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Mr. Kevin Lamoureux (Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons, Lib.)

May/6/24 1:30:01 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I am curious as to the member's thoughts on the pharmacare proposal that is within. I think that seniors, no matter what area of the country they are in, particularly those with diabetes, would recognize that having national pharmacare is a very strong, positive thing, just on that point alone. Does the Bloc support Canada providing pharmacare coverage and recognize that at least we are moving in the right direction?

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Ms. Louise Chabot

May/6/24 1:30:36 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I would like to lob that question back at the parliamentary secretary and ask him if the Liberals really intend to implement universal pharmacare across the country. It just does not make sense. It is not that universal pharmacare does not make sense. It is that it does not fit into a context where Quebec already has a pharmacare program that covers thousands of drugs. It makes no sense to impose such a program without the right to opt out with full compensation in an area that is under Quebec's jurisdiction. Quebec even questions why this program only covers diabetes and contraceptives. The government is not following through on its commitment. I have a feeling these meddling federal policies will continue for a long time to come. They may suit the rest of Canada, but they in no way meet the needs and interests of Quebec, which already has its own system. Yes, it needs some improvements, but not with federal conditions.

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Mr. Alexandre Boulerice (Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie, NDP)

May/6/24 1:31:51 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I am going to talk about pharmacare too. It interests me because the Hoskins report made it very clear that the best way to control and reduce drug costs for everyone is to have universal public pharmacare. The Quebec system is a hybrid system that was cutting-edge at the time. Today, however, even Dr. Rochon, the person who instituted the system, says that it is time to finish the job and adopt a universal public system. Yes, Quebec must be given the right to opt out with compensation. We support that and agree on it. However, this universal pharmacare plan would be the best thing for Quebeckers, for patients, for businesses and for hospitals. It is something that the Fédération des travailleurs et travailleuses du Québec, the Confédération des syndicats nationaux, the Centrale des syndicats du Québec and the Union des consommateurs du Québec are all calling for.

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Ms. Louise Chabot

May/6/24 1:32:35 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, it is no surprise to me that these major labour organizations are calling for this, because I used to work for them. We fought for universal pharmacare for over 20 years. That struggle is what led to the system we currently have in Quebec. Our hybrid system is not perfect and could be improved. I believe that people want to continue with it. I am very pleased to hear for the first time that the NDP agrees with us about the right to opt out with full compensation, because neither the bill we are studying nor the agreement to keep the government in power mentions this condition.

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Mr. Richard Lehoux (Beauce, CPC)

May/6/24 1:33:26 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, at the end of her speech, my colleague talked about creating two classes of seniors. I would like her to elaborate on this topic because we have discussed it a number of times in the House. What is her opinion on the matter? I understand that she is calling for changes to old age security, but maybe there would be no need to ask if the government just decided to take action. We thought this would be in the budget, but it is still not there.

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Ms. Louise Chabot

May/6/24 1:33:58 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-319

Madam Speaker, my colleague from Shefford's Bill C-319 is currently at committee stage. We in the Bloc Québécois want just and equitable social safety nets. That is why we are calling on Ottawa to strengthen its own social safety net programs. As far as old age security is concerned, Canada is currently faring poorly among the OECD countries. Moreover, the federal government has seen fit to increase old age security by 10% for people 75 years and over, excluding those who qualify for OAS upon turning 65. Those seniors are getting no support and no increase. That is a disgrace.

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Mr. Don Davies (Vancouver Kingsway, NDP)

May/6/24 1:35:09 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, before I start my speech, I seek unanimous consent to split my time with the hon. member for Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie.

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Split
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The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Alexandra Mendès)

May/6/24 1:35:15 p.m.
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Does the hon. member have unanimous consent to split his time? Some hon. members: Agreed.

