SoVote

Madam Chair, the minister cannot even answer. The cost of the new tax that the Liberals, the NDP and the Bloc want to impose on Quebeckers, is 17¢ a litre. Again, is she going to charge sales tax on the carbon tax in Quebec?

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Hon. Pierre Poilievre

May/29/23 7:22:50 p.m.
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Madam Chair, therefore we must assume that the government will apply the sales tax to Quebec's carbon tax. It will add 20¢ to the cost of a litre of gas. That is an additional 20¢ a litre as a result of this new tax. How much will that cost Quebec families?

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Hon. Pierre Poilievre

May/29/23 7:23:37 p.m.
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Madam Chair, the answer is that every Quebec family will have to pay more than $400 for this second carbon tax that the government and the Bloc want to charge Quebeckers. How much will it cost every farm in Quebec and every farmer in Quebec?

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Hon. Chrystia Freeland

May/29/23 7:24:02 p.m.
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Madam Chair, Quebec companies are well positioned to take the lead in the green economy. That is why Quebec businesses strongly support our climate plan.

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Hon. Chrystia Freeland (Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, Lib.)

May/29/23 7:25:55 p.m.
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Madam Chair, it is nice to have applause from the opposite benches. I am glad they enjoyed that. I certainly did. I enjoyed reminding them about their promises from the last election. The Canadian economy has had a remarkable recovery since the recession caused by COVID‑19. Today, 907,000 more Canadians are working than when COVID‑19 struck. In the first four months of 2023 alone, the Canadian economy created nearly a quarter of a million jobs. We have now recovered 129% of the jobs lost in the first months of the pandemic, compared with only 115% in the United States. Supported by our Canada-wide system of affordable early learning and child care, the labour force participation rate for Canadian women in their prime working years hit a record high of 85.7% in February, compared to just 77.2% in the United States. Today, more Canadians have good jobs than ever before and at just 5%, our unemployment rate is near its record low. Inflation has fallen from 8.1% last June to 4.4% last month. The Bank of Canada predicts it will fall to 3% this summer. Since February, the average wage for Canadians has been growing by 5% or more. That means paycheques have been outpacing inflation, which means more money in Canadians' pockets after a hard day's work. At 3.4%, we had the strongest economic growth in the G7 over the course of last year. Our deficit is down from a projected 1.5% of GDP last year to 1.4% this year. In April, S&P reiterated our Triple A credit rating and we have both the lowest deficit-to-GDP and the lowest debt-to-GDP ratio in the G7, lower also than other major Triple A-rated economies such as the Netherlands. Thanks to these remarkably strong economic fundamentals, our 2023 budget comes at an important time for the country. In the short term, we have to deal with the global economic slowdown and high interest rates around the world. We also need to strengthen our universal public health care system so that it delivers the quality public health care that Canadians deserve in a timely manner. In the months and years to come, Canada must seize the remarkable opportunities arising from two fundamental shifts in the global economy: the race to build the clean economies of the 21st century and our allies' accelerating efforts to friendshore their economies by building their critical supply chains through democracies such as Canada's. Our budget is a direct response to the challenges and opportunities we face. First, our budget includes a one-time grocery rebate that will deliver targeted inflation relief to those who need it most. On July 5, 11 million Canadians and Canadian families can expect to see the grocery rebate arrive in their bank accounts or their mailboxes. A couple with two children will receive an extra $467 and single Canadians without children will receive up to an extra $234. Second, we are delivering a $198-billion investment in public health care that we announced earlier this year. Our plan will help ensure Canadians have access to a family doctor. It will tackle the backlog of surgeries and combat the opioid crisis that has devastated so many families. Also, even as we reinforce the public health care system we have today, we are also expanding its reach. By 2025, the new Canadian dental care plan will provide dental coverage for up to nine million uninsured Canadians. That will mean no Canadian ever again will need to choose between taking care of their teeth and paying the bills at the end of the month. It means one will no longer be able to tell how much money a Canadian makes, or how much money their parents make, by their smile. These are significant and necessary investments, because a strong and effective public health care system is essential for a strong and healthy Canadian workforce. We need a strong and healthy Canadian workforce now more than ever because, these days, the whole world is making massive investments in their clean economy of the 21st century. At the same time, our democratic partners are trying to move away from their economic dependency on dictatorships and form closer ties with democracies like ours. Our allies need the expertise of our workers, the ingenuity of Canadian businesses and the resources that Canada is fortunate enough to have in abundance. Our country must live up to this historic moment or it will be left behind while democracies around the world build the clean economy of the 21st century. That is why our budget makes transformative investments to build Canada's clean economy, fight climate change and create new opportunities for Canadian workers and Canadian businesses. This includes major investment tax credits for clean electricity and clean technology manufacturing, adding to major investment tax credits for carbon capture, utilization and storage, clean hydrogen and clean technology adoption that we announced last year. We are going to make Canada a clean electricity superpower by building a national electrical grid that connects Canadians from coast to coast to coast and delivers cleaner, more affordable electricity to Canadians and Canadian businesses. From energy to critical minerals to electric vehicles, we are going to ensure that Canadian workers mine, process, build and sell the goods and resources that our allies need. We are going to deliver investments to put Canadian workers and Canadian businesses at the heart of essential global supply chains and we are going to build big things here in Canada, from a Volkswagen battery plant in St. Thomas to the Galaxy Lithium mine in Quebec, to the Trans Mountain expansion in Alberta, to the Atlantic Loop, to the LNG terminal in Kitimat, B.C. Our plan seeks to create well-paying jobs, good careers for everyone across the country. It seeks to invest in such a way that all Canadians can benefit from incredible opportunities across the country and take part in the new era of prosperity that we will all build together.

