House of Commons Hansard #18 of the 39th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was billion.

Topics

Financial Statement of Minister of FinanceThe BudgetGovernment Orders

1:10 p.m.

Liberal

Anita Neville Liberal Winnipeg South Centre, MB

Mr. Speaker, the member knows full well that the previous government followed through on its commitments on the environment. We provided $400,000 for the tar ponds. We made a commitment to clean up the Great Lakes and Lake Winnipeg. We had a series of programs that the Conservative government decided to axe without advising Canadians, again part of the spin.

If my hon. colleague truly supports issues like the child care plan and aboriginal peoples, why did his party sell out last November for political expediency?

Financial Statement of Minister of FinanceThe BudgetGovernment Orders

1:10 p.m.

Bloc

Marc Lemay Bloc Abitibi—Témiscamingue, QC

Mr. Speaker, I listened to the member's speech and I also listened carefully to the translation. Wishing to be sure of her comments, I also listened to the speech in English. I share her concern for the plight of the first nations in the budget we are debating. I know that the honourable member was very involved with the first nation communities in negotiating the Kelowna accord.

The Kelowna accord is a nation-to-nation agreement, one between the first nations and the Government of Canada. What would be the consequences for aboriginal communities, the first nations and the northern Inuit if the Kelowna accord were not honoured?

Financial Statement of Minister of FinanceThe BudgetGovernment Orders

1:10 p.m.

Liberal

Anita Neville Liberal Winnipeg South Centre, MB

Mr. Speaker, I know my colleague is a strong advocate of the Kelowna accord but the impact of not honouring the Kelowna accord, not honouring a government's commitment and the honour of the Crown with Kelowna, is far-reaching. The Kelowna accord was an integrated strategy that addressed many aspects, some of which I mentioned in my comments, such as education, housing, economic development, health and governance. It did it in an integrated manner that would have allowed local communities to design a strategy to best meet their needs. Aboriginal communities across the country are not all at the same spot. The beauty of the Kelowna accord was that it was respectful to the communities in terms of where they were.

Financial Statement of Minister of FinanceThe BudgetGovernment Orders

1:10 p.m.

NDP

The Deputy Speaker NDP Bill Blaikie

A brief question, the hon. member for Nanaimo--Alberni

Financial Statement of Minister of FinanceThe BudgetGovernment Orders

1:10 p.m.

Conservative

James Lunney Conservative Nanaimo—Alberni, BC

Mr. Speaker, the debate is getting interesting this afternoon.

It is puzzling to me that the Liberals continue to applaud their own accomplishments in terms of numbers. The Liberals seem to assume that a problem is solved when they attach a number to it.

What is it with the budget, which Canadians are applauding and receiving well, that these Liberals have trouble with? We have tax cuts. After Liberals overtaxed Canadians for more than a dozen years, we have tax cuts in 29 areas. We have $1,200 per child coming forward. We are putting $250 million into child care spaces, $500 for children's sports and $1,000 employment tax credit. That is something new. For students, there will be a $500 credit for textbooks. The budget includes help for scholarships. Seniors will do better.

The Liberals like to talk about Kyoto. For all the billions of dollars they spent, our carbon emissions went up by 30%.

To finish where the member was on Kelowna, it had big numbers attached to it, but had no delivery mechanism or accountability worked in it. We are delivering $450 million to help with water and for affordable housing on reserves, which the Liberals never addressed. We are delivering $300 million to help with non-reserve aboriginal. We are also putting aside over $2.2 billion--

Financial Statement of Minister of FinanceThe BudgetGovernment Orders

1:15 p.m.

NDP

The Deputy Speaker NDP Bill Blaikie

Order, please. I did ask the hon. member to be brief. The hon. member for Winnipeg South Centre.

Financial Statement of Minister of FinanceThe BudgetGovernment Orders

1:15 p.m.

Liberal

Anita Neville Liberal Winnipeg South Centre, MB

Mr. Speaker, the member opposite knows full well the impact of Kelowna on aboriginal Canadians. We signed the accord and the dollars were committed. We negotiated with all the provinces, territories and aboriginal leadership. Everyone was signed on to it. The Conservative government chooses not to honour that.

