Bill C-32

Fall Economic Statement Implementation Act, 2022

An Act to implement certain provisions of the fall economic statement tabled in Parliament on November 3, 2022 and certain provisions of the budget tabled in Parliament on April 7, 2022

Part 1 implements certain measures in respect of the Income Tax Act by
(a) providing that any gain on the disposition of a Canadian housing unit within a one-year period of its acquisition is treated as business income;
(b) introducing a Tax-Free First Home Savings Account;
(c) phasing out flow-through shares for oil, gas and coal activities;
(d) introducing a new 30% Critical Mineral Exploration Tax Credit for specified mineral exploration expenses incurred in Canada and renounced to flow-through share investors;
(e) introducing the Canada Recovery Dividend under which banks and life insurers’ groups pay a temporary one-time 15% tax on taxable income above $1 billion over five years;
(f) increasing the corporate income tax rate of banks and life insurers’ groups by 1.5% on taxable income above $100 million;
(g) providing additional reporting requirements for trusts;
(h) providing rules applicable to mutual fund trusts listed on a designated stock exchange in Canada with respect to amounts that are allocated to redeeming unitholders;
(i) providing the Minister of National Revenue with the discretion to decline to issue a certificate under section 116 of the Income Tax Act in certain circumstances relating to the administration and enforcement of the Underused Housing Tax Act ;
(j) doubling the First-Time Homebuyers’ Tax Credit;
(k) expanding the eligibility criteria for the Medical Expense Tax Credit in respect of medical expenses incurred in Canada related to surrogate mothers and donors and fees paid in Canada to fertility clinics and donor banks;
(l) introducing the Multigenerational Home Renovation Tax Credit;
(m) allowing access to the small business tax rate on a phased-out basis up to taxable capital of $50 million;
(n) modifying the computation of income as a result of the adoption of a new international accounting standard for insurance contracts;
(o) introducing a new graduated disbursement quota rate for charities;
(p) providing that the general anti-avoidance rules can apply to transactions that affect tax attributes that have not yet been used to reduce taxes;
(q) strengthening the rules on avoidance of tax debts;
(r) modifying the calculation of the taxes applicable to registered investments that hold property that is not a qualified investment;
(s) modifying the tax treatment of certain interest coupon stripping arrangements that might otherwise be used to avoid tax on cross-border interest payments;
(t) clarifying the applicable rules with respect to audits by Canada Revenue Agency officials, including requiring taxpayers to give reasonable assistance and to answer all proper questions for tax purposes; and
(u) extending the capital cost allowance for clean energy and the tax rate reduction for zero-emission technology manufacturers to include air-source heat pumps.
It also makes related and consequential amendments to the Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation Act , the Excise Tax Act , the Air Travellers Security Charge Act , the Excise Act, 2001 , Part 1 of the Greenhouse Gas Pollution Pricing Act and the Income Tax Regulations .
Part 2 amends the Excise Act, 2001 and other related texts in order to implement changes to
(a) the federal excise duty frameworks for cannabis and other products by, among other things,
(i) permitting excise duty remittances for certain cannabis licensees to be made on a quarterly rather than a monthly basis, starting from the quarter that began on April 1, 2022, and
(ii) allowing the transfer of packaged, but unstamped, cannabis products between licensed cannabis producers; and
(b) the federal excise duty framework for vaping products in relation to the markings, customs storage and excise duty liability of these products.
Part 3 amends the Underused Housing Tax Act to make amendments of a technical or housekeeping nature. It also makes regulations under that Act in order to, among other things, implement an exemption for certain vacation properties.
Division 1 of Part 4 authorizes the Minister of Finance to acquire and hold on behalf of His Majesty in right of Canada non-voting shares of a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Canada Development Investment Corporation that is responsible for administering the Canada Growth Fund and to requisition the amounts for the acquisition of those shares out of the Consolidated Revenue Fund.
Division 2 of Part 4 amends the Bretton Woods and Related Agreements Act to increase the maximum financial assistance that may be provided in respect of foreign states.
Subdivision A of Division 3 of Part 4 enacts the Framework Agreement on First Nation Land Management Act .
Subdivision B of Division 3 of Part 4 contains transitional provisions in respect of the enactment of the Framework Agreement on First Nation Land Management Act and makes consequential amendments to other Acts. It also repeals the First Nations Land Management Act .
Division 4 of Part 4 amends the Government Employees Compensation Act in order to fulfil Canada’s obligations under the Memorandum of Understanding between the Government of Canada and the Government of the United States of America concerning Cooperation on the Civil Lunar Gateway.
Division 5 of Part 4 amends the Canada Student Loans Act to eliminate the accrual of interest on guaranteed student loans beginning on April 1, 2023.
It also amends the Canada Student Financial Assistance Act to eliminate the accrual of interest on student loans beginning on April 1, 2023.
Finally, it amends the Apprentice Loans Act to eliminate the accrual of interest on apprentice loans beginning on April 1, 2023 and to clarify when the repayment of apprentice loans begins during the interest suspension period from April 1, 2021 to March 31, 2023.

