44th Parl. 1st Sess.
December 15, 2021 02:00PM
- Dec/15/21 3:07:31 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, inflation is only good for the Prime Minister. It is not good for Canadian families, the honest workers who are working hard to earn a living so they can feed their families, buy a home and fill up the tank. That is very clear.
The more people spend, the more expensive it gets because they have to pay taxes to fill the government's coffers. This government loves to spend and increase the cost of living even more. Enough is enough. All we want are some concrete measures. That is what people want.
When will he get to work for—
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- Dec/15/21 3:08:10 p.m.
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Order. The right hon. Prime Minister.
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- Dec/15/21 3:08:12 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we have been there with concrete measures for Canadians for months and months and we will continue to be there.
We have already made, and will continue to make, life more affordable for families, seniors and the middle class with a range of measures, as we have already done by increasing the Canada child benefit and tying it to the cost of living, by increasing the guaranteed income supplement for the most vulnerable seniors, and by providing more assistance to students and more affordable housing. I could go on, but I will leave it there.
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- Dec/15/21 3:08:56 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, yesterday, the Minister of Finance delivered an economic and fiscal update that shares our plan for Canada's recovery. My constituents in Halifax West want a strong, green and inclusive recovery. At the same time, however, we are seeing a new variant that reminds us that the fight against COVID-19 is not over yet.
Can the Prime Minister share with the House the measures in the economic update that will help people in Halifax West and across the country finish the fight against COVID-19?
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- Dec/15/21 3:09:36 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for Halifax West for her question and her hard work.
The best way to ensure a robust economic recovery for all Canadians is to finish the fight against COVID-19. Our economic update proposes a plan to ensure that booster shots and rapid tests are free for all Canadians, to support workers and businesses through the local lockdown program, and to spend $2 billion to procure therapeutics and treatments against COVID-19. We will be there for Canadians every step of the way.
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- Dec/15/21 3:10:16 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the Liberal agriculture minister recently said that it is not like the government can enact a law to lower the price of food.
I have a message for the Prime Minister. Liberal policies have increased the prices of everything, including food. A new Liberal policy to put a cap on fertilizer use would do exactly that: It would increase the price of food, not to mention that the policy would be devastating. It would bankrupt Canadian farm families who would no longer be able to feed the world, and it would increase the price of groceries.
Why is the Prime Minister intent on putting a cap on crop production while at the same time increasing the price of food for Canadians?
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- Dec/15/21 3:10:52 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Conservatives do not seem to recognize this inflation is a result of the COVID pandemic and disruptions around the world to our economy because of it. We will continue to be there to support Canadians. The first thing we can do, and the thing we recommend so strongly to our Conservative politician friends, is to make sure people are getting vaccinated, to make sure we get out and get that third booster—
Some hon. members: Oh, oh!
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- Dec/15/21 3:11:20 p.m.
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I have to apologize to the right hon. Prime Minister.
The member for Foothills asked a question and he wants to hear the answer. I want everyone to keep quiet so that he can hear it.
The right hon. Prime Minister has about 10 seconds left.
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- Dec/15/21 3:11:36 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the best way to support Canadians from one end of this country to the other, whether workers or farmers or teachers or young people, is to invest in ending this pandemic for good. That is what we are doing.
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- Dec/15/21 3:11:53 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Canadian farm families bear the responsibility of feeding the world. It is a responsibility and a burden they carry with pride, but the Liberal policy to put a cap on fertilizer use would set farming back decades.
If Canadians think the price of food at the grocery store is high now, they should just wait. When Canadian farmers cannot use innovative, sustainable and environmentally friendly practices to feed Canadians, it will exacerbate the cost-of-living crisis.
Why is the Prime Minister ignoring farmers and ignoring science? Why is he listening to eco-activists who want to make food unaffordable for Canadians?
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- Dec/15/21 3:12:31 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we have been there for farmers and we will continue to be because they put food on our tables, they support Canadians and they are the heart of our rural communities. We have continued to be there to support them through the difficult months of this pandemic, and we have been there in the past.
