44th Parl. 1st Sess.
June 9, 2023 10:00AM
- Jun/9/23 11:47:54 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the best deals are made at the bargaining table, and federal mediators are in touch with the parties. Our federal mediators are very good at what they do, and we have faith in their ability to help parties reach an agreement.
We are on track to ban the use of replacement workers by the end of this year, but we need to strike a balance between doing things quickly and getting things done right, as I have mentioned before.
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- Jun/9/23 11:48:23 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the COVID-19 pandemic has strained our health care system, disrupted our economy and changed the way we interact every day. We know that better health care for Canadians means supporting our health care workers and ensuring patients receive timely access to the health services they deserve.
Yesterday, the Minister of Health announced direct support to the Medical Council of Canada, the National Registry of Physicians, the Foundation for Advancing Family Medicine and the Canadian Alliance of Medical Laboratory Professionals Regulators. Could the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Health and to the Minister of Sport please tell the House how yesterday's announcement is addressing current and emerging labour demands in health care?
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- Jun/9/23 11:49:09 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my friend and colleague from Richmond Hill for his hard work, and for his excellent advocacy in his riding and at the health committee for foreign credentials qualifications.
Yesterday, our government announced $78.5 million for three projects that support foreign credentials qualifications for internationally trained medical graduates to grow and support our health care workforce. These projects will help improve the process for recognizing foreign credentials for internationally educated health professionals, and improve labour mobility for physicians to make it easier for them to work where they are most needed through our country.
Our government's priority remains to work together to support our health care workers so that patients across Canada get the care they need when they need it.
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- Jun/9/23 11:49:52 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the government continues to add fuel to the inflationary fire, despite the finance minister's words that deficits must be reduced and this is a line that cannot be crossed.
What will happen? Inflation goes up and interest rates go up, so Canadians default on their mortgages and Canadians lose their homes. What is the solution? The solution is to stop the inflationary spending and stop the interest rate hikes, so Canadians can have lower inflation rates and lower interest rates.
Is the government ready to do that?
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- Jun/9/23 11:50:27 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, it is unfortunate that the Conservatives do not believe that we can fight inflation and fight climate change at the same time, yet emissions and inflation are both coming down in Canada. Canadians have created over 900,000 new jobs. We have the lowest deficit and the lowest debt-to-GDP ratio in the G7.
In addition, the IMF and the OECD now both project that Canada will have the strongest economy in 2023 and in 2024. This gives us the tools we need to address affordability. Of course, we have a national housing strategy, which is the first time the federal government has invested in housing in over 30 years.
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- Jun/9/23 11:51:04 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, then why do we have the greatest level of household debt in Canada that we have ever had?
The IMF states that out of the G7, Canadians are most likely to default on their mortgages. Even the finance minister recognizes that Canadians are struggling. She said that Canadians are facing hardships as a result of high interest rates.
Why does the government not commit to eliminating inflationary deficits and eliminating inflationary spending, so that Canadians can have lower inflation and lower interest rates?
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- Jun/9/23 11:51:41 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for her question. As she is well aware, the national housing strategy is not just about helping Canadians pay their rent. It is also about helping them to fulfill their dream of home ownership.
My colleagues opposite voted against the budget, which contains direct measures to help Canadians who are struggling with mortgages in exceptional circumstances. I would invite her to read that part of the budget and vote in favour of it.
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- Jun/9/23 11:52:15 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the IMF warns that Canada is at the greatest risk of home mortgage defaults in the world. The Liberal government's out-of-control spending and massive deficits have caused inflation to skyrocket.
Canadians cannot absorb these higher rates, placing their dreams of home ownership at risk. Families are struggling, and they are struggling because of this Liberal government.
Will the Prime Minister end his inflationary deficit spending?
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- Jun/9/23 11:52:43 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, despite what the Conservatives say, everyone knows that inflation is a global phenomenon. Inflation in Canada is lower than our peer economies, and we have the best fiscal framework in the G7.
Our budget not only retains this fiscal advantage and allows inflation to continue to decrease, it makes life more affordable for Canadians and invests significantly in health care and in dental care, while creating high-paying sustainable jobs to go above and beyond the close to 900,000 jobs that Canadians have already created.
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- Jun/9/23 11:53:13 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Canadians simply cannot afford the higher cost of living brought about by these Liberal government policies. They are being forced to work more shifts or find a second job simply to get by. Canadians deserve our help. Budget 2023 only makes the cost of living crisis worse.
