Joe Oliver

[Business of Supply, May 14th, 2014]

Mr. Chair, I am happy to report that Canadians are better off by over 10%, and poorer Canadians by 14% than in the previous 10-year period.

Canadians have enjoyed the strongest income growth in the G7. Canada is the only G7 country to have fully recovered business investment lost during the recession.

From an intergenerational perspective, mobility for Canadians is greater than in many of the other countries that we compare ourselves to. Canada, with half the debt-to-GDP ratio of the major industrial countries, is in a very strong position to do better for Canadians.

[Business of Supply, May 14th, 2014]

Mr. Chair, we understand that small business is a cornerstone of our economy, creating jobs that support families in all our communities.

That is why we introduced a three-year freeze on EI rates. That will leave $660 million in the pockets of job creators and workers this year alone.

What is more, beginning in 2017, premiums will be set according to a seven-year break-even rate. This will ensure that premium revenues are no higher than the actual costs of the EI program.

[Business of Supply, May 14th, 2014]

Mr. Chair, Canadians simply cannot afford to pay higher CPP payroll taxes, especially during a fragile economic recovery. That is why we have brought forward pension income splitting, pooled registered retirement plans, and tax-free savings accounts and launched extensive consultations on a new target benefit retirement plan.

The result of all of this is that poor seniors represent a smaller proportion of the population than poor Canadians overall.

[Business of Supply, May 14th, 2014]

—increasing the age of—

[Business of Supply, May 14th, 2014]

Mr. Chair, our government understands the importance of a secure and dignified retirement for people who have worked so hard to build this country. We have lowered taxes and brought forward new incentives for Canadians to save for retirement, including pension income splitting for seniors, pooled registered pension plans, and tax-free savings accounts, and launched consultations on a new target benefit pension plan.

Since 2008, about $2.8 billion in annual tax relief has been provided to seniors and pensioners, including increasing the age credit, the pension income credit—

[Business of Supply, May 14th, 2014]

Mr. Chair, economic action plan 2014 reinforces Canada's economic strength with new support for research and innovation, totalling more than $1.6 billion over the next five years. The government plays an important role in Canada's science, technology and innovation system. Since 2006, the government has provided more than $11 billion in new resources to support basic and applied research, talent development, research infrastructure and innovative activities in the private sector, including more effectively aligning federal support for research with business needs.

To be successful in the highly competitive global economy, Canada must continue to improve its ability to develop high quality, talented people to perform world-class research and generating new breakthrough ideas.

The government has increased support for these activities in each year since 2006, even during the global recession. In 2013, this support exceeded $3 billion for research and post-secondary education alone.

Economic action plan 2014 builds on these commitments with the creation of the new Canada first research excellence fund. The fund, which is based on the principles of openness, excellence and peer review, will provide what many in the research community have asked for in recent years: significant, flexible resources to further drive Canada's post-secondary research institutions to become the world's best.

Let me quote the president of McMaster University, who said:

It’s an exceptional government investment...Countries that have made extraordinary leaps in research and innovation have made these types of landmark investments. For Canada to now have this type of support from the government will allow our country to compete and collaborate at the highest levels.

Canada has a rich research tradition that has been boosted by the significant investments our government has made since 2006. Our government's investments in science, technology and innovation have helped ensure Canada leads the G7 in post-secondary research expenditures as a share of the economy, and our commitment remains strong.

In economic action plan 2014 alone, we announced the largest annual increase in funding for research through the granting councils in over a decade. This includes $46 million a year on an ongoing basis.

The investments we have included in this year's budget will promote Canada's economic advantage both now and for many years to come. This is where our government and the Liberal Party differ. Where our government makes wise, strategic and targeted investments that will lead to greater prosperity for Canadians, the Liberal leader threatens unrestricted higher spending.

As both the member for Edmonton—Leduc and I have noted, on budget day this year there were numerous universities and other educational institutions that affirmed their support. At the exact same time, the leader of the Liberal Party was live on television saying the exact opposite. Instead of supporting the road to balanced books, he attempted to persuade Canadians that the budget would somehow balance itself. In my many years working in the finance sector, I must say this is a first. I have never heard that budgets can magically balance themselves.

Despite the Liberal leader's new philosophy, we remain on track to balancing the budget in 2015, while continuing to make important investments to attract, educate and train the world's top research talent. We believe that with the initiatives we announced this year and all our budgets that came before it, Canadian visionaries and entrepreneurs will have all the support they will need to be world leaders.

[Business of Supply, May 14th, 2014]

Mr. Chair, I do not have the cost of traffic jams in Toronto, but we will hear it from the hon. member, perhaps.

[Business of Supply, May 14th, 2014]

Mr. Chair, as I said, in 2013 we announced a new building Canada plan, which is a $53-billion investment. Our government has supported an additional 30,000 infrastructure projects through the stimulus phase of the economic action plan. We have provided increased and ongoing support through the gas tax fund by doubling its size to $2 billion a year, making it permanent, and indexing it at 2% per year.

We have provided over $9 billion to first nations communities to build, operate, maintain, and renovate community infrastructure on reserves and $1.7 billion annually for close to 600,000 households on and off reserves across Canada.

Because I do not have enough time, I cannot list all the additional programs.

[Business of Supply, May 14th, 2014]

Mr. Chair, the infrastructure invested in in Canada creates jobs, promotes economic growth, and provides a high quality of life for families in every city and community across the country. In recognition of the importance of efficient public infrastructure and Canada's economic prosperity and quality of life, our Conservative government has made significant investments since 2006 to build roads, bridges, subways, rail, and much more.

Indeed, under the $33-billion building Canada plan launched in 2007, we supported over 12,000 infrastructure projects across the country. Furthermore, last year, our government announced the new building Canada plan, a $53-billion investment in predictable infrastructure funding for the next 10 years. It is the largest and longest federal investment in job-creating infrastructure in Canadian history.

[Business of Supply, May 14th, 2014]

As I have said, Mr. Chair, the bulk of the jobs are, in fact, full time. The majority of jobs are in the private sector. The majority of the jobs are high-wage jobs, and we are very pleased about that. We think that it is proof of the resilience of the Canadian economy.