Thank you, Mr. Chair.
I don't intend to speak for long, but since I and my party were referenced in the Conservatives' comments, I want to set the record straight.
First of all, I endorse all the comments of Ms. Dzerowicz. I've only been on this committee two weeks, and if there is one thing I've heard consistently through 20 hours of finance committee hearings on the fall economic statement in the last two weeks alone, it's that there is unanimity that they want this bill passed as soon as possible.
This is clearly a delay tactic by the Conservatives. Anybody watching this could tell easily, because they had three Conservatives speaking to a simple motion to call a witness. That's not necessary if they truly are sincere about just calling this witness.
The repeated references to Mr. Carney's putative political ambitions, I think, also starkly reveal where the Conservatives are really coming from on this. They're being partisan, and they're trying to politicize this committee for their own electoral purposes, which I find a misuse of this committee's time.
I've never heard the name Mark Carney and central planning ever mentioned in the same breath. He doesn't strike me as a central-planning type of person, but maybe I have a different view of central planning than the Conservatives do.
I've had multiple conversations with my colleagues on the other side about calling Mr. Carney. Mr. Carney does have a storied history. He was Governor of the Bank of Canada as well as Governor of the Bank of England, but right now he's a private citizen. He made some remarks as a private citizen. If this committee is going to function so that any one of the 12 members of this committee at any time can call to this committee a citizen of this country who says something interesting, we will grind this committee to a halt. I could list 12 people who have said interesting things about monetary policy and fiscal policy in the last week. I was talking to Jim Stanford a few days ago. I'd like to call Jim Stanford to the committee by May 9 to hear what he has to say. If we do that....
The Conservatives are saying yes. We'll see how they react, if and when they are government again, when important things like budget implementation bills—upon which 40 million Canadians depend and for which businesses in this country are yearning—are held up while we have a debating salon in the finance committee as opposed to dealing in an orderly fashion with the business that should come before the finance committee, which is the fall economic statement.
For Canadians watching, right now on the docket of this committee we have the fall economic statement, Bill C-59, which we're trying to pass today. We have an upcoming budget. We have a housing study, which is currently under way and unfinished. These will be delayed by these kinds of political shenanigans.
I will tell you that my constituents are much more interested in getting affordable housing than they are in hearing about Mr. Carney's potential political ambitions.
We have an inflation study. I think a lot of Canadians in the last two years have really struggled with the high cost of food. The Conservatives claim to care about it. We have a study before this committee, and they want to delay that study to engage in a partisan attack on someone they view to be a potential Liberal leader.
What's funny about this is how brazen and stark the Conservatives are about their ambitions. I thought they would at least have enough respect for this committee to try to hide it, but they haven't. I mean, they lay it right out there. They want to call Mr. Carney because he's a possible Liberal leader. That's not a proper use of the finance committee.
By the way, as I've communicated to the Conservatives, absolutely, Mr. Carney could be invited to this committee, and I'd be interested in hearing what he has to say. Do it in the proper way. Do it in the context of a study.
For any Canadians watching this, when there is a study here, every party is entitled to nominate the witnesses they want to hear. They don't need a motion passed for that. I've already indicated to the Conservatives that we should have a couple of days on the inflation study in the next 60 days. I'd support their calling Mr. Carney as a witness on inflation if they think he has something interesting to say. They know that, yet they come in public here and move a motion in order to politicize something that is simply a waste of time.
If Mr. Carney has been invited before and he didn't come, as the Conservatives have said, issue a summons. Move a motion to issue a summons. That's a tool they have. They haven't done that.
For all of those reasons, I'm going to vote against this motion.
I want to be clear on the record: I look forward to Mr. Carney's coming to this committee at the appropriate time in the appropriate study, which can happen in the next two months. I'm not prepared to hold up the important work of this committee to get Canadians and Canadian businesses the important relief they need just so the Conservatives can use this committee as a political attack tool as opposed to an important parliamentary committee that is here to move forward important legislation like the budget.
Thank you.