When the member said that I had thrown numbers at him, Kelowna was a consultative, collaborative process. It was done by all parties working together. What my colleague's government is proposing to do is impose. No one consulted. No one asked. No one worked with aboriginal communities. The difference is the processes of consultation, when we are dealing on a nation to nation basis, which is so critical to aboriginal communities, first nations communities.

Financial Statement of Minister of FinanceThe BudgetGovernment Orders

1:15 p.m.

Liberal

Mario Silva Liberal Davenport, ON

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to have this opportunity to rise in the House to comment on the budget introduced by the Minister of Finance last Tuesday.

There is a tradition that is familiar to all of us in the House with respect to the passage of budgets. Governments must maintain the confidence the House. for if they cannot pass their budget bills, then they have lost the needed consent to govern. This is because budgetary matters are so essential to the business of the government and so fundamentally significant for the lives of those for whom we have been sent here to serve.

Budgets establish the government's priorities and should therefore reflect the priorities of all Canadians. As a parliamentarian and a Canadian, I find some aspects of the budget to be positive, although I am concerned about several flaws.

The environment is one area that should sound the alarm for many Canadians. I was extremely proud when, as a member of the previous Liberal government, we moved to implement our commitment under the Kyoto accord. This agreement represented a seismic step forward in terms of international cooperation in addressing significant climate change that threatened to impact so substantially the lives of all people across the world and of generations yet to come.

It was with pride that I watched Canada join with many of the world's most progressive nations in supporting the Kyoto accord. The previous Liberal government demonstrated its commitment to the principles of the Kyoto accord by committing the funds necessary to facilitate its implementation: $5 billion was assigned to ensure that the environment we passed on to future generations of Canadians would be livable and sustainable.

This past Tuesday the government demonstrated that it did not share this significant commitment to the environment. Instead, Conservatives put forward what they described as a “made in Canada solution”. If it were truly a made in Canada solution, it would reflect the very real and deeply felt commitments of Canadians to protection of the environment. I am afraid the budget does not demonstrate any such commitment.

There is also the issue of child care. The previous Liberal government had begun an enormous, important move forward in terms of providing the kind of affordability and quality that Canadian families deserved. My colleague, the previous minister of social development, the hon. member for York Centre, had already worked with provincial counterparts in several provinces to begin to put in place a national day care system of which we could all be proud.

There are clearly very different visions at work here. My colleagues on the government benches believe that their program offers choice to Canadians. Then again, does it really? The previous Liberal government plan would have committed $5 billion to establish a child care system that would have ensured the availability of day care service to Canadians who most needed them. In fact, in my home town of Toronto, it is now evident that the thousands of day care spaces, which would have been created under the Liberal plan, are now to be lost as a result of the direction that has been adopted by the government. This is very unfortunate for the many families across the country who had anticipated the availability of affordable day care in their communities. It is something they now see slipping away.

There has been much talk of the tax cuts that the budget extends to Canadians. Indeed, there are tax measures in the budget that will reduce the amount payable in tax. However, I was quite disappointed that the government would choose to reverse a Liberal tax cut aimed at those at the lowest end of the income scale. At a time of unparalleled prosperity in our country's history, it is really quite sad that the government's budget would choose to add to the burden faced by many of our country's most economically disadvantaged citizens. Canada is not about that. I know many Canadians feel distressed when hearing that those unable to pay taxes will actually see the Liberal tax cut aimed at helping them up in life eliminated by this budget plan.

Last year's Kelowna accord played an important role in the progress of first nations peoples. It showed first nations peoples dignity and respect, which was a priority for the previous federal government under the Liberal Party. That government also provided progressive funding in several areas to meet the needs of aboriginal peoples.

In this budget we see the commitment brushed aside, only to be replaced by a portion of the funds necessary to meet the needs of our first nations peoples. Indeed, I was saddened to see that the Assembly of First Nations has to state that “first nations will remain in last place as a result of...(the) federal budget”.

The Kelowna accord was a major step forward in the relationship between the federal government and the first nations people of our country. My vision of Canada is one where aboriginal peoples are treated with respect and dignity and are welcomed to the table as equal partners. The accord signed last year went such a long way down the road to recognizing this need, yet we see the new government abandoning what so many well-intentioned and committed people worked so hard to achieve.

