44th Parl. 1st Sess.
December 7, 2023 10:00AM
- Dec/7/23 2:35:06 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the finance minister wants to talk numbers; that is great. Let us talk about the two million Canadians who visited a food bank in a single month as a result of the NDP-Liberal government. About 800,000 Ontarians went to the food bank. It would be like the third-largest city in Ontario being dependent on a food bank for food.
The finance minister says she will not take lessons. Even a third grader could figure out the Liberals have destroyed Canadians and driven them to food banks. They could fix it if they cared. All they have to do is take the carbon tax off families, first nations and farmers. Will they do it?
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- Dec/7/23 2:36:32 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Christmas is fast approaching and to me it would make sense to give Canadian families a bit of help.
Our motion today calls on the government to leave more money in the pockets of Canadian workers. Aided and abetted by the Bloc Québécois, the Liberals want to radically tax—even more—with the carbon tax.
Will the Prime Minister repeal his carbon tax on farmers and Canadian families?
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- Dec/7/23 2:38:14 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I suggested that the minister leave the Magdalen Islands and head to the streets of Montreal. The great media food drive is taking place today. People are on street corners soliciting donations because food banks are overwhelmed. Does this government realize how desperate people are, and will it listen to reason?
A family of four will pay $700 more for groceries next year. Instead of piling even more taxes on Canadians, with the help of the Bloc Québécois, can this government show some compassion and scrap the carbon tax in order to give Canadian farmers and families some breathing room?
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- Dec/7/23 2:51:34 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, after eight years of the Prime Minister, British Columbians are having a tough time making ends meet. Mortgages and rents are among the highest in the world. Gas prices are the highest in North America. Inflation on groceries has led to the longest lineups ever at food banks. As a former B.C. MLA, I have seen the light and hope that the NDP-Liberal government will also show some common sense and axe the tax.
Will the Prime Minister listen to Canadians and take the carbon tax off of farmers, first nations and families?
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- Dec/7/23 2:54:36 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Christmas is coming and Canadians are struggling to put food on the table. Since 2016, there has been an 82% increase in the number of workers in Ontario who are using food banks.
Bill C-234 would have taken the carbon tax off farmers, but the desperate Prime Minister spent the weekend calling senators pleading them to kill the bill. He is just not worth the cost.
Will the Prime Minister listen to Canadians and take carbon tax off farmers, first nations and families?
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- Dec/7/23 3:00:27 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, released today, the food price report shows that a family of four is going to pay $700 more for food next year. Meanwhile, overall dollars for food spent are going down because of the cost of everything else. That means Canadians are reducing the quality or quantity, or both, of the food they buy.
This morning, Walmart and the CEO of Loblaws, Galen Weston, said the carbon tax charged to the farmer, to the trucker, to the retailer and then to the food producer will get passed on to the consumer.
After eight years, the NDP-Liberal government is not worth the cost. When will the Prime Minister repeal the carbon tax on farmers, first nations and families?
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- Dec/7/23 3:01:12 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, being a farmer and part of a government that understands there is a problem with the climate, I know we have climate change. Climate affects the weather. Destructive weather destroys farms and destroys farm crops.
Quite simply, we have a program in place. Unfortunately, the Conservative Party of Canada does not have a plan to deal with the environment. With our plan, we are able to deal with the agricultural sector in clusters and with provincial governments right across the country to help farmers deal with climate change and become innovative.
We have more to do and we will continue to do it.
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- Dec/7/23 3:29:23 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the member is misleading the House here when he is talking about farmers not paying 97%. That is ridiculous. They are paying—
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- Dec/7/23 3:39:35 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, to my colleague across the way, I will say that I am in a constituency with 70% of the irrigation in the country, so when he talks about very rich people, they are not my constituents.
When I last spoke about this, I had examples of many of the irrigating farmers paying more than $100,000 in carbon taxes a year, and there are thousands of them in my riding because of irrigation. If he questions that, he should come to my riding; I will introduce them to him, and he will see that.
The constituents I represent grow on 4% of the arable land and bring in 28% of the GDP for ag in the province of Alberta. This is costing them because they grow 60 different kinds of products, which translates to expensive food in this country. I know them.
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- Dec/7/23 3:49:36 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I will be sharing my time with the member for Medicine Hat—Cardston—Warner.
