House of Commons Hansard #132 of the 39th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was veterans.

Topics

Budget Implementation Act, 2007Government Orders

1:20 p.m.

Conservative

The Acting Speaker Conservative Royal Galipeau

Mr. Epp, seconded by Mrs. Yelich, moved that this question be now put.

Budget Implementation Act, 2007Government Orders

1:20 p.m.

Conservative

Ken Epp Conservative Edmonton—Sherwood Park, AB

On a point of order, Mr. Speaker, perhaps for the edification of other members, some of whom have not been here quite as long as I have, this is a motion that simply precludes the putting of further amendments to the motion. That is what happens, and now we simply resume debate and carry on and hopefully we will get to 1:30 p.m. and we will go to private members' business.

Budget Implementation Act, 2007Government Orders

1:20 p.m.

Conservative

The Acting Speaker Conservative Royal Galipeau

I am calling for debate on this question. Debate. Resuming debate, the hon. member for Etobicoke North.

Budget Implementation Act, 2007Government Orders

1:20 p.m.

Liberal

Roy Cullen Liberal Etobicoke North, ON

Mr. Speaker, I want to speak to the budget because I found it to be totally lacking in vision and direction. It has a number of little things here and there for various groups, but when we look at it substantively, we realize that it lacks direction and vision and leaves out large segments of our society.

One aspect I find particularly disturbing, although there were a couple I mentioned earlier in a question and comment period, is the fact that aboriginal people are left out in the cold again. After the Liberal government negotiated in Kelowna a very strategic accord which would help aboriginal people with housing, education and water and the Conservatives callously ignored that.

They also callously ignored the child care agreements that the Liberal government had meticulously negotiated with the provinces. They would have provided real child care spaces for people who needed them. The $200 a month allowance per child just does not do it. It does not create any child care spaces.

The other aspect I find very disturbing is this. If we are to compete in a global economy, an economy that includes emerging economies like India, China and Brazil, there is nothing in this budget to encourage that. In fact, we take steps backward.

When the Liberal government came into power, it had to deal with a $42 billion deficit that it inherited from the Conservatives. When we got it under control, within a very short time, the Liberals started to reinvest in R and D and put chairs in universities, which was very well received. We also established the Canada Foundation for Innovation, founded the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and provided overheads to the universities.

Guess what happened? Researchers came back to Canada because they were very pleased with the research environment here. What does that lead to? That leads to invention, innovation and entrepreneurship. That is what we need in the country if we are to create the value added jobs of the future.

What has the government done? It has taken a few steps back. Now we are hearing from researchers that they are going to leave Canada because the research environment is not very conducive to the kind of work they want to do. That is a tragedy after the Liberals built that platform. It could have been built on further. There is an amount in the budget for research, but with other steps the government has taken, it is really moving backward.

There were many other flaws in the budget. I watched the Minister of Finance stand in this place and present the budget. He made a statement along the lines that the problems and disputes with the provinces and territories were gone forever. Not knowing what steps would follow, anyone on this side of the House would have known that to make a statement like this was naive in the extreme. I think he was living in fantasy land. We learned very quickly afterward that many provinces in this country disputed the Minister of Finance's claim that disputes with the provinces and territories were over.

In fact, all colleagues from Atlantic Canada on this side of the House know from the detail in the budget that Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, Saskatchewan and other provinces have been shafted. My western colleagues also know that full well. They had a good deal under the Liberal government and the Conservative government took it away and left those provinces swinging.

There are other aspects that I find terribly disturbing. The Government of Canada, under the Conservative government, tried to buy off the province of Quebec with increases in transfers. Another $700 million in equalization was handed to Quebec. The ink was barely dry on the cheque when the premier of Quebec said that he would cut taxes by an equivalent amount. I find that shocking.

I know that technically and legally the province can do what it wants with equalization. However, members of Parliament have heard the provinces and territories complain about the fact that they cannot properly fund health care, education and social programs and that they need more transfers from the federal government. We transferred an additional $41 billion in our last mandate in addition to other amounts we had increased.

The province of Quebec, complaining that it needed money for health care and education, got the additional equalization, and then wanted to cut taxes. It did not work. Even though I am sympathetic, and I know my colleagues on this side of the House and perhaps on the other side of the House are sympathetic as well to the federalist cause, we wanted to see the Liberal government trounce the separatists, which it did. However, I think it was a sad commentary and it showed really that Quebeckers could not be bought.

What it tells us is that in the next round of discussions with the provinces and territories, we will hear their bleats and their complains as very hollow when we know that one of the largest provinces in the country took the equalization and cut taxes.

It is also a sad commentary that the province of Quebec, one of the key provinces in terms of population and economic activity, is a have not province. Of the total equalization that is paid out by the federal government, some $12 billion, roughly $7 billion goes to the province of Quebec. I have argued in the House and other places that it is because of the policies of the separatists that Quebec is a have not province.

The other sad reality of the budget bill is that it tries to implement the provisions with respect to the income trusts. A promise was made by the then leader of the Conservative Party that he would not tax income trusts. Many people in my riding of Etobicoke North and other ridings across Canada, based on that assurance when the Conservatives came into power, put their money into income trusts. Guess what? The Conservative Party reneged on that.