What about students? In the financial statement released last November, my colleague, the former finance minister and member for the riding of Wascana, outlined significant steps forward for those who would shape the future of our country. Significant funding was announced then to assist students, financially, by way of Canada access grants, workplace training innovation funds and the list went on. We did not see this kind of commitment being made in budget 2006.

Those in our post-secondary schools deserve the kind of support announced last winter by the Liberal government in the form of initiatives that came even before the announcement was made in the fiscal update in November. These young people are the future of our country. They are the next generation of doctors, teachers and our country's future leadership. They deserve the kind of support promised last November but missing in the spring.

What about the most vulnerable seniors who do not reap any benefit from the budget? These are older Canadians who may not have the benefit of significant private pension plans. Where are the initiatives to assist them? Indeed, where is the help for our cities that the previous Liberal government had demonstrated on a continual basis? Whether it is the environment, child care, seniors, students or our first nations peoples, budget 2006 leaves much to be desired.

While none of the provisions of this budget are negative in nature, there is so much to be concerned about that we need to bring attention to them in the House. So many times colleagues within the House have spoken of their vision of Canada, and this is an important concept.

Budgets are more than just figures and spreadsheets. They are also created for our citizens. We must be sure to help those in need and to encourage those who have the necessary means, so that everyone can have the fulfilling, satisfying lifestyle that they deserve.

We cannot build a future on shaky ground. To have a solid foundation, we must have the kind of investment that supports our families, child care centres, first nations peoples, cities, seniors, and the list goes on. Budget 2006 reflects a vision that will be alien to many Canadians. It really does not reflect our values of compassion, caring and inclusiveness. It does not match with our sense of fair play and our commitment to helping those among us most in need.

Like many Canadians, I had hoped for so much more for the sake of the future of our world, our country and our people.

Financial Statement of Minister of FinanceThe BudgetGovernment Orders

1:20 p.m.

NDP

Nathan Cullen NDP Skeena—Bulkley Valley, BC

Mr. Speaker, I seem to be one of a few who has a strong interest in this debate, but I will soldier on.

I have a question for the hon. member. He mentioned students, however briefly, and the insult tossed at them in the budget of a few dollars for some books and the potential to borrow more money. What a fantastic option for students who are leaving school with $25,000 to $30,000 on average of student debt.

Could he comment on how it took the New Democrats to push the previous government to make investments in the last true budget of his government? When pushed up against the wall with the electoral gun to its head, suddenly a deathbed conversion was experienced in this place and the Liberal government of the day finally found it necessary to support students with over $1 billion, which was included in Bill C-48 and passed through the House.

Students everywhere were glad for it. Finally, some attention was paid to the growing deficit that our country had be running, year in and year out, when it came to students, our future generations and those looking to improve their lots in life, and to improve the efficiency and productivity in our economy. That did not happened until Bill C-48 showed its head and the New Democrats pushed the reluctant party of the day.

I would encourage the current government to look at such a intelligent and favourable move as well and prepare progressive legislation to support students who are striving to make their lives better.

Financial Statement of Minister of FinanceThe BudgetGovernment Orders

1:25 p.m.

Liberal

Mario Silva Liberal Davenport, ON

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member certainly is someone for whom I have a lot of respect, but I must say that one pattern is becoming quite clear in this House. That is, the New Democratic Party has decided that the opposition here is the Liberal Party, not the Conservatives, so I presume that all Canadians can be assured that the only opposition there is in the House to the Conservative Party is in fact the Liberal Party.

I would say that it is also easy to be critical when those members do not have to worry about governing a country and easy not to look at what options we have to put forward. In fact, we were working extremely well together with Canadians, families and cities. We had partnerships with the first nations people, and there were incredible partnerships we managed to make across this country on housing and social services, and on day care, unfortunately. I believed we had good cooperation with the New Democratic Party as well, until those members decided they wanted to join the Conservative Party. Unfortunately, this is a sad tale, but it is in fact the history of the NDP.

Financial Statement of Minister of FinanceThe BudgetGovernment Orders

1:25 p.m.

