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Dec/6/23 7:11:40 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, to be honest, I am not sure how they came up with 19,938 amendments. That is what I have been told. I do not know how a committee could deal with that. That legislation is about sustainable jobs; I guess they are somewhat allergic to anything related to the environment. AI might have played a role in that. However, I say it just to reinforce a general pattern of behaviour we are seeing coming from the Conservative Party and, to be more specific, the leader of the Conservative Party's office. We should all be concerned about that. I am sure Donald Trump would be proud, but my constituents are not.

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Mr. Daniel Blaikie (Elmwood—Transcona, NDP)

Dec/6/23 7:12:32 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I was pleased that, in the course of his remarks, the member for Winnipeg North did not quote himself from Hansard. This was something he did several days ago. The reason I thought that was so interesting is that, as we all know, and it is no secret to members in this place, the member for Winnipeg North is far more concerned about the quantity than the quality of his words. He often brags at home about how many words he says in the chamber. When he quotes himself from Hansard, it raises the question of double counting. Given that he was quoting himself from Hansard, will he subtract those words from the word count he publishes to his constituents, so they have an accurate count of how many words he actually says as opposed to when he repeats himself by—

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The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Alexandra Mendès)

Dec/6/23 7:13:14 p.m.
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The hon. member could perhaps have linked the relevance of his comment to the speech the hon. member just made. The hon. parliamentary secretary has the floor.

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Mr. Kevin Lamoureux

Dec/6/23 7:13:26 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, maybe some people are counting. I could not say how many words I have actually said in the House, because I do not count. To the best of my knowledge, there is no counter, nor do I publish anything. Maybe during an election, I might say that I stand up a few times. I like to think I can be humble at times. I am very grateful to the people of Winnipeg North and to my colleagues for entrusting me with the ability to share my thoughts. I always take it very seriously. I enjoy being able to contribute to debate, both as the parliamentary secretary to the House leader and as the representative of Winnipeg North.

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The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Alexandra Mendès)

Dec/6/23 7:14:15 p.m.
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Is the House ready for the question? Some hon. members: Question. The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Alexandra Mendès): The question is on the motion. If a member participating in person wishes that the motion, as amended, be adopted or adopted on division, or if a member of a recognized party participating in person wishes to request a recorded division, I invite them to rise and indicate it to the Chair.

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Deputy

Mr. Kevin Lamoureux

Dec/6/23 7:15:54 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, the will of the chamber, from what I understand, is to pass the motion unanimously without a recorded vote.

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The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Alexandra Mendès)

Dec/6/23 7:16:03 p.m.
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Is that agreed? Some hon. members: Agreed. The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Alexandra Mendès): I declare the motion, as amended, carried and referred to the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs.

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Mr. Kevin Lamoureux

Dec/6/23 7:16:26 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I suspect if you were to canvass the House, you would find unanimous consent at this time to call it 7:18 p.m.

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Call
Canvass

The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Alexandra Mendès)

Dec/6/23 7:16:30 p.m.
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Is that agreed? Some hon. members: Agreed.

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Mr. Brad Vis (Mission—Matsqui—Fraser Canyon, CPC)

Dec/6/23 7:16:57 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, after eight years of the NDP-Liberal government, small businesses are struggling to survive and entrepreneurship has fallen off a cliff. The minister and the government love to claim that they have the backs of small businesses, yet they have ignored their concerns and the issues they face time after time. According to the most recent data from the Superintendent of Bankruptcy, total business insolvencies increased by 23.5% month over month from September to October 2023, and for the 12-month period ending in October, the increase was 39.9% year over year. The recent Statistics Canada survey on small business conditions, fourth quarter 2023, revealed that the majority of businesses, that is 73.7%, expect to face cost-related obstacles over the next three months. Rising inflation was the most commonly expected obstacle, followed by rising input costs, interest rates and debt costs. Another StatsCan report on GDP, income and expenditures for the third quarter of 2023 found that exports of goods and services fell 1.3%. Inventories accumulated at the slowest pace in two years with the manufacturing industry recording a withdrawal after six consecutive quarters of accumulations. Fewer businesses are investing in engineering structures in the wake of the completion of the Coastal GasLink LNG pipeline in my province. In its business barometer for November 2023, the CFIB reported that business confidence remains low. The 12-month small business confidence index dropped another 1.5 points to 45.6, a third consecutive decrease in optimism. The Conference Board of Canada paints a similar picture. Its index of business confidence dropped by another percentage point in the third quarter, bringing the index to 33.9 points below its latest peak in 2021. This was driven by a 7.7% decline in businesses that think now is not a good time to expand. The CFIB also published a report in November on labour shortages, highlighting that 53% of Canadian small business owners report that labour shortages are preventing them from expanding their business. Canadian business owners have been clear: Some of the biggest challenges they face right now relate to inflation, red tape and repeated tax hikes. Those are all challenges imposed on them by the government. When I asked the minister whether her government would stop its punishing tax hikes and inflationary spending, her response was to brag about more spending. Hearing all of these alarming trends for small businesses, the minister will have to excuse me for not jumping on her bandwagon of empty announcements, flashy photo ops and cheerleading the government's reckless spending that have failed to address the real challenges faced by small businesses across our country. I will give the minister another chance this evening. Will her government commit to stop raising taxes on small businesses and bring spending under control to address inflation?

