SoVote

Feb/3/22 10:35:31 a.m.
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Re: Bill C-8

Madam Speaker, I think we need to question the relevance of my colleague's comments. I would appreciate it if he would get back to the matter at hand.

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Context: House Hansard - 23 - Feb/3/22

Mr. Luc Berthold (Mégantic—L'Érable, CPC)

Feb/3/22 3:19:19 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-8

Mr. Speaker, I congratulate my colleague on her excellent speech. I would like to hear her thoughts on inflation, which must certainly be affecting families, fathers and mothers, in her riding who are forced to make difficult decisions to feed their families. Should the government have intervened? How long should the government let inflation keep rising before it does something?

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Context: House Hansard - 23 - Feb/3/22

Mr. Luc Berthold (Mégantic—L'Érable, CPC)

Feb/3/22 5:46:10 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-8

Mr. Speaker, my colleague wanted to speak about employment insurance, so I must give her the opportunity to go ahead.

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Context: House Hansard - 23 - Feb/3/22

Mr. Luc Berthold (Mégantic—L'Érable, CPC)

Feb/3/22 6:01:10 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-8

Mr. Speaker, we had a nice chat earlier about translation. In English, we call you the Speaker, but in French, maybe we should call you “haut parleur”, because you do make quite a good loudspeaker. We know that you are the Speaker and that you are doing a great job. You can tell your constituents that we are very proud to have you as Speaker of the House of Commons presiding over this debate. It is my turn to speak to Bill C‑8, which would implement certain provisions of the 2021 economic and fiscal update. I took the time to read through the 2021 economic and fiscal update that was presented by the Minister of Finance. This week, during question period, I had the opportunity to put several questions to both the minister and the Prime Minister, who was participating virtually. I was struck by their answers and by the scant compassion they showed for the mothers and fathers affected by inflation. When I asked the minister when the government would start trying to curb inflation and how it would react to Canadians getting poorer, she proudly rose and announced that inflation in Canada was 4.8%, while in other countries it was 4%, 5%, 6%, 7% or 8%. It is true that inflation might be a bit lower in Canada. However, both single- and two-parent families are being forced to make tough choices at the grocery store because budgets are tight, and the problem is that inflation may be 4.8%, but grocery bills are going up by 6%. That 6% increase represents the increase in prices across the board, but on specific products, such as beef or chicken, that increase can be 10%, 15% or even 20%. People now have to start making choices. They have to start leaving things out of the basket to feed the family, instead of taking the nutritious and good food they were used to getting. Why? Because when they get to the cash register, no one wants to be in a situation where they have to leave something behind for fear of being short on money. No mother or father wants to go through that. It is inhumane. Unfortunately, that is what is happening. I know this because I have received testimonials. I have actually received a lot of them since I asked the Minister of Finance and the Prime Minister these questions. When we talk about it, we learn things. People call us and talk to us. I have learned quite a few things, including that food banks have seen a rise in the number of people who come looking for food. I was a bit surprised because the unemployment rate in Quebec is relatively low. I asked whether these were people who did not have a job or who were unable to get employment insurance because of fraud on their file, given that the government has been unable to resolve their situation since November. I was told no, these are workers, families who do not have enough money to put enough food on the table for the week. We are talking about working people who have a job but are no longer able to make ends meet. They unfortunately have to make these kinds of choices because the cost of gas, housing, and absolutely everything is going up. We are seeing prices skyrocketing, and, sadly, the 4.8% inflation rate is just a fraction of the rise in costs.

