Pat Perkins

[The Budget, May 1st, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, our government introduced the family tax cut and enhanced universal child care benefit, which will make life more affordable for 100% of families with children. In fact, the average family will save $6,600, thanks to our measures.

Sadly, the NDP and the Liberals have pledged to reverse these measures. Could the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Employment please explain what the Liberals and the NDP want to take away from our families?

[The Budget, April 28th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, the economic action plan proposes a new permanent non-refundable tax credit rate of 15% for seniors and persons with disabilities who need to improve safety, access, and functionality of their homes. This tax cut would apply on up to $10,000 of eligible home renovation expenditures per year and provide up to $1,500 in tax relief.

These improvements would help ensure that seniors and persons with disabilities could have healthy, independent lives in the comfort of their home or their family's home, and they could include things like wheelchair ramps, walk-in bathtubs, wheel-in showers, and grab bars for safety. All of those sorts of things are there, available to be funded, to help all people with disabilities.

[The Budget, April 28th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, I think that the income-splitting plan we have before us now is not the same income-splitting plan of which then minister Flaherty was actually speaking. I think there are some significant differences. I believe that minister Flaherty, with the numbers that were before him, made the correct call. I think the current Minister of Finance and the current government, with the information before us, are also making the correct call.

[The Budget, April 28th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, I think it is rather presumptive to think it has become a taboo term. I think it is a term of which we are very proud. This government has created income splitting for seniors, which has helped keep seniors in their homes and allowed them to live independently. It is creating opportunities for families to live in a fashion in their homes without having all of the financial burdens that they would otherwise have had.

I believe that this government is very proud of the income splitting, as it should be.

[The Budget, April 28th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, economic action plan 2015 proposes to increase the tax-free savings account annual contribution limit to $10,000. Whether it is saving for retirement, the purchase of a home, or starting a business, Canadians can greatly benefit from the wide range of tax-free investment options that the TFSA is offering them. I am happy to say that there are now 11 million Canadians who have opened up accounts to save for what matters to them.

Support for Canadians and their families is best complemented with smart measures like relief for job-creating businesses.

First, we must not forget that small businesses are the backbone of our economy and they make invaluable economic contributions. Our government is proudly keeping its promise of delivering measures that help foster job creation for small businesses, which make up 50% of Canada's total private sector workforce. That is why economic action plan 2015 proposes to reduce the small business tax rate to 9% by 2019, which is the largest tax rate cut for small businesses in more than 25 years. This measure will reduce taxes for small businesses and their owners by an estimated $2.7 billion over the 2015-16 to 2019-20 period.

In addition, the economic action plan also supports thousands of manufacturing jobs across Ontario, for example, such as the many found in my riding of Whitby—Oshawa. Our government has proposed funding for manufacturers through the new automotive supplier innovation program, which includes providing $100 million over five years to help Canadian automotive suppliers gain a competitive edge through new innovative products and processes. Of this amount, $50 million will be reallocated starting in 2015-16 over three years from the automotive innovation fund and new resources of $50 million will be provided over a two-year period starting in 2018-19.

The automotive supplier innovation program will complement already existing initiatives, like the automotive innovation fund, by creating a favourable environment for automotive research and development while providing firms with opportunities to enter global supply chains.

In closing, economic action plan 2015 is a sensible plan that will balance our budget and directly benefit all Canadians. It builds on the disciplined choices that our Prime Minister and the previous minister of finance, the hon. Jim Flaherty, had to make when faced with economic uncertainty, and today it continues to focus on jobs, growth and security for all.

It is no wonder so many entrepreneurs, economists, community groups and experts, such as the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, the Federation of Canadian Municipalities and the Investment Industry Association of Canada have endorsed the measures that this budget has introduced. I am very proud of our government for bringing forward this balanced budget for all Canadians.

[The Budget, April 28th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague, the Chief Government Whip, for his comments and sharing his time.

It is an honour and privilege to rise in the House to talk about economic action plan 2015, a budget that provides a low-tax plan and that will continue to provide jobs, growth and security for all Canadians.

Under the leadership of our Prime Minister, Canadians from coast to coast to coast have seen the creation of over 1.2 million net new, full-time and well-paying private sector jobs since the depths of the great recession. Since being given the clear mandate of responsible spending, job creation and lowering taxes in 2006, our government has delivered on the promise of making life more affordable for all Canadians. Economic action plan 2015 builds on this mandate and ensures that Canadians are the direct recipients of sensible economic measures that will help them save money and improve their everyday lives.

Moreover, this budget also supports the growth and development of job-creating businesses. I am happy to use my time today to outline just a few of the many proposed sensible and effective measures that are going to specifically benefit the lives of all Canadians and businesses while fulfilling our promise of a balanced budget.

This year's budget would build on our low-tax record, with our government proposing measures like the new family tax cut. This tax cut would provide a federal non-refundable tax credit of up to $2,000 for couples with children under 18 years of age. This budget would also provide enhancements to the universal child care benefit by adding an increased benefit of $160 per month for children under six years old or a benefit of $60 a month for children aged six through 17. In fact, when we factor in all of these money-saving measures, this year a two-income family of four would save approximately $6,600 in taxes. That $6,600 in savings would stay in the pockets of Canadian families and allow them to use their hard-earned funds on what matters most to them.

[Taxation, April 2nd, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, our Conservative government is focused on the priorities of Canadian families. That is why we have introduced the family tax cut and the universal child care benefit, which will put more money in the pockets of every Canadian family. This is in stark contrast to the NDP and the Liberal plan to raise taxes for all Canadians and take away both the family tax cut and the expansion of the universal child care benefit.

