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Decentralized Democracy

House Hansard - 201

44th Parl. 1st Sess.
May 29, 2023 11:00AM
  • May/29/23 8:31:02 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, it is incontrovertible that Canada has a strong and responsible fiscal policy. That has been reiterated by S&P. We have the lowest deficit and the lowest debt-to-GDP ratio in the G7 and an AAA credit rating. Those are objective markers and not, frankly, partisan talking points from the Conservative—
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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 8:33:30 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 8:33:55 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 8:34:24 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 8:36:47 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I am glad to finally have a question about people, jobs and growth. Canada's GDP grew by 3.4% last year, the strongest level in the G7. In the first quarter of this year, our GDP grew by 2.5%, also the strongest in the G7.
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  • May/29/23 9:02:01 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I am the finance minister, and I remember that it took GDP four months longer to recover following the 2008 recession than it took following the COVID recession. That was because of smart investments by our government to support Canadians.
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  • May/29/23 9:05:17 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, what is a fact is that it took four months longer for real GDP to recover following the 2008 recession than it took following the COVID recession, even though COVID caused much deeper economic harm. We invested in Canadians, and we are proud of it because it worked.
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  • May/29/23 9:09:01 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, the Harper government did have low growth. It had a remarkably lacklustre recovery from the 2008 recession. It took four months longer for GDP to recover from the 2008 recession than our recovery took from the COVID recession. It took 27 months for jobs to recover from the 2008 recession, but only 21 months after the much deeper COVID recession, and it was a shocking 110 months for the unemployment rate to—
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