44th Parl. 1st Sess.
October 26, 2022 02:00PM
- Oct/26/22 2:16:51 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the Liberal government's incompetent, insensitive, voodoo economic management is crushing everyday Canadians. More debt has been added by the Prime Minister than all prime ministers before him combined. The Liberals said that, because interest rates were rock bottom, it was no big deal to print billions, which shot up the price of homes, gas, groceries and goods.
Inflation is at a 40-year high. Now they are saying, “Whoopsie, it is time to jack up interest rates.” This will financially stress out new homebuyers who have purchased at inflated prices. Nancy at our local food bank tells me that thousands of people are coming there. They are struggling, and she has not seen this happen like this before.
What will the Liberals do? They are going to triple the carbon tax on home heating and fuel and, for good measure, they will increase EI premiums by 10%. Has Canada ever seen a more out-of-touch government?
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- Oct/26/22 2:36:53 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Canadians cannot afford this costly NDP-Liberal coalition and that is no more evident than with food.
Here are a few facts. Food inflation in Canada hit its fastest growth in September since August 1981, when the first Trudeau was in office. Food purchased from stores is up 11.4% year over year. Food banks are seeing record demand as prices soar.
The Liberals' triple tax hikes, fertilizer cuts and back-breaking gatekeepers are bankrupting farmers and ranchers and outsourcing food production to other counties, which then requires the burning of fuel to get it back to Canada when we should be growing, raising and preparing it here.
Here is a final fact. A Conservative government under our new leader would repeal these taxes, remove the fertilizer mandates and get the gatekeepers out of the way so we can grow affordable food, feed our people and be the breadbasket of the world.
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- Oct/26/22 2:50:39 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister caused this inflation crisis. Even Mark Carney, who will be the successor to the current Liberal leader, is saying that inflation is a homegrown problem. He is right. It is caused by the half trillion dollars of inflationary deficits that have bid up the cost of the goods we buy and the interest we pay.
Today, rates went up another half point, meaning many families will be handing in their keys to the banks, because they will not be able to afford those bills. Has the Prime Minister been briefed by his officials on how many Canadians will lose their homes because of the higher interest rates that his inflationary policies have caused?
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- Oct/26/22 2:51:22 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, inflation is a worldwide problem right now, but it is a challenge faced by Canadian families, and we will continue to support them through it. That is why we are delivering supports for families right now in a targeted way, doubling the GST credit, which will arrive in the coming weeks in their banks accounts; moving forward on support for dental care and moving forward on support for low-income renters, things that the Conservative Party is continuing not just to vote against but to block; and we will continue to do more.
We will continue to be there for Canadians during the challenging times ahead, because that is what Canadians expect of their government.
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- Oct/26/22 2:55:07 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, some laws and initiatives with budget implications require a royal recommendation before they can be adopted in the House. It is a symbolic gesture, but it is in the rules.
My question relates to the budget. Inflation makes seniors very vulnerable, especially those the government discriminates against, the ones aged 65 to 75, particularly if they depend on government assistance. As such, and as the need for an economic update becomes increasingly urgent, will the government reconsider its position and increase old age security to a level that will enable seniors to cope?
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- Oct/26/22 2:57:58 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, today the Bank of Canada raised interest rates again.
Managing inflation is not just the Bank of Canada's responsibility. The Liberals share that responsibility as well. Many economists are predicting a recession. People expect us to prepare for the future.
When will the government stop hiding behind the Bank of Canada and show some leadership?
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- Oct/26/22 3:00:19 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, record inflation is a choice for the Liberals, after causing it with the $500 billion of inflationary deficit, much of which has nothing to do with COVID. They blame everything and everyone else. The Bank of Canada governor says that inflation is homegrown. Another past governor says it is domestic too. Now struggling Canadians are facing yet another rate hike that makes a bad situation worse. The Prime Minister is not letting up. He is raising taxes and, worse, he is still spending.
Canadians know how we got here. They just want to know how he could be so irresponsible.
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- Oct/26/22 3:01:41 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister will have plenty of opportunity to ask questions in the future, but he does not get it.