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Mr. Bryan May (Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Small Business and to the Minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario, Lib.)

Dec/6/23 7:20:19 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I am happy to respond to comments made earlier by the hon. member for Mission—Matsqui—Fraser Canyon regarding support for small businesses and restaurants. The government understands the important role that small businesses and restaurants play in communities from coast to coast to coast. Let me outline some of the measures the government is taking to support businesses dealing with inflation, which is affecting all Canadians. The government was there through the pandemic and provided direct support to businesses. We introduced wage and rent subsidies, advice and training to help businesses adapt to a digital marketplace, and loans to provide liquidity relief to ensure businesses' survival through the recovery period. The Canada emergency business account, or CEBA, provided $49 billion in support to nearly 900,000 businesses across the country. The program offered interest-free, partially forgivable loans of up to $60,000 to eligible small businesses. It kept their lights on and helped workers remain employed. We recently extended the deadline for partial forgiveness, and the CEBA term loans deadline was extended by one year, to December 31, 2026, to offer more time to businesses for their loan repayment. The government is also supporting small businesses by cutting credit card transaction fees and by cutting the small business tax rate from 11% to 9%, which is essential to businesses coming out of the pandemic. We have enhanced the Canadian small business financing program by increasing annual financing to small businesses by an estimated annual $560 million, helping businesses access liquidity for start-up costs and intangible assets. For businesses looking to bring their offerings to the digital marketplace, the Canada digital adoption program has supported enterprises of all sizes to digitize and reach more markets. The government is supporting businesses in their efforts to strive for even greater inclusivity, with the women entrepreneurship strategy, the Black entrepreneurship program, the 2SLGBTQI+ entrepreneurship program and targeted supports for indigenous businesses. The government will continue to work hard for Canadian small businesses and restaurants because we know that they are the backbone of our economy.

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Mr. Brad Vis

Dec/6/23 7:22:51 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, we are now past the pandemic, and I am getting tired of hearing the government raise the pandemic-related responses for small businesses time and time again, when it fails to acknowledge that the extension it provided for small business owners, to January 18, was woefully insufficient. Every single member of Parliament in the House has heard from those restaurants and small businesses that the government simply got it wrong. The real problem is that the government is not paying attention to the structural challenges facing the Canadian economy. Time and time again, small business owners have outlined all of the red tape they face along with the challenges of doing business. The numbers speak for themselves. Statistics Canada has reported time and time again in the last year that more businesses are closing than opening and that many business owners do not see an opportunity to expand because they do not believe the government has created the right conditions for them to do so—

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The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Alexandra Mendès)

Dec/6/23 7:23:56 p.m.
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The hon. parliamentary secretary.

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Secretary

Mr. Bryan May

Dec/6/23 7:23:59 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I am not surprised that the member opposite does not want to talk about the supports we provided to small businesses, because, frankly, I wonder whether they would have done so if they had been in power. We know that inflation is a global phenomenon that is a lingering result of the pandemic and exacerbated by worldwide events. It is making life harder for many businesses, particularly restaurants. The government has introduced measures to ensure that doing business in Canada is as easy as possible, including cutting taxes for growing small businesses, lowering their credit card fees by up to a quarter and helping them access more financing to grow their businesses. We will continue to support small businesses and restaurants across the country as we deal with the very real challenges of the global economy and inflation.

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Ms. Bonita Zarrillo (Port Moody—Coquitlam, NDP)

