centre executive director Chris Beaton and Mid-Island Métis Nation president Joy Bremner. Their conversation focused on the challenges that the COVID-19 pandemic has presented for urban Indigenous people and the organizations that serve them. Chris and Joy talked about online celebrations planned for National Indigenous Peoples Day on Sunday, June 21st.
June 17th marked the one-year anniversary of Canada’s vote to declare a climate emergency. On that day, Elizabeth pressed the Minister of Environment and Climate Change, the Honourable Jonathan Wilkinson, to commit to setting a new, more aggressive climate target this year, as per the legally binding requirements of the Paris Agreement. This week, Elizabeth was also elected chair of the Parliamentary Democracy Caucus.
Jenica asked the government when people with disabilities could expect to see financial support, following last week’s failed motion that would have provided a one-time $600 payment to those receiving the disability tax credit. She also asked the Minister of Health to address systemic racism against Indigenous peoples in the healthcare system, and called on the Heritage Minister to put forward policies to promote Indigenous place names.
This is the last newsletter you will receive until the week of July 8th, when the House will next reconvene. In the meantime, stay tuned to our Green MPs’ social media channels and websites, linked below, for news, publications, and online events. We are so proud of our Green MPs, and cannot wait to see what they will accomplish over the summer and in the fall. Remember that the COVID-19 pandemic is not over. As safety measures relax, we hope you will stay safe and mindful that the risk of spreading COVID-19 has not gone away. Thank you for reading the Green Caucus Week in Review.
Elizabeth May spoke at a press conference calling for an inquiry into the RCMP
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Key Moments
- Elizabeth May responds to the government’s supplementary estimates
- Jenica Atwin wishes you a Happy Indigenous People’s Day
- Elizabeth May wishes you a Happy Indigenous People’s Day
Question Period and Member’s Statements
- Paul Manly: It’s time to bail out humanity and the planet
- Paul Manly: Will the government end the war on drugs by decriminalizing them?
- Paul Manly: Will the government rein in RCMP spending?
- Paul Manly: How much will the TMX spill cost Canadians?
- Paul Manly: Will the government prohibit the use of tear gas?
- Elizabeth May: When will the government take the climate crisis as seriously as it is taking the COVID-19 pandemic?
- Jenica Atwin: Will the government address systemic racism in the healthcare system?
- Jenica Atwin: Will the government put in place policies to protect Indigenous place names?
- Jenica Atwin: What is the government’s plan to support people with disabilities?
Statements and Press Releases
Press Conference
In Their Own Words
Petitions
Petitions tabled by Green MPs this week
- Implement UNDRIP
- Simplify Marine Protected Areas
- Halt construction on TMX
- Condemn the Chinese Communist Party’s systematic murder of Falun Gong practitioners for their organs
E-petitions open for signature
- e-2447 Open competition for research funding (closes June 23)
- e-2450 Legalize the transportation of CBD products across the Canadian border (closes June 26)
- e-2624 Include long-term care in the public health system (closes July 3)
- e-2416 Mandatory labelling of food containing GMOs (closes July 4)
- e-2655 Extend work permit timit limit for international students (closes July 10)
- e-2471 Grant the RCMP Funding for Body Cameras (closes July 16)
- e-2534 Amend the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act (closes August 14)
- e-2565 Request that Israel immediately lift the blockade on Gaza (closes September 4)
- e-2583 Implement a Guaranteed Livable Income (closes 19 August)
- e-2615 Divest CPP from fossil fuel investments (closes October 3)