Conservative

Jay Hill Conservative Prince George—Peace River, BC

Mr. Speaker, I am more than happy to participate in the debate this afternoon.

I would suggest to my hon. colleague across the way, who said, I think, that there are different visions at work here, that I would certainly agree. I think what we are seeing is the reality that Canadians from coast to coast to coast are responding to this particular budget because, for a change, they do see a government with some vision. I know, because I have been sitting here since 1993 through successive budgets by Liberal finance ministers, budgets that lacked any vision for this country. It was a status quo government that stumbled from one issue to another.

Yet in this particular budget, we are seeing the reality that the promises made in the recent election campaign are being acted upon. Canadians are responding positively to that. The reason they are responding is that they want some leadership, and this Prime Minister is providing it.

Specifically, the member mentioned the child care program. Quite honestly, I am getting more than a little fed up with this--

Financial Statement of Minister of FinanceThe BudgetGovernment Orders

1:25 p.m.

An hon. member

Myth.

Financial Statement of Minister of FinanceThe BudgetGovernment Orders

1:25 p.m.

Conservative

Jay Hill Conservative Prince George—Peace River, BC

Yes, this myth is being perpetuated by the Liberals that somehow we had a national child care program last November. What we had was something that was cobbled together at the last minute to try to stave off defeat in this House and was presented to Canadians as some sort of a national child care program. It is absolute nonsense.

Our plan is to deliver assistance to every parent in this country with a child under the age of six. Would the member stand and state that he supports delivering that assistance to all parents universally in this country? Or does he not support that? Does he believe, like some in his party, that if we support parents it only leads to future problems and producing criminals in this country?

Financial Statement of Minister of FinanceThe BudgetGovernment Orders

1:25 p.m.

Liberal

Mario Silva Liberal Davenport, ON

Mr. Speaker, there definitely is a difference in vision here. It seems that the Conservatives' vision is being shaped by the neo-cons of the Republican right who have come to Canada to tell them what to do and how we should be running our country. I guess the made in Canada solution is always an American solution to them. As proud Canadians, we should reject some of those very neo-con positions that have been enunciated by the Republicans in the U.S., particularly their anti-choice and anti-gay views. This type of vision is not something that Canada should be welcoming. It is unfortunate that this is the road map that they would like us to follow for the rest of Canada.

In fact, we in our party were building something with Canadians, something that unfortunately has been destroyed. Our child care plan was worked on with our partners across the country, with our provincial counterparts, with the centres, and with Canadian families. It was a workable plan that I think really was essential to create the social building blocks necessary to this country for its future. Unfortunately, that has been destroyed.

Financial Statement of Minister of FinanceThe BudgetGovernment Orders

1:30 p.m.

Langley B.C.

Conservative

Mark Warawa ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of the Environment

Mr. Speaker, last week this government presented its first budget. The budget delivers. It delivers on tax relief. It delivers on focused spending. It delivers on paying down the debt.

The previous Liberal government had been overtaxing Canadians for far too long. Canadians were working longer, paying more in taxes and saving less than they were 13 years ago. It is time to give money back to Canadians. That is the bottom line of budget 2006.

This budget delivers $20 billion in tax relief over two years, more than the last four Liberal budgets combined. This Conservative government is going to be lowering everyone's taxes.

We will reduce the GST from 7% to 6%, effective July 1.

We will create a new $1,000 Canada employment credit, effective July 1. This new tax credit gives Canadians a break on what it costs to work, recognizing expenses for such things as home computers, uniforms and supplies.

We will increase the amount that all Canadians can earn without paying federal income tax.

We will create a new apprenticeship job creation tax credit for up to $2,000 per apprentice.

Effective July 1, we will provide a tax credit for the cost of transit passes.

We will completely eliminate the federal income tax for all income from scholarships, bursaries and fellowships.

We will create a new textbook tax credit for post-secondary students.

We will provide a physical fitness tax credit for up to $500 to cover registration fees for children's sports.

We will double the amount of eligible pension income for seniors that they can claim under the pension income credit. This is the first increase in more than 30 years.

This government is putting money back into the pockets of Canadians.

There is more.

