SoVote

Context: House Hansard - 271 - Jan/30/24

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

Jan/30/24 2:33:37 p.m.
Watch
Re: Bill C-234

Mr. Speaker, we will take no lessons from these austerity Conservatives when it comes to supporting the most vulnerable Canadians. Since we formed government, 2.3 million Canadians have been lifted out of poverty, and the poverty rate has fallen from 14.5% when they were in government to 7.4%. The Conservatives want to cut child care and dental care. That MP from Alberta wants to cut the $1,500 Alberta families are getting from the price on pollution.

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All Topics

Context: House Hansard - 271 - Jan/30/24

Ms. Sylvie Bérubé (Abitibi—Baie-James—Nunavik—Eeyou, BQ)

Jan/30/24 4:33:18 p.m.
Watch
Re: Bill C-59

Madam Speaker, housing has been a hot topic because it is clearly a need throughout Quebec and Canada. I was recently in Kuujjuaq. Poverty is rampant and the housing index is very low. Three or four families may end up having to live together. They are experiencing the unthinkable right now, and it is happening throughout Quebec. Another hot topic has been the workforce. There are no incentives to get people back to work, either seniors or people who want to work. The cost of living is another hot topic. What is this government doing about these issues with its bill?

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Context: House Hansard - 271 - Jan/30/24

Ms. Leah Gazan (Winnipeg Centre, NDP)

Jan/30/24 5:06:14 p.m.
Watch
Re: Bill C-59

Madam Speaker, I have such a good time working with the member on committee. What I have heard from the Conservative leader is that he plans to cut the CPP. That would place seniors in greater poverty. My question is in regard to a guaranteed livable basic income, particularly for women. We know a lot of women work their whole lives in unpaid care work, and they are now becoming seniors living in destitute poverty. We know GIS rates are not keeping up. Would my hon. colleague support a guaranteed livable income for seniors?

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Context: House Hansard - 271 - Jan/30/24

Mr. Mike Morrice (Kitchener Centre, GP)

Jan/30/24 6:29:50 p.m.
Watch

Mr. Speaker, with Parliament back this week, I am glad to rise tonight to continue pushing the government to end legislated poverty for people with disabilities and, as a significant step in this direction, to adequately fund and properly implement the Canada disability benefit with urgency. Sadly, while the Canada Disability Benefit Act was passed last June, no money has yet been set aside for the benefit. It continues to be the case to this day that 40% of those living in poverty across the country are people with disabilities. Tonight I will focus on following up on a specific concern about how the Canada disability benefit is being designed. Here is the story: As many Canadians know, nearly every important decision about the benefit, from who is eligible to how much it is going to be, is being left to regulations that are now being drafted. Late last year, though, I began to hear from organizations that serve the disability community about how the Department of Finance is considering determining eligibility through the incredibly burdensome application for the disability tax credit. When I say “burdensome”, I mean that it is one of the most difficult government programs for a person to qualify for. People qualify by submitting a T2201 form, a 16-page form that applicants need to have their doctors complete 15 pages of. A recent report from the Kids Brain Health Network, in collaboration with researchers from the Disability Policy Research Program and McGill University, breaks down how bad it is. First, long delays in processing applications and inconsistent knowledge of staff lead to rejections that are often viewed as arbitrary. Second, difficulties with the T2201 application form, including that it lacks clear instructions and criteria, often lead to requests for additional instructions and information and even specific wording being required for approval. Third, doctors' level of knowledge about the form itself and their level of tenacity to reapply will affect the extent to which the applicant may or may not be successful. Fourth, there is a constant need to reapply, including when recipients have lifelong conditions. As a result, there is an entire industry of disability tax credit consultants set up to charge people with disabilities simply to apply for the credit. We should not even be having this conversation. I thought we had already solved this issue. Back when the Canada Disability Benefit Act was at committee, out of the nine amendments that got through, my team and I were successful in passing five amendments to improve the bill. One of these addressed this very issue. It changed the bill to say the following: “The Governor in Council may make regulations...respecting applications for a benefit, including regulations providing for an application process that is without barriers, as defined in section 2 of the Accessible Canada Act”. When I proposed the amendment, I gave the example of a person with a disability who has already qualified for a program when completing their taxes, as is the case for many other benefits. This is why I asked the minister in December if the government would just follow the law that is now passed. She did not answer me at the time, so I am going to ask again tonight. The Canada Disability Benefit Act requires the Canada disability benefit to be barrier-free. However, it is clear that the disability tax credit is full of barriers. Therefore, will the parliamentary secretary now commit to the government following the law and developing the regulations to ensure that the Canada disability benefit is barrier-free?

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