Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to rise today to speak to the Speech to the Throne presented after the Conservatives prorogued the House for over two months.
I have sat in the House of Commons for over five years. After the Speech from the Throne was delivered, I realized that it is difficult to believe that this Conservative government has any real intention of helping the people who are really in need, just as it was difficult to believe that the Liberals had any such intention when they were in power.
When the budget was presented, we learned that the oil companies were being given tax deductions, even though they pollute and rake in billions of dollars in profits. The government is prepared to give them tax deductions to improve their productivity, at the same time as it is failing to provide any support for people who have lost their jobs, the unemployed.
Even banks have been given tax deductions. We are well aware that banks in Quebec and Canada are making huge profits. Very recently, statistics showed that the CEOs and presidents of those banks were receiving salaries of $2 million, $3 million, $4 million and $5 million a year, and yet, once again, banks are being given tax deductions. These banks benefit from tax havens and hide their profits, at the expense of the redistribution of wealth among all members of society.
In the throne speech and the budget, we see absolutely nothing to help low-income families in terms of social housing. Nothing. There is no money for that. There is no will to help low-income families, no will to help the unemployed. At the time, the Liberals slashed the employment insurance program. In fact, that has continued, thanks to the Conservatives’ policies. They have looted it, and stolen billions of dollars. Nearly $60 billion has been taken from the unemployed, money that came from employer and employee premiums. That money has been stolen. And in addition, 50% of people who lose their jobs do not even have access to the scheme.
There was nothing in the budget to support the unemployed. Increasing earnings and eliminating the two-week waiting period are just a few examples of what should have been done. We are not talking about billions of dollars. We are not talking about supporting people whose annual salary is $2 million or $3 million or $4 million or $5 million. We are not talking about supporting oil companies that are making outrageous profits. We are talking about helping the poor. There is no will on the part of this Conservative government to help people. There is no will to help seniors who for many years have also been deprived of the guaranteed income supplement and are living in poverty. We have called for an increase in the guaranteed income supplement for seniors. No, there was nothing in the throne speech to support seniors and increase the guaranteed income supplement. There was nothing about this in the budget. The Conservatives played politics and announced a seniors day.
We agree with having a day set aside to recognize seniors' contribution to our society, but these seniors still need to be able to support themselves. Whether it be in big cities or in the country, many seniors are living in extreme poverty in unfit housing.
We want the guaranteed income supplement to be raised to support low income people. There is nothing to help elderly people in need. We are not talking here about people who earn $50,000 or $100,000 a year. They would not be entitled to this supplement.
In Quebec, there is a crisis in the forestry industry. Quebeckers realize that in the federal system there is no desire to respect their needs and expectations. We saw that in the latest budget. Huge amounts are being invested in the automobile and the oil industries. I say that, partisan politics aside.
Many jobs have been lost in the forestry industry. The government gave a miserable $170 million to support it, but gave $2.7 billion to the automotive industry. People are disappointed. This comes not from me but from Jean-Pierre Dansereau, the director general of the Fédération des Producteurs de Bois du Québec, in his remarks on the latest federal budget. This is why the Conservatives are at 15% or 16% in the polls in Quebec. They do not plan on introducing new measures to help the forestry sector.
Joy is not abounding at the Conseil de l'industrie forestière du Québec either. This industry has to survive in order to benefit from the few measures of interest in the finance minister's budget. The forestry industry in Quebec is dying and needs financial support. It needs loans and loan guarantees. The measures announced may meet some needs, but the industry would have preferred refinancing at a commercial rate in order to survive the crisis rather than support for new technologies.
As regards the manufacturing sector, in 2004, I and some of my colleagues cited the closures of textile plants around Huntingdon and in my riding. We called for loan guarantees from the Liberal government, which was in office at the time. We called on it to support the manufacturing industry, which we were about to lose. But the Liberals did nothing to support it. Many plants closed their doors and people found themselves without a job.
Today, the forestry industry and in the manufacturing sector are still in crisis. The Liberals and the Conservatives are tarred with the same brush. When the time comes to help people in need, to help industries in crisis, the parties in the House do not want to support them.