Speaker's Ruling

[The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Alexandra Mendès), Liberal, Alexandra Mendes]

There is one motion in amendment standing on the Notice Paper for the report stage of Bill C-32. Motion No. 1 will be debated and voted upon.

The House proceeded to the consideration of Bill C-32, An Act to implement certain provisions of the fall economic statement tabled in Parliament on November 3, 2022 and certain provisions of the budget tabled in Parliament on April 7, 2022, as reported (without amendment) from the committee.

Business of the House

[Mark Holland, Liberal, Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Mr. Speaker, we will need to wait for the unanimous consent motion to see what will happen. I will wait for that. There is good news for the member opposite in that he has the opportunity, at committee of course, to review those guns and make any suggestions his members would like. I am sure, as a long-serving member, he would be aware of that opportunity, but I just remind him of that.

The Speaker will be pleased to know we will continue with debate at second reading of Bill C-26, an act respecting cyber security, amending the Telecommunications Act and making consequential amendments to other acts. Tomorrow we will begin debate at second reading of Bill C-23, the historic places of Canada act.

On Monday, we will begin debate at report stage and third reading on Bill C-32, the fall economic statement implementation act, 2022. Thursday will be the final allotted day of the current supply period. For the rest of the week, priority should be given to Bill C-32.

I would also like to indicate that on Tuesday there will be a statement by the minister on the commemoration of the Polytechnique massacre.

Finance

[Peter Fonseca, Liberal, Mississauga East—Cooksville, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the eighth report of the Standing Committee on Finance in relation to Bill C-32, an act to implement certain provisions of the fall economic statement tabled in Parliament on November 3, 2022 and certain provisions of the budget tabled in Parliament on April 7, 2022.

I would like to thank our finance committee clerks, Alexandre Roger and Carine Grand-Jean; our legislative clerks, Philippe Méla and Jean-François Pagé; our analysts, Joëlle Malo and Michaël Lambert-Racine; our committee assistant, Lynda Gaudreault; all committee staff, interpreters and services, and all members of the finance committee for their dedication and hard work.

[Daniel Blaikie, NDP, Elmwood—Transcona, MB]

In the spirit of offering some reflections at the outset for our position with respect to the bill, I thought I would make my own contribution.

Similarly to Mr. Ste-Marie, I think some of the cracking down on tax avoidant measures in Bill C-32 is certainly welcome. There's more work to do, but these are steps in the right direction.

I would highlight in this bill, as well, the elimination of interest on student loans, something New Democrats have long championed and are glad to see a government finally proceed with. It is also under-reported.

I think the headline item for this is actually something New Democrats have been calling for, for some time, which we made sure was part of our understanding with the government in the supply and confidence agreement, and that is the Canada recovery dividend. It means that big banks and insurance companies that did very well during the pandemic, including because of the generous support of the federal government, are going to have to pay some of that money back, and that's important so that there are resources to do the things we need to do in order to support Canadians through a very difficult time.

New Democrats think the Canada recovery dividend is an important step alongside a permanent increase of 1.5% in the corporate tax rate for banks and insurance companies.

