44th Parl. 1st Sess.
September 29, 2022 10:00AM
- Sep/29/22 2:53:35 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Winston Churchill once said that trying to tax your nation into prosperity is like trying to stand in a bucket and pull yourself up by the handle.
If the Prime Minister is being honest, he would admit that the carbon tax is just that, a tax that does nothing for the environment but is designed to provide his government with buckets and buckets of cash from the wallets of Canadians.
Will the Prime Minister cancel his plan to triple the tax on everyday essentials like gas, home heating and groceries?
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- Sep/29/22 2:54:07 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, in difficult times we should all evoke the memory of Winston Churchill who, in difficult times, said what was hard, told people straight what was difficult and offered real solutions to those problems. We are in difficult times right now, and what this country deserves are real solutions.
What we are hearing throughout this question period and over the last two weeks are games and rhetorical rhetoric that, frankly, are not contributing to the solutions we need. Our government is committed to helping those in need, and we certainly will continue in that direction.
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- Sep/29/22 2:54:44 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, this government loves taxes. Payroll taxes are going up. The carbon tax is tripling with 8% price hikes. It is not just inflation. The cost of everything is going up.
Will this government have mercy on Canadian families and axe the taxes?
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- Sep/29/22 2:55:13 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, certainly the issue of affordability for Canadians is one that concerns every member of the House. This government has acted to ensure that we are addressing the affordability issue.
With respect to the price on pollution, if we asked 100 economists, 99 will tell us that it is the most efficient way to reduce emissions and incent innovation. It is a market-based approach. Market-based mechanisms are something the Conservative Party used to believe in and, certainly as recently as 10 months ago, every member on that side of the House campaigned on putting into place a price on pollution.
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- Sep/29/22 2:55:50 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, according to the Parliamentary Budget Officer, a majority of Canadians pay more in carbon taxes than they get back from this government. That means the rising cost of groceries, home heating and filling the car up with gas will only get worse as this government proceeds to triple the carbon tax.
Will the Liberal government back down from its harmful plan to triple the carbon tax?
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- Sep/29/22 2:56:20 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I think Canadians expect their leaders of all political stripes to be able to walk and chew gum at the same time. We certainly have to address affordability pressures while we concurrently continue to address the existential threat that is climate change.
We need to take into account the cost of inaction. A report released yesterday said that the cost of not acting would be up to $25 billion per year by 2025 and $100 billion by 2050, with 500,000 jobs lost. Taking action on climate change is about addressing affordability for Canadians, particularly for younger Canadians.
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- Sep/29/22 2:57:01 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, contrary to what the Conservatives are saying and what the Prime Minister said when he was in opposition, employment insurance is not a payroll tax.
However, any cunning opposition party can turn the situation to its advantage as long as there are people who contribute to EI without being entitled to collect it. Such opposition parties have also been able to take advantage of the fact that no government, be it Liberal or Conservative, has taken action in the past 25 years.
When will the minister finally reform the program to make sure it does not leave 60% of people who lose their jobs out in the cold? We want to know when.
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- Sep/29/22 2:57:47 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we understand that EI benefits need to be more fair, more responsive and more adaptable to the needs of Canada's ever-evolving workforce. That is why we are committed to delivering a full-scale modernization of Canada's EI system. We look forward to launching our long-term plan to improve the EI system.
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- Sep/29/22 2:58:09 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, when? It is irresponsible to delay the reform that has been promised for three elections now, and it is even more irresponsible to allow temporary measures to expire, knowing that there is no reform.
The minister is changing the eligibility rules at the end of the season for many seasonal industries. In the meantime, what happens to the workers who qualified at 420 hours last Saturday, before the minister raised the bar to 700 hours?
Their industries are shutting down for the winter and they are looking at a black hole, or worse, a vacuum, before them. What would the minister have them do?
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- Sep/29/22 2:58:52 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, although some temporary benefit programs offered during the pandemic are ending, regular benefits will continue to be available to workers, just like before the pandemic.
We look forward to launching our long-term plan. As I told my colleague, that will happen before the end of the year. It will be a very specific plan to improve employment insurance.
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- Sep/29/22 2:59:17 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, tomorrow is the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation when we honour the children who suffered in residential schools and reflect upon those who never made it home. It is also a time to redouble our efforts to provide first nations with a better future, clean water, an end to poverty and the autonomy for those willing nations to control more of their money, their land and their decision-making.
Will the government discuss with the House how we can move forward together to achieve these goals?