Dec/6/23 7:24:56 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, persons with disabilities are continuing to live in poverty with no relief from the government. We have seen rents soar over the last year, pushing many Canadians out of the housing market and into being unable to afford safe and adequate housing. For persons with disabilities, accessing housing that meets their needs is nearly impossible. Add discrimination on top of that, and more and more stories are coming out from across Canada about the reality of persons with disabilities having to live rough. In Duncan, British Columbia, Jon Harry was forced onto the street to sleep on a tarp when he lost his housing. He and many other persons with disabilities are forced into homelessness because of the lack of affordable housing options. Organizations, including food banks and shelters, are at a breaking point because more people are relying on these services. Many persons with disabilities also do not have the level of income due to discrimination. Many persons with disabilities are currently paying 80% to 90% of their income on housing. In British Columbia, that leaves many people with less than $200 for all of their monthly expenses. I tabled a petition earlier this year, and very recently I tabled a petition brought by the community around a disability emergency relief benefit. This week, the government responded that, given its limited resources, rolling out an emergency relief could have an effect on delaying the Canada disability benefit. That response from the government is an insult to persons with disabilities because it is the government that is delaying the rollout of the Canada disability benefit. Canadians need support now, and without a clear timeline of when in 2024 this Canada disability benefit will be rolled out, persons with disabilities are left with questions, not solutions, and deteriorating living standards. The government must deliver, with the Canada disability benefit, an adequate and timely benefit. While the government is holding back on rolling out that benefit, and even during the rollout of the benefit, it must be building more affordable, accessible homes. I will take this moment to recognize the member for Nunavut, who continues to stand up in the House to talk about the absolutely devastating conditions of housing in Nunavut. Without adequate income supports for persons with disabilities, they are being legislated into poverty by the current Liberal government and the Conservative governments before it. Federal support was needed yesterday, as I mentioned in the House already this week in question period, and persons with disabilities cannot wait any longer. My question to the minister is this: When will the government deliver the Canada disability benefit it promised? It has been seven years of promises, and it is still not here, which it is hurting people.

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Mr. Sameer Zuberi (Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Diversity, Inclusion and Persons with Disabilities, Lib.)

Dec/6/23 7:28:55 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I would start off by thanking the member for Port Moody—Coquitlam for her advocacy for the disability community. Since 2015, our government has worked tirelessly to lift millions of Canadians out of poverty. This includes persons with disabilities. We know that too many people are facing additional costs related to their disability. I am speaking of expenses limited to accessible housing, to accessible transportation and to disability supports, among many others. We know that a mix of poverty and disability can create physical and social isolation. The disability benefit is a major milestone in helping to alleviate poverty for those who have disabilities. We will not cut corners on meaningful consultation. We have committed to deliver this benefit quickly. We know that the need is urgent. Poverty is complex and multi-dimensional. The Canada disability benefit is meant to supplement income and not replace existing benefits. We want to make sure that its impact is felt and that it is real. Other levels of government and the private sector need to join us in this mission of eliminating poverty among persons with disabilities. We need to recognize that decades of relentless advocacy on the part of the disability community have helped us get to the point we are at today. In the spirit of “Nothing Without Us”, we could not have gotten to the point where we are. “Nothing Without Us” means that we are working with the disability community to get to a point where this benefit will be realized and will help those who are impacted. Everything we have achieved thus far has been done by working with the community each and every step of the way. The Canada disability benefit is a cornerstone of the disability inclusion action plan. The action plan includes key priorities identified by the disability community. Our government has held round table discussions with members of the community, with advocates and with experts. At the same time, community- and indigenous-led engagements have been held on separate tracks to make sure the action plan is comprehensive and effective. The next step is to make the Canada disability benefit a reality through regulations and implementation. We will continue to work with the disability community, stakeholders, indigenous organizations and provinces and territories. We have started the engagement and the design of the regulations. We are confident that the benefit will help ease the stress and hardship of those who need it. I want to again thank the disability community, advocates, actors and those who have been pushing to help us get to the point where this benefit will be fulsome, will be real and will help alleviate poverty. I also thank the member opposite for her advocacy.

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Ms. Bonita Zarrillo

Dec/6/23 7:32:28 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I can feel that there is support and desire there, and I really appreciate that. However, the problem is there are people who are unable to pay their rent and unable to pay for food and medication. With the cost of living, they cannot wait any longer. The government is hiding behind consultation, trying to scare people by saying that the success of this benefit is tied to how long it is delayed, which is a cop-out. There has been plenty of consultation, and the number one pillar that persons with disabilities expressed to the government over years of consultation is the need for economic support. They need it to uphold their human rights and for us as a country to uphold our commitments on the rights of persons with disabilities. To ask again, why does the government—

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The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Alexandra Mendès)

Dec/6/23 7:33:29 p.m.
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The hon. parliamentary secretary.

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Secretary

Mr. Sameer Zuberi

Dec/6/23 7:33:36 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-22

Madam Speaker, I would like to again thank the member opposite for her advocacy. We are moving quickly on historic investments and measures. The legislation, Bill C-22, which is now law, requires that we consult with the community in a fulsome fashion, and we are doing so. It requires that we make regulations to have the benefit realized, actualized and in people's pockets, and we are doing so. The benefit will reduce poverty and will increase financial security for those who need it most. The Canada disability benefit is important to all of us. It is important to our government, it is important to the member opposite, it is important to me and it is important to Canadians. We are working with the community tirelessly. We need to get this right and we will get it right. It will help create real change. It will transform the realities—

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The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Alexandra Mendès)

Dec/6/23 7:34:37 p.m.
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The hon. member for Elmwood—Transcona.

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