The most important investment we can make as a country is in the next generation of Canadians. This government is committed to supporting all Canadian parents and their choices. That is why we have invested $3.7 billion over two years for the universal child care benefit. As of July 1, families will receive $1,200 for each child under six.

The Conservative government will also invest in new child care spaces, spending $250 million, beginning in 2007, to create 125,000 new child care spaces. We will work with governments, businesses and community organizations to create these new spaces.

Mr. Speaker, I will be splitting my time with the Minister of Human Resources.

Two women on my staff are working to raise young children under six at home. Both have opted for some form of private child care. Their choices in child care differ. However, they will join all other families who will benefit by receiving the child care benefit to allow them to spend their child care allowances as they choose.

I talked to a Langley woman yesterday who is a professional child care provider and has a two year old son of her own. She has worked in both child care and preschool. She confirmed that early years are incredibly important learning years for children. Over and over again, she said that no matter how good the child care facility is, nothing can replace a parent. That is why we will give parents choices in deciding what is best for their children.

Our government is committed to ensuring Canadians are safe in their homes and communities. Safe streets are the defining characteristic of the Canadian way of life and that must be preserved. Times are changing. Our cities are changing. The safe streets and neighbourhoods we expect as Canadians are threatened by gun, gang and drug crime.

Since I was elected almost two years ago, I have personally witnessed a Langley pedophile who sexually assaulted his neighbour's children and was sentenced to house arrest, with a view of his victims in their backyard. I have attended a dangerous sexual offender hearing for a man who kidnapped an 11 year old Langley girl right off the street in front of her best friend and sexually assaulted her before allowing her to escape.

In my riding, I have seen huge numbers of marijuana grow operations taken down by RCMP officers, who are overwhelmed with the number of grow ops reported. In Langley, my staff are currently attending the trials of two men who have been charged with murdering three Langley residents in separate incidents. Talk about being bold, the clubhouse of the Hells Angels is located within feet of my constituency office.

The previous Liberal government allowed a soft on crime attitude to lead to ineffective sentences and underfunded police forces, and it allowed organized crime to take a foothold across this great country. Canadians want serious time for serious crime.

With this budget, the government focuses on spending to protect Canadians on our streets, in our communities and at our national borders. We are cracking down on crime.

We will provide $161 million to put more RCMP officers on the streets. We will invest $37 million for the RCMP to expand its national training academy. We will set aside funds to expand Canada's correctional facilities. We will provide $20 million for communities to use to develop programs designed to prevent youth crime. We will provide $26 million to give victims a more effective voice. We will arm our border agents. We will make Canada safer.

We are going to be investing in infrastructure, in bridges, roads and transit, and that is important. A great trading country like Canada needs to have the very best highway and border infrastructure.

My riding of Langley sits on the Canada-U.S. border. As part of the greater Vancouver regional district, Langley is victim to many years of Liberal mismanagement in the infrastructure department. Transportation is the number one political issue affecting my constituents. In Langley, a rail line runs right through the centre of town, closing off all five rail crossings at the same time when a train comes through, many times a day.

Traffic backlogs caused by the previous Liberal government's failure to provide adequate railroad separation have created a very dangerous situation. Delays in moving goods to market cost money. Delays make business less competitive. With the welcome expansion of Deltaport, funding for railroad separation must be provided.

Our government is listening. Our government will increase its investment in new highways and border infrastructure. It is a long term commitment of unprecedented new investment. Over the next four years, we will invest a total of $16.5 billion in new infrastructure initiatives, including $3.5 billion this year and $3.9 billion next year. We will provide more than $5.5 billion in new federal funding for the highways and border infrastructure fund, the municipal rural infrastructure fund, the Canada strategic infrastructure fund, the public transit capital trust fund, and the Pacific gateway initiative.

We will maintain the estimated $3.9 billion in current funding under existing infrastructure initiatives. We will maintain the existing gas tax funding commitment under the new deal for cities and communities and the full GST rebate and the federal portion of the HST paid by municipalities. These taxes measure up at about $7.1 billion in infrastructure support for cities and municipalities over the next four years.

Canadians who live in cities are justifiably concerned about traffic congestion and the harmful emissions associated with it. Our government knows that investing in public transit infrastructure will help preserve our environment. That is why we are providing up to $1.3 billion to support public transit capital investments. Effective July 1, we will also help Canadians with the cost of riding the bus, commuter train or subway by providing a tax credit for the cost of transit passes.