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- Sep/29/22 2:59:52 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I am so pleased to see the Leader of the Opposition's ambition in this space, because that is exactly what we have been showing since 2015, an ambition to move forward on reconciliation. He hits all the high notes. We are talking about things like truth, equity and self-determination, things that we know are going to ensure a brighter future for first nations communities and individuals across the country.
We have done a lot. There is a lot to say and I certainly cannot cover it in 30 seconds, but I look forward to working with the party opposite to ensure we reach those goals together with indigenous people.
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- Sep/29/22 3:00:29 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the Liberal government and inflation are driving up the cost of living, especially for rural Canadians.
Mike, a senior living in my riding, wrote to me on Monday, saying that over the past year, his rent has increased by 50%, fuel costs are up by 40%, his medications are up 22% and his food costs are up by 12%. Like many Canadians, Mike is struggling under the burden of the government's taxes on basic necessities and the idea of tripling the carbon tax.
Will the Liberal government cancel its planned tax hikes on gas, groceries and home heating today?
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- Sep/29/22 3:01:02 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we know that we need to be there for Canadians who are facing increased rent. That is why we introduced the Canada housing benefit, which is already providing an average of $2,500 to renters across the country who are struggling with the cost of rent.
However, we are not stopping there. We have introduced a one-time top-up to the Canada housing benefit of $500, which will go to help an additional 1.8 million Canadians. What are the Conservatives doing? They are playing procedural games to delay that legislation which will enable Canadians to receive that help now.
What the hon. member can do is talk to his colleagues to make sure that we pass this important legislation to get rental help to Canadians today.
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- Sep/29/22 3:01:47 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Deb, a constituent, found out she was being evicted from her affordable apartment due to Liberal inflation. She worked her whole life as a nurse, caring for others in need. Now, on a disability pension in her early sixties, she has no home security and a limited income that is being consistently eroded by new Liberal tax grabs.
Will the finance minister give Deb hope and dignity for a future where she can afford a home or will she condemn Deb to poverty in her senior years by tripling the tax on gas, heat and groceries?
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- Sep/29/22 3:02:25 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I will take this opportunity to remind everyone in the House that we have a historic moment in front of us right now to come together and support the Canada disability benefit to lift hundreds of thousands of Canadians out of poverty, make life affordable for them and give them the dignity in which they deserve to live.
I know we can do it together, because I have heard everyone in the House say they want to do it, so let us do it.
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- Sep/29/22 3:02:49 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, tomorrow is the second National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. It is an opportunity for Canadians to look back on Canada's historical relationship with indigenous peoples and to reflect on the path to reconciliation that lies ahead.
Can the minister tell the House about the measures the government has taken to implement the Truth and Reconciliation Commission's calls to action, including the creation of a national council for reconciliation and the Office of the Commissioner of Indigenous Languages? Can he explain why this is a crucial step toward reconciliation?
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- Sep/29/22 3:03:33 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, reconciliation is not easy. It is neither linear nor free, but we are determined to right past wrongs and address their impact on indigenous peoples, an impact that is still felt today.
Tomorrow, we encourage all Canadians to reflect, to listen and to show compassion for indigenous voices. Tomorrow is a day for residential school survivors and indigenous communities and leaders to have their say.
Bill C‑29 will respond to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission's calls to action 53 to 56, while also promoting the implementation and independent review of the 94 calls to action.
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- Sep/29/22 3:04:13 p.m.
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- Re: Bill C-5
Mr. Speaker, as of September 19, Toronto police have recorded 31 homicides out of 302 shootings this year. Recent victims of gun violence include a Toronto police officer killed in a shooting rampage and a 17 year old who was killed in broad daylight in Scarborough. The vast majority of these shootings are conducted by repeat offenders and drug traffickers with illegal guns. What is the Liberal solution? Remove Chrétien and Trudeau Sr. mandatory minimums and target law-abiding hunters and firearms owners.
Considering these disturbing statistics, will the government remove its soft-on-crime Bill C-5?
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- Sep/29/22 3:04:54 p.m.
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- Re: Bill C-5
Mr. Speaker, serious crimes in the country will always carry with them serious consequences. Indeed, the crimes the hon. member is talking about do attract serious penalties.
What we would be doing with Bill C-5 is entirely the opposite. Failed Conservative policies on tough-on-crime, with minimum mandatory penalties and no possibility of conditional sentence orders, have only clogged the justice system with less serious cases that have resulted in the over-incarceration of indigenous, Black and racialized people in our system.
We are removing those to spend more time and more resources precisely on the offences about which he is talking.
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