Conservatives are ready to work through the summer to fix their mistakes. Will the Liberal government cancel its vacation plans?
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- Jun/9/23 11:53:43 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, my summer plans are to go back to talk to my constituents and find out possible solutions to make Canada better. I hope that Conservatives will do the same.
I wish that the Conservatives would do what they say and, over the summer, find solutions to bring to the House. The only solutions they have brought to the House so far have been to cancel the CBC, stop the fight against climate change and raid the pension benefits of seniors.
Those are not viable solutions, so if they could spend the summer coming up with some positive solutions, I would be happy to work with them.
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- Jun/9/23 11:54:15 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, during lockdown at the beginning of the pandemic, the government brought in the emergency business account. It provided loans of up to $60,000, $20,000 of which was forgivable if the loan was paid off by a certain deadline.
That was the right thing to do. Some 900,000 business owners needed it. The deadline of December 31 is fast approaching, however, and 40% fear they will be unable to pay off the loan in full, which means they will not qualify for loan forgiveness. This is threatening their survival.
Will the government offer them some flexibility?
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- Jun/9/23 11:54:54 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the question from the Bloc Québécois member because it underscores the importance of small businesses here in Canada.
We have always been there to help and support SMEs. We lowered taxes from 11% to 9%. The opposition voted against that measure.
We were there to provide support during the pandemic with the loans the member across the way mentioned.
What we just did with the budget is lower credit card transaction fees for SMEs. Again, the opposition voted against that.
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- Jun/9/23 11:55:33 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the government has such a habit of letting its work be done by Crown corporations and officials that it cannot even answer its own questions.
The deadline of December 31 seemed reasonable at the start of the pandemic. It was believed that the economy could be put on hold and then re-opened, and that that would be the end of it. However, it is just the start for SMEs. The variants prolonged the crisis and led to supply chain problems, skyrocketing costs, labour shortages and empty downtown cores.
As a result, with the deadline six months away, 40% of these businesses, or 250,000 companies, may have to close their doors. Will the government let them, if necessary, make repayment plans without losing their subsidies?
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- Jun/9/23 11:56:15 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, what needs to be pointed out with respect to the question asked by the member opposite is that SMEs could apply for a maximum of $60,000. Repayment of two-thirds of the loan by the deadline results in loan forgiveness of one-third.
We are always here to listen to SMEs' concerns. That is why, as I mentioned, we have just cut credit card transaction fees for SMEs here in Canada.
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- Jun/9/23 11:56:56 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, not long ago the Liberal Minister of Finance said:
By exercising fiscal restraint, and by not pouring fuel on the fire of inflation today, we will ensure we can responsibly invest in Canadians and in a Canadian economy for years to come.
Yet, here we are, $60 billion in new spending and interest rates at their highest level in 22 years. The Liberals call that restraint? They are practising about the same amount of restraint as a kid in a candy store.
When will the Liberals stop gouging Canadians and end their inflationary spending?
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- Jun/9/23 11:57:32 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we are putting forward a plan that is fiscally responsible.
That is why inflation is coming down. If the member is not aware, it peaked at 8.1% and is now at 4.4%. It is projected to go lower than 3%.
If the member thinks he is going to convince Canadians that he is going to make life more affordable by suggesting that we delete all the programs that make life more affordable, like dental care, like child care, like the CCB, like investing in retirement security for seniors, I do not think he is going to fool anybody other than perhaps the other members sitting on the other side of this House.
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- Jun/9/23 11:58:07 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, let us talk a little about the people who are hardest hit by—
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- Jun/9/23 11:58:12 a.m.
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Order. Maybe somebody does not know how to use their headset. I just want to make sure members have their headsets on mute. I know it might be the first day with some of this stuff.
The hon. member for Banff—Airdrie.
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- Jun/9/23 11:58:24 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, let us talk about the people hardest hit by the Liberals' inflationary spending, just for a minute.
The Liberals claim to be the champions of equality and they weave that word into every announcement they make. However, for them, it is nothing more than a buzzword.
In the words of one of the Prime Minister's own former advisers, government spending “will impact disproportionately lower income Canadians and young families, potentially creating divisions and threatening new sorts of inequality.”
When will the government drop the platitudes and stop gouging the Canadians struggling the most?
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