44th Parl. 1st Sess.
February 15, 2022 10:00AM
Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for Hastings—Lennox and Addington for her caring and professional leadership on this file.
One of the things that really impacted me during the member's intervention was the reference to the minister's briefing binder, which had a lot of the information regarding the issues with the original legislation, which we are trying to correct here today. She also referenced some constituents from her riding, and I have heard very similar stories in my riding.
I am wondering if the member can comment, based on what she saw in the briefing binder, on whether there would have been opportunities over the last 21 months to resolve this prior to today.
118 words
All Topics
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
Mr. Speaker, indeed, there have been so many comments. As I spoke with colleagues, there were so many seniors who had been approaching them.
When I first looked at the briefing binder, I thought, wow, is this normal? Am I allowed to see this? However, the fact is, it is available for everyone. Perhaps it is the rookie in me, but I could not believe it when I read that this could have and should have been dealt with months ago. So, that is the most frustrating part of this whole thing.
92 words
All Topics
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
Mr. Speaker, I will be sharing my time with the hon. member for Terrebonne and, who knows, perhaps little Hadrien as well.
In my time as the member for Abitibi—Témiscamingue, I have heard from many seniors in my riding who are very frustrated about their financial insecurity. They can no longer pay their bills.
Seniors have been the primary victims of COVID‑19. They are the ones more likely to die and to suffer the repercussions of the coronavirus. By repercussions, I mean isolation, anxiety and loss of purchasing power.
In my region of Abitibi—Témiscamingue, much like in the rest of Quebec and Canada, there are seniors who continue to work, in spite of their advanced age. They are still working because they still need an income to live independently.
I remember one woman from Témiscamingue whose supplementary income suddenly disappeared when the schools in Témiscamingue were shut down for months because of the health measures. She could no longer make ends meet but still had to pay her mortgage and car loan, so she applied for the Canada emergency response benefit, the much-touted CERB, as did many other seniors.
She was in for a nasty surprise. A few months after she applied, her guaranteed income supplement was massively clawed back to cover the CERB she had collected. That was a significant hit to her income for months. She spent many long months in a state of anxiety, constantly worried because she could not cover her payments.
That is what I heard from one person in my riding and, sadly, hers is not an isolated case. There are tens of thousands like it all over Quebec and Canada.
The worst of it is that the Liberal government responded by insisting that every CERB dollar received by a senior would result in a 50% cut to their GIS. That is equivalent to a federal taxation rate of 50%. It is the rich who should be taxed at 50%, not the most vulnerable members of our society.
It is appalling and shameful, all the more so because the Liberal government was well aware of the situation thanks to letters the Bloc Québécois sent to the Minister of Seniors and the Minister of Finance in 2021 describing the awful situation that so many seniors found themselves in. It is appalling and shameful because the Liberal Party did not seem to care about the problem these seniors are facing. It took ages to respond even though it has known about this difficult situation since May 2021. That is nine months, and it is way too long.
That is why, despite Bill C-12's shortcomings, the Bloc Québécois will vote to support it because time is running out. Why did the Liberal government wait so long to act? At the very least, the federal government should be able to exclude emergency benefits from the calculation of the guaranteed income supplement payable for any month after June 2022. This will avoid further penalizing GIS recipients as of July 2022.
Bill C-12 is a first step in ending the negative impact CERB has had on the GIS, but it will be too late if it does not happen until July. GIS payments have been reduced since July 1, 2021. For several months now, this has weakened the already precarious financial situation of many seniors. The Bloc Québécois has urged the government to move up the end of its cuts by changing the wording of the bill from “June 2022” to “March 2022”. This change, which would have increased benefit payments more quickly for seniors affected by this problem, was refused, supposedly for IT reasons, which we obviously deplore.
What is more, Bill C‑12 does not contain the retroactive one‑time payment that was promised in the December 2021 economic and fiscal update for reductions that had already been made. The fiscal update read: “The government proposes to provide up to $742.4 million for one-time payments to alleviate the financial hardship of GIS...recipients who received CERB or the Canada Recovery Benefit”.
It is hard for us to understand where the Liberal government is going with this. I think that it is improvising at seniors' expense. I think that this Parliament is not doing enough for seniors. We could do so much more.
