Dear Friends,
American Politics
This has been a crazy two weeks in American politics since I returned from Washington DC, after joining the Prime Minister and other MPs at the NATO Summit. First, we had the assassination attempt on former President Trump where he was injured, and others were killed and wounded. I immediately extended my best wishes to the former President and the victims of the shooting and their families. Any violence or threats of violence has no place in our politics. We are seeing this far too often. In the United States, but also here in Canada and around the world. Obviously, the individual involved is the criminal and responsible for his actions. But that does not mean that the actions of others do not incite hate and violence and personal attacks against political opponents, that incite hate and violence, need to end.
We then had the Republican national convention and the decision of President Biden to leave the race. I think President Biden has been a great friend of Canada and a very consequential President, Vice President and Senator and I thank him for his public service. I also thank him for putting his country and his party before himself.
Argentina-AMIA Anniversary
Last week, I was in Argentina for the meetings of the International Conference of Jewish Parliamentarians (where I am the North American co-chair) and the Interparliamentary Task Force on Online Antisemitism (where I am the co-chair). We met in Argentina as it was the 30th anniversary of the AMIA bombing at the Jewish community offices which killed 85 people. We met with victims’ families, heard from the Presidents of Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay and signed the Buenos Aires Declaration, pledging to fight terrorism and calling for justice for the Iranian backed perpetrators of the AMIA bombing.
Our Task Force held hearings in the Argentinian Congress and following Meta’s commitment to pull down hateful posts using the word Zionist (if used in the context of being a euphemism for Jew), Tik Tok announced in Buenos Aires that it is doing the same. This has been one of the biggest demands of our Task Force and Tik Tok’s announcement will allow us to put pressure on other social media companies to follow suit.
Law 96
Quebec’s language inspectors entering hospitals is yet another horrendous example of Law 96’s excesses. As Lucien Bouchard said, when people go to the hospital they might need a blood test, not a language test. I came out against Law 96 as soon as it was tabled and have fought very hard against it. I remind everyone that my party is against this Law and is going to be at the Supreme Court to contest the pre-emptive use of the notwithstanding clause in the Law 21 case, which would apply equally to Law 96. I would remind everyone that there was a vote in the House of Commons where all the Conservatives joined the Bloc in supporting Quebec’s use of the notwithstanding clause. I will work very hard as I always have to oppose excesses in language laws.
Special Advisor Role
Over the last two weeks I have met with many Jewish organizations including CIJA, Bnai Brith, WJC, AJC, the Orthodox Union, students’ organizations and more. I have been working internally on multiple matters within the federal government and engaging with Universities Canada and schools such as McGill and Concordia on a safe return to campus in the fall. I have also been engaged with the University of Windsor to explain to them why the Jewish community is so disturbed by the agreements they signed and the ramifications of those agreements.
Kosher Slaughter
I did want to specifically address one issue, which is Kosher slaughter. I have been heavily engaged on this issue since last year and have written about what I have been doing in a number of updates. There have been a number of erroneous claims made so let me explain.
The law in Canada provides for ritual slaughter. No law in Canada has changed.
What occurred is that the Canada Food Inspection Agency, which is an arm’s length federal agency, understood consultations in 2017 that led to new guidelines in 2019. These guidelines come from civil servants not politicians. The guidelines outline how abattoirs must determine if an animal is unconscious and can no longer feel pain using three indicators. Until 2023, these indicators were not mandatory. But in 2023 the CFIA made these indicators mandatory.
Unfortunately, these indicators, which may well work for the determination of unconsciousness for the animals who are stunned are not the correct indicators for animals rendered unconscious through Kosher slaughter. Through application of the regulations the criteria meant that the animal could not be hoisted for several minutes which slowed down production to the point that production of Kosher meat would not be profitable and reduced the production of Kosher meat in Canada significantly.
Since Jewish organizations contacted me last year, I have worked through the Ministry of Health and then Agriculture (the file was transferred) to try to convince the CFIA to change their criteria for Kosher meat including setting up and participating in meetings with CIJA and JCC and others and forcefully advocating with Rachel Bendayan, Marco Mendicino and other colleagues. Indeed, just two weeks ago Rachel and I arranged and participated in a meeting between CIJA, the litigants in the current lawsuit and the Minister of Agriculture and the CFIA, where CIJA went through all the arguments related to the need to reach an agreement on new criteria for unconsciousness.
Given the circumstances and the need to move quickly, the JCC and other organizations initiated a case in Federal Court. Yesterday I was very pleased to see the court granted an injunction stopping the CFIA from applying the indicators until the case is heard on its merits. I reached out immediately to agriculture to again encourage the CFIA to negotiate an acceptable resolution here. As this is an arm’s length organization they cannot be directed or ordered to do something, but I am and will continue to do everything I can to ensure that these criteria are changed, and Kosher slaughter can continue unimpeded.
Interest Rates
This week, I was pleased to see that the Bank of Canada has lowered interest rates, making Canada the first G7 country to do so twice. As the Bank continues its independent work to keep inflation within target, our government will continue to invest in building more homes faster and making live more affordable for Canadians.
What was announced regarding our NATO spending commitments?
Our commitment to reaching our NATO defence spending target of 2% by 2032 ensures that Canada remains a reliable international ally and partner. This is something I have long advocated for and am very happy about this announcement. It reflects statements that the Prime Minister and Minister Blair have made over the past year: Canada must do more on defence – and we will. In 2013, the previous Conservative government cut defence spending to less than 1% of GDP.
Since 2015, our government has made historic investments in our military and is on track to almost triple defence spending by 2029-30. The coming decades will be more competitive and challenging than those that came before – and our country must be prepared. This commitment will ensure Canada’s security and prosperity in a changing world, in which our country must forge even closer ties with our NATO Allies.