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Ms. Rachel Bendayan (Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Tourism and Associate Minister of Finance, Lib.)

May/29/23 7:35:56 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, in response to some of the Conservative leader's questions, the Minister of Finance spoke about the importance of tackling the climate crisis, particularly for Quebeckers. I would like the minister to tell us more about this priority in Quebec and for her to tell us how the acceleration of the green transition, as set out in our 2023 budget, will meet the needs of Quebeckers.

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Hon. Chrystia Freeland

May/29/23 7:36:35 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I would also like to thank my colleague from Montreal who works with me and the deputy finance minister on our larger finance team. Of course, she is right. Quebec is a leader when it comes to child care centres, and it is also a leader in terms of climate action. That is why the people of Quebec, the leaders of the province of Quebec, including the Premier of Quebec and Quebec businesses, were pleased with the green plan in our budget. They understand that this plan will help attract investment from Canada and abroad to create the good jobs of today and tomorrow.

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Mr. Jean-Denis Garon (Mirabel, BQ)

May/29/23 7:41:25 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, this is the first government budget that we could describe as a postpandemic budget. Obviously no one here in Parliament is to blame for the virus. However, the programs that might have helped us to get through the pandemic at the time are the responsibility of this Parliament. We need to learn important lessons and make corrections. We also need to prepare for the next crisis that could arise. The government boasts about having signed agreements with the provinces on health. These agreements were imposed. Out of the demands that were made by the provinces and Quebec, only $1 out of $6 was granted. Before the Liberals came along, the transfers covered 24% of provincial health costs. Now they cover just 22%. With these new agreements, which are not real agreements, we are back to 24%. They are perpetuating the chronic underfunding of health. Does the minister recognize that the federal government's chronic underfunding has left us short on hospital beds and that the measures to counter the pandemic, which hurt our economy, had to be excessively extended?

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Hon. Chrystia Freeland (Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, Lib.)

May/29/23 7:42:38 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I agree that health care is a priority for Quebeckers and for all Canadians. That is why we made a historic investment of almost $200 billion for health care in the budget. That is really a lot of money. However, we know that it was the right thing to do because for Quebec and for all the provinces, health care is essential. That is why we made this investment. We also made huge investments during the pandemic. We supported the provinces and territories, including Quebec, obviously. Nine out of 10 dollars spent during the pandemic were spent by the federal government. It was the right thing to do, but the result today is that some provinces, including Quebec, are in a position—

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Mr. Jean-Denis Garon

May/29/23 7:43:56 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, the minister confirmed that she supports the ongoing underfunding and that she also borrowed on behalf of the provinces. This is not a gift from the federal government. The money that the federal government sent during the pandemic was borrowed money. Now there is no money for health care, but there is money for a dental plan. This is being done with the help of the federal spending power, which is the instrument of the fiscal imbalance. The federal government is going to expand this program. The Government of Quebec and the Quebec National Assembly are unanimously calling for Quebec to be given the right to opt out with full financial compensation. Will the Liberal government give Quebec the right to opt out with full financial compensation?