Because of the many obstacles that seniors have faced, I personally have decided to start a seniors advisory committee in my riding. Now more than ever, I feel the need to bring the voice of seniors in my region to the House of Commons, because for far too long, they have been the most vulnerable and the most neglected by the Liberal government.
I am speaking in particular of those in rural and remote areas, where people must travel great distances, where there is little or no public transportation, where services are limited and, in some villages, non-existent.
Parliament is not doing enough for our seniors. We must be generous to our seniors. With their intelligence, tenacity, and the taxes they paid, they built everything that we use today: our houses, roads, bridges, hospitals, schools, factories, neighbourhoods and city centres. Our great-grandparents, grandparents and parents who are still living directly or indirectly built everything we own and made us everything we are. This pride has been weakened, and unfortunately that reflects how vulnerable our seniors are today.
We must cherish them and show greater appreciation for them. That is what the Bloc Québécois wants for seniors. That is why the Bloc Québécois is concerned with the quality of life they deserve to have. Seniors were hit the hardest by the pandemic and have received the least amount of support from the federal government.
That is why the Bloc Québécois, through our critic for seniors, the member for Shefford, launched a petition to ensure that our seniors have a decent quality of life. I invite everyone to consult the member for Shefford's Facebook page to link to this petition and to sign it.
That is also why the Bloc Québécois has proposed a series of measures to improve the standard of living for the people who built Quebec, in every single one of our regions, and to bolster their purchasing power. In Parliament, the Bloc Québécois raised the urgent need for legislators to increase old age security by $110 per month for all seniors 65 and older. Furthermore, the Bloc Québécois rejects any attempt to create two classes of seniors through age-based discrimination. Lastly, archaic and discriminatory provisions must be abolished from the Pension Act.
Surviving spouses of pensioners whose marriage or common-law relationship took place after the age of 60 or after retirement are not eligible to receive their late spouse's pension. The Bloc Québécois is calling for these discriminatory practices to be repealed. These provisions are an affront to the dignity of seniors who worked, for example, within the federal public service or in the Canadian Armed Forces. Quebeckers want seniors to enjoy a retirement that reflects the lifelong work they put into helping their families, communities and nation flourish. That is exactly what the Bloc Québécois wants.
This cannot be overstated: Health is Quebeckers' top priority. More than anything else, the pandemic showed us how important it is to strengthen Quebec's health care system. Service cuts in our health care centres this summer made it clear that the consequences of Ottawa's chronic health care underfunding will outlast the end of the pandemic. Ottawa needs to pay its fair share so people who are suffering can access quality health care and so our dedicated health care workers can get reinforcements and the working conditions they deserve.
The federal government needs to increase health transfers, no strings attached, to cover 35% of health care services, as Quebec and the provinces are unanimously demanding. The Bloc would also support home care by means of a tax credit. Quebeckers expect higher health transfers, and the Bloc Québécois has made that its number one issue.
Prices have been rising since 2021. Inflation is the highest it has been in over 35 years. Food prices have gone way up. Housing costs too. This is catastrophic for all lower-income seniors.
The Liberal Party is on the wrong track. Its only solutions are totally inadequate one-time payments. It also chose to create two classes of seniors by increasing OAS only for those 75 and up. That is unacceptable. In closing, let me reiterate: Parliament is not doing enough for our seniors.
1499 words
All Topics
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
Madam Speaker, the member for Abitibi—Témiscamingue mentioned tax unfairness. It is starting to dawn on me that there is a bit of a pattern forming here. We have a government that did not act to help seniors who were having their GIS clawed back. The government went after the poorest of Canadians who applied for and received CERB because they were told to, and then the Liberals clawed that back. They went after small businesses in the last Parliament, and yet they are letting the wealthiest of Canadians and big corporations off the hook. The NDP has put forward the idea of having a wealth tax for people with assets of over $10 million. There are the CEO benefits they get. There just does not seem to be any appetite to go after the people who have actually done very well in this pandemic.
I am wondering if the member would support the NDP in calling for that tax fairness to make sure the wealthy pay their fair share and to stop going after the little—
181 words
All Topics
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Feb/15/22 10:12:38 p.m.
