44th Parl. 1st Sess.
April 6, 2022 02:00PM
- Apr/6/22 2:30:01 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, two years ago, we heard the same thing from the Conservatives, who criticized us for spending too much to support families, small businesses and workers during this pandemic. That is what we did, and it helped our economy come back stronger than before and regain all the jobs that were quickly shed. We will continue to be there to support families. The Conservatives want us to do less for families, but we will continue to support Canadians and be fiscally responsible.
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- Apr/6/22 2:35:31 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, tomorrow we will witness the Liberal government's very first NDP budget. The picture will not be pretty. Canadians should expect a tax-and-spend budget that will make inflation even worse than it is today, with gobs and gobs of unfocused spending, deficits as far as the eye can see and of course higher taxes.
Can the Prime Minister tell us whether his budget will deliver a plan to fight the skyrocketing cost of living in Canada?
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- Apr/6/22 2:45:55 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, every family in Canada is affected by the rising cost of food, gas and housing, among other things. That is called inflation.
The Liberal Prime Minister's policies have caused inflation to go up in Canada. Why? The reason is that, for the past seven years, this government has done nothing to keep spending under control. Worse, it invented new taxes that it increased last Friday.
We are 25 hours away from the tabling of the budget. For the first time in history, it will be an NDP-Liberal budget.
Could the leader of the NDP-Liberal government rise and tell the House that he will do the responsible thing by keeping spending under control and not raising taxes?
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- Apr/6/22 2:47:19 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, what I hope, what I believe and what my colleagues also believe is that we must spend money more wisely. We have to make a dollar stretch further.
I, a Conservative member, did not say that. It was my Liberal colleague from Pontiac, and she says she is speaking on behalf of her colleagues.
Once again, tomorrow, we will have a new budget, a new government, a NDP-Liberal government. Will the Prime Minister agree with his Liberal colleague and finally be responsible and recognize that he must not continue doing things the same way he has been for the past seven years, and instead keep spending under control and not increase taxes? That is what the Liberals are calling for.
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- Apr/6/22 2:48:05 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, every year at the same time, we hear the same old thing from the Conservatives, who support austerity. They say we should cut services and investments for Canadians. Fortunately for Canadians, we do not listen to the the Conservative politicians, who want to cut spending for Canadians.
Instead, we are investing responsibly and wisely to create economic growth, bounce back from this pandemic, and help seniors, students and families. That is exactly what we have been doing for seven years. We are going to continue being responsible and investing in families.
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- Apr/6/22 2:48:48 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, tomorrow is Canada's first-ever NDP-Liberal government budget, and the stakes have never been higher for my generation. Many of us cannot afford a house. We cannot afford groceries. We cannot afford to fill our tanks with gas. We know dental care is not going to solve it. Pharmacare is not going to solve it. Child care is not going to solve it. Spending more money is not going to solve it.
Educated, fully employed young people cannot get ahead in this country. What is going to be in the budget tomorrow to give us some hope for the future?
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- Apr/6/22 2:50:10 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, most parents want to leave a legacy for their children. I know so many parents who save and go without luxuries so they can pass something on to their kids. However, under the current government runaway inflation is making saving nearly impossible, and out-of-control spending is saddling our children, like my seven-month-old son Eoghan, with debt they will never be able to pay off.
Will the Prime Minister stop mortgaging our children's future to fund his promises to the NDP?
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- Apr/6/22 2:59:58 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, more spending does not equal results. It equals more inflation, and Canadians cannot afford a home. Canada's fiscal house is on fire, and the NDP is pushing the Liberals to throw $1.68 gasoline on it. Canadians know one thing about the upcoming budget: It is going to be expensive.
Will the Prime Minister have the courage to tell Canadians that he could not get the trust of the majority of voters, so he decided to spend taxpayers' money and buy his majority here?
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- Apr/6/22 6:47:01 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for her question. I must admit that it was quite interesting.
I would have to agree with my colleague from Calgary Midnapore. Canadians are not stupid, absolutely not. That is why Canadians understand that the inflation we are seeing here at home, while concerning, is not a made-in-Canada problem. It just is not. Anybody who reads the newspaper or knows the facts knows that.
Our inflation here in Canada is lower than the G7 average and lower than the OECD average. It is even lower than the G20 average. It does not mean that it is not an issue that needs to be tackled, absolutely not. However, when the member claims that this is something that was somehow created by our government and she seems to equate that with our support of dictators, despite the fact that we are supporting the Ukrainian people and the fact that we have been sending arms in order to support the tremendous effort of Ukrainian civilians fighting for their lives and for democracy, I must admit her argument is entirely disjointed. Canadians who are not stupid see that.
I would also like to get to the heart of the matter and that is the general view of Conservative colleagues that somehow the extraordinary spending that was required during the pandemic was the wrong thing to do. I would remind the member opposite that we went into the pandemic with the best fiscal balance sheet in the G7 and that today, after that spending, we still have here in Canada the best fiscal balance sheet in the G7. That is because it was the right thing to do.
Tomorrow we are expecting the budget and I do look forward to all of the members commenting on what is in that budget, but I am very comfortable saying that it is about affordability because the Minister of Finance, me and our entire government are concerned about affordability.
We always have been, which is why the Canada child benefit is indexed to inflation. It is why so many of our programs to support seniors, to support vulnerable Canadians, are indexed to inflation. What does that mean? It means that Canadians actually receive a more generous amount of support from the federal government when inflation increases. That helps them put food on the table. It helps them put a roof over their heads. I will not apologize for that.
We also know that we need to be fiscally responsible, and I think the budget will speak for itself on that matter.
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