Blog – Libby Davies yeehaw
Stop Outsourcing BC Jobs: NDP Demands to Keep Canadian Jobs in Canada
Ensure Funding for World Police and Fire Games: NDP
Police Actions Against Non-Status Algerians
Police Actions Against Non-Status Algerians
Ms. Libby Davies (Vancouver East, NDP): Mr. Speaker, the government is choosing to allow the criminalization of dissent and diversity in an increasingly brutal fashion. I join a growing number of people who are calling for an independent public inquiry into police actions against non-status Algerians on May 29, 2003.
There are allegations that the tactical unit of the RCMP used excessive force against a dozen peaceful non-status Algerians occupying the offices of Citizenship and Immigration simply asking for a meeting with the Minister.
Canada’s Algerian community and its supporters are deeply concerned with the desperate fate of individuals and families at risk of deportation. The Minister lifted Canada’s moratorium on returns to Algeria back in April 2002. Many fear they will face danger and persecution.
Groups such as Amnesty International and the Quebec Human Rights League have expressed alarm at the excessive use of Tasers, or high voltage electro shock weapons. Many of the Algerians received serious burns, head wounds and bruises during the police raid.
We in the NDP call on the minister to review these deportations and meet the individuals involved to hear their concerns.
Liberals Join Conservatives to Kill Labour Bill
Liberals Join Conservatives to Kill Labour Bill
OTTAWA – “With workers’ rights at stake, Liberal leader Stephane Dion joined the Conservative government to kill legislation that would level the playing field for workers in federally regulated industries during a strike,” said NDP Labour Spokesperson Libby Davies (MP Vancouver East).
Bill C-257 had strong Liberal support at second reading, but the bill to ban replacement workers during a strike lost the final vote after a Liberal flip-flop that saw 29 Liberals switch their vote from yeas to nays.
“Under Dion’s so-called leadership, support for workers’ rights has just dropped by 30%,” said Davies. “Almost 80 Liberals and 20 Conservatives voted in favour of the bill at second reading. At last night’s final vote, only one Conservative stood his ground, and over 50 Liberals, including Dion, followed Harpers lead to kill this bill,” she added.
The legislation would have brought labour stability and evened the playing field for workers and employers. Similar long-standing provincial legislation in B.C and Quebec has seen the number and length of labour disputes decline while economic investment in those provinces has soared.
“Workers’ rights have been chipped away at in Canadian legislation over the past 25 years. We saw almost nothing in this week’s budget for Canadian workers and their families. Now, more than ever, we need to ensure that the collective bargaining process is protected under the law,” said Davies.
NDP MPs Say Budget Fails Vancouver
NDP MPs Say Budget Fails Vancouver
OTTAWA – Libby Davies (MP Vancouver East) spoke out against today’s federal budget for failing to close the prosperity gap in Vancouver East.
“With corporate tax cuts totalling $8 billion, today’s budget will further widen, not shrink, the gap between those at the top end and middle-class and working families,” said Libby Davies.
The Conservative budget extends the corporate tax advantages for big oil and gas companies another 8 years. “Corporate Canada and the oil sands don’t need more taxpayer’s money, working and middle-class families do,” said Layton.
“With no new announcements for affordable housing, this federal budget completely ignores the homelessness and housing crisis facing Vancouver” said Davies. “This is particularly disturbing given the recent recommendations of the VANOC Inner City Inclusive Committee Housing Table, which called for 3200 new affordable housing units” she added.
Libby Davies stated that the budget doesn’t do enough for Canada’s working families and it does nothing to close the prosperity gap.
16 Vancouver Elected Representatives Speak Out on Sullivan's Project Civil City
New Election Law Bad for Voters: NDP – Libby Davies
New Election Law Bad for Voters: NDP
OTTAWA – Strict changes to the requirement for voter identification could disenfranchise thousands of voters, say two NDP MPs. Paul Dewar (Ottawa Centre) and Libby Davies (Vancouver East) are raising concerns today about Bill C-31, an Act to amend the Canada Elections Act and the Public Service Employment Act.
The NDP is also concerned that Elections Canada will now have the authority to collect and share the birth date information of Canadian voters.
“We have to protect the integrity of the voting system,” said Davies. “New requirements for voter I.D. will add further barriers to voting for marginalized, low-income people, and seriously undermine the right to vote,” added Davies, whose riding includes the Downtown East Side, where hundreds of people live in homeless shelters and rooming homes.
The proposed legislation also raises concerns about data sharing and confidentiality.
“The Conservative bill would require electors’ birth date information to be shared with Elections Canada,” said Dewar. “Compounding this potential breach of privacy was the Bloc amendment at Committee, supported by the Liberals and Conservatives, to allow the information to be shared with all registered political parties. Why do political parties need our birth dates? I am convinced that ordinary Canadians would not welcome this intrusion into their privacy. The NDP is committed to stopping the ever-widening distribution of such a large amount of data.”
The Bill is at third reading stage and, if passed, would be in effect for the next federal election.
Leaky Condos Adding to the Affordabilty Crisis: NDP BC Caucus Supports Appeal to New Federal Housing Minister
Leaky Condos Adding to the Affordabilty Crisis: NDP BC Caucus Supports Appeal to New Federal Housing Minister
OTTAWA – The NDP today called on the government to fulfill the Conservative Party’s 2006 election promise for a review of the largest and costliest construction crisis in Canadian history – BC’s leaky condo crisis – and implement the Barrett Commission Inquiry’s recommendation for financial relief.
Carmen Maretic, President of Consumer Advocacy and Support for Homeowners (CASH) Society was joined by six NDP MPs: Dawn Black (New Westminster-Coquitlam), Libby Davies (Vancouver East), Peter Julian (Burnaby-New Westminster), Penny Priddy (Surrey North), Bill Siksay (Burnaby-Douglas) and NDP Housing Critic Irene Mathyssen (London-Fanshawe). The group demanded that the new Federal Housing Minister, Monte Solberg, keep the Conservative campaign promise and act immediately.
“Leaky condo and cooperative owners continue to struggle with repairs and escalating costs. The average per unit costs rose from $38,000 to $62,000 for cooperative owners and from $20,000 to $54,000 for condo owners from 2000 to 2006,” said Siksay.
“It’s been seven years since the inquiry into the construction of condominiums gave its recommendations and we have only seen inaction from the Liberal and Conservative governments,” said Julian.
The key recommendations coming out of the Barrett Commission included: forgiving the GST on repair and restoration costs; income tax deduction of repair costs; fair and flexible Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation grants to leaky housing cooperatives; and penalty free access to RRSPs to fund repairs. The Commission also suggested that CMHC has failed to be an advocate for homebuyers in the coastal climate of British Columbia.
“The Barrett Commission, a BC provincial inquiry, could only go so far in determining what role CMHC played in the delivery of substandard constructed homes. That’s why the Federal government must hold an inquiry to get to the bottom of this matter and to prevent other Canadians from falling victim to defective homes,” said Maretic.
“Thousands of working families urgently need their government to stand up and implement the recommendations from the Barrett Commission. We are also expecting nothing more than for the Conservatives to keep their campaign promise,” said Black.
Priddy noted that there are other costs involved. The health hazards of living with mould in walls, ceilings and floors are serious, especially for infants and young children who have more fragile respiratory systems and those who have weak immune systems.