44th Parl. 1st Sess.
November 14, 2022 11:00AM
- Nov/14/22 2:45:51 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Canada's seniors are struggling to survive. Denise, a senior living in Halifax, Nova Scotia, has been employed since she was 16 years old. Denise's income includes a job, old age security and her Canada pension, yet Denise is forced to live in her car as she is unable to afford housing.
When will the Liberal government show some compassion, give our seniors some relief and cancel its plan to triple the taxes on gas, groceries and home heating?
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague from Nunavut. I enjoy working with her tremendously. She is such a fighter for the people of Nunavut and has made such a difference.
If the government would step up when it comes to funding housing, and particularly funding northern housing, we would be making even more progress. That is the reality. The New Democrats are the worker bees in the House of Commons. We work hard, as members know. One of the things we have laid out is how to get things done, solutions.
Certainly, when it comes to Nunavut and housing, the solutions are there. The member for Nunavut has laid them out. The government just has to follow the NDP leadership. Fortunately, it did so when it came to dental care, the rental supplement and the doubling of the GST credit. Those are all welcome initiatives, but it needs to do more, such as with respect to the reform of employment insurance, so that when a person loses their job they have access to it. The member is right; that is absolutely fundamental. This needs to be another area where the government simply follows the NDP leadership.
Tragically, the Conservatives do not see the need for employment insurance, so it could get worse. We are suggesting that the Liberals make things better by following the NDP leadership and putting in place what we suggest, to ensure we have employment insurance when Canadians need it, when they lose their job.
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Madam Speaker, I am sorry if the member feels that I have hurt his feelings and I am being too harsh on the opposition, but at times it is necessary to be harsh on the opposition and some of the things that the members say.
The member talks about housing issues in the legislation. The Bloc members talk about the cost of housing, and I will use it as an example because I made reference to it. Within the legislation, there is the anti-flipping tax. When we talk about initiatives that are necessary for the federal government to continue to demonstrate leadership on the housing file, this is one example where we are looking at ways homes are being used for the marketplace as opposed to being used to live in. Are there things we can do? Yes, there are. Within this legislation there are at least one, two or three good solid policy ideas.
I am glad that the Bloc members are voting in favour of the legislation, but I would reinforce that just because they are in opposition does not give them right to make irresponsible policy announcements.
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Madam Speaker, I always enjoy how loudly the member speaks. I never have to wear a earpiece. In fact, if I do it actually hurts my hearing, so perhaps we should have a warning when he speaks in the House.
In all honesty, I represent a large rural and remote riding and, in some of my smallest communities of 3,000 people, we are seeing homelessness reach a state that I never thought possible. Part of the reason is that there is no non-market housing, housing that is really reflective of the need, so that when people get there they are only spending about 30% of their income, which we know is best for everyone.
With all of the discussions the member was having, why is there not an investment in getting that housing out the door so that people can have that respect they so well deserve?
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Madam Speaker, I appreciate the question. When I think of housing programs, a number of initiatives come to mind right away. The rapid housing initiative is one example. We have indigenous housing commitments from the government. There are programs that are both urban and rural. One of my favourite ones is housing co-ops. I am a big advocate for housing co-ops. We now have a government that is committed to looking at ways to increase the number of housing co-ops.
Habitat for Humanity is a fantastic organization. We have a national government that is investing in Habitat for Humanity. Many initiatives were taken to support Canada's housing industry and it goes right back to when we made the multi-billion dollar commitment in a national housing strategy, which is a first in Canada, a number of years ago.
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Madam Speaker, I appreciate that the member came to the Northwest Territories and the other territories to visit us. I would encourage more MPs to come and see our part of the world.
I would point out to the member that there is more to the Northwest Territories than just Yellowknife and Inuvik. He should go into some of the smaller communities, where he would see the many houses that are being erected.
Would he recognize that for the first time in our history, indigenous housing is supported through our government? During the 10 years that the Conservatives were in power, the dark decade of no housing was established. Does the member recognize how that has contributed to the crisis we have experienced over the last while with housing?
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