- Watch
I have to give the hon. member time to answer.
The hon. member for Abitibi—Témiscamingue.
19 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
Madam Speaker, I am always on the lookout for any opportunity to increase seniors' purchasing power. There are always measures and traps in what the NDP presents, so I will remain vigilant.
Let us put ourselves in the shoes of a senior. We have all visited seniors' homes in our ridings, and we have all received phone calls from seniors who are sure there has been an error because the amount on their pension cheque has changed by 34¢ or 6¢ or 8¢. Seniors are forced to count every last penny because their purchasing power has decreased significantly over the years. I say this again in all sincerity. I think the government is being cheap when it comes to seniors, and that has to change. It is a matter of dignity.
134 words
All Topics
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Feb/15/22 10:13:36 p.m.
- Watch
The hon. member for Mirabel.
5 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
Madam Speaker, I believe you have the wrong riding and you meant to recognize the hon. member for Trois-Rivières.
22 words
All Topics
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Feb/15/22 10:13:56 p.m.
- Watch
Yes, that is right. I apologize. The hon. member for Trois-Rivières.
14 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
Madam Speaker, you are forgiven.
I appreciate what my hon. colleague from Abitibi—Témiscamingue said. All parties agree that seniors are important. I often say that we are trying to replace speed with due diligence, but perhaps he would agree with me that there has been neither speed nor due diligence when it comes to this bill.
60 words
All Topics
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
Madam Speaker, I can see how you could get the member for Mirabel and the member for Trois-Rivières mixed up. I must admit that I confuse the two as well sometimes.
I thank my colleague from Trois-Rivières for his excellent question. Obviously, it is duly noted. I would remind members of what may be the most egregious part of the bill. It does not fix the entire issue of seniors, as it is only a small step. However, why does it not specify March 2022 as the date? That would be so simple.
Instead, the government is putting things off another three months by postponing increasing seniors' purchasing power until July. Seniors who are already affected by the pandemic, who cannot see their loved ones, who cannot spend time with their grandchildren, and whose mental health has already suffered over the past few years are anxious enough without this added major financial stress. The wealthy are not the ones going through this hardship. They are not the ones who are counting—
178 words
All Topics
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Feb/15/22 10:15:26 p.m.
- Watch
The hon. member for Nunavut for one last question.
9 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
Qujannamiik, uqaqtittiji. I want to express that the member for Abitibi—Témiscamingue and I have some similarities, including taxing the rich and not the poor, that he supports passing the bill, that we have bilingual constituents and that the second language of our constituents is English.
In the rollout of this program, I wonder if the member would agree that bilingualism also needs to include indigenous languages like Inuktitut and other ones for first nations and Métis so that seniors who want to access programs can understand them and make sure they have access to the important supports that this bill would provide.
108 words
All Topics
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague from Nunavut, whom I am getting to know this evening. I thank her for being here.
If there is one thing in this file for which we should turn to the traditional knowledge of indigenous peoples and the Inuit, it is their relationship with our seniors. We have a lot to learn in that regard.
The decade from 2022 to 2032 is the Decade of Indigenous Languages. We must take heed and provide services in indigenous languages. It is essential. I personally consider French to be a language that is under threat, just like all the indigenous languages. My colleague can count on my support for—
113 words
All Topics
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Feb/15/22 10:17:11 p.m.
- Watch
Resuming debate. The hon. member for Terrebonne.
7 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
Madam Speaker, I do not want to disappoint my dear colleague from Abitibi—Témiscamingue who is sharing his time with me, but my son is putting my husband to sleep with some lullabies. He will not be joining us.
The Bloc Québécois has always supported targeted assistance programs that respond to the COVID-19 pandemic, despite the fact that the Liberal government failed to be proactive. We voted for Bill C-2, which was hastily passed in the fall, in order to quickly help the groups most affected by this pandemic. One of our conditions for supporting that bill was that Ottawa stop penalizing working seniors who receive the guaranteed income supplement, or GIS, by treating the Canada emergency response benefit, or CERB, as employment income for the purpose of calculating the GIS.