I am very grateful to have an opportunity to speak to today's opposition day motion, because it is an issue that has been affecting the constituents in Souris—Moose Mountain significantly since the Liberal government came into power. Time and time again, the Prime Minister has made it clear that he does not support Canadian agriculture producers or care about their livelihoods. Nothing has made this more obvious than his refusal to remove the carbon tax from farmers.
Since the Liberals do not seem to have any understanding whatsoever of the importance of agriculture, not just for Saskatchewan but for all of Canada, I would like to paint a little picture for them. Saskatchewan farms account for the biggest share of Canada's total farm area, at 39.2%, to be precise. It is among the world's largest exporters of various field crops, such as canola, and it leads the country in the cultivation of cereal grains, oilseeds and pulses.
This means that, in many instances, when people put food on the table for themselves and their families, they can thank a farmer from Saskatchewan for producing it. In fact, I was speaking with the French ambassador to Canada on Tuesday. He told me that France, which happens to be a world leader in mustard, is extremely dependent on Saskatchewan's mustard seed crop, especially when we have droughts and the crop is poor.
With 66.9% of Saskatchewan's total farm area being made up of cropland, which is more than two-fifths of Canada's total cropland, it is commonly called the breadbasket of Canada. Even the Statistics Canada website uses this phrase, so the federal government must be aware of what our farmers do to feed Canada and the world, as well as the benefits they bring to our country's economy. Why the government chooses to punish the very same farmers who work tirelessly, day in and day out, to bring the highest-quality produce from the farm to the table, I personally cannot understand.
Farming is not an easy lifestyle. The days are long, with farmers getting up before sunrise and finishing their workday in the dark. They are at the mercy of nature, and as we all know in the House, the weather in Canada does not always co-operate with our wants and needs. Still, our farmers persevere, because they are dedicated to their work; they are willing to make sacrifices in order to get the job done. The least we can do is support them, yet the Liberals choose instead to tax them at every turn and make their lives harder by quadrupling the carbon tax on their input costs. This will only increase the cost of food for Canadians.
Food insecurity is a real issue in Canada right now, and it is something that I have been concerned about for a number of years under the mismanagement of the Liberal government. According to Food Banks Canada, there were nearly two million visits to food banks in one month back in March 2023, an increase of 79% from 2019. This is an alarming statistic, especially when we factor in the Liberals' inability to control inflation and the cost of living crisis that so many Canadians are currently facing.
From 2021 to 2022, the number of families who were food insecure increased by more than 12%, yet the Liberals are still forcing these very same families to pay a carbon tax on just about everything they buy. In fact, a new report that came out today shows that a family of four will pay $700 more next year on groceries; that is on top of the $1,065 extra that they paid this year. For many families, that amount of money is the difference between being able to pay the rent or keep the heat on for the winter and not being able to do so.
Projections show that, in 2024, there will be a 2.5% to 4.5% increase in food prices, with meat, vegetables and bakery items rising from 5% to 7%. Because of these rapidly rising prices, Canadians across the country are reducing their expenditures on groceries, either by reducing the quantity or quality of food they are buying or by substituting less-expensive alternatives. We are now seeing the highest level of food bank usage in Canada on record, and the Prime Minister must answer for this.
I would like to read a portion of the Food Banks Canada policy recommendations from its website. It states the following:
Unfortunately, the story of 2023 is one of government inaction across the country. Our warning has largely gone unheeded—and the repercussions are clear, with nearly 2 million food bank visits in one month alone. The state of poverty and food insecurity in Canada has reached alarming heights.
Despite the poverty rates being relatively low in historical terms, we are seeing signs that people in Canada are struggling profoundly. Food insecurity rates have skyrocketed, with nearly one in five Canadians finding it difficult to bring food to the table each day. The current financial challenges have resulted in growing mental health problems and stress related to finances. There is a palpable anxiety, with many people across the country growing increasingly concerned about how to meet their fundamental financial responsibilities, like paying their rent, filling up their car to get to work, and paying for necessary prescriptions.
The lack of government action has only exacerbated the problems we were seeing a year ago, and in some cases, for decades prior.
What I just read did not come from a partisan Conservative source, as the Liberals would probably like everyone to believe. It came from a reputable and well-established organization with the goal of seeing a Canada where no one goes hungry. What is a simple and straightforward way of doing this? It is to stop taxing the very farmers who produce the food, so the costs do not get passed on to the consumer. If we tax the farmer who grows the food and the trucker who ships the food, it is ultimately the consumer who pays that tax. The Liberals either do not understand this or do not care, and hard-working, average Canadians are paying the price for their apathy.
