House of Commons Hansard #23 of the 39th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was budget.
John Williams Conservative Edmonton—St. Albert, AB
Mr. Speaker, this is a hypothetical question from the Bloc about what we will do in the next budget while we are still talking about this budget. We have always kept our commitments. We can guarantee that one, but the real question, not the hypothetical one, is where the Bloc members will be after the next election. I do not think they will be here.
Louise Thibault Bloc Rimouski-Neigette—Témiscouata—Les Basques, QC
Mr. Speaker, we just heard a member say, “We have always kept our commitments”.
My question is very short and simple. Why did you not keep your commitment when a unanimous resolution was reached in this House concerning the creation of a POWA?
John Williams Conservative Edmonton—St. Albert, AB
Mr. Speaker, I am not too familiar with the program the member is talking about, but I can assure her that we have fulfilled and will continue to fulfill the election promises we made.
Why make a promise to the electorate and then turn around and not do it? That was the Liberal way, and let us at look where the Liberals are sitting today. We do not intend to follow them. We intend to stay on this side of the House.
Patricia Davidson Conservative Sarnia—Lambton, ON
Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the hon. member for Edmonton—St. Albert for his sharing his time.
It is with great pleasure and honour that I stand today and speak in favour of Bill C-13, an act to implement certain provisions of the budget. I am happy that my government will be honouring its commitments made during the general election, plus much more.
Since coming to Ottawa as a new member of Parliament, I have had the pleasure to work, listen and speak to some wonderful representatives from all over this great country from every political party. I may not agree with many of the views of my colleagues from the opposition parties but I pride myself on listening to different points of view, and I know our Prime Minister feels the same way.
Friday, May 12, was the first time that I was truly upset by comments from a member of the opposition. I heard with dismay as the member for Markham—Unionville denigrated the honest work of my friend, the Minister of Finance. The member used words like visionless, mean-spirited, unsuccessful and dishonest, all within the first three sentences of his speech.
Criticism should be constructive instead of being undignified and, dare I use the words of the hon. member, mean-spirited. I hope there are fewer speeches like that in the future.
There were over 21,000 people in Sarnia--Lambton who voted for change and over 5 million nationally who did the same. These people knew that they were voting for honesty, vision, kindness and success. We will work hard for Canadians and we will run an honest and accountable government.
I knew I was watching the future Prime Minister when I saw the member for Calgary Southwest announce the five key priorities on January 2, 2006. This Prime Minister is a natural leader and he knows how to focus. We saw that with the Speech from the Throne which followed through on the five priorities set out in January.
Now our Minister of Finance has presented a focused budget based on accountability, opportunity, families and communities, security and restoring fiscal balance in Canada, and by addressing those five priorities. I am proud to speak about those priorities today.
Let me begin with opportunity in the agricultural sector. A large part of my riding works in agriculture. During the election campaign I made a commitment to fight for farmers. As a newly elected member of Parliament I met many local, provincial and national farm groups. Our new Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food proved his commitment to farmers when he immediately released, on an accelerated basis, payments under the $755 million grains and oilseeds payment program. However, as I had more meetings, I realized our significant campaign promise of an additional $500 million per year for farm support would not be enough for this year.
I believe that 13 years of disappointment had programmed farmers into believing that their government did not care and would not help out any further. Therefore, on April 5 farmers came from all over the country for a rally on Parliament Hill to give national attention to the farm crisis.
After 13 years of government inaction, they were demanding action from the new government. When the Minister of Finance announced $1.5 billion for the farm sector in this fiscal year, I have never been so proud to be a Conservative. We promised $500 million in additional funds and, instead, we delivered $1.5 billion. I knew that these kinds of funds would really help.
Not only were farmers looking for additional funds but they were looking for a replacement to the failed CAIS program. Over and over again members of our caucus had been told by farmers and farm groups that the CAIS program needed replacing. Our Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food listened. Now our government will replace CAIS with more effective programming for farm income stabilization and disaster relief.
We are committed to developing long term strategies as well as short term solutions. The fact that there are more farmers and more farm interests represented in the government, in caucus and in the cabinet than has been the case in any government in living memory, has helped create a budget that will truly help farmers. For the first time in a long time, farmers have been included in a federal budget.
All Canadians have been included in the budget. The budget contains $20 billion in tax relief, which is more tax relief than the last four federal budgets combined. Twenty-nine federal taxes will be reduced in every area the federal government collects revenues, such as the reduction in the goods and services tax from 7% to 6%; a reduction in income taxes and business taxes, including targeted measures to help Canadians with the cost of transit passes; tools for apprentices; kids sports; and textbooks for students.
Speaking of education, I have a copy of a letter from the president of the University of Western Ontario to the right hon. Prime Minister. I have had many dealings with this great institution over the years as a founding member of the University of Western Ontario Research Park, Sarnia-Lambton Campus. In his letter, the president of the university, Mr. Paul Davenport, gives his “sincere congratulations to the Prime Minister, the Minister of Finance and the entire government on a very successful first budget”. He goes on to write, “the budget affirmed the government's commitment to the stated top five priorities, and also recognized the importance of education and research as key enablers of growth and prosperity in Canada.
