Senator Rose-May Poirier

Honourable senators, I rise here today at second reading to speak to Bill S-244, An Act to amend the Department of Employment and Social Development Act and the Employment Insurance Act (Employment Insurance Council). The bill’s goal, as elaborated by the sponsor of the bill, Senator Diane Bellemare, is to set up an employment insurance council within the Canada Employment Insurance Commission, which would create a social dialogue on matters related to Employment Insurance, or EI. As you may kn…

Hon. Rose-May Poirier Honourable senators, I rise today at second reading as critic of Bill C-13, An Act to amend the Official Languages Act, to enact the Use of French in Federally Regulated Private Businesses Act and to make related amendments to other Acts, also known as the modernization of the Official Languages Act. At long last, esteemed colleagues, after a process that started in the Senate in 2017 when the Senate Committee on Official Languages began its study of the modernization o…

Hon. Rose-May Poirier Good morning, minister. Welcome to the Senate, and thank you for being with us this afternoon. My question is about the situation at the Bathurst Regional Airport. As you know, the Bathurst airport is in danger of closing if it doesn’t receive approximately $1 million in funding. Before the pandemic, the Bathurst airport was doing well and had ambitious plans for the future, but since then it has been fighting for survival. This airport is an economic engine for the…

Honourable senators, I rise today to recognize and celebrate International Women’s Day, a celebration that is shared by women all around the world. International Women’s Day is a chance to celebrate the economic, political and social achievements of women, past, present and future. It is an occasion as well to remind and reinforce the important value of equity that we hold dear in Canada and one which we try to help to progress across the world. The Government of Canada’s theme for Internation…

Minister, the Miramichi River — one of the greatest Atlantic salmon rivers of the world, supporting both Indigenous and recreational fisheries — is in crisis. The problem is predation. Science collected in 2022 indicates that only 3.8% of smolt, which is baby salmon, made it to the ocean through the iron curtain of striped bass in the estuary. As a result of this low number, the 2022 year class of salmon in the Northwest Miramichi River is lost due to striped bass predation. As Minister of…

Honourable senators, it is with a heavy heart that I rise today to pay tribute to Viola Léger, who passed away on January 28 at the age of 92. This great woman from Acadia brought Acadian culture to the rest of the country and the world by bringing to life the character of La Sagouine created by Antonine Maillet. Viola Léger is beyond a shadow of a doubt one of the greatest Acadian actors. From 1971 to 2016, she performed the role of La Sagouine more than 3,000 times, in French and in English,…

Honourable senators, I am pleased to rise today to share with you the stories of five recipients of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee Medal. As a senator from New Brunswick, I had the honour and privilege of awarding medals to five deserving people in my region in recognition of their contribution to their community and in commemoration of the seventieth anniversary of the accession of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II to the throne. I would like to take this opportunity to thank the New Brunswick Offi…