Just this week, the Parliamentary Budget Officer confirmed that our plan will benefit 100% of Canadian families with children under the age of 18. Canadians know they can count on our Conservative government to ensure that we give money back to the real child care experts. Their names are Mom and Dad.

[Small Business, April 1st, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, I rise in the House today to recognize the 35th year of business for a thriving fashion destination in Whitby.

Starting with an idea between friends Judy Vipond and Connie Heron, Connie's Brooklin Village Shoppe was born and has maintained years of success. Today the shop provides international and Canadian fashions and merchandise where both locals and out-of-towners continue to visit, season after season.

Connie's Brooklin Village Shoppe is one of the many examples of successful businesses that support, promote, and enhance their communities. In fact, Canada has over one million small and medium-sized businesses that continue to serve their communities while providing local jobs.

Congratulations to Connie and Judy on achieving this wonderful milestone.

[Citizen Consultation Preceding Natural Resource Development, March 27th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the opportunity to respond to this motion before us and to reinforce some of the points made so persuasively by some of my colleagues.

Canada already has a robust, independent, and science-based review process for natural resource projects. In fact, the existing review process involves some of the most extensive public consultations that Canada has ever seen, including unprecedented engagement with aboriginal communities.

Our government understands and fully agrees that successes in responsibly developing our natural resources is dependent upon open and sustained dialogue with all Canadians. We have taken practical steps to build partnerships with aboriginal communities, including creating our major projects management office – west, which engages aboriginal leaders on energy resource development on the west coast.

One example of the work being done by that office is the series of workshops it has held with aboriginal communities. These workshops discussed how communities can play an enhanced role in our marine and pipeline safety systems, as well as the training and resources needed to make this happen.

Every day, we dedicate ourselves to building trust and fostering inclusion in the review process for major projects. We are committed to promoting better communication and stronger dialogue.

Unfortunately, this motion would do nothing to enhance those efforts. Instead, it would short-circuit a review process that is specifically designed to foster full and meaningful public engagement. Indeed, it could pre-empt efforts to achieve a comprehensive determination of whether a project is in Canada's broader public interest. Quite simply, this motion would replace extensive science-based decision-making with one based on perceptions.

Canadians deserve better. That is why our government has implemented its comprehensive plan for responsible resource development. Under our plan, we have developed a process that provides for inclusive public participation, a process that ensures environmental, economic, and social impacts are appropriately considered in determining whether a project should proceed. Our government has been clear time and again: projects will not proceed unless they are proven safe for Canadians and safe for the environment.

Responsible resource development strengthens environmental protection and enhances aboriginal engagement in every aspect of resource development. Indeed, over the past two years, our comprehensive approach has significantly enhanced marine, pipeline, and rail safety.

We are confident that we are creating one of the safest energy transportation systems in the world. It all starts with ensuring that we take every possible step to prevent incidents from occurring.

Our government recently introduced the pipeline safety act, which will enhance Canada's world-class pipeline safety regime by building on the principles of incident prevention, preparedness and response, as well as liability and compensation. The pipeline safety act will enshrine the polluter pays principle into law. This will ensure that as pipeline companies respond in the unlikely event of a major incident, they will be required to maintain the highest minimum financial resources in the world.

We are also expanding the power of the National Energy Board to enforce compliance. To further boost safety, we will also ask the National Energy Board to provide guidance on the use of best available technologies in the materials and construction of federally regulated pipelines.

For both marine and pipeline safety, we have mandated major increases in surveillance inspections and safety audits, as well as greater powers of enforcement.

In the case of marine safety, we have enhanced Canada's world-class tanker safety system by investing in state-of-the-art technology and modernizing navigation systems.

With all of these efforts, we are seeking to foster great public confidence in our country's ability to develop its resources and to do so responsibly. We know that building public confidence in major resource projects requires a comprehensive approach.

In the case of engaging aboriginal people, that means making progress on reconciliation and treaty negotiations. That is why the new measures announced last summer by the Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development are so important. These efforts are advancing treaty negotiations and reconciliation in a number of ways, and are clarifying the Government of Canada's approach to resolving shared territory disputes in the context of resource development.

Our government's goal is to work in partnership to promote prosperous communities and economic development for the benefit of all Canadians. The impact of a major resource projects extends well beyond a particular local area. While the NDP has opposed all forms of resource development, our government takes a balanced approach to resource development.

The natural resources sector is significant to Canada's economy, and it provides nearly 20% of our GDP and supports 1.8 million jobs. All of this activity generates royalties and revenues for governments to provide important social programs, from health to education to pensions, for all Canadians from coast to coast to coast.

The motion before us may be well intentioned, but it is poorly defined, and it would only serve to undermine the exhaustive process we have already established for considering resource projects. As I have noted, Canada already has an extremely rigorous regulatory regime in place to consider major resource projects.

Let us also remember that any recommendations on projects are made by independent regulators based on the entirety of the evidence collected. It simply makes no sense to cut short such an exhaustive process and ignore scientific-based facts for evidence. Canada deserves better, and Canadians know they can count on our government to deliver it.

[FIFA Women's World Cup Trophy Tour, March 27th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, it will not be long now until the world's best female soccer players are here in Canada. I am looking forward to next week's launch of the first ever Coca-Cola FIFA Women's World Cup Trophy Tour going to 12 cities across Canada.

Those who visit the Fan Experience will have an opportunity for fun and games, and can have their photo taken with the actual FIFA trophy. I know a tour like this will also inspire Canadians to get active and to make sports and activity a part of their lives. Of course, it will build excitement ahead of the tournament.

I would like to thank Coca-Cola Canada and its president for supporting opportunities like this. It is a great example of community support and business leadership. And of course, I am wishing the tour great success. I encourage Canadians to visit the Fan Experience in their community. I wish Canada's national women's team success in the tournament.