Gender Equality Week Act  Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to have the opportunity to speak in favour of Bill C-309, but first I would like to thank my hon. colleague from Mississauga—Lakeshore for the substantive work he has put into preparing the bill. It is always a pleasure to see such passionate effort directed toward the ongoing challenge of achieving real gender equality in Canada.

Violence Against Women  Mr. Speaker, 27 years ago today, I was a first year university student. I remember walking the halls between classes, hearing the gasps of students huddled around televisions as the news broke. A man walked into École Polytechnique in Montreal and shot and killed 14 young women just like me.

Status of Women  Mr. Speaker, during the 16 days of activism against gender-based violence, we are reminded that gender-based violence is far too common in Canada. We are also reminded of the importance that shelters can play in the lives of women experiencing violence. Could the Minister of Status of Women please inform the House what the government is doing to ensure women have a safe place to turn?

Instruction to the Standing Committee on Health  Madam Speaker, this is an incredibly important topic and I want to ask the member a question. The Standing Committee on that Status of Women is doing a study on violence against young women and girls, which includes cybersexual violence and cyberbullying. Could the hon. member please explain how the health committee study would complement and add to that work, and in what ways that study would be different and create a fuller understanding?

Status of Women  Mr. Speaker, one year ago today, our Prime Minister made a commitment to gender equality by appointing the first gender-balanced cabinet and the first ever full Minister of Status of Women. Can the parliamentary secretary for Status of Women please inform this House of the accomplishments of our government over the past year on gender equality?

Business of Supply  Mr. Speaker, leaving aside some of the very clear inaccuracies in the hon. member's statement, I want to ask about one thing in particular. If I heard correctly, I believe the hon. member said that there were no senior female cabinet ministers in our government. I would like to know whether the member considers these ministers to be senior cabinet ministers: the Minister of Justice, the Minister of Health, the Minister of International Trade, the Minister of Environment and Climate Change, and I could go on and on.

Canadian Heritage  Madam Speaker, During World War II, Canada provided refuge to the Dutch Royal Family. When Princess Juliana gave birth to her daughter, Margriet, the maternity ward of the Ottawa Civic Hospital was even briefly declared international territory. Every year since then the Dutch have gifted our capital with tulips, which now hold a special place in the Canadian imagination.

Fiftieth Anniversary of Carlingwood Public Library  Mr. Speaker, on Saturday, I had the pleasure of participating in Carlingwood public library's 50th anniversary celebrations. Libraries change lives and create opportunities. At the age of 12, I started working in my local library. That exposure to books and knowledge led me to where I am today.

Standing Orders and Procedure  Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the member, especially for his comments about the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs, because I believe we have made every attempt to work collaboratively and bring forth these kinds of good ideas. On the issue of constituency time, in my case, because my constituency is here in Ottawa, I benefit from being able to hear immediate reactions from my constituents on things that happen during the course of the week.

Standing Orders and Procedure  Mr. Speaker, that is the beauty of a debate like this. It sparks other ideas coming forward. The idea that the debate we have in the House would then have the ability to influence the changes to legislation is very much within the spirit of the other proposals I put in.

Standing Orders and Procedure  Mr. Speaker, the committee the member chairs and I sit on, and vice versa, are committees that work very collaboratively. Our reports are better as a result. We have not had legislation at our committee yet, but when there is legislation, often the government is already invested in it and there is already a stake in making sure that legislation passes.

Standing Orders and Procedure  Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. member opposite for raising those issues. We do find that most of the time we do not use our 20 minutes; we are splitting it in two. Perhaps that is something that could be institutionalized. Depending on the bill, if it is a bill that is more technical and needs more explanation, we could have longer speeches; but on those where we want to just state our position, it could be shorter.

Standing Orders and Procedure  Mr. Speaker, it is a pleasure for me to be able to take part in this debate today on the Standing Orders. While this topic might seem technical, it is actually the foundation upon which rests everything we do as members of Parliament. The rules of procedure, or Standing Orders, of this place determine whose voice gets heard, how we resolve the difficult issues facing our country today, how we balance competing interests, and whether the decisions we make truly reflect the expectations of Canadians.

National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians Act  Madam Speaker, we promised that we would do things differently, that we would work more closely with the opposition parties and all parties in this House, that we would give the legislative branch more say, and that we would allow more oversight. Could the hon. member please let us know how this particular bill would allow us to do all three of those things?

Matthew House  Mr. Speaker, this past summer, I was invited to have dinner at Matthew House in my riding, a largely volunteer initiative that provides shelter to newly arrived refugees who have nowhere else to turn. I had the privilege of spending several hours with the residents of Matthew House, discussing their hopes and their dreams.