44th Parl. 1st Sess.
March 21, 2022 11:00AM
- Mar/21/22 12:15:47 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, the banks continue to post profits, and their executives are rolling in money while families are struggling to access or purchase housing. Major corporations also keep making profits while small businesses are suffering. The oil companies are raking in the dough while everyone is paying more for oil and gas.
I am therefore in favour of a 3% surtax on those referred to in the motion as the “super‑rich”.
I do want to point out, though, that tax havens represent another anomaly. The government is totally complacent with respect to tax evasion. Is it right to take that attitude?
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- Mar/21/22 1:11:02 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, my colleague and I have a totally different view of this. I do business. When I sell a product to someone, I try to sell it to them at the best possible price and under the best possible conditions.
Inevitably, the tax or the surtax—I read it—proposed for banks, insurance companies and others will be passed on to consumers. It is completely ridiculous to think otherwise. Does my colleague really believe that these companies will not pass on the surtax to consumers? They will automatically raise their prices by 3%, there is no other way.
The surtax will inevitably be passed on to consumers. The goal, however, is not to tax consumers directly, but the big banks.
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- Mar/21/22 1:22:52 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I listened to my colleague and friend across the way, and I think there is some discontent within the coalition of the Bloc and the Conservative Party.
At the end of the day, we hear a lot about banks, as we should. We want to ensure that everyone pays their fair share. However, one of the things that is important to recognize when we talk about banks is it is not one person who owns, for example, the Bank of Montreal. It is not the super wealthy who own our banks. It is often union members, pension funds and so forth, and they too are dependent on these dividends.
I would just ask the member to follow up his comments with the best way to tax so it is most effective and not hurting the consumer. Could he provide further thoughts on that?
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- Mar/21/22 1:25:42 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I have said this before.
Taxing different businesses fairly means subjecting them to similar tax treatment. Right now, banks are not subject to similar tax treatment. That is what we need to change in the field of banking services.
Some Conservatives could use a course in economics, and I am prepared to give one in the lobby. Not all taxes are passed directly on to consumers. It depends on the consumers' reaction and the size of the tax base to which the tax is applied. It is highly unlikely that this would happen with the tax on profits, much more unlikely than with other types of tax, such as consumption taxes.
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- Mar/21/22 1:27:07 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, there are two things I want to say.
That is what happened in wartime, during World War II, when the debt ratio increased. The government collected exceptional contributions from the big banks and corporations, far more than is being asked for today. That allowed us to get through very difficult times.
Now, my colleagues need to understand that, by its very nature, the Canadian banking system is less competitive than other countries' systems. Profits are higher than elsewhere, and the system is also more stable. We need to be able to take advantage of this stability when we need it the most. That time is now.
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- Mar/21/22 1:51:23 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for Victoria, a fellow British Columbian, for her intervention. I know she feels strongly about these issues.
The Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan invests heavily in financials, with 15% or 16% of its assets there. Many widows and orphans get what they get back from banking stocks. By the same token, we have the Liberals' crazy idea, which the NDP is endorsing, of suddenly raising corporate taxes on specific banks and deciding which ones will be in and which ones will be out. However, the fact is that most banks will just raise user fees a slight amount for everyone they serve rather than lose the business of wealthy people who the NDP apparently wants to target.
How does the member square that circle? I am certainly supportive of the idea of a beneficial ownership registry. I wish the government would get that registry up and started properly.
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- Mar/21/22 1:54:15 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we have been debating for a few hours already, and we always come back to the same thing.
We understand very well that banks are being asked to contribute and that the 3% surtax is necessary for a redistribution of wealth.
Earlier, I was asking my NDP colleague whether he would vote in favour of any Bloc Québécois measures to address the problems we have experienced and are now experiencing.
What I understand from my colleague's comments is that when the Bloc Québécois makes proposals that are directly related to the collective well-being, the NPD will support them.
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- Mar/21/22 4:05:21 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, of course I agree. For me and for many of my constituents, raising taxes on the largest and most profitable banks was an essential part of our election platform.
However, that is not the only thing included in the motion we are debating today, and that is why we are discussing it.
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- Mar/21/22 4:09:23 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, it is important for us to continue to work with the entire private sector and particularly with our banks. As I mentioned in my speech, it was an important platform commitment to raise the income tax for the most profitable and largest banks in the country.
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- Mar/21/22 4:35:22 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I would not want to see false impressions being given when we have seen over the last number of years a progressive government that has focused special taxes on some of the wealthiest in Canada, right from the first budget up to legislation that we just passed.
Recognizing that the member made reference to the cost of housing, we now have an annual tax for individuals who are purchasing condos and so forth, in places such as Vancouver and our other big cities, and using them purely as an investment as opposed to a residence. That is a special annual tax that will be applied to very wealthy people. There are different ways we can approach this.
I would suggest to the member that what she said has been noted, and I appreciate the comments, but I would ask her if she could provide her thoughts on this: When you make reference to banks, we need to be fair. Many of the shareholders of the banks are pension funds and so forth, so it is not only individuals per se.
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