That is not all. Mr. Davenport recognized that our governments' support of post-secondary education will positively affect the university in at least four different ways. Our $1 billion trust fund for post-secondary infrastructure will provide critical funding for university facilities as they upgrade aging buildings. Our commitment to expand the eligibility for the Canada student loans program to an estimated additional 30,000 students will give access to higher learning to more young Canadians than ever before. That is in addition to the new textbook tax credit of $520 for students, representing a tax reduction of about $80. This will benefit 1.9 million post-secondary students.
To further help students, the budget will exempt all post-secondary education scholarship and bursary income from tax, providing tax relief to more than 100,000 post-secondary students.
Mr. Davenport did not end there. He thanked the new government for the increased funds of $100 million per year for investment in research and development. That is still not all. Mr. Davenport also recognized the economic windfall our universities will receive as a result of the government's decision to eliminate the remaining capital gains tax on donations of listed securities to public charities. As we all know, fundraising efforts are crucial to the success of universities. This initiative will not only benefit universities but the entire charitable sector.
Many of the charities that will benefit from this exemption will undoubtedly be in the health sector. The government has committed to implement the 10 year plan to strengthen health care. Our first priority is to implement a patient wait times guarantee for medically necessary services developed with provincial and territorial governments.
I have spoken in the House about the Public Health Agency of Canada. We will be providing additional funds to this agency for a variety of causes. We will be investing $52 million per year for the Canadian strategy for cancer control so that we may better understand how to fight the various forms of this disease. We also will invest $460 million to further improve Canada's pandemic preparedness, plus another $19 million to Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Canada to enhance our capacity to deal with catastrophes and emergencies so we may be one of the leading countries in the world when it comes to emergency preparedness.
Risk to health is something we hope to improve. Cracking down on crime is another area we hope to improve. Investing $161 million in the RCMP by adding 1,000 more officers and federal prosecutors, plus another $37 million to expand the RCMP National Training Academy.
As my riding is a border community with many border crossings, I was delighted to hear the Minister of Finance announce $101 million to begin arming border officers and eliminating work alone posts.
I have only touched on a few of the measures found in this budget. I could speak for much longer on how very impressed I am with it. Once again, I congratulate my colleague, the Minister of Finance, and encourage all hon. members to support the bill.
Paul Szabo Liberal Mississauga South, ON
Mr. Speaker, I am interested in the member's comments on the wait time guarantees which she described as wait time guarantees for medically necessary services.
The member will know that as a consequence of the health accord, which was developed in consultation with the provinces, additional moneys will go to the provinces over the next number of years. The provinces also agreed to benchmarks in certain areas but the member represented this as medically necessary services. The budget has no new money for that but it was one of the government's five priorities. This whole project of guaranteeing wait times means that the Government of Canada will be on the hook for transferring patients between provinces and maybe even to the United States or elsewhere to get these services. There is an enormous cost to this. I wonder where exactly the money is.
What assurances would she be prepared to give on behalf of the government that provinces and those health institutions within the provinces will not simply reduce or abandon their efforts in these critical areas knowing that the federal government will simply pick up the tab anyway?
Patricia Davidson Conservative Sarnia—Lambton, ON
Mr. Speaker, we all know that health care is a prime concern right across the country and in every riding. The wait times for services that are desperately needed are not acceptable by anyone's standards.
This government, in consultation with the provinces and the territories, has agreed to guarantee wait times and put in acceptable wait time standards. We realize this is not something that the federal government can do on its own. The provinces and territories have a huge responsibility when it comes to health care and this must be worked out in conjunction with them.
As far as the cost goes, I do not think any of us know what the cost will be. We know there are different ways to do business and, hopefully, there are better ways to do business and, in conjunction with the provinces and territories, we will be searching for those ways and putting in those wait time guarantees.
Denise Savoie NDP Victoria, BC
Mr. Speaker, I want to ask the hon. member a question regarding post-secondary education.
I congratulate the government on its tax credit for skills training which is very nice and a good first step. However, with regard to the issue of post-secondary education, the government has increased the amount that students can borrow without investing at all in lower tuition fees and without investing, as it promised during the last election, in a dedicated post-secondary education transfer.
I wonder if the member considers the equivalent of what amounts to $83 to buy books and the apprenticeship credit to be a national strategy to help our young people face the challenges of the new economy.
Patricia Davidson Conservative Sarnia—Lambton, ON
Mr. Speaker, I will refer again to the comments I made in my speech and the support that this budget has received from the president of a leading university in this country.
We know we need to help our students and we need to make things easier for them to become productive members of society. Under this new budget students will be able to earn up to $19,000 without paying tax, which is a huge incentive for them.
The $500 tax credit will help post-secondary students with their textbook costs. It is only meant to help. It is not meant to pay for all of their textbooks. All of the other incentives in the budget are there to help students as well. I am quite confident that the measures found in this budget will go a long way toward helping students, apprentices and tradespeople.
The Acting Speaker Conservative Andrew Scheer
It is my duty to inform the House that the first five hours of debate are now over. From now on the speeches will be 10 minutes, with a five minute question and answer period.