These are some of the reasons we're supporting Bill C-32, and I thank you for the time to put that on the record.

[Gabriel Ste-Marie, Bloc, Joliette, QC]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

I, too, have a point of order, as well as a comment that will hopefully be as brief as Mr. Lawrence's.

First, I had informed the committee that I still had a lot of questions for the officials from the various departments that will have a hand in Bill C‑32. At a previous meeting, I had requested the committee's unanimous consent to ask those officials to provide written answers to the questions suggested by the House of Commons analysts, but there wasn't unanimous support for that request.

In the spirit of co‑operation, Terry Beech, the parliamentary secretary, suggested I give him the list of questions I was most interested in having the answers for, and in hardly any time at all, the officials had answered all of my questions in a document that was sent to me. I asked the clerk to share the document with the committee so that members would have the excellent information I received, which was in both official languages.

I realize how much work that was, so I want to express my sincere thanks to Terry Beech for his help, as well as to the finance officials for their comprehensive answers. Thanks to them, I won't have any technical questions today, since I already have the answers I was looking for.

It is clear to those of us in the Bloc Québécois that Bill C‑32 does not address the financial priorities of the people of Quebec. However, as always, we will vote on what is in the bill, not on what isn't. We don't have a problem with any of the measures proposed in this omnibus bill, and that is why I, as the Bloc Québécois's representative today, will be voting in favour of the bill and each of its clauses. We don't have any amendments to propose.

Before I wrap up, though, I would like to point something out to the members of the committee. The Canadian Bar Association sent a letter to the chair to express its concern that some of the proposed amendments would undermine solicitor-client privilege. I know that the government is very mindful of the rules in place and has read the letter, as I have. For that reason, I am not so concerned that I feel the need to propose an amendment.

Speaking of solicitor-client privilege, I would also remind the members of the committee of our study into the whole Isle of Man affair and the use of trusts for the purposes of tax avoidance and tax evasion. That was a case in which KPMG invoked solicitor-client privilege to refuse to disclose the names of its fraudster clients to the government. We must bear in mind that solicitor-client privilege is not absolute, because it does not apply when a lawyer advises their client to do something illegal.

The Canada Revenue Agency's American counterpart, the Internal Revenue Service, or IRS, gave KPMG an ultimatum when it tried to pull the same thing in the U.S. The company could either hand over the list of clients with whom it had conspired to defraud the IRS or it would face criminal prosecution and risk dissolution. The matter was resolved pretty quickly. Here, an out-of-court settlement was reached.

I welcome the measures in Bill C‑32. Solicitor-client privilege is obviously very important, but so is the fight against tax evasion and tax avoidance.

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

[Philip Lawrence, Conservative, Northumberland—Peterborough South, ON]

On a point of order, Mr. Chair, as brevity is the soul of wit, I will be quick. I'm renowned in this committee for my brevity. In all seriousness, I just want to put a couple of comments onto the record, if the other members will indulge me.

Conservatives will not be supporting Bill C-32, the legislative implementation of the fall economic statement.

Prior to the announcement of the fall economic update, Conservatives stated that they had two requirements for the upcoming legislation: one, that there be no new taxes; and two, that there be no new spending. Conservatives put these requirements in place because we are acutely aware of the struggles that Canadians are facing in the midst of one of Canada's largest affordability crises.

Food bank usage has climbed to record highs, with 1.5 million Canadians using food banks in a single month. A third of those were children, so that's 500,000 children who had to go to food banks just to eat in one month.

Nearly half of Canadians are within $200 of insolvency, and with rising interest rates, many Canadians are now on the brink of losing their homes. The pain that has been inflicted is the responsibility of the failed Liberal tax-and-spend agenda.

In the fall economic statement the greedy government refused to give up even $1 of revenue while adding to Canadians' suffering. Instead, it is stubbornly refusing to relent on its plan to raise the carbon tax, which, according to the Bank of Canada, is inflationary, so this represents a double hit for Canadians. One is the direct impact on gas, groceries and home heating, but then there's also the impact of inflation, which, at its low rate of $40 per tonne, was estimated by the Bank of Canada to be 0.4% and very well could be over 1% when we get our numbers back from the PBO.

