44th Parl. 1st Sess.
March 31, 2023 10:00AM
- Mar/31/23 11:48:11 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, I am very happy that the member opposite asked that question, because this budget that we tabled this week shows exactly our commitment to a strong, sustainable electrical grid. We know that union workers and good-paying jobs are part of that work that we need to get done.
We are supporting strong, sustainable jobs right across this country, and we know that our union workers are the backbone of the work we need to do.
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- Mar/31/23 11:48:41 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, Canadians want to see their government take leadership on tackling the climate crisis and creating good union jobs. New Democrats forced the Liberals to do just that in this year's budget, but more needs to be done.
For eight years, the Liberals have missed the mark by handing out billions to rich oil and gas CEOs who are jacking up prices for people and polluting our planet. Will the Liberals finally stand up to big oil, eliminate fossil fuel subsidies and create a green industrial strategy?
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- Mar/31/23 11:49:17 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, I think the budget speaks for itself.
I would say “forced” is a little harsh. Some of us have been on this for quite some time, making sure that workers are at the centre of this energy transition that is occurring, which involves not only building up renewables but also lowering emissions in the oil and gas sector itself.
It is Canada's largest industry. It is something that we cannot ignore. The only ones who know how to lower emissions, and the only ones who know how to build up renewables, are the workers in those industries. Not only do we support them, but we will insist that they lead this transition everywhere across this country.
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- Mar/31/23 11:49:54 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, on International Transgender Day of Visibility, let us stand up for the protection and promotion of the human rights of people in Canada who are transgender, queer, non-binary and two-spirit.
Can the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Women and Gender Equality and Youth share what our government is doing to lift up transgender voices and be allies to the transgender community?
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- Mar/31/23 11:50:20 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, on this day, I am thinking of Emma Wakelin, a trans woman who shared that “It feels like every day we awake to a new law being proposed to strip us of our human rights, or more violence that extinguishes yet another trans life.”
As the trans community members face attacks against their identity, dignity and existence, we, as a government, will continue to stand with them today and every day.
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- Mar/31/23 11:51:07 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, Liberals chose a top minister's family member as the interim Ethics Commissioner. Of course, they gave millions of tax dollars and contracts to close friends and staff's relatives. This Prime Minister is the only one ever to break ethics laws twice and some of his MPs have too, four more times, for vacations and perks for their pals.
After eight years, Canadians have never struggled so much, but Liberals have never had it so good. Is that why the Liberals thought that Canadians would not see their ethics pick as anything other than trying to cover their own butts in the future?
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- Mar/31/23 11:51:43 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, there is actually a very simple answer for the member opposite. The interim Ethics Commissioner is a career public servant who has served in a senior role in the Ethics Commissioner's office for more than 10 years, and that began when the Harper government was in office.
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- Mar/31/23 11:52:08 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, we should all remember clam scam, when the then fisheries minister was found guilt of an ethics breach for awarding a $24-million licence to a company to be ran by his wife's cousin. Now the Liberals have appointed the same cabinet minister's sister-in-law as the Ethics Commissioner. Really?
Can they only find family and insiders willing to work for them, or is this another attempt to censor disclosure of their ongoing ethics issues? Which is it?
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- Mar/31/23 11:52:45 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, the Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs recused himself from all deliberations and decisions related to the appointment of the interim Ethics Commissioner.
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- Mar/31/23 11:53:01 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, members of this House have worked for years on funding and governance for the Great Lakes Fishery Commission. As a result, the budget last year promised $44.9 million to DFO for the commission. However, every step of the way it seems like DFO is obstructing the will of Parliament. Last year, it dragged its heels in transferring that money to the commission.
When will the President of the Treasury Board crack the whip and ensure DFO complies with the will of Parliament and best practices on governance?
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- Mar/31/23 11:53:40 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, it is interesting that the Conservatives raised this question, because it was in fact Conservative members who underfunded and did not increase funding to the Great Lakes Fishery Commission.
There is good news. In this budget, we corrected the previous mistakes of the Conservatives—
Some hon. members: Oh, oh!
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- Mar/31/23 11:54:17 a.m.
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They can continue to heckle me because they do not like the facts. The fact is that we are actually investing in our Great Lakes. We are going to continue to protect them, while the Conservatives allowed them to be underfunded and did not take the protection of our Great Lakes seriously.
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- Mar/31/23 11:54:19 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, in the year before Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Canada was spending 1.28% of GDP on defence. According to NATO last week, in the year since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Canada has spent 1.29% of GDP. I read the budget document, but I could not find any information about defence expenditure as a per cent of GDP over the next five years.
Will the government commit to providing this very important information to the House as soon as possible?
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- Mar/31/23 11:54:53 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, the Canadian Armed Forces plays an essential role in defending Canadians and supporting global security. We have been consistent in supporting its work, starting with our 2017 defence policy, which increased spending by over 70%.
In the past year, we have made new investments in Canadian national defence totalling more than $55 million. We are also undertaking a review of our defence policy in the face of a changing global environment. Rest assured that we will keep making necessary smart investments in our forces.
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- Mar/31/23 11:55:35 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, the budget proves that Ottawa has not learned from its mistakes. If there is one lesson to be learned from the pandemic, it is that EI is failing most people who lose their jobs. In spite of that, the government is abandoning the reform it has been promising since 2015. Even today, 60% of people who lose their jobs will be left with nothing, particularly seasonal workers, the self-employed and those in non-standard jobs.
Why does the government still refuse to help people who lose their jobs?
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- Mar/31/23 11:56:14 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, budget 2023 invests in seasonal workers so they have five additional weeks of coverage for a total of 45 weeks. Also, in budget 2023, we propose establishing a new independent tripartite board of appeal to hear cases regarding employment insurance claims.
We know Canada's EI system is complex, and that is why we are focused on improving it. In the past two years, the minister has led more than 35 virtual, national and regional round tables with workers, employers and academics. EI reform is a priority of this government. We are on it and we will get it done.
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- Mar/31/23 11:56:52 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, the only thing Ottawa took away from the pandemic is debt. The budget passes that debt on to workers.
Ottawa expects to collect an extra $24 billion in workers' EI premiums. However, the government is not putting that money towards EI reform. It is taking workers' money and using it to pay off $24 billion in pandemic debt.
Why not use workers' money to protect them rather than paying off pandemic debt at their expense?
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- Mar/31/23 11:57:33 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, we have a great deal of respect for the workers in this country. We supported them during the pandemic. We take the entire EI system very seriously. The minister has been focusing on the modernization of the EI system.
We will continue this work and we will have a solid plan to respond to workers' needs.
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Madam Speaker, the budget still allows the automatic tax increase to take place tonight on beer, wine and spirits. Under this Liberal government, simple pleasures like enjoying beer with friends after work or a bottle of wine over dinner with a loved one have become unaffordable luxuries for working Canadians.
Will the government commit today to support my bill, Bill C-266, and cancel the automatic annual tax increase on beer, wine and spirits?
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- Mar/31/23 11:58:32 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, I have said it in the House already this week, and I will say it again. We listened to Canadians, we worked with the industry, we worked with our Liberal caucus, which leaned in on this issue, and we are going to pause the escalator tax on beer, wine and spirits for one year at 2%. It was going to be less than a cent for a can of beer, and now it is going to be even less for a can of beer.
We are with the tourism industry. We are with this sector. We are going to support them. We have heard from Canadians. We made the right move.
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