Paul Crête Bloc Montmagny—L'Islet—Kamouraska—Rivière-du-Loup, QC
Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to address the House today regarding Bill C-13.
So that our listeners may better understand, I would add that the government has tabled a budget. The budget was passed last week, thanks to the Bloc Québécois' support. Without the support of the Bloc, an election would have been called. I do not believe that any Quebeckers or Canadians would have wanted to see that. We have adopted a responsible approach.
We had to examine the entire budget tabled by the government and determine our attitude towards it. We now have before us a bill to implement certain aspects of this budget. The budget announces the government's administrative and financial intentions. However, we must also ensure that legislation and budget provisions match up at the end of the day.
The bill gives some indication why the Bloc Québécois decided to support this budget. Among other reasons, it is a question of the fiscal imbalance. The Bloc Québécois began that debate in this House several years ago, in 2001.
At first, we were the only ones to defend this point of view. Today, it is shared by the Government of Canada. We want this matter to be settled once and for all in Canada. This does not definitively settle the question of Quebec, in part or in full. Clearly, the future of Quebec lies with its sovereignty.
Nonetheless, resolving the issue of fiscal imbalance will give the Quebec government—whether sovereignist or federalist— a bit more room to manoeuvre and will end the stranglehold on expenditures by the Canadian system. We must at least ensure that the provinces obtain the minimum required to carry out their responsibilities. The Conservative government has ended up adopting the arguments of the Bloc Québécois. This is mainly why we supported the budget.
Bill C-13 also contains a number of other items, for example the increase in the child disability benefit to $2,300. This quite logical measure is another reason why we supported the budget. As is the elimination of the capital tax, not necessarily because it will redistribute wealth, but because last year it allowed Quebec to access part of the budget. In addition, due to the lack of money available for Quebec, we believe that this type of measure should have been proposed before eliminating the fiscal imbalance once and for all.
We had to make a choice. This budget contains all sorts of measures including the repeal of the part of the Excise Tax Act pertaining to jewellery. We supported the elimination of this excise tax, which will no longer apply to semi-precious stones as proposed by this bill.
There is also the universal child care benefit. In this regard, we made a much more constructive and equitable proposal concerning distribution of wealth, insisting that the tax credit not be taxable. If it were refundable instead, it would ensure that low-income earners could enjoy the benefits. We did not succeed in changing the government’s position, but we believe that, overall, it would have been positive to include these measures in the budget.
In my opinion, there is quite a significant indication. Certain elements are missing from Bill C-13, for example, the Canada employment credit, the children’s fitness tax credit, the reduction of excise duties on Canadian wine and beer made by small producers and the $500,000 capital gains exemption from the various turnover positions and exemption for fishers. To be checked.
As my colleague from Haute-Gaspésie—La Mitis—Matane—Matapédia has claimed, since intergenerational rollovers are tax-free in the case of farmers, that should certainly also apply to fishers. In a region where fishing is important, as in Quebec, obviously this is a positive measure. However, it cannot be found in Bill C-13, since the Conservative government, to make sure of the Bloc’s support was forced to adjust its right-wing vision.
The budget before us is not the budget of a majority Conservative government. It is very important that the people realize this. Public wisdom elected a minority government, and this led to a budget of this sort. If the people had elected a majority Conservative government, cuts would be taking place today: cuts in social programs and cuts in environmental programs.
Let us recall that there is a reserve of $2 billion. No one dared to announce any cuts because, if they had done so, a crucial question would have been asked that might have led to the government’s defeat.
Furthermore, the government acted responsibly by taking into account the arguments of the Bloc Québécois and by acting moderately. The people, however, must remember this question for the future. That is important. Indeed, when the time comes to make other political choices, the people will have to take this reality into account. A majority Conservative government is absolutely not the government desired for the future of Canada.
It is absolutely necessary that this government, which has a very firm right-wing approach, be able to be moderated by the presence in this House of a party such as the Bloc Québécois. The Bloc has brought this government to table a budget that is more reasonable and for which the Bloc’s support has been essential. However, the Conservatives have been warned: if by this time next year they do not include in their next budget real, concrete measures, which above all will permit a better distribution of the wealth and will deal definitely with the fiscal imbalance, they will no longer have the Bloc's support. At that time we shall see whether we need to go to the people. It was not appropriate to do so this year. Next year, however, it will be an option.
The budget presents other elements which have prompted us to vote in its favour: the $1 billion for post-secondary education for which we have long been asking, the $800 million for affordable housing, and the support for farmers. For us, it was extremely important to have this type of measure. The budget also provides something else important for my riding, namely the introduction of a tax credit for public transit users. Some might question the need for public transit there, as it is a rural riding where public transit is not necessarily a daily priority. But in fact, in my riding, the Bombardier plant in La Pocatière has just landed a contract for the Montreal subway, because public opinion mobilized. That is a concrete example of how effective people can be when they organize and mobilize.
This tax credit will help boost investment in public transit. The Bloc Québécois was the first party in the House of Commons to table a bill granting tax relief for public transit. So it could not be unfavourable to such a measure.