On January 1, the greedy Liberals will take yet more money from Canadians, and for what sin? What travesty have Canadians committed? They have gone to work. In one of Canada's worst labour shortages in recent history, the Liberals are actively disincentivizing work. They're punishing workers by increasing the payroll tax.

In addition to direct taxation, the government is indirectly increasing the burden on workers through inflationary spending. As Tiff Macklem said at this very committee in response to my colleague's question, more spending equals more inflation. The more the Liberals spend, the harder life gets for Canadians.

We have also heard comments, not just by the current Bank of Canada governor Tiff Macklem but also by former Bank of Canada governor and future Liberal leader Mark Carney that inflation is actually a homegrown problem that is a direct result of this government's tax-and-spend policies.

The government has had the opportunity to provide hope by reducing the burden through reductions in the carbon tax or the payroll tax, or even by cancelling the planned tax hikes on Canada's sacrosanct tradition of drinking beer. Unfortunately, the only thing it had to offer Canadians was more taxes and more inflation. At a time when Canadians needed a hand up, the Liberals dropped an anchor on them.

For these reasons and many more, Conservatives cannot support Bill C-32.

Thank you.

[The Chair, Liberal, Peter Fonseca]

The budget is approved.

Today, to help with our clause-by-clause consideration of Bill C-32, we have officials from the Canadian Space Agency, the Department of Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs, the Department of Employment and Social Development, the Department of Finance and the Department of Justice.

On behalf of the committee, I thank all our officials. I wish to inform the committee that all witnesses have been audio tested for today's meeting and have passed the test.

We now move to the bill. Pursuant to Standing Order 75(1), consideration of clause 1, the short title, is postponed.

[The Chair, Liberal, Peter Fonseca]

I call this meeting to order. Welcome to meeting 70 of the House of Commons Standing Committee on Finance.

Pursuant to Standing Order 108(2) and the motion adopted by the committee on Wednesday, November 16, 2022, the committee is meeting to proceed with the clause-by-clause consideration of Bill C-32, an act to implement certain provisions of the fall economic statement tabled in Parliament on November 3, 2022 and certain provisions of the budget tabled in Parliament on April 7, 2022.

Today's meeting is taking place in a hybrid format, pursuant to the House order of June 23, 2022. Members are attending in person in the room and remotely using the Zoom application.

I would like to make a few comments for the benefit of the witnesses and the members.

Please wait until I recognize you by name before speaking. For those participating by video conference, click on the microphone icon to activate your microphone, and please mute yourself when you are not speaking.

There is interpretation for those on Zoom. You have the choice at the bottom of your screen of either floor, English or French audio. For those in the room, you can use the earpiece and select the desired channel.

I remind everyone that all comments should be addressed through the chair. For members in the room, if you wish to speak, please raise your hand. For members on Zoom, please use the “raise hand” function. The clerk and I will manage the speaking order as well as we can. We appreciate your patience and understanding in this regard.

Members, before we go to clause-by-clause consideration of Bill C-32, you will have received the budget for the Bill C-228 study from the clerk on Tuesday. Everybody should have received it at 11:03 a.m.

I'm looking around for confirmation that everybody is good with that budget.

Small Business

[Terry Beech, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance]

Madam Speaker, Canada's small and medium-sized businesses are the heart of our economy. They define our communities, our main streets and our neighbourhoods across the country, in big cities and small villages. Helping them innovate is good for Canada, and that is why our government has addressed and continues to address barriers that are preventing them from growing.

With Bill C-32, we are proposing to cut taxes for Canada's growing small businesses, which will help them continue to grow and create good jobs. We are also working with payment card networks, financial institutions, acquirers, payment processors and businesses to lower credit card transaction fees for small businesses. We want these fees to be lowered in a manner that protects existing reward points for consumers and does not adversely affect other businesses.

We believe an agreement can be reached, but should it be the case we are not able to come to an agreement, we will introduce this legislation at the earliest possible opportunity in the new year and move forward on regulating credit card transaction fees.