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Context: House Hansard - 23 - Feb/3/22

Mr. Luc Berthold

Feb/3/22 6:06:10 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-8

There are all kinds of things that Statistics Canada does not take into account, such as vehicle prices. Plenty of things are not taken into account in calculating inflation, so inflation is in fact much higher. I would like the government to put forward some solutions. Unfortunately, there are none to be found in the economic and fiscal update. I would like to quote from an article published on January 28, so not that long ago. Nathalie Elgrably wrote: As if the horrors of the pandemic were not enough, the spectre of inflation is now rearing its ugly head. After 30 years of stability, we are all worrying about it again. If this trend keeps up, inflation is likely to become our number one economic and social problem in short order. We are in the middle of a pandemic. The government asked people to make sacrifices. People stayed home. Now an inflation problem has been thrown into the mix thanks to the government's excessive spending. The government injected too much money into the economy, and now prices are rising across the board. Here are some figures from the economic and fiscal update forecast. From the start of the pandemic, the government has spent $176 billion on expenditures that are not related to COVID-19. It is using the excuse of COVID-19 for spending unrelated to the pandemic. Canadians agree that we must invest to help businesses and people and to meet needs. When the government decides to close something, it is normal for the government to be there to help the closed businesses. However, $176 billion was spent on items unrelated to COVID-19. That is the main driver of this inflation and what makes it rise. Let us go back to Ms. Elgrably's article, because I think she is right. She confirms precisely what I believe. To explain this impoverishment, Ottawa is blaming supply chain disruptions, or any random misalignment of the stars. The “explanations” given by Ottawa are nonsense! It is a dog-and-pony show to make us forget that the [Prime Minister's] staggering spending, which was basically financed by the Bank of Canada, caused the inflation. I am not the one saying so. Other people are also speaking out. It is not just the nasty Conservatives complaining about this overspending. Economists and banks are talking about it. Let me quote some of them. BMO chief economist Douglas Porter said those two issues, coupled with reports of labour shortages suggest inflation rates may yet rise higher despite widespread hope that they had hit their peak. “They definitely may still rise in the coming months.... I'm not at all relieved or relaxed on the inflation outlook. I am quite concerned that we could have more of an inflation issue than I think is commonly believed among economists.” Unfortunately, the economic and fiscal update gives no indication of the government's plan. We have no idea what the government intends to do to finally stop the collective impoverishment of Canadian families. What are we supposed to tell families who have to pay an extra $300 or $400 a month in rent, because their houses cost more? What are we going to say to those families? What are we supposed to say to parents who have to decide what to leave on the grocery store shelves because they cannot afford it? Inflation is a serious problem. We are not going to fix the problem for fathers and mothers by telling ourselves that we are doing better than other countries. What I want to know is how much inflation is too much for the government. It is now at 4.8%. Is 5% too much, or 6% or 7%? In its own economic and fiscal update, the government even targeted 2% inflation. We are at 4.8%, and that is enough.

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Context: House Hansard - 23 - Feb/3/22

Mr. Luc Berthold

Feb/3/22 6:16:10 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-8

Mr. Speaker, the national debt has reached $1.2 trillion. That is an amount, a word I never thought I would have to use here in the House. To come back to what my colleague from Winnipeg North just said, the Parliamentary Budget Officer clearly said that the additional spending that was justified by the economic recovery is no longer reasonable. The Parliamentary Budget Officer himself is saying that to the government. What is more, the Minister of Finance and the Prime Minister are saying that our economy is doing well, and yet they continue to spend. Continuing to spend money on things that are not related to COVID-19 puts pressure on inflation, which keeps going up.

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Context: House Hansard - 23 - Feb/3/22

Mr. Luc Berthold

Feb/3/22 6:16:10 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-8

Mr. Speaker, inflation is indeed affecting the most vulnerable in our society. This is because they are the ones whose wages are the slowest to increase. Pensions do not increase in line with inflation, far from it. On this point, I agree completely with my colleague. That is the problem. Every month that inflation continues to rise, seniors, vulnerable individuals and people living on low incomes lose purchasing power and are faced with agonizing choices. What we are asking for is not complicated. When will the government put an end to the spiralling inflation that is impoverishing Canadians?

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Context: House Hansard - 23 - Feb/3/22

Mr. Luc Berthold

Feb/3/22 6:16:10 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-8

Mr. Speaker, it is impossible to give a very brief answer to a question like that, but I will try. Today, we were accused of taking a hard right. However, if being right-wing means taking care of the most vulnerable people, the people who need help, who have no money and who have to make tough choices when grocery shopping, then I am proud to be right-wing.

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