What is the launch of the Employment Strategy for Canadians with Disabilities?
The launch of the Employment Strategy for Canadians with Disabilities supports the Government’s Disability Inclusion Action Plan and the Accessible Canada Act, both of which are guided by the principle of “Nothing Without Us”. It also respects the human rights-based approach to disability and intersectionality which contributes to the Government’s ongoing commitment to create a truly inclusive Canada free of physical, societal, and attitudinal barriers.
The 2022 Canadian Survey on Disability found that 27% of Canadians aged 15 and older or about 8 million persons — report having a disability that limit them in their daily activities. Among Canadians with disabilities aged 25 to 64 years, 30.4% are not in the labour force, compared to 15.8% of Canadians without disabilities. They continue to experience persistent and long-standing barriers to employment.
The Opportunities Fund (OF) brings together employers and employees with disabilities to increase the participation of working-age persons with disabilities in the workforce. The objective of the program is to assist persons with disabilities to prepare for, find and keep employment, advance in their careers, or become self-employed. The program also supports employers to create more inclusive and accessible workplaces. Through Budget 2022, the Government allocated $272.6 million under the OF to support the implementation of the Employment Strategy for Canadians with Disabilities. A portion of these funds were targeted to smaller organizations, such as the seven announced today, that support persons with disabilities who are also members of other equity-deserving groups.
Next steps for the Employment Strategy include various actions to work towards closing the employment gap between persons with and those without disabilities by 2040, as well as developing new ways to report on this progress. These actions include:
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- continuing to embed employment supports for persons with disabilities across federal programs and encourage a whole-of-government approach to make all government policies and programs more inclusive;
- working with provincial, territorial and Indigenous governments to share knowledge and better support persons with disabilities in the labour market; and
- developing indicators in collaboration with the disability community and other stakeholders to better measure progress.
How can you participate in trade missions?
We are pleased to announce that Team Canada Trade Missions will be heading to Indonesia and the Philippines!
As part of Canada’s Indo-Pacific Strategy, the Honourable Mary Ng, Minister of Export Promotion, International Trade and Economic Development will lead a Team Canada Trade Mission to Jakarta and Manila from Sunday, December 1 to Friday, December 6, 2024.
For additional information on eligibility and the trade mission please refer to this link:
Additional Information
Registration Deadline
September 6, 2024, 17:00 E.T.
Priority Sectors
The trade mission is open to companies and organizations from all sectors. The trade mission program will focus on areas of Canadian competitive advantage in these priority sectors:
- Agriculture and processed foods (including fish and seafood)
- Clean technologies, clean energy, green mining
- Information and communications technologies
- Infrastructure (nuclear, smart city, and airport technologies)
Eligibility
- Export-ready Canadian companies of all sizes, including exporters from diverse backgrounds, with strong potential to address opportunities in Indonesia and/or the Philippines and generate tangible business outcomes.
- Provinces and territories, municipalities, and other Canadian organizations, such as trade associations and chambers of commerce, looking to expand their reach and engagement in the Indonesian and Philippine markets.
Priority will be given to companies and organizations that:
- Operate in the priority sectors (refer above)
- Identify as being owned and/or led by entrepreneurs from diverse backgrounds.
- Have strong potential to address opportunities in Indonesia and/or the Philippines and generate tangible business outcomes.
What Infrastructure Fund bilateral agreements have been signed lately?
Infrastructure Fund:
- Total: $82.7M over 4 years.
- Quebec intends to use the contributions made under the Infrastructure Fund to fund additional services for families, including investments related to infrastructure that will increase inclusivity in not-for-profit early learning and childcare services including those identified by Quebec.
- Quebec signed an asymmetrical agreement, they are not required to provide an Action Plan, however, they will be participating in regular implementation committee meetings with departmental officials to share best practices.
Key Progress to date:
Latest announcement: On June 20th, Quebec announced the deployment of the first phase of a project to build prefabricated childcare centers (CPE). This first phase of prefabricated day-care centers will create nearly 1,000 day-care spaces, including 200 spaces for infants. These $9.10 spaces will be available within a record timeframe of one year from the signing of the contracts. Please note, this cannot be attributed to federal government investment because of the asymmetrical agreement. https://www.quebec.ca/nouvelles/actualites/details/le-gouvernement-accelere-la-construction-de-cpe-56894
Quebec’s Canada-wide Agreement is asymmetrical. This means that Quebec has no formal targets to meet from a federal perspective. All other Provinces and Territories had to commit to reaching $10/day childcare by 2026 and creating a certain number of new spaces. Quebec does not, but the province states as a priority the creation of over 30,000 subsidized spaces. Through Quebec public reports, the department is tracking that Quebec reached 25 197 news spaces.
What is the latest information on auto theft?
Auto thefts were down 17 per cent during the first six months of 2024 compared with the same period last year, an insurance fraud prevention group said in its report. Équité Association said the drop can be attributed to multiple factors including increased border patrol and police collaboration, government action and better public awareness.
Auto theft drops 17 per cent in six months, industry report finds
What are the new CDC requirements for dogs entering the U.S. from Canada?
This week, after a productive discussion with CDC Director Mandy Cohen, Minister Holland received confirmation that the CDC will grant a 9-month grace period for the implementation of the new regulations for dogs entering the United States from Canada. Starting August 1, Canadians will simply need to complete a short self-attestation form to travel with their dogs to the United States. Minister Holland will continue to collaborate with U.S. authorities to ensure these new regulations result in as little administrative burden and cost to Canadians.
As both our nations are free from dog rabies, this time will allow us to work over these 9 months to find a workable, permanent solution so Canadians and Americans can travel with their dog with minimal interruptions.
Thank you,
Anthony