We know that we all need to do a lot more to help the environment, and our government will spend $2 billion over the next five years to develop a made in Canada climate change program that will actually make a difference. As the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Environment, I am very proud of the opportunity to work to improve our global environmental health.

We finally have a government that is working hard to make Canada cleaner, safer and prosperous, and with a commitment to be open and accountable.

This is a great budget that Canadians are happy with. I ask all members of the House to support it.

Financial Statement of Minister of FinanceThe BudgetGovernment Orders

1:40 p.m.

Liberal

Rodger Cuzner Liberal Cape Breton—Canso, NS

Mr. Speaker, the member touched on a number of aspects of the budget. There is one that several government members mentioned during their speeches today: specifically, the $500 tax deduction for registration for minor sports for those under 16 years of age.

Coming from that type of background and having three boys heavily engaged in minor sport, I am just wondering if the government truly believes that $80 over the course of the year is going to have any impact on whether or not mom and dad put their son or daughter into a sports program. That is the one that befuddles me. We encourage them to lead healthy lives, to participate and to get out and interact, but is $80 going to make a difference? Should we not be putting that money, working with the other levels of government, into building better facilities and investing in our coaches and leaders, into those types of initiatives?

I have a specific question that I would like to ask the member. During the last election, the Conservatives very much ballyhooed their 1% of the health budget going toward sport and fitness. There is no mention of that in the budget. Where is the 1% of the health budget going toward sport and fitness?

Financial Statement of Minister of FinanceThe BudgetGovernment Orders

1:40 p.m.

Conservative

Mark Warawa Conservative Langley, BC

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member suggested that he is befuddled. I would suggest that for 13 years his government was befuddled.

This government has a different philosophy. We trust parents. We trust Canadians. I also have children, four boys and a girl. It meant a lot of soccer games. We know parents need some help. The federal government does not want to be creating sports programs. We want to assist parents so they will be able to have choices, and that is our whole philosophy. We trust Canadians. We do not believe in big government telling parents what they have to do.

Financial Statement of Minister of FinanceThe BudgetGovernment Orders

1:40 p.m.

Bloc

Thierry St-Cyr Bloc Jeanne-Le Ber, QC

Mr. Speaker, in his speech, the hon. member talked about parents' child care choices. I would also like us to talk about the choice Quebeckers have made regarding child care.

For years, the federal government has been saving money at Quebeckers' expense. Quebeckers have chosen to make child care available for $7 rather than paying higher fees, as in the rest of Canada. So the government is saving $250 million because Quebeckers have chosen to use tax dollars to subsidize child care fees.

Does this government intend to return the money it is saving at Quebeckers' expense to the Government of Quebec?

Financial Statement of Minister of FinanceThe BudgetGovernment Orders

1:40 p.m.

Conservative

Mark Warawa Conservative Langley, BC

Mr. Speaker, I trust my colleague asked a genuine question and has a genuine concern about the government providing adequate child care choices for Canadians. My Canada includes Quebec.

Canadians right across this great country need to have a choice. Some choose to take their children to an organized child care centre which has well trained staff that can provide as good care as possible. As I said in my speech, I talked to a unique individual in my riding who is a professional child care provider with children of her own. She believes that parents can provide a degree of care that is superior to institutionalized care. We want to give all parents a choice.

For 13 years no new spaces were created under the Liberal government. We will be creating 125,000 new spaces, and Quebec will be part of this. We will give parents the choice to take care of their children in a way they see fit.

Financial Statement of Minister of FinanceThe BudgetGovernment Orders

1:45 p.m.

NDP

Catherine Bell NDP Vancouver Island North, BC

Mr. Speaker, I have heard many hon. members talk about what is in this budget but I am concerned about what is not in it. That is the lack of mention of something that is crucial to my riding.

Salmon fishing is a part of the culture of Vancouver Island North and that fishery is in decline. I have met with fishermen, first nations, fisheries biologists, and hatchery workers and they have all told me that we need more enhancement.

With the $10 million announcement for east coast aquaculture last week, could the member tell me why there was nothing in this budget about investment for salmon enhancement of our west coast fishery?

