Finance Committee on Dec. 8th, 2020

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, University—Rosedale, ON]

Thank you for the question. I think it's really, ultimately, the heart of everything we're talking about and everything our government needs to do.

I want to talk for one minute about scarring. As I mentioned earlier in my testimony, there was a G7 finance ministers meeting yesterday morning. One of the things that many of us reflected on was the experience of 2008-09. Economies experienced scarring, which made it harder for those economies to rebound after the immediate shock had passed. That historic experience is one of the reasons our government is so committed right now to supporting Canadian businesses and Canadian families. We know that if we do our job now effectively, Canada will be in a much stronger position to rebound once the vaccines have arrived and we're able to fully reopen the economy.

I very much agree with the direction of the question. I think what we need to focus on then, and begin doing our work on now—and I look forward to the committee doing this work—is to work on a growth plan that does two things. One, it immediately has projects and programs that help our country get back to work as quickly as possible and that help to close the output gap. We also need to be thinking about those projects and programs also contributing to our country's long-term growth. I think, and I am confident, that together we can do that.

[Peter Fragiskatos, Liberal, London North Centre, ON]

Thank you very much.

[The Chair, Liberal, Wayne Easter]

Thank you both.

We will go to two-and-a-half-minute rounds, first with Mr. Ste-Marie and then Mr. Julian. Then I need someone from the Conservatives for the next five minutes.

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

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Minister, you mentioned that the government was currently working on a support program specifically for the aerospace industry. Can you tell the committee when we might expect the program to be introduced? Might it be announced in the next budget?

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, University—Rosedale, ON]

As I said, we understand how important the aerospace sector is. It must be a part of our growth plan, and it will be. We also talked about the importance of the green shift, which extends to every sector of the economy, including the aerospace sector. That means it must be a part of the green shift, and it will be. I believe that answers your question.

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

We can expect the details to come out in the spring, when the next budget is tabled. Is that right?

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, University—Rosedale, ON]

I have the utmost respect for the member, who also asked me the question by email. I want to thank him for that. However, today is not the right time to announce the spring 2021 budget. We just presented the fall economic statement 2020, so we'll have to wait a bit before announcing the details of the next budget.

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

Thank you, Minister.

With the holidays around the corner—

[The Chair, Liberal, Wayne Easter]

You have time for a last quick question, Mr. Ste-Marie.

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

I was saying that I thought it was a good time to bring this up.

In terms of possible supports, I want to draw the minister's attention to the recycling industry. Many air carriers have retired aircraft from their fleet. For the time being, they are being sent to an airplane boneyard in the Arizona desert, but we have a company in Mirabel that disassembles and recycles airplanes. It's the only such certified company in North America. In one airplane, we are talking about 80 tonnes of aluminum alloy; some parts can be reused. It holds a lot of potential in terms of growing and greening the economy, not to mention building domestic expertise.

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, University—Rosedale, ON]

Thank you for your ideas.

You mentioned aluminum, another very important industry for Quebec and Canada. It can and must be a part of the plan. I think we should all highlight the fact that Canada produces the greenest aluminum in the world. We need to press home that advantage to promote our exports, especially products made with our green aluminum.

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

Thank you very much.

[The Chair, Liberal, Wayne Easter]

Thank you both.

We will go just a little over time on your hour, Madam Minister. We will have two and a half minutes with Mr. Julian, five with Mr. Poilievre and five with Ms. Dzerowicz to round it out.

Go ahead, Mr. Julian.

[Peter Julian, NDP, New Westminster—Burnaby, BC]

Thanks, Mr. Chair.

During this pandemic, we've seen banks earning $29 billion and we've seen Canada's billionaires now increase their wealth by over $53 billion. So far, the only reply that you've had for us, Minister Freeland, is a partial closing of the stock option loophole, and we know that is something the government has been promising now for five years.

The question is very simple. At a time when it should be a shared sacrifice, at a time when everybody should be paying their fair share, why is this government so opposed to a wealth tax like the ones other countries have put in place, an excess profits tax like we had in place in the Second World War to avoid profiteering, or even letting the web giants pay their fair share?

I know your reply will be that, well, the consumers will be paying GST/HST. The reality is that the web giants are not paying the corporate income tax. They are tax-free competition, undermining many of our Canadian businesses.

I still am struggling with why the government seems to be opposed to solutions that would actually provide more resources so that we can provide what Canadians need in this time of pandemic and in the important rebuilding that will last for years afterward.

[The Chair, Liberal, Wayne Easter]

Madam Minister, you will have about a minute to round that out.

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, University—Rosedale, ON]

Okay. Well, a minute seems like a long time, but there were lots of ideas in there.

Let me first talk about the international Internet giants. As the member from the NDP pointed out, our government committed, in the fall economic statement—and this is something we will do—to implement the GST/HST on multinational digital companies. This is a big deal, and it's an important move by the government. It will raise money for the government, and that's important.

From my perspective, it will do something else equally important, which is level the playing field between Canadian and international companies that are providing those services. I'm very glad that we're going forward and doing this.

The member asked another really important question, which is about international companies, particularly the digital giants that do significant business in Canada and do not pay corporate tax on the business that they do here. This is really a pressing issue. Canada always prefers multilateral collaborative solutions. It is the best way to work with our partners around the world, and so we are working with our partners through the OECD to reach an agreement on a tax approach. That being said, we announced last Monday that failing an agreement on a multilateral approach on taxing the Internet giants, Canada will move ahead unilaterally in January 2022.

[The Chair, Liberal, Wayne Easter]

Thank you. I thought there was important information, so we went a little longer.

Mr. Poilievre, you have five minutes, sir.

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Carleton, ON]

The minister tells us that the Bank of Canada is accountable to the people. That is good news. The bank has bought $180 million of corporate bonds. To be accountable to the people, it has to tell people where their money went, so will the minister commit that the bank will reveal which corporations got that money?

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, University—Rosedale, ON]

Mr. Chair, as I said earlier, I am a very strong believer in the importance that the independence of the Bank of Canada plays in our economy and in our financial system. I would urge members to ask questions pertaining to the Bank of Canada of the Bank of Canada.

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Carleton, ON]

The minister says the bank is accountable to the people. We are the people's representatives. Surely we should know. Where did the $180 million go?

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, University—Rosedale, ON]

Mr. Chair, I want to be very clear with all members of this committee of the importance of an independent central bank in the functioning of the Canadian economy. I also want to be clear that it is an undermining of our economy to be raising questions in the minds of Canadians—

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Carleton, ON]

Oh, “raising questions”.

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, University—Rosedale, ON]

—about the independence of the Bank of Canada.

Yes, that is not responsible behaviour.

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Carleton, ON]

Well, I'm sorry to be raising questions about where Canadians' money is going. You might find that dangerous, but I'll ask one last time.

Will you tell us where the $180 million that the Bank of Canada pumped into corporate bonds went? Where did it go?

[The Chair, Liberal, Wayne Easter]

The floor is yours, Minister.