The bill to implement certain elements of the budget deserves to go on to the next step. It must be passed in this House. A good many of the measures proposed in it are positive. However there remain certain things that could be improved. Let us hope that in the future, after the year has passed, it will be clear to the government, for example, that it would be much better to convert the $1,200 tax credit into a refundable tax credit. That would ensure that this measure is fair. We would like to move in that direction over the coming months.
In the next Conservative budget, we will be able to verify whether the government is in fact still taking a responsible approach which takes account of the opinions of the Bloc Québécois. This time, sufficient account of them has been taken for us to support the budget. The government must continue moving in the same direction.
We also have to keep working for a program to assist older workers. There were no more than a few lines devoted to this in the throne speech and the budget. Personally, I was a little disappointed with the answer from my Conservative colleague, who said earlier that he was not entirely familiar with that program and what its purpose was. At present, our economy is subject to competition and globalization, and this creates a number of problems. In particular, we are seeing a lot of small businesses in the manufacturing sector closing down because of competition with China and India. We need this kind of program to assist older workers.
The Conservatives slipped a few words on this subject into the budget. We are told that the situation is being assessed. I hope that we will get a definitive answer before the end of this session, before the summer vacation. In point of fact, implementing this kind of program would not involve enormous costs. It would be respectful of the public and of employees who have to stop working at the age of 53, 54, 55 or 56 against their wishes. Those are often the people who have paid into the employment insurance scheme full-time for 20, 25 or 30 years. They are told that they will be able to draw employment insurance benefits for 45 weeks and then they will not be needed any longer. We expect an answer from the government on this subject.
The Bloc Québécois has supported the budget and supports the budget implementation bill. However, we expect the government to have a sense of responsibility so that we will be able to achieve something: establishment of the older workers assistance program.
Ed Fast Conservative Abbotsford, BC
Mr. Speaker, I have taken some encouragement from the hon. member's comments. He made the statement that taken as a whole, the budget is a positive step, a move in the right direction and that some of the concerns articulated by the Bloc have been addressed in this budget. He also referred to the fiscal imbalance and the fact that it certainly appears that our government is moving in the right direction in addressing that problem.
There was one thing which he did mention and it was a phrase he used which indicated that if the government in future budgets did not move to redistribute the wealth, his party would be compelled to vote against those future budgets. I am curious as to what he meant by that. For many Canadians it raises a red flag when terminology like that is used. Perhaps the member could comment on what he means by “redistribute the wealth”.
Paul Crête Bloc Montmagny—L'Islet—Kamouraska—Rivière-du-Loup, QC
Mr. Speaker, the best example I can give is this: at present, oil companies are making huge and excessive profits.
I think that a future budget should have a provision for redistributing the wealth. The purpose of the redistribution will be to ensure that there are ways for people who live alone, who work 10, 15 or 20 kilometres from their homes and who often earn low wages, $8, $9 or $10 an hour, to be compensated for gas price increases. The question of gas prices is the perfect example to show that there has suddenly been a major increase in profits.
A few years ago, the Liberal government gave these people a tax reduction, at the same time as their profits were rising. In my opinion, next year, when the Conservatives present their next budget, it will be important to see measures being proposed by which the wealth could be redistributed better. That is one way of ensuring that there is greater balance in society. It is one example of what can be done.
Obviously, the fiscal imbalance must also be solved. This year, we have operated on the good faith of the government. We hope that the plan introduced in the annex to the budget will be followed. If we were not to come to an agreement on this, the Bloc will be hot on the Conservatives’ heels.
Larry Bagnell Liberal Yukon, YT
Mr. Speaker, I think it is a mystery to many Quebeckers as to why the Bloc support the budget. The member gave two reasons I would just like to ask him about.
First is the assistance to students. Does the member really think that the $80 for books is serious compared to the $6,000 for tuition that we were offering?
The second is on transit. As the member knows, we provided billions of dollars in direct subsidies to expand the transit systems. Does he think that would be a better expenditure of the money than just providing reimbursements for transit passes for people who are already riding on very crowded transit systems?
Paul Crête Bloc Montmagny—L'Islet—Kamouraska—Rivière-du-Loup, QC
Mr. Speaker, I will first address the second point raised by my colleague.
As for the environment, neither the Liberal nor Conservative government has had clear messages and programs to improve the situation. At this point, we are even regressing. We have moved from a government that claimed to support the Kyoto protocol but did not take satisfactory measures to meet it--and public transit was a factor--to a government that refuses to meet the obligations of the protocol, although it proposes certain measures--with respect to public transit--that are satisfactory. However, in terms of all of the measures needed to improve the situation concerning the environment, a lot of work remains to be done.
The Bloc Québécois is very anxious to see how the government will use the $2 billion that has been set aside. That said, there is no doubt that the Canadian and Quebec population wanted a change in government. It was wise enough to elect a minority government and it can now see the Bloc's responsible attitude. I am very confident that the public will receive the message loud and clear, and will see that the current model of government provides the greatest opportunity for Quebec, should it remain part of Canada, to have its say. Nevertheless, Quebeckers are fully aware that there will be no resolution as long as we represent only 25% of votes and are entitled to only 25% of budgets. We need 100% responsibility. Only then will Quebec be sovereign.