At the parliamentary committee, the Minister of Finance even admitted that this was a significant problem, but, like senior officials of the Canada Revenue Agency, or CRA, she stated that it was a complex issue that would be difficult to resolve because of the computer system. She nonetheless made a commitment to resolve it.
Here we are today with a bill that would finally correct this injustice being inflicted on our seniors, but that is still disappointing on several counts.
First of all, this bill will ensure that GIS recipients will not be penalized as of July 2022. This may sound good at first glance, but this substantial reduction of their cheques has been going on since July 1, 2021. These seniors have been watching their finances worsen since last summer. Our party made several proposals to the government, urging it to act quickly to ensure that the recipients affected can obtain relief as quickly as possible—as of March 2022, as my colleague from Abitibi—Témiscamingue hammered home. The government said that this was not possible for technical reasons, more specifically because of computer issues at the CRA. These so-called “computer issues” are pretty surprising for a G7 country.
Furthermore, Bill C‑12 does not include the retroactive one-time payment that the government promised in the December 2021 economic statement as compensation for the reductions that have already been made. We unfortunately do not have details on how the payment will be calculated, but we hope that it will be paid automatically and that the seniors affected will not have to do anything at all. One thing is for sure, seniors have had to wait far too long for this compensation and for their full benefits to be restored. The government only made the announcement on December 17, 2021, in a news release that stated the following:
The CERB and the CRB were designed to provide financial support to employed and self-employed Canadians directly affected by COVID-19. The Government of Canada recognizes that some GIS and Allowance recipients are now facing lower benefit payments this year because of the income they received from these pandemic benefits.
It took the government several months, way too long, to admit there had been a mistake, and now it is taking way too long to act. It is deeply disrespectful to these senior workers who have been impacted by this problem since July. The problem is affecting their financial resources and their ability to buy essentials.
What is really disappointing is that the government is once again attacking a deeply vulnerable population. Everyone knew CERB was taxable income, but when people's income is low enough to qualify for GIS, they do not pay much tax. For GIS beneficiaries who collected CERB, the problem is a simple one. For every CERB dollar they got, the federal government would claw back 50 cents from their GIS. That amounts to a federal tax rate of 50%. We can all agree that is too high.
It is important to note that no one in the federal government informed GIS recipients that their CERB income would literally melt away their GIS benefits. The Bloc Québécois sees this as a major injustice that constitutes prejudicial and appalling treatment. The FADOQ network described the situation as a tragedy. Compensation is urgently needed. The government has known this for a long time, but has not acted accordingly.
Need I remind members of the huge inflationary surge that occurred in 2021? The inflation rate in December was 4.8%, the highest it has been in over 35 years. Prices went up even more for many essential goods. Grocery prices rose by 5.7% year over year, the largest increase in a decade, while housing prices rose by 9.3% relative to December 2020.
It is the most vulnerable, especially people living on fixed incomes, such as seniors, who feel the greatest impact. It is outrageous that the government is doing this to our seniors.
Another big disappointment is that Bill C-12 will not end the inequity between GIS recipients who applied for CERB through the CRA and those who applied at Service Canada. It is important to remember that CERB was administered by the Canada Revenue Agency and Service Canada.
In certain circumstances, when pension income is reduced from one year to the next, claimants may request that their benefits be recalculated on the basis of an estimate of their income for the current calendar year. This is known as the “GIS option”.
We have criticized the fact the “GIS option” is available only to claimants who received CERB through Service Canada, not those who received it through the Canada Revenue Agency.
Indeed, only CERB benefits issued by Service Canada have been legally constituted as EI and are eligible for a “GIS option” review. CERB should be treated the same for all GIS calculating purposes, whether it was issued by Service Canada or the Canada Revenue Agency.
Pandemic-related assistance programs were brought in quickly. However, by the summer of 2021, in other words 15 months after the pandemic began, there were no more excuses for the government to keep reproducing this inconsistency to the detriment of seniors. The government should have used the bill to correct this gap, but clearly it missed the boat yet again.
In conclusion, the COVID‑19 pandemic has affected a lot of people and businesses since the beginning of 2020, but that is nothing compared to the consequences it has had on the senior population with respect to both their physical and mental health, as well as their financial health.
