Senator Plett: Obviously, you’ve gone to the same school of economics as Justin Trudeau. The budget doesn’t balance itself, even if you and he believe that it does.

Leader, I will put this on the record because it is important. Liberal MP Ken MacDonald said that a constituent called him and said that she could no longer afford home heating oil. She said:

I go around my house with a blanket wrapped around me. The only time I get to have beef or chicken is if my niece or nephew invites me out to Sunday dinner.

Senator Gold, this is as a result of your regressive carbon tax. The MP tells this story to everyone he meets in the Trudeau government. He said:

At first, some people said to me, like, there’s nobody living like that . . . And I said, “If you don’t think people are living like that, you’re not living in the real world.”

I would suggest that to you and to the Prime Minister as well, Senator Gold: If you don’t believe that people are living like that because of this, you are not living in the real world.

Leader, I agree; the Prime Minister is not living in the real world. A year ago, 39 members of his cabinet spent over $46,000 on catering for a three-day trip to discuss affordability — $46,000 to discuss affordability. Is that an example of living in the real world, Senator Gold; yes or no?