Larry Bagnell Liberal Yukon, YT
Mr. Speaker, being a very positive person, it is hard to get into my new role of being a critic, but I will make an attempt.
The title of my speech today is “Lament for a Nation” because there is a new government with a new throne speech and a new budget that are so prejudicial to the vulnerable, to the poor, to the students, to the environment, to artists, to aboriginal people. With the duplicity of some opposition parties and in spite of the national media's attempts, members of the public are not yet fully aware of this sad lament.
The first people I want to lament for are the Quebeckers who supported the Bloc.
Quebeckers believe in public transit, affordable housing, training, post-secondary education and foreign aid, yet on June 23, the Bloc betrayed Quebeckers and voted against all these things. We can see the results. There was a dramatic drop in the polls and the unimaginable happened: the Conservatives won Quebec City.
As if the Bloc did not learn a lesson from this, they did it again. Quebeckers did not ask for a budget that was built on the backs of the most vulnerable, the students, that increased income tax for the poor, that abolished Kyoto, abolished Kelowna and abolished national child care that took hundreds of millions of dollars from Quebec and that did nothing for older workers and their perceived fiscal imbalance. Yet the Bloc members betrayed their voters again. They betrayed Quebeckers.
Now I want to talk to my colleagues, the Liberal members from Quebec. They can be proud of always supporting those who are vulnerable, the environment, the poor, students and the native peoples.
Quebeckers believe in these and can be proud that they have had Liberal deputies who have steadfastly fought for these in the wake of a devastating Conservative budget, which did little to strategically support these.
Lament number two is for the NDP. The supporters of NDP members were delighted when the rare circumstances evolved that gave this small party the balance of power. We worked together to make even greater gains than the Liberals had already made in public transit, affordable housing for aboriginal people, training, foreign aid and great social progress. Then they threw it all away and, in partnership with the Conservatives, set the stage for the election of a Conservative government. A number of their supporters were furious. We lament for the true social reformers who the NDP abandoned.
The NDP tried to blame the public. It was not the public who pulled the plug early on Parliament before Kelowna could be implemented and before the national child care agreements were realized.
I will never forget a man who came into my office during the election campaign, a lifelong NDP supporter, who said that he and his wife would be voting for me for the first time.
Most astonishing in our lament of NDP voters is their party's duplicity in not fighting strenuously against a throne speech that had virtually nothing in it for students, for labour unions, for women, for the environment, all areas for which the NDP used to strenuously fight.
I want to turn now to the national media. I do not lament for the national media. I think it is great. It does tremendous research and comes up with very exciting and intelligent articles. I am wondering, as a media that prides itself as being the unofficial opposition, if it is lamenting a bit when we have a budget that offers trinkets which are all overblown in their importance. I think a Bloc member mentioned earlier in debate that some of the offerings were worth about a cup of coffee and so prejudicial to the vulnerable. Yet the Tories are still riding so high in the polls. I will provide examples of these two cases.
The first example of a trinket is the $80 for books. The Liberal Party provided millennium scholarships with thousands and thousands of dollars to thousands of students. This was the biggest scholarship program in history. Just recently, the Liberal government offered $6,000 per student for tuition and $12,000 for poorer students.
A Conservative member was asked by a Liberal member what the budget did to help low income single mothers. The Conservative said that they could go back to school with the $80 for their books. I phoned a college bookstore and asked for the price of three books. It was $110, $134 and $160. A person could not even buy three-quarters of a book.
An example is the most vulnerable is aboriginal people. It says on page 112 of the budget that the budget of Indian Affairs has grown about $350 million a year because there is a growing population and inflation. How much did the government increase the budget? The Conservatives increased it $150 million, which is less than 50% of the average of previous governments. What is $150 million of the $5 billion that the Liberal government offered for Kelowna? It is one thirty-third of that amount. When reporters asked where the $5 billion went, what answer did they get? The previous Liberal government had it all set aside.
Finally, my lament is for the Conservatives. This is a party that was once progressives, but it gives Canadians a budget that preys on the vulnerable. I have to compliment the Conservatives for the item that increases money to charities. That is good. In general, the Conservatives tell students that $80 is a good deal compared to the $6,000 that the Liberal government was offering.
The Conservatives complain about smog and then cut 15 climate change programs that help reduce smog. They cut the $4 billion worth of clean air and climate change programs and replace it with what we call in sports “future considerations”. There is only half the money, $2 billion, for ideas that have never come forward yet and no plan.
The Conservatives broke faith with the aboriginal people of our country when they broke faith with the premiers and the leaders of first nations. The Conservatives do nothing more than Bill C-48 to help the poorest people in the world.
The Conservatives cannot come to agreement on military equipment.