Since the inception of the Liberal carbon tax, my office has been inundated with emails and letters from constituents who call on the government to axe the tax so they can make ends meet. People are so upset and frustrated that they are actually sending me copies of their power bills, something that has never happened before in my eight years as an MP. They want me to see just how much the Prime Minister is hurting them, especially those who live on a fixed income, such as seniors.
I am going to share a few quotes from these letters, with the hope they resonate with members across the floor the same way they did with me. One email that was sent to the Liberal House leader and copied to my office says, “You can't be serious with your comment that the carbon tax is minimal in your interview with CTV. The prices of everything we are paying for have been affected! We, as Canadians, are suffering directly from the carbon tax! I'm asking you to please stop with the carbon tax if you really care about the citizens of Canada.”
Another email, one that was accompanied by a copy of a power bill, reads:
“I'd like to bring to the attention of the Prime Minister what it is like to live in rural Canada. We are so tired of hearing how easy it should be to use public transportation and not rely on natural gas. All those things that are available to large city dwellers. We do live in a town of 1500 people. My husband needed cancer surgery in July and we had to drive 3 hours one way to the hospital. In rural areas, there is no public transportation like taxis or buses that would take us to these appointments, let alone directly from our home to the hospital door.
“Our vehicle gas bill is quite hefty.... Gas in our area runs around $1.40 per litre. We drive an SUV, but it still costs $500.00 approximately for the three trips needed every two weeks for my husband's medical condition.”
I do not know how much clearer we can possibly be that the carbon tax is hurting Canadians and disproportionately hurting those who are already struggling to afford the necessities of life. To add insult to injury, the Prime Minister has chosen to provide an unfair carbon tax carve-out to those living on the east coast, while those living in the prairie provinces are given no relief whatsoever.
According to the Liberal Minister for Rural Economic Development, if the Prairies want to be adequately represented in the House of Commons, they should have elected more Liberals. Apparently, the people of southeast Saskatchewan are not important enough in the Liberals' electoral math to get the same deal as those in Atlantic Canada. Furthermore, this came from the minister who is meant to represent all rural Canadians, not just those who vote Liberal. This kind of divisive statement continues to cement the fact that the government cares only about those who might be valuable to them when the next election rolls around. The Prime Minister has created two classes of Canadians: those who pay the carbon tax and those who do not.
Canadians deserve a government that does the work for the people who do the work in this country, and that includes our farmers, their families and all those who pay taxes and contribute to our economy. Canadians do not want gimmicks or temporary measures.
With that said, it is time for a change. It is time to stop taking money out of Canadians' pockets in the midst of an unprecedented cost of living crisis. It is time for a new Conservative government to bring it home for all Canadians.
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- Dec/7/23 4:17:30 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, what I do know, from growing up on a large farm and ranch in my youth, is that farmers and ranchers are the most amazing stewards of our land. I have witnessed it first-hand. I see it now as I travel in my riding. I see the thousands of people who make their living off the farm. They know that if we do not take care of the land, it will not take care of us.
The complaints I am getting from people are not that they are concerned about some of the things my hon. colleague mentioned. What they are concerned about is that their costs are so exorbitant that they can no longer afford to stay in business. That is directly related to the carbon tax.
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- Dec/7/23 5:03:43 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, what we are debating here today makes it clear that the Conservative Party is the only clear choice for Canadians to take the tax off farmers, first nations and families who heat their homes. That is what we are trying to do here today. It is shameful that the NDP and Liberals are against that.
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- Dec/7/23 5:04:48 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, it is hard to take lessons from the Greens, the NDP or the Liberals when they supported Loblaws getting $17 million for brand new freezers and fridges. They talk about corporations, but then they want to subsidize the ones they prefer. This is about taking the tax off families, first nations and farmers and no longer leaving Canadians out in the cold.
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- Dec/7/23 5:08:19 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I am honoured to rise today, especially to speak on behalf of farmers, first nations and families.
The members of the Liberal-NDP government are completely out of touch with the real needs of Canadians. Their blind, ideological obsession has increased the price of groceries for a family of four by over $700, bringing the total family cost to over $16,000.
Ontario first nations are seeking a judicial review of the federal government's carbon pricing regime, arguing that Ottawa's pollution pricing policy unjustly and disproportionately burdens their communities.