Farmers have told me how frustrated they were by the Harper government's shutdown of the PFRA, which is why we are bringing back a Canadian water agency and why we are continuing to support them in every possible way as we move toward a lower carbon future. We want farm families to be strong well into the future. That is why, unlike the Conservatives, we are standing up for a cleaner environment and a better economic future for all.
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- Dec/15/21 3:13:17 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister dismissed the concerns of Canadians and he belittled my province by not taking fuel prices seriously and comments such as “dig, baby, dig”. This is coming from a Prime Minister whose million-dollar trust fund came from a chain of gas stations.
I ask the Prime Minister this. Will he sign a giving pledge and give away his energy wealth trust fund?
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- Dec/15/21 3:13:47 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I will admit to regularly being surprised by the depths the Conservatives will stoop to—
Some hon. members: Oh, oh!
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- Dec/15/21 3:13:56 p.m.
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Order, please.
I just want to remind the hon. members in the House that we are here to debate policies, not attack people.
The right hon. Prime Minister has the floor, if he wants to answer that.
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- Dec/15/21 3:14:25 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I have to admit it is surprising to see the extent to which, even during a global pandemic and even during a time when Canadians face increased costs of living and are worried about the omicron variant, these Conservatives find new ways to stoop low on personal attacks.
Let them continue to focus on me. I can handle it. What we are going to focus on is being there for Canadians every step of the way. We will be there to support Canadians through the rising costs of living. We will be there to support them through this omicron variant. We will be there to have Canadians' backs regardless of the noise produced by the Conservative Party of Canada.
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- Dec/15/21 3:15:11 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, this pandemic has exposed what parents in my riding of Saint John—Rothesay have long known: Without access to affordable child care, parents and mostly mothers cannot work. I am proud that earlier this week our government signed another agreement, this time with my province of New Brunswick, to provide accessible, affordable and high-quality $10-a-day child care to the people of Saint John—Rothesay.
Can the Prime Minister update the House on how $10-a-day child care will change the lives of Canadian families?
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- Dec/15/21 3:15:51 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the outstanding member for Saint John—Rothesay for his advocacy for families in his riding.
For Canadian families, child care is not a luxury, it is a priority. Our agreement with New Brunswick will improve child care for all children in the province no matter where they live. By 2026, fees in New Brunswick will average $10 a day, rather than the current $35 a day. We will ensure children have the best start in life, while improving access to high-quality, affordable, flexible and inclusive early learning and child care.
I will remind the Conservatives who are shouting at me right now that they moved against that in the last election, and we got it done for New Brunswickers.
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- Dec/15/21 3:16:41 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, in this very difficult time, the Liberal government has cut the help that the most vulnerable seniors in our country rely on. We have received numerous calls from seniors across this country who are telling us they cannot afford to pay for groceries, they cannot afford to pay their rent and they are worried they are going to lose their homes; many of them already have. The response from the Liberal government is a vague promise for a one-time payment sometime in the future. That is not acceptable and that is not a solution.
When will the Prime Minister understand how serious this is and fix it?
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- Dec/15/21 3:17:22 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, from the very beginning, our government's priority has been to be there for the most vulnerable, including our seniors. That is why we worked hard to strengthen income security for seniors, including with increases to the GIS. We know seniors accessed income support because they needed it during the crisis. They should not be penalized for that now. That is why we are making a major investment through a one-time payment for seniors whose benefits have been affected. We will always be there for seniors across this country.
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- Dec/15/21 3:17:59 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Canadians with disabilities are disproportionately living in poverty across the country. It does not have to be this way.
Last summer's election call put a halt to Bill C-35, which would have created a Canada disability benefit, a guaranteed basic income for Canadians with a disability. While I was glad to see the Liberals promise to move forward with this benefit in their most recent election platform, it was not in the throne speech or in yesterday's economic update.
When will the Liberals do what they said they would do? Are they willing to fast-track the design and implementation of the Canada disability benefit so our neighbours living in poverty do not have to struggle through another three years?
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