The Conservatives, as per on page 218, will increase income tax for the poorest in society from 15% to 15.5% on July 1 of this year. The Conservatives have reduced the basic personal exemption, again most severely affecting the poor, as per again on page 218. It is amazing that the Department of Finance allowed them put this line in the budget. It says that the government will give the poor a break on the GST and then it takes it back. It says and I quote page 218:
The basic personal amount will be reduced by $400 to...on July 1, 2006 at the same time as the GST rate is reduced.
The Conservatives will once again, like the Sheriff of Nottingham, take away from the poor by eliminating the young child national supplement for low income people.
Conservatives ignore rural people in their budget and almost taunt them. They kept one Liberal rural program, the rural infrastructure program. They give one example in the budget of this rural project. Let us see what they say. Remember that rural Canada is 95% of the land mass, so what project did they pick for their one example?
This will allow this fund to support further improvements to municipal infrastructure, such as the Evergreen Commons at the Don Valley Brick Works in Toronto.
That is a great project and a great symbol of the Conservatives' lack of commitment to rural Canada.
The Prime Minister, during the 2006 election, mocked some agreement as politicians paying politicians. Then the Conservatives do exactly the same thing by taking $1 billion from our students and giving it to provincial politicians. That is politicians paying politicians.
The Conservative government does not support culture. It has cut the increases to artists by two-thirds. The Conservative government, after the Liberal government gave very large support to people staying at home through the national child benefit, gives as little as 55¢ a day or 14 minutes of day care.
The Conservative government sold the future of our children by cutting increases in R and D by as much as 90%.
There may be some low income people who get a slight reduction in taxes, but the fact is they are the only level of people who are also given income tax increases. Last night I bought a quart of milk for $2.29. For 55¢ a day, a low income person could quit his or her job and buy a quarter of a litre of milk for the children. Is that being better off? I agree that the wealthy and businesses should get tax cuts, but they should be fair tax cuts. They will get thousands of dollars back.
We can see why the throne speech and budget are described as a lament for a nation. The nation I was raised in and am proud to represent is one of generosity, where everyone, corporations, small business, the wealthy, the middle class and the poor all benefit from the record benefits of Canadian prosperity. A rising tide raises everyone equally.
It was a nation trying to come to peace with the aboriginal people and reduce their disparities. It was a nation that supported national parks, child care, research and development, clean air programs and the cultural achievements of our artists, whose dreams were to bring to reality what the United Nations said was the best country in the world.
Instead we have a nation whose government has had the richest inheritance in history, yet has given some small general tax breaks and then claws them back with increased taxes to one group of Canadians and one group alone, the poor. This is why indeed today we lament for a nation.
Budget Implementation Act, 2006Government Orders
Wellington—Halton Hills Ontario
Conservative
Michael Chong ConservativePresident of the Queen's Privy Council for Canada
Mr. Speaker, I listened with interest to my colleague's comments across the way. It is highly ironic that he used the phrase “lament for a nation”. Is he aware that it was written by a famous Canadian by the name of George Grant? He lamented the fact that the over decades the Liberals had given away many of Canada's great traditions, given away what he saw as the heart and soul of what it meant to be Canadian, not simply a country limited by its geography, but a country that was also imbibed with the spirit and ideas that came out of centuries of conflict and resolution, centuries of working together across a vast, inchoate land.
Does the member know that Lament For a Nation. The Defeat of Canadian Nationalism was written by George Grant a number of decades ago? It criticized the Liberal Party and suggested that the vehicle for preserving Canada's traditions and its great past into the future was the Conservative Party?
Larry Bagnell Liberal Yukon, YT
Mr. Speaker, taking away the things that Canada is all about is exactly why we are lamenting a nation today.
When they had the fiscal capacity and the greatest surplus in history given to them, why could Conservatives not let everyone increase at the same rate? Why would they tax the lowest income people? Is that part of what being Canadian is?
The wealthy and the corporations in our country are very generous. They donate to all kinds of things. They never would have asked that they get tax cuts and that low income people not get the same level of tax cuts. They never would have asked that we destroy the peace and harmony of a historical agreement, which was so hard to come by, with the premiers and the first nations leaders. They never would have asked for this change in our country and the spirit of this nation. That is why it is a lament for a nation.
Christian Ouellet Bloc Brome—Missisquoi, QC
Mr. Speaker, I would like to ask the hon. member for Yukon why he is congratulating the Liberal members from Quebec, when they did so poorly in the recent election.
I was elected in a riding that had been Liberal, where they discovered that the Liberal Party really did not have significant and worthwhile solutions to propose to Quebec. We are wondering now how is it he feels that the Bloc Québécois is acting irresponsibly by supporting the minority government's budget.
Had we not voted in favour of this budget, an election would have been called, to the distress of the member for Yukon.
Larry Bagnell Liberal Yukon, YT
Mr. Speaker, he talks about how the Liberals did in Quebec. They did better than the Bloc Québécois. It thought that it would gain all sorts of seats, but lost them instead. It did not get anywhere near what it was projecting because last June it voted against public transit, affordable housing, training, post-secondary education and foreign aid, all the things in which Quebeckers believe.