Financial Statement of Minister of FinanceThe BudgetGovernment Orders

1:45 p.m.

Conservative

Mark Warawa Conservative Langley, BC

Mr. Speaker, fisheries is an important issue to this government. We have a very qualified minister and parliamentary secretary and a dedicated committee that will be working on this issue. My focus is on the environment. Fisheries is complementary to the environment. We have to make sure that our environment is clean in order to provide a good habitat. Fisheries also need good management. We are committed to making sure that we have healthy fisheries.

Financial Statement of Minister of FinanceThe BudgetGovernment Orders

1:45 p.m.

Haldimand—Norfolk Ontario

Conservative

Diane Finley ConservativeMinister of Human Resources and Social Development

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague, the hon. member for Langley, for sharing his time with me today.

Canada's new government campaigned on the items in this budget. Happily, Canadians gave us a mandate to implement our platform and we are now delivering on our commitments.

The budget provides some $11.7 billion in total direct federal support to families in 2006-07 alone. The vast majority of benefits will go to low and middle income families.

I want to emphasize that the budget addresses a broad range of issues. Our support for child care has received most of the attention, but the budget invests in Canadians of all ages and stages of life and in many different circumstances. I will talk about some of those in a few minutes.

The hallmark of the budget is the five priorities in the Speech from the Throne. One of those five is to give parents a choice in child care. Our budget provides for a new universal child care plan that provides benefits directly to families and supports the creation of new child care spaces.

The new universal child care benefit will go directly to the parents of Canada's 2.1 million preschoolers. It will provide $1,200 a year for each child under six to help parents choose the options for child care that best suit their family's unique circumstances.

We hope for swift passage of the budget and urge all parties to vote for what Canadians want and expect. Parents across the country want our universal child care benefit and are looking forward to receiving their first monthly cheque of $100 for each preschool age child this July.

The universal child care benefit is only one of two components of our universal child care plan. We know that many parents want formal day care and that the demand for these spaces exceeds the current supply. The budget sets aside $250 million per year beginning in 2007-08. We will create with that money 25,000 new spaces each year.

We want community associations, not for profit organizations, parents, and businesses both large and small to come up with ideas for child care spaces that make sense for them. In the coming months we will consult on the child care spaces initiative with the provinces and territories, employers and other stakeholders on ways to implement our spaces initiative.

In addition to helping all parents with their preschool age children, our government is following through on our commitment to help address the skills and labour shortage. To do this we have introduced several new measures.

First, we will introduce a new apprenticeship incentive grant. It will provide a cash grant of $1,000 per year to apprentices in the first two years of an apprenticeship program in one of the red seal trades. This grant will promote the entry of new labourers into the trades.

Our budget also encourages employers to hire new apprentices through an apprenticeship job creation tax credit. Eligible employers will receive a tax credit of 10% of the apprentice's wages to a maximum of $2,000 per apprentice per year for each of the apprentice's first two years.

The budget also delivers on our campaign commitment for a new tools tax deduction worth up to $500 per year that will help apprentices and trades people pay for the cost of their tools.

These are the first steps in our longer term broad based agenda to respond to the concerns of employers, unions and workers who recognize the great need for more skilled trades people right across Canada.

We will also be consulting with the provinces, territories and other stakeholders on the creation of the Canadian agency for the assessment and recognition of foreign credentials. The agency will offer preassessment of international credentials and experience. On the basis of the advice that we receive, we will move quickly so that new Canadians can quickly put their skills to work for their benefit and for ours.

Because students are our future leaders, this budget introduces several new measures to help young Canadians get the education that they need. We want to make post-secondary studies more affordable for Canadians. The budget invests up to $20 million annually to increase direct support to students and their families through the Canada student loans program. We will expand eligibility for student loans through a reduction in the expected parental contribution starting in August 2007. We have also introduced a textbook tax credit of $65 per month for full time students and $20 per month for part time students. While these tax reductions are modest, we know and understand that every little bit helps.

Our government also believes that hard work deserves to be rewarded. Our brightest young minds deserve to keep their hard-earned bursaries and scholarships. That is why our government is eliminating federal taxes on scholarship and bursary income.