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Hon. Chrystia Freeland

May/29/23 7:44:32 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, we came up with a good solution with Quebec regarding day care and our national system. We understood that Quebec's approach was different and we came up with a good solution. I am absolutely sure that my colleague, the Minister of Health, will also find a good solution for Quebec regarding dental care. We understand that the situation in Quebec is different.

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Mr. Jean-Denis Garon

May/29/23 7:45:07 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I like clear answers. Do the minister and her government plan to offer the Government of Quebec the right to opt out with full compensation? Yes or no?

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Mr. Jean-Denis Garon

May/29/23 7:45:39 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I notice that the longer the answers are, the more they seem like a “no” in disguise. We know that during the pandemic, health care was underfunded, that there was a shortage of hospital beds that led to people being turned away, and that the pandemic measures needed to be extended. If, during the pandemic, we had had a dental plan like the one the minister is planning, how many more hospital beds would Quebec have had as a result of that dental plan?

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Mr. Jean-Denis Garon

May/29/23 7:51:27 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, this budget allocates approximately $80 billion for so-called green subsidies. We do not know whether they are green or not because the government has always refused to define what constitutes an effective fossil fuel subsidy. Approximately 30% of these subsidies go directly to fossil fuels. That is approximately $24 billion to $25 billion. Is the Minister of Finance not embarrassed to tell unemployed workers in Quebec and the rest of Canada that she is going to take $25 billion to $27 billion out of their pockets when that money is going directly to fossil fuels?

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Ms. Rachel Bendayan (Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Tourism and Associate Minister of Finance, Lib.)

