Mr. Speaker, yesterday the Conservatives delivered a devastating blow to the 16,200 people in my riding of Marc-Aurèle-Fortin who rely on old age security and the guaranteed income supplement in order to have a decent standard of living. Currently, those two programs combined do not always keep the people in my riding above the poverty line.
This was a low blow by the Conservatives, who simply changed the eligibility rules for these pension plans. It was especially cruel to people who have spent their entire lives serving Canada and who are responsible for our country's current prosperity.
Yesterday, the government showed a lack of respect for Canada's seniors by failing to come up with any proposals to reduce the poverty rate.
We think Canadian seniors deserve dignity, but the Conservatives showed tremendous disrespect for that principle. The government is treating seniors as—