Mr. Chair and members of the Standing Committee on Finance, thank you for coming to meet with us here in Quebec City this morning.
I represent one of the largest environmental organizations in Quebec, Équiterre, which has more than 150,000 members and supporters.
I'll start by saying that the climate crisis is not just a theoretical problem. It affects our economic sectors, our supply chains and our personal finances. For example, Les Producteurs de pommes du Québec asked for $30 million in assistance from MAPAQ, Quebec's department of agriculture, fisheries and food, to adapt to climate change. I noticed apples on display at the moment with some members of Parliament, which is a good thing because we grow excellent apples here. However, this industry, and many others, must be protected. To do so requires solid conservation, adaptation and climate change policies.
In terms of personal finances, Quebeckers understand the link between the climate crisis and the cost of living. According to our recent survey, which was conducted by Leger, 89% of Quebeckers agree that extreme climate events have an impact on crops, and therefore on the price of groceries. In addition, 82% of Quebeckers agree that extreme climate events have an impact on infrastructure, and therefore lead to an increase in municipal taxes. The same proportion agrees that extreme weather events have an impact on personal property, which in turn leads to insurance premium increases.
If we do not take climate change seriously and adapt to its consequences, we will not be able to seize opportunities to reduce the cost of living for families. The survey we conducted also shows that 54% of future vehicle buyers consider that the supply of vehicles does not match their budget. This is not surprising, since the cost of purchasing a new vehicle has skyrocketed in Quebec since 2019. It went from $34,000 to an average of $64,000. It's not carbon pricing or any kind of environmental regulation that makes vehicles unaffordable; it's just an industry choice.
Some of the solutions to the rising costs of travel include funding for active and collective mobility. That is why we recommend, in our brief, that $750 million in funding for public transit operations be extended to maintain essential service levels, which also helps reduce mobility expenses for Canadian families.
We also propose the expansion of the zero-emission vehicle incentive or iZEV program, to support the purchase of 50,000 electric assisted bikes, by offering a purchase subsidy. This represents an investment of $75,000 over two years and would help replace motor vehicle travel, which, I would remind you, is becoming less and less affordable.
In terms of food, I would like to point out that sadly, 15% of Quebec children live in families that are food insecure. Rising food prices does not help. If committee members want to help families pay their grocery bills, we recommend that the government increase funding for school food programs by $1 billion over five years in partnership with the provinces.
With respect to agriculture, we encourage the members of this committee to help young farmers deal with the exploding cost of land access caused by speculation through a fund to support access to farmland for the farming community. We're looking for an initial investment of $200 million over five years.
In closing, encouraging repairs would be another way to help Canadian families reduce their budget expenses. One study estimated potential annual savings at $515. Budget 2023 announced the federal government's intention to introduce a right to repair using a 15% tax credit to cover a portion of the costs used to extend the life of appliances. However, as tax credits do not directly reduce the cost of repair, they are identified by consumers as a significant barrier to repair. That is why we encourage the Standing Committee on Finance and the government to explore other approaches. Équiterre proposes to assess the implementation of measures that will help reduce the cost of repairs when people go to repair companies. This could take the form of financial assistance supported by a fund for the repair of appliances and electronics, which would initially cost an estimated $87 million over the first three years, to reduce the cost of repairs made to goods that are not under warranty. We would also like the government to consider giving repair companies a reprieve from the GST.
Thank you for taking the time to come and meet with us and listen to us. We encourage you to take a closer look at our submission.