Now it has supported a budget that, once again, is lacking all sorts of things in which Quebeckers believe such as strong support for students and increased income tax for the poor. It abolished Kyoto. I think 90% of Quebeckers believe in Kyoto. The Bloc voted for a budget that abolished Kelowna. Quebeckers have been very supportive of aboriginal people. The budget abolished a national child care program that was bringing hundreds and hundreds of dollars to Quebec. It enhanced the fiscal imbalance of Quebec by taking hundreds of millions of dollars away from it. That is why the Bloc is doing so poorly.
Alan Tonks Liberal York South—Weston, ON
Mr. Speaker, my colleague is very interested in the environmental implications, with respect to programs that have been slashed in the budget, as they affect the north, certainly the FedNor programs and programs related to the Canadian rural partnership.
Would the member like to expand for a moment on how slashing those programs is going to affect the north at a time when we are looking at the north as being one of the great frontiers that will add considerably to the value in our Canadian economy in the future?
Larry Bagnell Liberal Yukon, YT
Mr. Speaker, I will be elaborating on that in my speech at 6:30 p.m. I would say the north has the highest climate change in the world. It is devastating. Our species are changing, as well as the ice roads on which our economy depends. It has more effect on us in the north.
The cancelling of 15 environmental greenhouse gas programs is affecting the north more dramatically. Species like polar bears will become extinct. It is affecting us more than any other Canadians. That is why we need the support of the government, not to cancel all these things without putting anything in place as we become more and more devastated in the north.
The Acting Speaker Conservative Andrew Scheer
It is my duty, pursuant to Standing Order 38, to inform the House that the questions to be raised tonight at the time of adjournment are as follows: the hon. member for Yukon, Indian Affairs and Northern Development; the hon. member for Montmagny—L'Islet—Kamouraska—Rivière-du-Loup, Softwood Lumber.
Brian Masse NDP Windsor West, ON
Mr. Speaker, it is a pleasure to speak to the budget implementation act.
I will start by making some corrections that I think are important in terms of the revisionist theory that is happening on the Liberal side with regard to what brought about an election. I also want to point out that the Liberals still have not learned a sense of responsibility regarding their conduct in the last Parliament in promising one thing to Canadians and then delivering another.
It is amazing to hear that the timing of the election was solely brought on by the NDP, when the fact of the matter is it was the member for LaSalle—Émard who literally went on television and begged for his life. There was only three weeks difference in when we actually had the election. He begged across this country. He set a precedent. It was the first time a prime minister had used the national media to ask for time so that the Liberals could actually bring something forward. The reality is there was only a three week difference. What else is amazing is at that time even if we had chosen to support the Liberals, there still would not have been enough votes in the House of Commons to prop them up.
The fact is the Liberals have really missed the point that Canadians made a decision. Canadians made a decision and their votes should not be taken for granted. They have that right.
What we have now is a budget which in many respects reminds me of the budgets that the member for LaSalle—Émard put forward in the late 1990s which focused on tax cuts for corporations as opposed to investing in Canadians. That is one of the reasons as a New Democrat I cannot support the present budget bill. It does not invest enough in Canadians. At a time when we have record surpluses we still have outstanding challenges.
One area I want to focus on today is the manufacturing sector. An industrial strategy has been repeatedly called for. We have witnessed the struggles of the aerospace and textile industries which are very important economic engines for the Canadian economy. This goes back to prior to the rise in the Canadian dollar. The rise in the Canadian dollar is in large part due to the high oil and gas exports to the United States. Those are having a significant impact on the dollar which has a subsequent impact on manufacturing in Canada.
Studies, the most recent of which was on January 27, have shown that with the labour market shifts in manufacturing, construction and natural resources, we are witnessing one of the biggest downturns in Canadian manufacturing history.
I come from Windsor, Ontario. The automotive industry traditionally has paid a lot of money into the federal government coffers through personal and corporate taxes, which has benefited this country significantly. That industry is at risk for a couple of reasons. There is no public policy of framework on how to increase the capacity to create manufacturing jobs and keep them going forward or, more importantly, incentives regarding employment on the shop floor.
The United States has incentives, economic relief and strategic elements for training as well as incentives for infrastructure which capture Canadian jobs. That is a real risk here. We know with the dollar going up it has had an significant impact.
In a study from 2002 to 2005, before we actually had a significant shift in the Canadian dollar which is further problematic, manufacturing jobs fell by nearly 149,000, representing a 6.4% loss during that time. This is significant because once we lose those jobs they are gone.
It is interesting that in the budget plan a chart on page 32 indicates a steep decline in manufacturing employment from 1970 to 2005. The decline is represented by a downward slope so steep that someone could ski jump off it. Unfortunately, we have not been doing anything to push that rate back up again. We have not done enough.
Interestingly, in the budget plan there is a graph showing immediate crude oil prices, but we witnessed the exact opposite. On budget day it was over $75 a barrel which is a significant increase. That pushes up the manufacturing issues relating to productivity which are so difficult to deal with. There are the elements of a higher dollar that had traditionally been relied upon as a crutch by the government without an actual strategy.
Potential solutions have been proposed. The Centre for Policy Alternatives has a good one. I am going to outline a few of the things where the budget does not allocate or speak to the auto sector which is very important. There are simple things we could do.
