Kelly DeRidder

Mr. Speaker, Procedure · 25 wordsI rise today because what we are witnessing is not just another procedural move in the House. It is something deeper and far more concerning.Procedure Positioning · 79 wordsFor the past number of months, we have watched a pattern unfold that points to the reality of our democracy and its being under pressure, Unearned certaintyyet Canadians are not hearing about it. It is not leading in the national news, and it is certainly not being examined with the seriousness it deserves. Instead, Canadians are being told a different story. They are being told that everything is normal and that this is politics as usual, but it is not.PositioningPartly on point Claims · 64 wordsBy-elections have been framed as sweeping wins for the government, as validation of a majority, but that all those by-elections did was keep the main election results the same. The majority was secured through active recruitment of opposition members.¹ Canadians elected balance and accountability, and what they are getting instead is a slow erosion of that balance, happening right now in front of them. Positioning · 40 wordsIt is not being resisted by the very institutions that should be asking the hardest questions: How was the majority actually secured, how did we get here and why are the Liberals actively recruiting members of the opposition for power?PositioningOff point Procedure · 9 wordsInside the House we know exactly what this means.Procedure Reasoning · 12 wordsCommittees are where accountability happens. It is where the government is tested. Claims · 14 wordsNow, through a series of calculated moves, the government is trying to control them. Procedure · 5 wordsIt does not stop there.Procedure Claims · 37 wordsThis majority was secured through the active recruitment of opposition members, members who were elected under one banner, by voters who trusted them to represent a certain set of values and are now being drawn into another. Positioning · 16 wordsWhere is the scrutiny? Where are the questions from the media asking why this is happening?Positioning Claims · 28 wordsInstead, too often the narrative shifts. The focus turns to blaming Conservatives for raising concerns rather than to examining the actions these concerns created in the first place.Off point Procedure · 18 wordsEven more concerning is what we have heard from some of the members who have crossed the floor.Procedure Claims · 37 wordsMost avoid speaking openly about it at all, but one openly admitted discomfort with the democratic process itself, specifically with the election of the Deputy Speaker.² Crossing the floor became, in part, a response to that frustration.Off point Procedure · 5 wordsLet us think about that: ProcedureReasoning · 18 wordsa dissatisfaction with democracy, followed by a decision that helps consolidate power in the hands of the government. Positioning · 6 wordsIt is a complete dumpster fire.Positioning Reasoning · 12 wordsThat should concern every single member of the House, regardless of party.Off point Procedure · 8 wordsI want to make this real for Canadians.Procedure Claims · 103 wordsOver the past months, opposition members have come forward to say they have been approached; conversations have happened behind closed doors; pressure, subtle or otherwise, has been applied; and Canadians have not heard about it. These are not rumours. These are conversations taking place behind the scenes, away from public view and away from accountability. I can tell the House that I was one of those members who was approached.³ I was asked to cross the floor. I was asked to leave behind the people of Kitchener Centre who had elected me as a Conservative, in exchange for aligning myself with the government.⁴ Reasoning · 38 wordsThat matters, because when elected representatives are quietly courted to change sides, when the balance of Parliament is being reshaped through backroom conversations, we are no longer operating in the spirit of the democratic mandate Canadians gave us.Off point Procedure · 13 wordsThis is not just about me. It is about the people I represent.Procedure Claims · 56 wordsKitchener Centre is not just any riding; it is Canada’s innovation capital. It is one of the most dynamic regions in the country, a hub for innovation, arts, culture and creativity. It is a place where start-ups are built, where entrepreneurs take risks and where the future of Canada’s economy is being shaped every single day. Reasoning · 37 wordsThe people in my community understand systems, incentives and when something does not add up. When they see a government attempting to reshape Parliament, not through voters but through recruitment, they recognize it for what it is.Off point Procedure · 10 wordsI want to speak directly to them for a moment.Procedure Reasoning · 17 wordsThey deserve transparency, accountability and a government that reflects the choices they made at the ballot box. Claims · 24 wordsRight now, what is being left out is scrutiny. Recruitment that deserves attention is not being covered. Patterns that raise questions are being dismissed. Reasoning · 25 wordsDemocracy does not function on silence. It depends on transparency and on the willingness to ask the hard questions, even when the answers are uncomfortable.Off point Procedure · 9 wordsThat brings us back to the motion before us.Procedure Positioning · 38 wordsWhat we are seeing is a government that is not content with the mandate it was given, a government that is looking to expand its power not through democracy or the will of Canadians but through procedural control.Positioning Procedure · 12 wordsThat is the reality, Unearned certaintyand it raises a simple but important question.Procedure The question · 15 wordsIf the roles were reversed, would Conservatives reshuffle committees if we had a majority government? Reasoning · 13 wordsThe answer is yes, but that is what Canadians would have voted for. Procedure · 8 wordsHowever, we are missing one important question here.Procedure The question · 27 wordsIf we were elected in a minority Parliament, would we go against the voters, recruit members from other parties and manufacture a majority that Canadians never approved? Reasoning · 135 wordsThe answer to that is no, because we believe the mandate given by Canadians matters. We believe the balance they choose should be respected. We believe accountability is not something to be avoided, but something to be upheld. This is bigger than one motion. It is about whether we accept a path where power is quietly consolidated, scrutiny and opposition are weakened and the voices of Canadians are overwritten. It is about whether we stand up and say that our democracy is worth protecting and that the choices Canadians make matter. Canadians are not asking for perfection from their government, but they are asking for honesty. They are asking for a system that reflects their vote, not one that works around it. When trust in that system starts to erode, it is not easily rebuilt.Partly on point Procedure · 10 wordsWhat we are debating today may seem procedural to some, ProcedureReasoning · 66 wordsbut Canadians understand fairness when they see it, and they understand when something crosses the line. Changing the rules after the fact, reshaping Parliament to avoid scrutiny, is not fairness. It is a shift away from the very principles that hold this place together. If we allow that shift to go unchallenged, we set a precedent not just for the government but for everyone to follow. Procedure · 3 wordsThis moment matters.Procedure Promise · 11 wordsThis is why we are speaking up and not backing down.Vague promise Reasoning · 12 wordsNo government, regardless of party, should be able to rewrite Canadians’ choices. Promise · 28 wordsConservatives will continue to stand against this, to call it out and to uphold a Parliament that reflects the will of the people, not the ambitions of power.Vague promise Reasoning · 11 wordsThis country and the democracy that defines it are worth protecting.