Steveston-Richmond East member of Parliament Kenny Chiu wants more face-to-face meetings in Parliament – albeit with proper social distancing.
But only one was held this week, with Chiu taking part on Wednesday, despite one-tenth of MPs physically present in Ottawa.
Chiu said, with all the effort and risk taken to bring a limited numbers of MPs to Ottawa, more face-to-face sittings should be scheduled, instead of just the one.
This week, on Tuesday, there was a Zoom committee meeting for all 338 MPs and another is scheduled for Thursday.
While meetings over Zoom serve a purpose, in-person meetings allow members to read each other in a different way, for example, their body language.
“As a parliamentarian, as a representative of Canadians, I would like to see more opportunities to sit in the House and physically ask questions of the government,” he said. “One day a week is just not sufficient.”
Chiu is in Ottawa this week as part of a rotating schedule of MPs debating on the Special Committee on COVID-19 – the 30 MPs met in the House of Commons which normally accommodates 338 MPs.
After Tuesday’s Zoom committee meeting, Chiu said the technology is definitely not up to speed.
“I’m a tech guy… I can tell you we’re not there yet,” he said.
There is decorum and traditions that are part of parliamentary work, Chiu said, and Zoom can’t accommodate these, for example, anyone can pause their video and get up and have a snack – that cannot happen in Parliament or in parliamentary committees. There were also technical issues with the platform, he added.
Being in the House of Commons would allow for more questions and discussion about the $200 billion in aid the government is giving out in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, to see how effective it is and whether there are people falling through the cracks.
As for the response to the pandemic, while appreciative of the many assistance programs, Chiu said he’d like to see more leadership in the COVID-19 pandemic. He said the government’s reaction to the crisis has been like a “deer in the headlights.” He pointed out the opposition was already bringing concerns in January about the outbreak in China and whether there was enough protection for Canadians.
“My frustration is it’s like a train wreck in slow motion,” Chiu said.
Now, he’d like to see the government get on board to restart the economy, not just leaving it to the provincial governments.
“We’re asking, have we thought about under what conditions we’re preparing to restart our economy,” Chiu said. “The government is not thinking in that mindset, they’re still thinking about doling out tens of billions of dollars – no, you can chew gum and walk at the same time.”