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Mr. Don Davies

May/6/24 1:35:20 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-69

Madam Speaker, millions of Canadians are really struggling right now. The cost of living is up dramatically. It is getting much harder to pay rent, to pay a mortgage, to buy food and to pay bills. This has gone on for several years now for many Canadian families, and I think it is fair to say that communities across Canada are really feeling the toll of the economic difficulty facing this country. However, big corporations and the ultra rich are doing better than ever. They are making record profits, often by gouging Canadians with sky-high prices. Even with corporate profits soaring, the investments in Canadian workers and in the Canadian economy are declining. Major shareholders and top executives are reaping enormous benefits, while the promised trickle-down to workers, communities and consumers, promised by the right to North Americans around the world since the beginning of the century, is as illusory as it has ever been. New Democrats recognize these facts. That is why we are using our power in this minority Parliament to deliver results for people. In the 2024 budget alone, New Democrats have compelled the government to do the following: to build more homes, to preserve existing affordable housing and to protect renters; to bring in universal, single-payer pharmacare, starting with contraception and diabetes medications and devices; to establish a national school food program; to reverse damaging cuts to indigenous services; to invest in accessible, high-quality, non-profit child care; to establish a dedicated youth mental health fund; to double the volunteer firefighter tax credit and the search and rescue volunteer tax credit; and to take the first step toward tax fairness in this country by making wealthy Canadians pay a bit more on their capital gains profits. It is funny that while I have been speaking, I have heard nothing but catcalls from the Conservatives, who have opposed every single one of the points I just mentioned. That gives people a flash into what a Conservative government might do for Canadians. I think it is quite clear that it would reverse every one of those measures. While these achievements illustrate, in part, what a New Democrat government could accomplish, the 2024 budget does not fully reflect our party's vision. This is not an NDP budget, but it was a budget that we were able to influence in a minority Parliament. Likewise, Bill C-69, the bill under consideration in the House, the budget implementation act, 2024, No. 1, includes many of those positive measures that the NDP was able to compel the Liberal government to implement. However, we acknowledge that the legislation has several and significant shortcomings. In our view, there is much more the federal government can and should be doing to make this easier for people and to provide opportunities for the generations to come. For our part, New Democrats will not stop working to deliver results for people. I want to cover some positive aspects of Bill C-69 because we have indicated that we intend to support this legislation. First, it would launch the new national school food program. This program would be in place as early as the 2024-25 school year and would help over 400,000 children access the food they need to grow healthy and to learn. This would be an important first step toward establishing a national school food program or national standards. This is a critical gap felt strongly in a time of sky-rocketing food prices. Across Canada, the reality is that nearly one in four children do not get enough food, and more than one-third of food bank users are children. According to Children First Canada, there has been a 29% increase in food insecurity for children in the last year alone. A national school food program not only would give students in Canada access to nutritious food, but also would make healthy eating a daily lesson for our kids. By integrating lessons on food growing, nutrition, preparation and cultivation into established curricula, a national school food program can encourage children to adopt lifelong healthy eating habits. We know, from international best practices, that all children benefit from universal school food programs, not just children from low-income households. Countries with a national school food program have documented better academic performance, improved short- and long-term health for children, help for family budgets and improved efficiency in the health care system. Bill C-69 also includes measures that would make housing more affordable in a few ways. It would enhance the home buyers' plan by increasing the withdrawal limit from $35,000 to $60,000 and would temporarily add three years to the grace period before repayments to an RRSP were required. Bill C-69 would start to crack down on short-term rentals to unlock