Thank you, Chair, for that confirmation.
I want to share some other quick facts regarding how Liberal policies have led to food inflation and why food inflation is a critical aspect that we need to be looking at as part of this discussion.
“Canada's Food Price Report” for 2026 forecasts that “overall food prices will increase by 4% to 6%.” The average family of four is expected “to spend up to $17,571.79” on food in 2026. I guess that's double for the average family of eight, for those in my situation. That's “an increase of up to $994.63 from last year”, so close to a $1,000 increase in food prices year over year that families are facing. Also, food prices are “27% higher than they were five years ago”.
The price of beef soared in 2025, with a 19% increase in the first quarter of 2025 alone. This stabilized in later seasons, but prices are still up 23% from the five-year average. Canadian food prices in January 2026 soared 7.3% over January 2025 according to Statistics Canada.
We have seen massive increases in food prices that are really biting. Parents I talk to don't actually want the ever-expansion of state involvement in their lives and those of their children. They want to go back to an economic situation in which a larger number of families were able to afford to provide for their kids themselves.
We are becoming a country where it is harder and harder for families to provide food for their kids. A Liberal solution is more government intervention in their lives, in particular more federal government intervention, in an area that is, I think, more properly managed at other levels of government and is certainly administered at other levels of government. This is a choice the government is making, which is to make it harder for families to afford food and to therefore say the government will take over that function. We think most Canadians would like to be in a position where they can afford food themselves.
As part of any consideration of this matter, our view is that food inflation is an important component of the study. As I've said, after talking to colleagues off-line—and I'll underline it here on the record—we would be happy to do a fulsome study that looks at issues around food inflation, as well as the school food program. The government can offer more federal government involvement as its solution to the problem of escalating food costs, but we're going to propose reversing the Liberal policies that have driven up food costs in the first place. Conservatives are pushing for policies that will lower the price of food so that families can afford food themselves, and we're happy to have that debate in the context of a study.
I think an important question, as the consideration of this motion unfolds, is whether the Liberals are open to including, as part of their study, consideration of the issue of food inflation. I would be happy to work either officially on the floor of the committee or informally off-line to try to come to a consensus. We think the issue of food inflation, and linked to it some of the programs the government has put forward to try to respond to food inflation, could be a legitimate area of study. However, to not consider food inflation as part of this study would be missing a critical piece of the pie—no pun intended.
Chair, I want to make some comments about the other motions before the committee in terms of prioritization, but I know a few other members have their hands up. If you can add me to the list at the bottom, I'll give other members an opportunity to weigh in.