We could establish a multi-stakeholder sectoral development council. We did that in the past with CAPC recommendations. The Canadaian Automotive Partnership Council got together to create a national strategy. Everyone is on side, from business to labour to municipalities. It is a comprehensive strategy.
What is interesting about this budget, which reminds me once again of the regime of the member for LaSalle—Émard, was that a previous Liberal minister, the member for Vancouver Kingsway, could have acted on the CAPC recommendations. It is a model that is spoken about. He had an opportunity to act on it and he chose not to. At committee I challenged the then Liberal minister of industry, science and technology to bring forward an automotive manufacturing strategy. He promised on two different occasions that he would bring that back. He did not deliver.
What is interesting is that the member has now moved over to the Conservative Party as the Minister of International Trade. Why did he not bring the work related to the budget and auto policy with him? Will it come? We do not know. We have not heard. It is not in the budget. It is not in the speaking points. The Minister of Industry has been virtually silent. It is certainly not one of the five priorities. A convincing case could be made, but we have not heard about this very important file.
I cannot understand it. The member for Vancouver Kingsway carried the softwood lumber position that was constructed under the Liberal regime over to the Conservative side. The softwood lumber issue was basically trade crime against Canadians but he did not bring forward a piece of legislation for the automotive sector and the manufacturing sector at one of the most sensitive times. It is an interesting point in time because we have newer technologies. We hear a lot about the potential tax credits and some of the structures that could be put in place to move newer technologies from shop floors into manufacturing, but where is the sectoral strategy to deliver that? We have yet to hear.
I am very pleased that the industry committee has agreed to study manufacturing losses and jobs in the upcoming session of Parliament. It is a priority. It is very important, but we need to do more.
Another aspect is we could review the Canadian investment act to ensure that incoming foreign investment generates significant benefits in the public interest. This is something that has been put forth with regard to China Minmetals. China Minmetals was going to purchase Canadian companies. We objected to that. It was shot down at committee. We had tried to put that forth at that time. We now hear grumblings that the legislation might come back for amendment. We might have an interest in that. We need to look at that in terms of what type of export of Canadian jobs is happening.
This is not foreign to Canada. In the United States, congressmen and other legislators are looking at similar types of changes to their legislation and ownership rules. We have seen that most recently with Dubai and with other types of initiatives relating to manufacturing. Hopefully we will see that type of review come forward, and not just in terms of what I raised at industry committee. We talked a lot about safety and security and national security issues but there still is nothing today in our foreign investment act that prevents rogue nations, when we define them as rogue nations, from actually buying Canadian companies. Some of them could be sensitive strategically involving telecommunications and natural resources and could have a significant impact on the Canadian market and on manufacturing here and abroad. There is nothing in there. Currently all the information is kept private and there is no recourse for members of Parliament or the public to get the information.
Another thing that we are calling for, and I would have hoped to see a comment on this, is in regard to the free trade talks with Korea. There is a significant problem with regard to the automotive industry. Right now Korea has a significant trade surplus with us in the automotive sector that we cannot penetrate. We would like to hear about those things.
In closing, another very important issue which comes into play is the western hemisphere travel initiative. We never saw anything for the tourism sector in this budget to the detriment of our economy and our tourism sector. That should be in the budget as well.
Colin Carrie ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Industry
Mr. Speaker, coming from Oshawa, I share my colleague's passion about the manufacturing sector and the automotive industry. I was hoping he could clarify the NDP's position for me. In this budget we gave out significant tax cuts to all corporations and all businesses to make them much more competitive internationally. It seems that the NDP members are consistently against these types of tax cuts.
Even the Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters said that this is actually the best budget for manufacturers in the past five years. It has things in it for border infrastructure. The member mentioned the CAPC report.
I wonder if he could help clarify this one point for me because it is something I have been trying to understand for the last few years. How can the NDP be against tax cuts for large corporations when these corporations create so many jobs for Canadians and tax cuts allow the corporations to compete internationally? How can the NDP be against that when this budget is the best one in the last five years for that?
Brian Masse NDP Windsor West, ON
Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the parliamentary secretary's question and his interest in the auto industry, but the reality is that the tax cuts are not even the number one thing the corporations are asking for. Looking at the CAPC report, tax cuts are not the priority. It is infrastructure and other things.
What is interesting about the budget and the infrastructure that is being delivered is it is over five to six years. We know from history that the length of minority governments is a couple of years at best. We have only seen a renewal of funds. We have not really seen significant improvements in border infrastructure. Coming from Windsor West, I have heard it all in terms of promises for infrastructure which are never delivered.
With regard to tax cuts, I would ask the hon. member to go back to his constituency and ask why it is that they support continuing a $1.5 billion tax cut or subsidies for the oil and gas industry and why those companies are not exempted in this respect. Canadians see the record profits in the oil and gas industry. All the companies have record prices at the pump and they are going to get another tax cut. That does not make any sense.
Yes, we can have some good tax cuts, there is no doubt about that, but they have to be strategic and they have to lead to good jobs for Canadians, enjoyed by all, not just a select few.