Mr. Speaker, today, I want to welcome the Jewish community leaders from the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs and the Jewish Federations of Canada, who are here on Parliament Hill for their annual advocacy day. They come at a time when Canada's Jewish community is facing an alarming rise in anti-Semitism.
Though Jewish Canadians make up just 1.2% of the population, we make up 70% of all religious-based hate crimes in this country. In 2024 alone, police reported over 900 such incidents, the highest number on record. Across Canada, synagogues, schools and community centres have had to assume extraordinary security responsibilities, spending more than $40 million each year to keep their members safe.
These leaders are here to call on all of us, regardless of party, to confront anti-Semitism with the seriousness it deserves. There have been firebombs, people assaulted and Jewish students targeted on campus.
This must end now. Let us stand with Canada's Jewish community and affirm that hate has no place in this country.