While direct assistance to students is important, our government also recognizes that improving access to post-secondary education requires more than loans, grants and bursaries. The institutions themselves must have the capacity to support the growing number of students. That is why we are establishing a one time post-secondary education infrastructure trust fund. The budget provides $1 billion for the provinces and territories to support urgent investments in infrastructure and equipment such as better classrooms and libraries, laboratories and research facilities, and to purchase new technologies and training equipment.

The demand for new skills and technologies sometimes displaces older workers. We made it clear that we will stand up for older workers. We recognize the important contribution that they make to the labour market. We are committed to finding ways to help them and will evaluate several options for assistance. Personally, I look forward to working with members of the opposition in addressing the needs of older workers.

While assistance to human capital is important, our government also recognizes the need for investment in housing infrastructure. We are determined to help make quality housing more affordable and available for Canadian families, particularly aboriginal Canadians and people living in Canada's north. To this effect, our government is investing $800 million in affordable housing to help provinces and territories increase the number of safe and affordable housing units. In addition, the budget provides up to $300 million to provinces to address immediate pressures in off reserve aboriginal housing and up to $300 million to territories for affordable housing in the north.

Canada's seniors could also use their government's support. That is why our government is following through on our commitments to double the pension income credit from $1,000 to $2,000 in 2006. This will benefit nearly 2.7 million seniors with pension income and will remove approximately 85,000 pensioners from the tax roll.

Our government is also addressing the needs of some 3.6 million Canadians living with a disability. Effective this July, we will increase the maximum annual child disability benefit to $2,300, up sharply from $2,044. We are also extending eligibility for this benefit to virtually all families caring for a child who is eligible for the disability tax credit. This is good news for families struggling with the challenges of providing for the needs of their family members with disabilities.

Our government is following through on our campaign commitments. We offered Canadians a platform of hope and of change. Canadians voted for this change and we are now proud to follow through on our commitments. I urge all hon. members to support the choices of Canadians and to join me in supporting this budget.

Financial Statement of Minister of FinanceThe BudgetGovernment Orders

1:55 p.m.

Liberal

Michael Savage Liberal Dartmouth—Cole Harbour, NS

Mr. Speaker, there are a number of things in the minister's speech I would take issue with, not the least of which is the child care proposal which I have expressed in the House already. I have presented a number of petitions on that subject and will be presenting another one today.

I was taken by the comments she made early in her speech about tax relief, saying that the vast majority goes to low and middle income Canadians. Certainly when we reduced the lowest marginal rate to 15%, that was true last year. Raising it by half a point is not helpful. I looked at the brochure that accompanied the budget documents. Under the heading “More Money in Canadians' Pockets”, there is a table titled “Broad-Based Tax Relief for Individuals, by Family Income Group”. I notice that those who make less than $15,000 a year will benefit by $96 in tax savings in 2007 according to the government's numbers, while those who make $100,000 to $150,000 a year will get over $1,200, members of Parliament included and cabinet ministers much beyond that.

My question is simple. Does the minister really believe that MPs deserve 12 times as much of a tax break as families struggling to raise their kids on $15,000 a year?

Financial Statement of Minister of FinanceThe BudgetGovernment Orders

1:55 p.m.

Conservative

Diane Finley Conservative Haldimand—Norfolk, ON

Mr. Speaker, a lot has been said in the House and outside the House about this budget. Unfortunately, a lot of it is very misleading misinformation. For example, there has been talk about how the working poor and the poor will not benefit from our tax cuts.

The Conservative Party's tax cuts are the broadest, the most comprehensive and they exceed the tax cuts provided by the previous government in not one but four budgets.

By cutting the GST by 1% , the government will be providing a 1% cut in the taxes on expenditures that affect even the poorest. One-third of Canadians do not pay taxes. They will benefit from the cut in the GST. They would not benefit from the middle class income tax cuts that the previous government wanted. They will benefit from our cuts.

Financial Statement of Minister of FinanceThe BudgetGovernment Orders

1:55 p.m.

NDP

The Deputy Speaker NDP Bill Blaikie

There are 2 minutes and 43 seconds left in questions and comments. We will now proceed to statements by members.