Whether we agree that something had to be done with income trusts, and I for one think we had to make some adjustments, the adjustments could have been made in a much fairer way for those people who were already exposed and who ended up losing about $25 billion to $30 billion. The government has done nothing about that in this budget. Nor has it done so in the budget implementation act.

There are a couple of provisions in the budget that I support. One is the pension income splitting. It is helpful to seniors that they can split income. It in some sense partly addresses some concerns of the citizens in my riding, middle income seniors, who have saved all their lives, put money into pensions and they find that their old age security, notwithstanding their best plans, is taxed back in some cases. It starts to get taxed back at around $55,000. Therefore, pension income splitting does not address that fully, but it is a good initiative.

The other sad reality is the budget reflects some of the priorities of the government, one of them being the fact it will arm the guards at the border of Canada. We heard at the committee that it would cost about $1 billion over 10 years to arm the border guards. That does not include the reclassification of the border guards who will become public safety officers. The number I have is about $15,000 per year in added salary. The $1 billion are to train and equip them with guns.

The RCMP advised us that the deterrence effect would be minimal. In fairness to it, it said that no one knew for sure, but it felt the deterrence effect would be minimal.

Budget Implementation Act, 2007Government Orders

1:30 p.m.

Conservative

The Acting Speaker Conservative Royal Galipeau

It being 1:30 p.m., the House will now proceed to the consideration of private members' business as listed on today's order paper.

Income Tax ActPrivate Members' Business

March 30th, 2007 / 1:30 p.m.

Conservative

Brian Fitzpatrick Conservative Prince Albert, SK

moved that Bill C-294, An Act to amend the Income Tax Act (sports and recreation programs), be read the third time and passed.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the members of the House at this stage because the bill has the unanimous support of all 308 members of Parliament in this esteemed chamber.

I think the members understand the specific purpose of the bill but I will quickly go over it again. It is intended to help young people under the age of 21 in amateur sports programs and the organizations that support them by exempting up to $300 of room and board or lodging costs per month from the Income Tax Act.

If the bill is passed, the direct beneficiaries of this measure will be the young people in amateur sports and the organizations that support them.

What is near and dear to my heart and what motivated me to present this bill are the junior A hockey programs in Canada. We have about 140 junior A teams in small cities and towns and in remote and rural areas across Canada that will be the direct beneficiaries of this amendment to the Income Tax Act. It will reduce the cost of their operation probably in the area of $4,000 or $5,000 a year, which in this town might appear to be chump change, but to the organizations that are trying to keep junior A hockey teams viable in their small towns and communities this is significant. It will go a long way to making their hockey operation viable.

Hockey is our national sport. I talked with Mr. Tretiak the other day, the famous Russian hockey coach. He even realized the great goaltenders that came from Saskatchewan, Glenn Hall, Johnny Bower and many others. He learned many of his techniques and skills by studying their methods of playing in goal. We have a rich history of hockey in Saskatchewan and the junior A hockey program is very much a part of that.

I want to acknowledge some of the people who should be acknowledged on this bill. The real champion of this bill and who took the bull by the horns was Roy Bailey, a good friend of mine and a former colleague in this House in the 37th Parliament. He fought hard to get this injustice sorted out when it occurred. He did not really accomplish that but he laid all the groundwork for it. I am basically finishing the job that Roy started.

I once again want to thank MPs from all parties who contributed to this matter. They have been very good in discussing the matter. When we are talking hockey, I think partisanship disappears and we are all on the same side.

The member for Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke and her staff have been very helpful on this matter. I specifically want to thank the member for the accommodations that were made to expedite this bill.

At report stage the bill received the unanimous support of the House. I do not intend to go over all the merits of the bill. We have done that before. I think the members of the House understand the bill quite well. Not much would be accomplished by going over the benefits of the bill, except that it is a good news story for amateur sport and young people in Canada. This is good public policy.

The cost of this amendment to the taxpayer would be minimal. I do not think it would amount to more than $700,000 or $800,000 a year, which, in the age of obesity and all the problems we are having with type two diabetes, it is a measure that would encourage people to be active and be healthy, which is something we should all be encouraging.

I will not be using all my allotted time on this matter. I commend the bill to the good judgment of the 308 members of Parliament in the House of Commons. I trust they will continue to do the right thing and push this bill into reality and make it the public policy of this country.

Income Tax ActPrivate Members' Business

1:35 p.m.

Conservative

The Acting Speaker Conservative Royal Galipeau

Questions and comments. Debate.

Normally it would be the time to give the hon. member for Prince Albert five minutes to rebut but there is nothing to rebut.

Is the House ready for the question?

Income Tax ActPrivate Members' Business

1:35 p.m.

Some hon. members

Question.

Income Tax ActPrivate Members' Business

1:35 p.m.

Conservative

The Acting Speaker Conservative Royal Galipeau

The question is on the motion. Is it the pleasure of the House to adopt the motion?

Income Tax ActPrivate Members' Business

1:35 p.m.

Some hon. members

Agreed.

Income Tax ActPrivate Members' Business

1:35 p.m.

Conservative

The Acting Speaker Conservative Royal Galipeau

I declare the motion carried.

(Motion agreed to, bill read the third time and passed)

It being 1:36 p.m., the House stands adjourned until Monday, April 16, 2007 at 11 a.m., pursuant to Standing Orders 28(2) and 24(1).

The House adjourned at 1:36 p.m.