Debates of Nov. 19th, 2012

Youth Homelessness

[Carolyn Bennett, Liberal, St. Paul's, ON]

Mr. Speaker, according to Raising the Roof, on any given day there are 65,000 homeless youth in communities across Canada. The statistics on youth homelessness are shocking and public awareness is urgently needed in order to address the root causes, including poverty and a lack of affordable housing.

On June 21, 2011, I reintroduced my motion calling for a national youth homelessness awareness day.

Motion No. 246 reads: “That, in the opinion of the House, the government should proclaim November 17 National Youth Homelessness Awareness Day.”

The idea for a national youth homelessness awareness day was originally suggested to me by Sean Gadon, president of Raising the Roof.

Richard Branson and Virgin Unite also launched a campaign to get my original motion on youth homelessness awareness day, Motion No. 504, adopted by Parliament.

Let us prove to Canadians that, when it comes to our youth and their well-being, we can do what it takes by setting aside partisanship and creating this annual day of awareness.

New Democratic Party of Canada

[Blaine Calkins, Conservative, Wetaskiwin, AB]

Mr. Speaker, from a young age we learn there are consequences to our actions. However, the Leader of the Opposition and his party fail to recognize the consequences of their $21 billion carbon tax scheme.

Just listen to what economist Jack Mintz has to say:

—I find it very irritating that parties might propose carbon policies without being honest with respect to their consequences for consumer prices or jobs. The NDP platform last election was a case in point.

That is exactly what our government has been communicating to Canadians, a point that the NDP would rather Canadians not know.

The consequences of a new NDP carbon tax scheme would including stifling job growth, straining small and large businesses and literally raising the price of everything. Of course, the NDP members did not mention this when they proposed this carbon tax plan in their 2011 platform.

Why will the NDP not be honest with Canadians about the consequences of their carbon tax scheme?

Conservative Party of Canada

[Pat Martin, NDP, Winnipeg Centre, MB]

Mr. Speaker, for the past four years corporate tax revenues have actually been below where they were when the Conservatives took power. However, over the same four years, Conservatives collected $40 billion more in personal income tax. They shifted the burden so that individual Canadians now pay four times more in taxes than corporations do.

What has been the effect of the Conservative vision of the economy? According to the IMF, we have fallen behind the U.S. in growth. In fact, even Greece's economy is expected to grow faster than ours by 2015.

What is the Conservative response? Just make up stuff to attack the opposition. This was on display again last week when CTV journalist Don Martin aired a disgraceful clip of the Minister of State for Small Business and Tourism being coached by a PMO flunkey on how to make stuff up about the NDP.

I say to my Conservative colleagues, do not let the PMO do their thinking and substitute fibs for facts. Cast off the shackles and show some dignity and self-respect. Why do—

[The Speaker, Conservative, Andrew Scheer]

Order. The hon. member for Mississauga—Brampton South.

New Democratic Party of Canada

[Eve Adams, Conservative, Mississauga—Brampton South, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I had the great pleasure of meeting with my constituents and neighbours last week in Mississauga and hearing about their extreme opposition to the NDP's $21 billion carbon tax, a tax that won a new friend and a new foe last week.

The new foe is President Barack Obama's administration, whose press secretary told reporters that:

We would never propose a carbon tax, and have no intention of proposing one.... [O]ur focus right now is on the need to extend economic growth, expand job creation.

This is good news for middle-class families, but the carbon tax does have at least one new supporter: Exxon, the gas station company.

While NDP members align themselves with big oil, Conservatives will continue aligning themselves with families, and fighting for middle-class families. The NDP's Exxon-backed $21 billion carbon tax—our money, their pockets.

Finance

[Thomas Mulcair, NDP, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, last week, the Minister of Finance informed Canadians that once again, the deficit was larger than predicted, and that his plan to balance the budget was two years behind schedule.

A few days later, the Prime Minister contradicted his Minister of Finance, saying that the budget will be balanced on schedule.

Who is telling the truth? Is it the Minister of Finance who says that the budget will not be balanced until 2017, or his boss, the Prime Minister, who claims that it will happen by 2015?

[Tony Clement, Conservative, President of the Treasury Board and Minister for the Federal Economic Development Initiative for Northern Ontario]

Mr. Speaker, our government's goal is to balance the budget by 2015.

Our objective is to balance the budget in 2015, and we are on track to do so and balance the budget over the medium term. We have a clear plan to balance the budget. We are eliminating waste.

At the same time, while our plan is clear, is working and we see 820,000 net new jobs, the NDP continues with its risky plans, not only for a $21 billion carbon tax but also for $6 billion in HST taxes.

[Thomas Mulcair, NDP, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, a $50 billion trade deficit and 350,000 more unemployed today than when the recession hit in 2008, that is the truth.

The Prime Minister and the Minister of Finance are openly contradicting one another. The Minister of Finance admits that his plan to balance the budget is two years behind schedule. The Minister of Finance also claims there will be no more significant spending cuts. Yet the Prime Minister insists that the Minister of Finance's numbers are wrong and that everything is going according to plan.

How can the Minister of Finance expect Canadians to believe his budget numbers when his own Prime Minister rejects them?

[Tony Clement, Conservative, President of the Treasury Board and Minister for the Federal Economic Development Initiative for Northern Ontario]

Mr. Speaker, here is what Canadians care about when it comes to numbers: 820,000 net new jobs since the depths of the recession, and 90% of them are full-time jobs. That is how our plan is working.

However, the NDP persists with its risky plans. Not content with a $21 billion carbon tax plan, now we find them last week talking about $6 billion annually in GST hikes. That is not the way to grow the economy. That is not the way to serve Canadians.