Farmers continue to be handcuffed by an embedded carbon tax on farm inputs that unfairly affects their bottom line and affects their competitiveness within the global agricultural market. Farming and farmers across this country have unique obstacles through which they must navigate. Those farmers who do not face competition from foreign food suppliers tend to be able to pass some of the added expenses onto the consumer but costs like fuel, fertilizer, herbicides, seed, labour, transportation, capital costs, interest and property taxes cause many sleepless nights for farmers. Another item that many businesses would factor in is profit; however, that is never guaranteed in farming.
While we are discussing competitiveness, if we look to our friends in Australia, who have axed the tax in favour of a direct action policy, where investment dollars are available, the competitiveness is creating new technology and achieving targets without taxing citizens and businesses. Canadian farmers, first nations, and small and medium-sized businesses in Canada are grappling with a competitiveness problem because of these restrictive and harmful Liberal-NDP coalition policies. We see this competitive disadvantage compared to our international allies that do not have a carbon tax, like the United States. We see Canadian companies that have developed clean technology or telecommunications achievements leaving Canada because they cannot gain funding to scale business for American investors who are backed by more flexible government policies.
Canadian competitiveness is also hampered by the government's lack of cohesive policies to counter China and the supply chain issue. We have heard over and over how the Liberal-NDP coalition believes Canada needs to produce domestic critical minerals, but the action lags behind their desire in this area. We are ever more reliant on China and its network of critical mineral mines around the world to produce things like EV batteries.
We are seeing the highest level of food bank use. We are seeing food report after food report showing grocery prices on the rise. The increasing input costs for products, global events and rising production costs have contributed to these price increases.
Something that I want to come back to is the fact that first nations in Ontario are seeking a judicial review of the Liberal-NDP carbon pricing regime. They disclosed in court documents the adverse effect that carbon taxes had on their communities. In a Globe and Mail article, they noted that the carbon price violates the principles of reconciliation and their constitutional rights. They also disclosed that they tried to negotiate with the coalition government. Why were they not able to reach an agreement? It is no secret that the carbon price rebate is tied to one's income. As the Ontario chiefs noted, “many First Nations members living on reserves do not pay income tax and cannot access the rebates”. That is another example of the coalition government developing policy that is restrictive and built in a box, instead of something that is adaptive and that would consider the challenges that first nations face on reserve.
There is a pan-Canadian ripple effect of the carbon pricing regime the Liberal-NDP coalition is pushing. The cost is downloaded onto consumers, products and services, but now the government wants Canadians to dig a little deeper and really give up their last red cent. These destructive policies are having a profound impact on Canadians' ability to balance their budget, make ends meet and put food on their tables.
Coming back to the food price report released today, it paints a bleak picture of struggling Canadians. Food costs will rise anywhere from 2.5% to 4.5% this year. The average family of four is expected to spend $16,297 on groceries in 2024. Canadians are reducing the amount they are spending on groceries. Between 2022 and 2023, Canadians reduced the amount they spent in food and beverage retail by 3.26%. The reason is they have a lot of other bills they have to pay. Canadians are being forced to supplement or totally use food banks, and the government has failed to realize that its destructive policies directly impact the struggles of Canadians, first nations and farmers.
Speaking of farmers, right now I am farmer and have a lot experience in this regard. I am very concerned about what happened in the Senate, as we know that farmers feed communities and provide the commodities we need to advance our food security at times when they are needed.
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- Dec/7/23 6:23:49 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, if you seek it I believe you may find support for the following motion: That the House call upon the government to take the carbon tax off farmers—
Some hon. members: No.
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- Dec/7/23 7:15:09 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I just checked and it seems that the carbon tax still applies to farmers and families. I am therefore going to request a recorded division.
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- Dec/7/23 11:18:49 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I could not help but notice that this is a vote that is really important to Canadian farmers. Surely, there would not be a member of Parliament who would not vote for our Canadian farmers.
I would ask that we have a recorded division.
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- Dec/7/23 11:31:59 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, as the NDP's agriculture critic, and because I want to give all MPs a second chance to demonstrate their support for our hard-working farmers, I request a recorded vote.
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- Dec/7/23 11:44:44 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to give everyone a third chance to demonstrate their support for our farmers, so I would like to request a recorded vote.
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- Dec/8/23 1:48:30 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I had a good look and I see that the carbon tax still applies to farmers and families. For that reason, I request a recorded division.
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