May/29/23 8:42:44 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I am pleased to participate in this committee of the whole very late this evening. I would like to start by saying that, over the past year, Canada has had the strongest economic growth in the G7 and that the growth of our economy in the first two months of this year exceeded experts' expectations. Today, some 900,000 more Canadians are working than at the beginning of the pandemic. That includes approximately 150,000 more Quebeckers with jobs and good paycheques. Right now, the unemployment rate in Canada is 5%, which is very close to the country's all-time low. With a rate of close to 4.1%, Quebec is leading the way with the lowest unemployment rate in the entire country. Against the backdrop of these economic factors, budget 2023, which our government tabled in March, came at a very important time. The budget sets out new targeted inflation relief measures for the most vulnerable Canadians. We also implemented a new dental care plan that will benefit up to nine million Canadians. The federal government also made a major investment of nearly $200 billion to help save our health care system, which is under severe pressure. Thanks to the leadership of our Prime Minister and our government, we managed to sign that health agreement with all of the provinces, including Quebec. The budget also contains transformative investments to build tomorrow's clean economy, fight climate change and create new opportunities for Canadian workers and businesses. It is a responsible fiscal plan that will help Canada maintain the lowest deficit and the lowest net debt-to-GDP ratio of any G7 country. I would like to state the obvious. This spending is necessary. It is necessary not only to ensure the long-term growth and prosperity of our economy but also the quality of life that Canadians want and deserve. Our health care system is on the brink. We cannot put a price on access to health care in this country. It seems that all parties in this House, even the Conservatives, have agreed that the federal government should invest these sums that were provided in our budget in our health care system. We cannot be blind to the changes in the global economy, or to the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act and the measures put in place by the Biden administration to attract green investments to the United States. Canada needed to and did respond. Like the experts have pointed out, these are investments in inflation relief for the most vulnerable, saving our health care system and building the economy of the future, which are targeted and will not meaningfully add to inflation. In previous debates, I have already talked about the importance of tackling the climate crisis and highlighted our government's investments to accelerate our green transition. Now I would like to talk a little more about housing. This is the other issue I hear about when I am out and about in Quebec. Everyone should have a safe place to live, but for too many Canadians, the dream of owning a home is becoming increasingly out of reach. As rental prices continue to rise across the country, this situation is undermining the financial stability of an entire generation. My riding, Outremont, is certainly no exception to this trend. Over the past four years, the average rent for a two-bedroom apartment in Montreal has risen by 26%, while the number of available units, especially affordable units, remains too low. The lack of affordable housing is having an impact on the Canadian economy. Without more homes in our communities, it is hard for businesses to attract the people they need for the labour market. When people spend too much of their income on housing, they obviously have less money to spend in the small businesses in our neighbourhoods and in our local economies. That is why our government is tackling the housing crisis head-on. That is also why I have been pulling out all the stops to have more new affordable housing built in Outremont. Of the many programs that make up our national housing strategy, I would like to specifically mention the rapid housing initiative. This is an innovative program based on a partnership with the provinces and municipalities to rapidly build new housing or acquire existing buildings and convert them to housing. It is a flexible program that responds to needs on the ground. In my riding of Outremont, we have just unveiled a great project led by the Old Brewery mission under this program. Over 30 new housing units have been created on Parc Avenue in a former hotel. It is incredible. I had the opportunity to visit last week. We were also able to inaugurate a new co-op at the MIL Campus in Montreal, once again in Outremont. That is nearly one hundred very affordable units next to a new Université de Montréal campus. As UDM rector Daniel Jutras so aptly put it, “We're building a university-focussed neighbourhood at the cutting edge of sustainable development, but also, and this is very important, a people-focussed neighbourhood. A place to meet, a place to live, a place of social diversity.” This is indeed a transformative project for the area. I also realize that the Bank of Canada's interest rate increase had a direct impact on the housing crisis we are all experiencing. The higher interest rates make it harder for some people to pay their mortgage, especially if they have a variable rate mortgage, which is the case for nearly half of Canadians who currently have a mortgage. Our government is taking measures to protect Canadian homeowners from rising rates and a possible correction of the housing market. That is why, this spring, the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada launched public consultations into a proposed guideline on existing mortgages for individuals in exceptional circumstances. This guideline states the agency's expectations of financial institutions to help consumers who are vulnerable to payment defaults on their mortgage because of exceptional circumstances, such as the combined effects of high household debt, the rapid increase of interest rates and the rising cost of living. This will help ensure that Canadians get fair and equitable access to relief measures without having to pay unnecessary penalties, excessive bank fees or interest charges, which will help more people deal with the high interest rates. The government also committed to introducing a tax-free first home savings account, a new registered plan to give prospective first-time homebuyers the ability to save up to $40,000 on a tax-free basis. Like an RRSP, contributions are tax deductible, and withdrawals to purchase a first home are non-taxable, like a TFSA, so it is the best of both: tax-free in, tax-free out. Budget 2023, delivered on this commitment, and financial institutions across Canada have been able to offer this tax-free first home savings account to Canadians as of April 1 of this past year. I would also like to note that the budget implementation act that is currently before Parliament proposes to tax assignment sales to crack down on house flipping to help ensure homes are used for Canadian families to live in and not as a speculative financial asset class. These measures are just part of our ongoing efforts to support Canadians with their most pressing needs, while also investing in the future of our economy. With the Chair's permission, I also have a number of questions more specific to the two ministers who are here in committee of the whole with us. I would like to, through you, ask if in the last few years Canadian consumers, and this is the case at least to my mind, have increasingly found themselves having to navigate the pains and, quite frankly, the financial burden of paying undisclosed junk fees? I use that term colloquially. They are hidden fees that obscure the true cost of products and services and potentially really undermine trust in various businesses. For example, there are often instances of exorbitant roaming charges that the telecommunications industry uses. There are also the unexpected baggage fees in the aviation sector. These hidden charges not only increase the financial strain on Canadian consumers, but also create a climate of mistrust in the economy. Given this growing concern that I have heard from my constituents, I wonder if the Minister of Tourism and Associate Minister of Finance could explain what measures the government is considering to increase transparency, safeguard consumer rights and ensure that the advertised pricing actually reflects what Canadians have to pay.

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Ms. Rachel Bendayan

May/29/23 8:54:38 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I have another question. Quebec is a leader in fighting climate change and producing clean energy. Quebec's per capita CO2 emissions are 50% lower than the Canadian average. In fact, Quebec is the province with the lowest emissions per capita in all of North America. We are very proud of that. One of the main reasons for Quebec's success is our abundant hydroelectric power, which covers almost all of Quebec's electricity needs. In order to maintain that position, we need to continue to invest in the production of clean energy. After the budget was tabled and our clean investment tax credit was introduced, the Quebec finance minister said that this was an extremely worthwhile measure for us in Quebec. Can the Minister of Finance tell us how this tax credit will support Quebec's efforts to build the economy of the future and combat climate change?

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Ms. Monique Pauzé

May/29/23 10:06:41 p.m.
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Madam Chair, I am glad to hear that the minister somewhat agrees with us. We would like to define the terms “subsidies” and “clean technologies”. Of the $80 billion planned over 10 years, can the minister tell us how much will be invested in Quebec's green economy?

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