more homes for Canadians to live in by denying income tax deductions on income earned from short-term rentals that do not comply with provincial or local restrictions. It would ban foreign buyers of Canadian homes for an additional two years, until January 1, 2027, to ensure homes are used for Canadians to live in and not as a speculative asset class for foreign investors. Bill C-69 also includes measures that would make life more affordable Canadians in other ways. It would make it easier to find better deals on Internet, home phone and cellphone plans by amending the Telecommunications Act to better allow Canadians to renew or to switch between plans and to increase consumer choice to help them find a deal that works best for them. We know that Internet and cell services are now core staple utilities for Canadians, and Canadians pay among the highest prices in the world. This happened under the current Liberal government, and it happened under the previous Conservative government. New Democrats know we have to drive those prices down for Canadians to meaningfully participate in work-at-home life. It would crack down on predatory lending by strengthening enforcement against criminal rates of interest to help protect the most vulnerable Canadians from harmful illegal lenders. It would make it easier to save for our children's education by introducing an automatic enrolment in the Canada learning bond to ensure all low-income families receive the support they need for their children's futures. It also includes measures that would support workers. Bill C-69 would protect gig workers by strengthening prohibitions against employee misclassification in federally regulated industries. It would establish a right to disconnect to help restore the work-life balance for workers in federally regulated industries. It would extend additional weeks of employment insurance for seasonal workers in 13 targeted regions until October 2026. It would advance employee ownership trusts to enable employees to share in the success of their work by encouraging more businesses to sell to an employee ownership trust. Bill C-69 would deliver two major investment tax credits to help build a more sustainable future, and those are the 30% clean technology manufacturing investment tax credit and the up to 40% clean hydrogen investment tax credit. I sat in the Standing Committee on Finance, where I heard from businesses across this country that cannot wait to get these tax credits in place so that they start to make the investment in sustainable forms of energy that not only would create the jobs of the future but also would help Canada meet our carbon reduction targets. I have already mentioned that Bill C-69 would provide support for volunteer first responders and the care economy workers in rural and remote communities. It would do this in a couple of ways. It would expand the Canada student loan forgiveness program to pharmacists, dentists, dental hygienists, midwives, early childhood educators, teachers, social workers, personal support workers, physiotherapists and psychologists who choose to work in rural and remote communities. This would build on existing loan forgiveness for doctors and nurses. We all know our rural and remote areas probably feel the pinch of a health care system that is not providing fast enough or good enough service, and it is important this budget recognizes that and takes some steps toward addressing it. I want to talk for just a moment about the Canada disability benefit because I mentioned that this bill has some serious deficiencies. In my mind, this is one of the most major ones. Despite its plan announced earlier to provide a maximum benefit to people living with disabilities to lift them out of poverty, which is the claim and the goal, which the NDP agrees with, the Liberal government decided to back that up by giving those Canadians $200 a month. One does not need to be an economist to know that it does not come anywhere near to lifting anybody out of poverty, but frankly, it is almost an insult. At present, a single adult with a disability will live below the poverty line if they receive funding from any of the provincial programs across Canada, and an additional $200 a month is not enough to bring them even to the poverty line. There are over a million and a half Canadians living with disabilities who live in poverty in this country, yet this plan would also have a restrictive eligibility requirement that would limit access to, at most, an estimated 600,000 people. We are deeply disappointed to see that broken promise, and we will continue to fight for Canadians living with disabilities. We know they need sufficient income in this country not only to let them get out of poverty but also to meaningfully participate and to live enriched lives, where they can contribute as fully as they can. It is not only good for them, but also good for communities and our economy as well.