We have already published draft legislation amendments to the Payment Card Networks Act, and I invite the member for Spadina—Fort York to read them and provide feedback.

We all want Canadians to have good jobs, but it is also important to keep a good social safety net, and employment insurance is certainly one aspect of it. EI is a tool that helps provide resources for people in their time of need.

I would like to remind the member for Spadina—Fort York that it is the Canada Employment Insurance Commission, not the government, that sets the annual employment insurance premium rate according to a seven-year break-even rate, as forecast by the EI senior actuary. It does this every year and has done so since 2016.

The commission is a tripartite organization representing the interests of workers, employers and government. It is mandated to represent and reflect the views of its respective constituencies. The employment insurance premium rate will be $1.63 per $100 of insurable earnings in 2023. That is 25¢ less than it was in 2013 when it was $1.88 per $100 of insurable earnings, and notably, this was under the management of the current Leader of the Opposition.

In June 2013, the national unemployment rate was 7.2%. It is now 5.2%. Over two million more Canadians are now working compared to June 2013, including 500,000 more since the beginning of the pandemic. The seven-year break-even mechanism ensures stable and predictable premium rates for Canadian workers and employers. In fact, annual changes to the premium rate are subject to a legislated limit of just 5¢. The mechanism is also intended to ensure EI contributions are only used for EI purposes.

This is a prudent and transparent way for EI premiums to be managed, and I do not understand exactly why the hon. member would be against it.

Taxation

[Terry Beech, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance]

Madam Speaker, first, I would like to address the question of pollution pricing.

Our government knows that putting a price on pollution remains the most effective way to fight climate change while making life more affordable for Canadians. Not only does pollution pricing ensure it is no longer free to pollute anywhere in Canada, but for eight out of 10 Canadians who receive the climate action incentive payments, the federal pollution pricing system actually puts more money back into their pockets.

Climate action is no longer a theoretical political debate; addressing it is an economic necessity. The reality is that Canadians are confronted every day with more extreme events, such as floods, hurricanes and wildfires. A few months ago, the Parliamentary Budget Officer published an analysis showing that climate change has negatively impacted and will continue to negatively impact the Canadian economy. Responsible governments can only grow the economy and make life more affordable for Canadians if they have a responsible climate plan. The member opposite, respectfully, has neither a credible plan for the environment nor the economy.

However, I would also like to reassure my hon. colleagues that our government understands that many Canadians are struggling to make ends meet and that many are worried as our country's economy faces a period of slower economic growth due to the global challenge of high inflation and higher interest rates. Still, inflation in Canada is high and we know that Canadians are feeling it when they go to the grocery store, fill up their tanks and pay their rent. The good news is that there is no country better placed than Canada to weather the coming global economic slowdown and thrive in the years ahead. Our country has an AAA credit rating, has the strongest economic growth in the G7 so far this year, and the lowest deficit and net debt-to-GDP ratios in the G7. In fact, we have strengthened that advantage over the pandemic. Also, our unemployment rate continues to be near its record low.

We do appreciate that this will continue to be a difficult time for a lot of Canadians. It is a difficult time for our families, friends and neighbours. That is why the government is supporting Canadians who are most affected by inflation. For example, by doubling the GST credit for six months, we will deliver $2.5 billion in additional targeted support to roughly 11 million individuals and families, including more than 50% of Canada's seniors. I thank the member opposite for supporting that measure.

Canadians will even start to see some more of these targeted measures this week. On Thursday, December 1, Canadians can begin applying for the Canada dental benefit. That means the parents of kids under the age of 12 will be able to claim $650 per child for visits to the dentist.

We are also moving forward with new measures introduced in our fall economic statement a few weeks ago. For example, Bill C-32 would make the federal portion of all Canada student loans and Canada apprenticeship loans permanently interest-free, including those that are currently being repaid. We are making major investments in housing affordability, and our key benefits are indexed to inflation. We have a world-class child care program and have cut costs by more than 50% just this year, and we have reduced taxes for the middle class and for small businesses.

We will continue to work hard to make sure that life is more affordable in Canada and to grow an economy that works for everyone.