Liberals told Canadians that interest rates would stay low. They told Canadians we would have deflation not inflation, and it would be temporary. They spent half a trillion dollars, which is more than every Prime Minister in the history of this country combined. They flooded the market with cheap cash and said not to worry about it. Now the Bank of Canada is cleaning up their mess by raising rates.
Will the Prime Minister finally pull his weight around here and stop fuelling the fire that he himself has lit?
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- Oct/26/22 3:04:30 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, let us look at real, responsible allies of ours, like Japan, Switzerland, Taiwan and Hong Kong, that took the right steps and kept inflation under 3%. They did not print boatloads of money that was valueless and make sure their citizens got put further into debt. Canada now has the highest interest rate in the entire G7, pushing more families to food banks and homeless shelters. Like we said before, the more the Prime Minister spends, the higher interest rates and the higher “Justinflation” goes.
Will the Prime Minister take responsibility for Justinflation causing higher Bank of Canada interest rate hikes, yes or no?
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- Oct/26/22 3:05:29 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we have worked closely with allies over the past number of months and number of years to ensure that we are increasing opportunities for citizens, that we are increasing resilience in our supply chains and that we are working together.
Global inflation is hitting all of our allies, whether it be the United States, the U.K., France or Germany. All our major partners are facing these challenges. Canadians are doing slightly better than folks in those countries, but that is cold comfort to too many Canadians who are struggling. That is why we are stepping up with direct help and more help with a return on the GST credit that will land in Canadians' bank accounts in the coming weeks, and with dental and rental supports, which, inexplicably, Conservatives continue to oppose.
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- Oct/26/22 3:07:27 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, what is clear to Quebeckers and Canadians is that the Bank of Canada's key interest rate has just increased for the sixth time. Now it sits at 3.75%. This will have an impact on mortgages, car loans and the money Canadians need to borrow to live decently. Inflation, accelerated by the Liberals' unprecedented spending, is eating into Canadians' wages, purchasing power and pensions. Meanwhile, the Prime Minister is turning a deaf ear and will not commit to reversing tax hikes.
Will he do that?
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- Oct/26/22 3:12:21 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, interest rates are up again, and the Bank of Canada says more raises are coming. Now the bank says that inflation reflects Canadian domestic factors, not the global factors the government keeps blaming. The government said interest rates will remain low, and then it went on a spending spree. It said it was irresponsible not to spend. It said there would be no inflation and then it said inflation would just be temporary. Now inflation is out of control and Canadians are paying more.
Will the Prime Minister finally admit his spending has made life unaffordable for Canadians?
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- Oct/26/22 4:39:56 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Canadians are suffering from inflation and the Liberals' carbon tax. In my final petition, petitioners say the carbon tax drives up the cost of everyday essentials, including gas, groceries and heating, and makes life very expensive for Canadians. The Bank of Canada said the carbon tax has increased the impact of inflation. Also, the carbon tax is an added expense to Canadian businesses and creates economic disadvantages compared to other nations.
The petitioners call for an end to the carbon tax. They want the government to control inflation and reduce its spending. Finally, they want to see pipelines and other projects approved, especially LNG projects; and pipelines getting clean ethical Canadian energy to tidewater; and international markets to displace the fuel provided by the authoritarian regimes and dictators.
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- Oct/26/22 7:06:58 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I originally posed the question of whether any of the spend-DP-Liberals thought about monetary policy a few weeks ago because the Prime Minister had already admitted he does not spend much time thinking about it. He also thought that budgets balance themselves, inflation was transitory and it was okay to borrow $400 billion because interest rates were low.
A few things have changed in those few weeks since I first posed the question. The Liberal-NDP coalition government has been driving up the cost of living. The more the Prime Minister spends, the more things are costing, and it is not just inflation that we are dealing with now, it is people's lives because they are having to consider monetary policy and make a choice between buying groceries or heating their homes. They are having to make the choice between putting fuel in their vehicles to go to work, or not.
Interest rates are rising faster than they have in decades. People and families are at risk of losing their homes because they cannot make increasing mortgage payments. It is to the point that over one-half of Canadians are cutting back on groceries to cope with rising prices because of the thing elite Liberals think is just inflation. This means there are situations like the one I heard about just this morning. It came from Lyle, who said that he was shopping yesterday and the elderly person in front of him had to put four apples back as she could not afford them. He said that the increase in carbon taxes are driving up the costs of everything from home heating to food, and that the current government is completely out of touch with Canadians. That is what Lyle said.