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Hon. Bardish Chagger (Waterloo, Lib.)

May/6/24 1:45:21 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I appreciate the comments the hon. member shared. The budget document is a massive document. Working together to find some elements within that document that we can agree on, I think, is a way to move forward as a country. I would like to hear the member re-echo what some programs are that he supports, and should the Conservative Party be elected, which I hope it is not, what could be undone or possibly taken away from Canadians. Does he agree that all levels of government need to work together? I know he comes from the province of British Columbia. I do not know the politics of British Columbia, but I can say that in the province of Ontario, every time the federal government tries to provide supports for people to make their lives better, the provincial Conservative government tends to claw back the supports at their level, which actually does not move Canadians ahead. I would like to hear about their experience versus what we see in Ontario.

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Mr. Don Davies

May/6/24 1:46:28 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-69

Madam Speaker, dealing with the last question first, I think a critical part of the Canada disability benefit is that we ensure all provinces and territories come to an agreement with the federal government whereby any additional funds the federal government is providing to people living with disabilities is not clawed back. If that were to happen then people living with disabilities would not receive any benefit at all. That is a critical component for success. In terms of additional aspects of the budget, which is over 600 pages long, I would point out that Bill C-69 would provide support for small and medium-sized businesses by returning over $2.5 billion in proceeds from the price on pollution to an estimated 600,000 small and medium-sized businesses through an accelerated and automated return process. Rebates would also be provided every year going forward. That is a positive step. Small businesses are the engine of our economy, and many of them are suffering. The extension of that carbon tax rebate, in the billions of dollars, to small and medium-sized businesses would be an important reason, I think, to support this budget and one that I would be interested in hearing my Conservative colleagues' reasoning as to why they would oppose that.

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Ms. Marilyn Gladu (Sarnia—Lambton, CPC)

May/6/24 1:47:45 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I agree with the member opposite that it was very disappointing to see what happened with the Canada disability benefit. It certainly was not what the community was asking for. Would he not also agree that everything else the Liberals are delivering is disappointing, including $10-a-day child care with fewer child care spots than existed before, a dental care program with no dentists subscribed, and a pharmacare program that does not even exist and might end up having two drugs in it? Is it really worth carrying the water for the Liberal government for the last nine years?

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Mr. Don Davies

May/6/24 1:48:22 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, the NDP has been championing public, affordable, accessible child care for decades. While I agree that there are not enough spots being created, I have seen more created in the last six years than I ever saw created under any Conservative government. That is for sure. I do not really understand the premise of my hon. colleague's last question when she said that dental care does not exist. I read stories over the weekend and saw pictures of seniors who had been to the dentist and were showing copies of their bills that were paid for by the Canada dental care program. I do not know what she means about dentists not signing up. The last I heard was that 6,500 dentists across this country have signed up and, frankly, there is no more requirement to sign up for the program. Dentists can just automatically enrol in the program by billing their first customer. The NDP fought for nine million Canadians, during this Parliament, to be able to go to the dentist for the first time. To us, dental care is primary health care. Every Canadian should have the right to get their oral health needs met, regardless of their ability to pay. At the end of this Parliament, we will be able to go to Canadians on their doorsteps and tell them how the NDP helped to get dental care for nine million Canadians. I am going to tell them that the Conservatives voted against dental care, that they thought it was a bad idea and that they will take it away from them. That is not illusory.

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Mr. Denis Trudel (Longueuil—Saint-Hubert, BQ)

May/6/24 1:49:43 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I basically agree with my colleague that times are hard for many people in Canada, Quebec and elsewhere right now. Let us talk about housing. It is true that this issue is the focus of the budget. However, the problem is the federal government's approach. It is interfering in provincial jurisdictions. Housing is not a federal jurisdiction and never has been. Nevertheless, the government is creating more programs. It will have to negotiate with Quebec, and that process is going to drag on. When the government introduced the big national housing strategy, it took three years for Quebec to see a single penny. As for the housing accelerator fund, it took two years for a single project to be announced in Quebec. All of that is going to slow down the projects, when we need housing to be built immediately. Why is the NDP supporting a budget that is basically only going to delay—

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The Assistant Deputy Speaker

May/6/24 1:50:29 p.m.
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I need to give the hon. member for Vancouver Kingsway a little time to answer. The hon. member for Vancouver Kingsway.

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Mr. Don Davies

May/6/24 1:50:36 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, housing is in crisis in this country. Canadians in every community, including in the province of Quebec, cannot find affordable housing to buy or to rent. In my view, it takes all levels of government working on this problem. We cannot solve the problem by leaving the federal government, which has the deepest pockets in this country, out of it. The feds, the provinces and the municipalities have to work together. It is the only way we are going to make progress.