[Gabriel Ste-Marie, Bloc, Joliette, QC]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Good afternoon, Mr. Giroux and Ms. Grinshpoon. Thank you for agreeing to appear before the Standing Committee on Finance on such short notice. We're very grateful to you for that. Thanks as well for the three studies you released this morning. They'll be very useful to us.

Since we'll be conducting clause-by-clause consideration of Bill C‑32 at our next meeting, the committee will have devoted only two meetings to the study of this bill: one with the officials of the departments concerned and this one today.

My first questions will focus on parts of your statement, Mr. Giroux.

In particular, you said that the government had announced $14.2 billion in new measures without providing details on that spending, which represents 27% of new measures in the fall economic statement 2022.

Would you please explain to us at greater length how that's being presented? Why do you think no more details are provided?

[Yves Giroux, Parliamentary Budget Officer, Office of the Parliamentary Budget Officer]

Good afternoon, Mr. Chair and members of the committee. Thank you for the invitation to appear before you today.

We are pleased to be here to discuss our analysis of Bill C-32, the fall economic statement implementation act, which we published in our report entitled “Fall Economic Statement—Issues for Parliamentarians” on November 15, 2022.

Additionally, this morning my office published three separate legislative costing notes: our analysis of the residential property flipping rule, the doubling of the first-time homebuyers' tax credit, and eliminating the interest on federal student and apprentice loans.

With me today, I have Kristina Grinshpoon, who is director of fiscal analysis.

In accordance with the PBO's legislative mandate to provide impartial, independent analysis to help parliamentarians fulfill their constitutional role, which consists of holding government accountable, our report on the fall economic statement highlights key issues to assist parliamentarians in their budgetary deliberations.

In terms of funding and new budgetary measures, revisions to the private sector economic outlook and fiscal developments in the fall economic statement provide a total of $81.2 billion in new fiscal room, which finances $52.2 billion in net new measures over 2022-23 to 2027-28.

Of note is the government's $4 billion enhancement to the Canada workers benefit, which will automatically provide advance payment to individuals who qualified for the benefit in the previous year. The substantial cost of this measure is largely due to the government's policy decision not to recoup these advance payment when recipients' incomes rise and they become ineligible for benefits or eligible for lower benefits. Not requiring repayment of federal benefits for ineligible individuals is a pronounced departure from the existing federal tax and transfer system. This expensive policy change was not mentioned in the fall statement.

Further, the government identified $14.2 billion in new measures without providing specific details on this spending, which represents 27% of all new measures, totalling $52.2 billion, in the fall economic statement 2022. This lack of transparency presents challenges for parliamentarians and the public in scrutinizing the government’s spending plans.

The timeliness of financial reporting also continues to present challenges. This year the Public Accounts were tabled on October 27—seven months after the close of the fiscal year. Canada continues to fall short of the standard for advanced practice in the International Monetary Fund's financial reporting guidelines, which recommends that governments publish their annual financial statements within six months. Parliamentarians may wish to request that the government publish the Public Accounts of Canada and the Departmental Results Reports, which have not yet been published, within six months of the close of the fiscal year. Legislative amendments to that effect could be considered.

Finally, the government highlighted that it exceeded its first spending review target of $3.0 billion by achieving savings of $3.8 billion from lower-than-anticipated spending on certain COVID‑19 support measures in the previous fiscal year, 2021‑22. However, the source of this saving is inconsistent with the intention and timing that was announced in Budget 2022. The FES provided no explanation for this discrepancy. This puts into question the credibility of the yet-to-be-launched strategic policy review supposed to generate savings of $6 billion by 2026‑27 and $3 billion in annual savings.

Ms. Grinshpoon and I will be pleased to respond to any questions you may have regarding our analysis of the fall economic statement or other PBO work.

[Julie Dzerowicz, Liberal, Davenport, ON]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

I want to say thank you to you, Minister, for being with us today to speak to Bill C-32.