The government is offering a solution that can be described as too little, too late. Once again, that shows that the government is MIA when it is time to help seniors. I would remind the House that this is the same government that chose to create two classes of seniors by increasing OAS only for those 75 and up.
Let us not forget that financial insecurity does not wait for a person to turn 75 to strike. To fix the problem, the Bloc Québécois has proposed that the OAS be increased by $110 a month for all seniors 65 and up. What do the Liberals propose?
They propose a one‑time, non-recurring cheque for $500 for seniors who will be 75 or older as of June 2022. Pre-election smoke and mirrors: such is the Liberal way of governing. With that decision, the Liberals are sending a very negative message to the 970,000 pensioners in Quebec aged 65 to 74, telling them that they do not matter.
In my opinion, Bill C-12, as presented and without the changes proposed by the Bloc Québécois, demonstrates that the government is ignoring the most vulnerable seniors, and that is deeply disappointing. When we watch what this Liberal government is doing, we have the impression that it is downplaying the problem and expecting it to fix itself, which seems to be the norm recently.
We have before us a bill that does seek to fix a problematic situation, but it is flawed. We expected better from the government, after it took so long to address such a serious situation. The people who spent their lives building the society in which we live today deserve more respect from the federal government. The Bloc Québécois will always be there to stand up for seniors.
1412 words
All Topics
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
Madam Speaker, I would like to congratulate the member on her speech today. It was thoughtful, smart and extremely well done.
I want to follow up on some of the things that she mentioned and ask her a quick question.
Earlier in February, I was talking about seniors' issues and the GIS clawback and raised that issue with the government. One of the members from the government stood up and said he was quite concerned with respect to a senior person in his riding who was a babysitter. He thought she was taking more than was due to her. He was trying to blame a vulnerable senior who needed to do some work to supplement her income and had no thoughts at all about the idea of holding to account corporations or extremely wealthy folks who have taken some of these benefits during COVID.
Does the member have any concern that what we are seeing right now is just a further example of the Liberal government's choosing to always privilege and prioritize big business and the wealthy on the backs of the most vulnerable people in this country?
189 words
All Topics
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
Madam Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague for her question and her kind words about my speech.
I completely agree. Once again, the Liberal government is adopting a wait-and-see approach for the most vulnerable in society. It is choosing to wait, instead of seeking funds and financing from those who are not vulnerable and could pay more.
The government is choosing once again to stomp on the most vulnerable, as my esteemed colleague mentioned. It is disconcerting that people have waited so long for such an appalling situation to be addressed in such a flawed manner. It is too little, too late and it is not very well done. However, we will have to support Bill C-12, because it addresses a very difficult situation.
127 words
All Topics
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
Madam Speaker, that was well put by my colleague from the Bloc.
One thing that I want to focus on when we talk about this legislation is something I have heard several members speak about. Yes, we are dealing with legislation that created undue hardship for seniors and needs to be corrected. I think there is agreement on that, but when we deal with pieces of legislation like Bill C-12, I have heard one thing spoken about repeatedly in the House today. It is about the bigger issues that seniors are facing. It is really important to have the proper time to debate bills like this while also raising the issues and concerns that seniors are facing across the country, such as housing prices, rent, the cost of living and so forth.
I wonder if my colleague from the Bloc could speak a bit about the process. We want to make sure we have ministers here and that we as members will have as much time as possible to not only talk about Bill C-12 and talk about the correction that we believe needs to be made, but also to make sure we are getting on the record the stories of our constituents from our respective provinces and regions to make sure that seniors' voices and issues are being raised on the floor.
225 words
All Topics
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
Madam Speaker, there are two issues here.
First, we need to correct the situation that Bill C‑12 seeks to address, which is that CERB was not factored into the calculation of the guaranteed income supplement. This is not the only problem that seniors have faced, of course, but the bill must be approved relatively quickly because the government has already waited too long to fix this situation.
That said, I completely agree with my colleague that seniors are facing undue hardship, especially in terms of the lack of affordable housing and the ability to afford basic necessities. This must absolutely be addressed, and the House will be happy to discuss these issues in due course.
118 words
All Topics
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