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Mr. Alexandre Boulerice (Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie, NDP)

May/6/24 1:51:09 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, first of all, I am deeply concerned about what is happening right now in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip, where the bombing seems to have resumed. The Israeli army seems to have asked tens of thousands of people to seek shelter elsewhere, even though they are are already refugees within the Gaza Strip and keep being told to move. It is a forced displacement of the population. That is extremely worrisome. The city's only public hospital is located on the east side of Rafah, which people are being asked to leave. I think we need to look at the scope of what is going on over there. I just read that the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights has called this forced relocation order “inhumane”. We have to be watchful and pay close attention today to what has been going on there for the past six months. After the last federal election, we ended up with another minority government in Ottawa. Wanting to play a constructive role, the NDP caucus agreed to enter into talks and negotiations to see if we could secure things that neither the Liberals nor the Conservatives would agree to in the past, hence our imperfect but historic agreement to support the Liberal government in exchange for programs and measures that will provide meaningful help to workers and their families, seniors, patients, students and others. The latest budget is far from being an NDP budget, but it does reflect the NDP's influence in this Parliament and the use of our leverage to get tangible results and make a difference in people's lives. We are not in politics just to make speeches and to have photo ops. We are also here to provide meaningful help to people who really need it and to improve the living and working conditions of the people we represent in our ridings. I will get to my criticisms later, but there are some good things in this budget, things that we in the NDP forced the Liberals to deliver, things that past governments had never agreed to. The dental care program is one example. This program came into effect last week, on May 1 to be exact, for the oldest seniors who registered in December and January. It is going to make a huge difference in people's lives. In Quebec alone, four million Quebeckers do not have public or private dental coverage. What the NDP fought for will help those folks in a meaningful way. The Department of Finance estimates that a senior couple could save roughly $2,600 as a result. A family with two children could save just over $1,800, or nearly $2,000. Having 80% or 90%, or even more, of a dental bill covered has a big impact on someone's budget. Some people have avoided going to the dentist for years because they cannot afford it. Things are about to change. Will the program work beautifully, and is it perfect? No, adjustments will have to be made. We will have to find a balance. That said, I am convinced that it will be of real benefit to families, middle-class people and the most disadvantaged, particularly at a time when the cost of living is rising everywhere, and housing and groceries are becoming more and more expensive. Being reimbursed for almost all dental care will be a game-changer for many people. I am very proud of that. I encourage everyone to sign up, especially dentists. What is more, there will be a new system that I think will make payment even easier. This program is directly related to the work of the NDP caucus. It was a campaign promise. We promised that we would come to Ottawa to fight for that, and we did. We got results. Today, I am very pleased to say that we kept our promise, and we also took an extremely important first step on pharmacare through the budget. All the reports and studies tell us that a universal public pharmacare program is the best way to reduce or control the cost of drugs. The strange thing is that Canada is the only country in the world that has universal public health care but no pharmacare. For years, we have witnessed drug prices spiral out of control while people go without the drugs they need and end up sicker than ever. As their condition grows worse, they end up in emergency rooms, which places our health care system under additional stress and strain. Yes, Quebec has its own pharmacare program and retains the right to opt out of the federal pharmacare program with compensation. However, there are limits to Quebec's system, which is a hybrid public-private program that strongly encourages supplemental insurance plans that are negotiated by the unions when employment contracts are renewed. A large part of the money that is used to cover the increased cost of drugs, which is out of control, could be used to enhance things like wages or pension benefits. Even Dr. Jean Rochon, the person who established Quebec's pharmacare system, says that the program was a major step forward 30 years ago but that now we can see all of the flaws and that is it time to finish the job. Finishing the job means implementing a universal public pharmacare program. The most recent budget lays the groundwork for the discussions that will take place with the provinces. It also sets out specific measures, such as $1.5 billion to help 3.7 million people with diabetes, who will have access to medication or equipment in a few months, once the discussions have wrapped up. Nine million women across the country will also have access to contraceptives. That is huge. I urge the Government of Quebec to listen and be open to dialogue so that Quebeckers can benefit from this progress and this offer. It would be a real shame if, for ideological reasons, women in Gatineau could not get access to contraceptives while women in Ottawa could. I think that would be a real shame, especially when civil society groups in Quebec are calling for this. Every major union agrees with this. The FTQ, the CSN, the CSQ and the Union des consommateurs du Québec unanimously agree that this is the path to take, as stated in the Hoskins reports. That is pretty significant. This budget also contains something that we asked for and that Quebec and others have been asking for for years, namely a school food program. Schools are a provincial jurisdiction, obviously. However, federal money can be used to buy meals, snacks or lunches for children who go to school on an empty stomach and who need energy so they can get through the day, pay attention in class and get good grades. These are determinants of academic success. I do not know if anyone else remembers them, but I remember the little milk cartons we used to get at school when I was a kid. I think it is important for kids to have access to this kind of food. The folks responsible for the health of our children in schools were also calling for this. For years, the Breakfast Club has been asking for this kind of program and for federal money to be allocated. I am glad we managed to get it done. This budget also increases scholarship amounts for people enrolled in higher education, scholarships that have been frozen for 20 years but have finally just been increased. The budget also includes a plan to use federal lands to build truly affordable housing, something the NDP had called for, as well as an acquisition fund to purchase land for non-market housing, another request from the NDP. There is also a new $1‑billion fund to build truly affordable housing. There are a number of worthwhile measures. I see that my time is running out, but I have to add that there are some seriously disappointing things about this budget, including the disability benefit, which will provide only $200 a month. That is totally inadequate and will not lift people out of poverty. We could also talk about indigenous infrastructure and indigenous housing, both areas where the federal government needs to do a lot more.