I appreciated that you spoke about immigration and the importance of immigrants to Canada's economy in our society. As you know, I've been a passionate advocate for immigrants and for more immigration, given that I truly believe that's key to Canada's future economic growth and prosperity. In my riding of Davenport, immigration is also important, not least because 45% of my riding are first-generation immigrants, and also because many of the businesses in my riding are really having a hard time filling jobs and finding talent that will allow them to grow their businesses.

Can you speak to what the federal government has done on immigration and how the fall economic statement, Bill C-32, continues to build on that work?

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance]

Thank you very much, Mr. Chair and committee members.

I really want to thank Nick and Mio for being here with us today. Both of them, and all of our officials in the Department of Finance, have really been working remarkably hard, and I'm really grateful.

Mr. Chair, it's a pleasure to appear before you and the members of the committee to discuss Bill C‑32.

I would like to explain to you why it's so important that we work together to pass this bill.

First of all, we're permanently eliminating interest on Canada student loans and apprentice loans, which will save students an average of $410. We've also provided the necessary funding to extend this measure to Quebec students as well.

We're cutting taxes for Canada's growing small businesses from 15% to 9%. This is the delivery of a key commitment we made in the spring.

We're permanently increasing the corporate income tax rate of banks and life insurance groups by 1.5%, and we're implementing the Canada recovery dividend, which is a one-time 15% tax on their income above $1 billion to support Canada's COVID recovery.

Bill C‑32 will also enable us to implement our plan to make housing more affordable.

We're creating the first home savings account. This account will help Canadians make a down payment sooner by enabling first-time buyers to save up to $40,000 for that purpose.

We're offering a multigenerational home renovation tax credit of up to $7,500 to enable Canadian families to house a grandparent or a family member with a disability who decides to return home and live with them.

By ensuring that profits from the resale of properties held for at least 12 months are fully taxed, we will help ensure that houses serve as homes for Canadians, not frequently flipped investment assets.

We will also help reduce closing costs by doubling the first-time home buyers' tax credit to provide $1,500 to cover increased closing costs associated with the purchase of a first home.

One of the pillars of the fall economic statement was about growing our economy and creating good jobs, and this legislation helps deliver on that.

We're launching the Canada growth fund, which will help bring to Canada the billions of dollars in new private investment required to reduce our emissions, grow our economy and create good jobs at the same time, and we're delivering a new 30% critical mineral exploration tax credit that will help make Canada a global leader in an industry that is essential for everything from electric cars to cellphones.

Before I close, Mr. Chair, I also know that you will be hearing from witnesses about the Canada workers benefit. The Canada workers benefit tops up the incomes of our lowest-paid and often most essential workers. No one who works 40 hours a week should have to worry about paying the bills or putting food on the table. In budget 2021, we expanded and enhanced the Canada workers benefit to reach three million Canadians who do important jobs but don't get paid very much. The Canada workers benefit can mean up to $2,400 for a working couple every year.

The government currently delivers the Canada workers benefit through tax returns. That means that eligible Canadians need to wait until the tax year is over to receive the money they have already earned, but bills need to be paid throughout the year. That's why in the fall economic statement we further improved the Canada workers benefit. We've expanded the Canada workers benefit to reach up to 1.2 million additional hard-working low- and modest-income Canadians. This was an intentional policy choice, and it means the CWB will top up the income of up to 4.2 million of the lowest-paid Canadians.

Going forward, eligible workers will receive advance payments of the Canada workers benefit based on the income they made last year. Advance payments will be made in July, October and January based on a worker's income in the previous year.

Mr. Chair and members of the committee, Canada has the smallest deficit and the lowest debt-to-GDP ratio of all the G7 countries.

A few hours after the fall economic statement 2022 was tabled, Moody's reconfirmed our AAA credit rating with stable outlook. In October alone, 108,000 jobs were created in Canada, which means that 513,000 more Canadians are working today than before the COVID‑19 pandemic. Our economy is now at 103% of what it was before the pandemic, and our economic growth since the start of this year is the strongest of all the G7 countries.

Canadians are standing strong and our country's economy is resilient. Consequently, we can all rest assured that we'll pull through, just as we've made it through the last two and a half years.

Thank you, and I'll be pleased to answer your questions.