So V ote

May/29/23 7:57:51 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, we need to be very careful in our budgets about a couple of things. We had an eye on a few things. One was being sure we found a balance between fiscal responsibility, between our deficit and debt—

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Mr. Daniel Blaikie

May/29/23 8:06:11 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, in this budget, the government allocated another $50 million on top of the over $300 million it has already allocated to chasing money from the poor who were in the CERB program. How much is the government prepared to spend on chasing people who cannot afford to pay their CERB debt?

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Mr. Daniel Blaikie

May/29/23 8:10:22 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, it was not a real contribution. The government is already trying to take it back. It has assigned $25 billion of the CERB debt to the EI account, which means that premium dollars are already going to go up just to pay back that debt and are not available for program improvements. How is it that the government is planning to enhance employment insurance when it is already eating up the money that would be available to do that through a $25-billion debt assignment?

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Mr. Daniel Blaikie

May/29/23 8:11:24 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, sure, yes. Pardon me; now I need a minute. As my final question in respect of that debt, we have been told by the Governor of the Bank of Canada that he is going to keep raising interest rates until the unemployment rate goes up. Canadians are in need of a well-functioning employment insurance system. When can they expect to get it?

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May/29/23 8:32:16 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, we have been talking about fiscal responsibility. Let me quote the Parliamentary Budget Officer, who said, at the finance committee, “When looking at G7 countries, Canada compares very favourably on net debt-to-GDP.”

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May/29/23 8:33:25 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, what will be the national debt at the end of 2023?

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May/29/23 8:33:30 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, our debt-to-GDP ratio is coming down. It is at 43.5% and it is going to continue to come—

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May/29/23 8:33:45 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, what was the debt-to-GDP ratio in 2021-22?

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May/29/23 8:33:55 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, the debt-to-GDP ratio went up strongly during COVID, and that was because we had to spend significantly to support Canadians. It was the right thing to do, and we are seeing the results with a very strong job market.

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May/29/23 8:34:13 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, during COVID, from 2021 to 2022, and then the next year, from 2022 to 2023, the debt-to-GDP ratio went up. Is that not correct?

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May/29/23 8:34:24 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, the debt-to-GDP ratio went up as a result of our extraordinary COVID spending. In budget 2023, we showed a debt-to-GDP ratio in 2022-23 of 42.4%—

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May/29/23 8:34:43 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, it went up from 42% to 43%, which is odd because, in this very House, the Minister of Finance said, “On this point, let me be very clear. We are absolutely determined that our debt-to-GDP ratio must continue to decline and our deficits must continue to be reduced. The pandemic debt we incurred to keep Canadians safe must be paid down. This is our fiscal anchor. This is a line we will not cross.” Why did they cross the line?

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May/29/23 8:36:37 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, what has been the growth rate per capita, the GDP growth rate? What was been the per capita GDP debt growth rate in the last 10 years?

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May/29/23 8:37:25 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, that is simply not true. Canada's deficit is forecast, this year, to be 1.4%. That is low not only by world standards; it is low also by Canadian historical standards. Our debt service charges, even in this time of high interest rates, are lower than they were for most of the Harper era.

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Mrs. Dominique Vien (Bellechasse—Les Etchemins—Lévis, CPC)

May/29/23 8:37:56 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, this budget has disappointed us and has disappointed a lot of people. Everyone knows that the debt has exploded under the Liberals. The budget has not been balanced in the last eight years. This is despite the fact that the minister made a nice promise in November that filled us with hope, announcing a return to balanced budgets in 2027-28. What we have seen in the budget documents is that, instead, there will be a deficit of around $14 billion in 2027-28, so there is no return to balanced budgets in sight. My question is this. Who asked the minister to go back on her promise to return to a balanced budget?

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Mrs. Dominique Vien

May/29/23 8:41:35 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, can the minister tell us the cost to service Canada's debt, meaning how much it is costing Canadians to pay for the deficits she presented?

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May/29/23 8:41:47 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, David Dodge, a former governor of the Bank of Canada, proposed an important way to think about the debt—

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Mrs. Dominique Vien

May/29/23 8:42:04 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I will repeat my question: How much does it cost to service the debt? The Minister of Finance should be able to answer the question. That is basic.

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May/29/23 8:42:18 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, he said that the cost of servicing the debt should be no more than 10% of revenues. We are at that point. When he was prime minister, Mr. Harper was paying more than that to service the debt.

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