Today, in the House of Commons, I rose to present a petition on behalf of over 550 members of my community and communities across Canada to draw attention to British Home Children in Canada.

From 1869 - 1948, over 100,000 British children were sent to Canada from Great Britain. The children sent to Canada often found themselves in indentured servitude on farms or as domestic labourers. Many Home Children faced cruel abuse.

Today, it is thought that more than 10% of Canada’s population, or about 4 million Canadians are descendants of the British Home Children.

The petitioners call upon the Prime Minister to sincerely apologize to Home Children / Child Migrants who suffered in shame and isolation, to those who died died while being ashamed of their history and deprived of their family, to elderly survivors burdened by their past, and to descendants grappling with the intergenerational impacts of a system that mistreated and separated their families.

See below for my full statement.