Evidence of meeting #24 for COVID-19 Pandemic in the 43rd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was chair.
A video is available from Parliament.
Bloc
Alain Therrien Bloc La Prairie, QC
He keeps going. The Liberal Party of Canada is a business, and we’re hearing it from the finance minister. I thought he was a lot wiser.
During the pandemic, some people died. There were 5,298 deaths in Quebec and 8,254 in all of Canada. Some people were sick, others felt isolated, some businesses went bankrupt, and some people lost their job. Meanwhile, this party was lining its pockets.
Are you ashamed of your actions?
NDP
The Acting Chair NDP Carol Hughes
I remind the honourable member that he must speak through the chair.
The honourable minister has the floor.
Liberal
Bill Morneau Liberal Toronto Centre, ON
We know that people and sectors are struggling all over the country. That is why we have decided to allow everyone experiencing difficulties to access our programs, such as the Canada Emergency Response Benefit and the wage subsidy.
This is our approach, and it’s a good approach to improve our situation.
NDP
The Acting Chair NDP Carol Hughes
Mr. Therrien, please ask your question directly since you only have 20 seconds left.
Bloc
Alain Therrien Bloc La Prairie, QC
They’ve improved it. They raised the wage subsidy from 10% to 75% of payroll for three months and now, they’re up to six months.
Which member of this government said that it was so good that he wanted more?
Who’s guilty of increasing again and again the amount of money they put in their pockets?
NDP
Liberal
Bill Morneau Liberal Toronto Centre, ON
Madam Chair, as I’ve already said, our government decided that it was necessary to protect Canadians from all parts of the country going through tough times because of COVID-19. It’s a good approach.
NDP
Conservative
Pierre Poilievre Conservative Carleton, ON
There will be no budget and there will be no fiscal update, but there will be a snapshot. The dictionary defines “snapshot” for a hunter as a shot quickly taken without deliberate aim.
Is that how the minister describes his own spending?
Liberal
Bill Morneau Liberal Toronto Centre, ON
Madam Chair, we know it's important to continue to be transparent with Canadians. We're looking forward to providing, now that we're in a more stable situation, some understanding of our situation from an economic standpoint. It will provide Canadians with the information they need to have confidence—
Conservative
Pierre Poilievre Conservative Carleton, ON
He is transparent. We can see right through him. Hopefully, we can get some snapshot answers.
Will the minister indicate whether his snapshot will show the debt exceeding a trillion dollars?
Liberal
Bill Morneau Liberal Toronto Centre, ON
Madam Chair, I am looking forward to providing the economic information on July 8, at which time Canadians will get a good understanding of the investments we've made and our underlying economic situation.
Conservative
Pierre Poilievre Conservative Carleton, ON
The question was this: Will the debt exceed a trillion dollars in this fiscal year?
Liberal
Bill Morneau Liberal Toronto Centre, ON
Again, Madam Chair, we look forward to providing the information that Canadians need in order to give them a good understanding of not only the investments but also how we've protected them during a difficult time.
Conservative
Pierre Poilievre Conservative Carleton, ON
He'd be the only one looking forward to a trillion-dollar debt. Can he at least confirm whether or not we will have one this year?
Liberal
Bill Morneau Liberal Toronto Centre, ON
Again, Madam Chair, we look forward to providing the information that will come out in our July 8 presentation. It will give Canadians a good summary of not only what we've done but also the framework for what—
Conservative
Pierre Poilievre Conservative Carleton, ON
Some snapshot, Madam Chair. According to the prestigious accounting firm MNP, half of Canadians were $200 away from insolvency at the end of every month. After the COVID disaster and future interest rate hikes, how many does the minister expect will reach insolvency in the next couple of years?
Liberal
Bill Morneau Liberal Toronto Centre, ON
Madam Chair, the important thing for us to acknowledge is that, going through a situation this difficult, Canadians have needed to get support from the federal government. That's why we moved forward with the emergency response benefit. That's why we've helped enterprises with the wage subsidy. Those programs have helped put a significant amount of money into Canadians' pockets at a time of particular—
Conservative
Pierre Poilievre Conservative Carleton, ON
Again, there's no answer.
Now let's move on to infrastructure. The government says that it has funded 52,122 infrastructure projects. Will this snapshot give the date, location, cost and project description for every single one of those projects, yes or no?
Liberal
Catherine McKenna Liberal Ottawa Centre, ON
Madam Chair, I am very pleased to see that the Parliamentary Budget Officer has confirmed our historic investing in Canada plan continues to create jobs. We were up from 31,000 full-time equivalent jobs in 2016 to more than 91,000 jobs last year. We've invested in more than 53,000 projects, confirmed by the Parliamentary Budget Officer, and more than $51 billion—
Conservative
Pierre Poilievre Conservative Carleton, ON
Will the government table a list of all 52,122 projects, yes or no?