Intergovernmental Affairs

[Thomas Mulcair, NDP, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, he has been getting his talking points from the Beauce.

The European economy is now officially back in recession. The U.S. is facing a fiscal cliff that could land the American economy back in recession by the end of year.

Canadian premiers are working to meet these serious threats head on. They are meeting this week in Halifax to do just that. However, once again, just as in 2008, the Conservatives here in Ottawa are asleep at the wheel.

Will the Conservatives finally wake up, acknowledge the real risks facing our economy, and agree to join the Canadian premiers for the summit talk this week in Halifax?

[Tony Clement, Conservative, President of the Treasury Board and Minister for the Federal Economic Development Initiative for Northern Ontario]

Mr. Speaker, we continue to get accolades from around the world for our treatment of the economy. Canadians agree with those international experts.

KPMG ranked Canada the most tax competitive economy amongst mature markets, and indeed the numbers speak for themselves. Canadian business investment increased by 9.4% in the last quarter.

The numbers are in. Our plan is working. We cannot afford the risky plans of the NDP.

[Peggy Nash, NDP, Parkdale—High Park, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the provincial and territorial premiers will be meeting in Halifax to talk about our faltering economy. Since July, they have been requesting a meeting with the Prime Minister, but to no avail. Mark Carney understands the importance of this meeting. That is why he will be there.

If the Conservatives' priority is truly the economy, then why is the Prime Minister refusing to sit down with his counterparts to come up with solutions to deal with our slowing economy?

[Ted Menzies, Conservative, Minister of State (Finance)]

Mr. Speaker, as the Prime Minister has actually indicated on several occasions in the House, he meets on a regular basis with all of the premiers. That is very important, that he keeps in contact with those individuals, as he does with other leaders around the world.

I would reiterate what my colleague, the President of the Treasury Board, has said, that Canada is on track to get back to balance. That is not by accident; that is by plan. We put a plan forward to increase jobs and grow the economy, and no matter what the hecklers say from the Liberal Party, we are on track.

[Peggy Nash, NDP, Parkdale—High Park, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister just refuses to meet with all first ministers in one room at one time.

The fact is that our economy is only set to grow at about 2% next year. Many countries, including the U.S., are doing better.

Last week the Conservatives delivered a fiscal update with no contingency plan for our slowing economy, no plan to bring back high-quality manufacturing jobs, no plan to tackle youth unemployment and no plan to get our economy growing again.

Is the Prime Minister refusing to meet with the premiers because he has no answer for Conservative mishandling of our economy?

[Ted Menzies, Conservative, Minister of State (Finance)]

Mr. Speaker, it is interesting to note that everything the hon. member reflected on is in our budget implementation bill number two, the one that those members claim is not getting adequate discussion in the House, which it is. It is in committee right now. They have indicated all along that they will vote against job creation and against the youth employment strategy to help young people get back to work. They will vote against Canadians being able to take part in this economy.

Our plan is to get people back to work and help grow the economy.

Infrastructure

[Bob Rae, Liberal, Toronto Centre, ON]

Mr. Speaker, when the City of Calgary applied to the crown corporation PPP for support for its sports infrastructure program and recreation centres in Calgary, the board of the PPP said that it was okay, that it was fine. The PPP website said that sports infrastructure and recreation restructure was included.

Why did cabinet change the rules, not at the beginning of the game or in the middle of the game but after the game was over? In fact, it changed the website in the middle of the mayor's press conference when he talked about how the--

[The Speaker, Conservative, Andrew Scheer]

The hon. Minister of State for Finance.

[Ted Menzies, Conservative, Minister of State (Finance)]

Mr. Speaker, most of that is factually incorrect. The original intention of PPP Canada was to fund projects such as water, sewer, roads and bridges in this country. That was the intention all along and we think that is very effective.

Unfortunately, the opposition does not think that the private sector can take part in the economic growth of this country. Over here on this side of the House we think it can.

[Bob Rae, Liberal, Toronto Centre, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the minister can call me anything he likes but I am sure he would not want to say the same thing about Mayor Nenshi.

In fact, officials from PPP Canada met frequently with the City of Calgary and encouraged the City of Calgary to continue with its application. They actually approved the application and then on the website of the organization, which the minister can see, it says that permitted projects include sport infrastructure, community recreation and fields and parks. It is the government that changed the rules, not at the beginning of the game and not in the middle of the game, but at the end of the game.

Why did you do it? Will you compensate Calgary--

[The Speaker, Conservative, Andrew Scheer]

Order, please. I will remind the member to address his comments through the Chair and not directly at his colleagues.

The hon. Minister of State for Finance.

[Ted Menzies, Conservative, Minister of State (Finance)]

I am shocked to see the hon. member standing up for my home town of Calgary, Mr. Speaker. Apparently he has actually discovered--

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[The Speaker, Conservative, Andrew Scheer]

Order, please. The hon. Minister of State for Finance.

[Ted Menzies, Conservative, Macleod, AB]

Mr. Speaker, I just wish the Leader of the Opposition might discover the beauty of Calgary sometime, too, because that would actually explain the way that an arm's-length organization such as PPP Canada can function.

PPP Canada has approved projects all across this country and it is helping the infrastructure in this country be built by including the private sector in a role that it can play a good part in.

Foreign Affairs

[Bob Rae, Liberal, Toronto Centre, ON]

Mr. Speaker, my third question is for the same government.

Can it tell us exactly what it has done with regard to the extremely sad and tragic events in the Middle East to encourage a ceasefire in Gaza in the battle between the Government of Israel and Hamas.

I think it is important for Canadians to know exactly what the government has done to achieve a lasting ceasefire.