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Mr. Chandra Arya (Nepean, Lib.)

May/6/24 2:00:25 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I was pleased to attend the ribbon-cutting ceremony at the new Salvation Army’s Barrhaven Church and Community Centre. This is a great addition to our Nepean community. The Salvation Army is a social services organization that responds to disasters, feeds the homeless and runs thrift stores. As a local branch of the Salvation Army, the Barrhaven Church and Community Centre aims to bring help, hope and salvation to everyone without discrimination. The church is a place to build relationships with people who care, a place to belong to a community of faith and a place to become a person of purpose. The people of Nepean and I are glad to finally see this wonderful facility built after many years of delays due to red tape.

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Ms. Marilyn Gladu (Sarnia—Lambton, CPC)

May/6/24 2:01:18 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, today is May 6. Exactly two years ago to the day, at a David Wilcox concert, I met the love of my life, my husband Paul. He is wonderfully intelligent, wonderfully humorous, wonderfully loving and wonderfully tall. From the day we met, he has brought joy to my life and has renewed my enthusiasm for doing this difficult job, from which I was considering retiring. He has restored again my pride in being the member for Sarnia—Lambton and has encouraged me and stood by me every step of the way. He has put the sparkle back in my eyes, a spring in my step and made me even smilier than before, if that is even possible. We share a love for God, family and music. Today, I want to thank him for his love and say how much I look forward to doing life together. Happy anniversary, my darling.

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Mr. Randeep Sarai (Surrey Centre, Lib.)

May/6/24 2:02:28 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, today is a special day on the Hill as we mark Dr. Ambedkar Equality Day and day of jayanti. Widely regarded as the father of the Indian Constitution, Dr. Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar was an Indian jurist, economist, social reformer and political leader. A champion of civil rights, Dr. Ambedkar’s vision for a free India was simple. He wanted equality for all, irrespective of caste, gender or religion. He carried these values and goals with him as he wrote India’s Constitution, became India’s first minister of law and resigned from government when the Indian cabinet and Parliament refused to support crucial civil rights reforms. Today, as we welcome guests to Ottawa from across Canada, including the Chetna Association of Canada from Surrey and the Ravidass Sabha from Burnaby, to celebrate Dr. Ambedkar Equality Day, it is an honour to recognize his long-lasting legacy and praise those who continue his work in India and abroad.

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