All this need not be. If the government had been prudent and responsible and considered monetary policy, it would have done things like not wasted $54 million on a punitive ArriveCAN scam and scrapped the $35-billion Infrastructure Bank. Let us not forget the WE scandal, the millions to Loblaws for refrigerators and so much more wasteful spending.
On top of that, had Liberals not squandered an extra $200 billion in spending not related to COVID, Canadians would not be feeling the pain they are now, but the government chooses not to pay attention to monetary policy, so now Canadians are receiving the bill for that massive $500-billion deficit. They are seeing typical mortgages go up by $7,000 a year and having to pay so much more attention to their household monetary policy just to put food on the table and keep the heat on. On top of all this, the Liberal-NDP coalition is planning to triple the carbon tax, further increasing and inflating the cost of gas, groceries and home heating, just as we approach winter in Canada, when heating is not a luxury but a necessity.
I am sure I am probably going to hear an excuse from the other side about where I am going on this, and we are going to hear back from the government saying that inflation is a global phenomenon. The governor of the Bank of Canada now says that inflation is homegrown. It was grown by the Prime Minister and his cabinet's lack of consideration of economic policy.
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- Oct/26/22 7:10:56 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I would be happy to discuss monetary policy with my friend from the interior at any time, but his speech actually focused more on fiscal policy, as did his original question. I want everyone who is listening to know that our government is working to build an economy that works for everyone and is focused on tackling affordability.
We have done this while lowering Canada's debt-to-GDP ratio, increasing wages, maintaining Canada's AAA credit rating and maintaining our debt servicing cost at 1% of GDP, almost six times lower than it was in the 1990s.
In the member's original question, which led to this late show, he cited $2.13 per litre for gas in his riding. Indeed, it has been as high as $2.40 in metro Vancouver.
This is an increase of more than a dollar per litre over the last three years. It is putting a tremendous burden on Canadian families. However, we also need to acknowledge that the price on pollution in British Columbia has increased by only two cents during the last three years.
It was nine cents in 2019 and is 11¢ today. That means 98% of that increase has nothing to do with pricing pollution. It is the result of global inflation.
The Conservative Party of Canada readily ignores these facts and therefore ignores 98% of the problem. It also ignores the real cost of climate change. In B.C., we have seen fires devastate communities and spread smoke throughout our summers. We have floods and droughts that have already caused billions of dollars in damage, yet the Conservative Party of Canada continues to call on our government to stop fighting climate change and to mortgage our future.
It does that when it asks us to stop fighting climate change. It does that when it asks us to stop funding seniors' pensions. It does that when it asks us to raise the retirement age from 65 to 67. It does that by trying to eliminate the CBC and by trying to stop kids from getting the dental care and education they need. It does that by obstructing assistance for impoverished renters who need it the most.
I do not know if there is such a thing as an economic ostrich, but if there was, it would be a tremendous mascot for the Conservative Party, as it continues to suggest irresponsible economic policies as if its members were committed to keeping their collective heads in the sand. In contrast, our government has put together a plan that makes life more affordable and builds an economy that works for everyone.
In jurisdictions where the federal government has a price on pollution, and B.C., by the way, is not one of those jurisdictions, a rebate is provided through the climate action incentive, which actually makes life more affordable for eight out of 10 Canadian families.
We are also doubling the GST credit for six months, which will provide hundreds of dollars to 11 million families who need it the most and more than 50% of our seniors.
I compliment the member opposite for supporting this measure. I think it is important that we continue to work together to make life more affordable, but we need to do it in a way that is open, honest and transparent.
Let us not use the worst economic shock since the Second World War to gain political points. Canada has a great opportunity in front of it. We have the lowest debt-to-GDP ratio in the G7. Our inflation rate is significantly lower than those of the U.S., Europe and the OECD. We produce a tremendous amount of food and energy, the two commodities that are facing extraordinary price pressures from around the globe.
Our best times are in front of us, but we can get there only if we continue to work together to make life better for all Canadians.
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