House of Commons Hansard #244 of the 41st Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was tax.
David Sweet Conservative Ancaster—Dundas—Flamborough—Westdale, ON
Mr. Speaker, I have in my hand a petition that calls upon Parliament to impose a moratorium on the release of genetically modified alfalfa, in order to allow proper review of the impact upon farmers in Canada.
Fin Donnelly NDP New Westminster—Coquitlam, BC
Mr. Speaker, I rise to present two petitions today.
The first petition is from petitioners who are calling upon the government to save the Kitsilano Coast Guard station. They say the recent decision to close the station is a grave mistake, one that will undoubtedly cost lives and put at peril those on the shores near Vancouver Harbour.
The petitioners ask the Government of Canada to immediately rescind the decision and reinstate full funding to maintain the Kitsilano Coast Guard station.
Fin Donnelly NDP New Westminster—Coquitlam, BC
Mr. Speaker, the second petition is from petitioners calling for a shark fin import ban.
The petitioners ask that measures be taken to stop the global practice of shark finning and ensure responsible conservation management of sharks. They call upon the Government of Canada to immediately legislate a ban on the importation of shark fin into Canada.
Ted Hsu Liberal Kingston and the Islands, ON
Mr. Speaker, I rise today with a thicker than normal petition from my constituents in Kingston and the Islands.
The petitioners are calling upon the government to put a moratorium on the commercial distribution of genetically modified alfalfa until a proper and public study can be done on the effects of organic certification on non-GM farmers and on the effects of international trade on farmers in Canada and, indeed, on all farmers.
Andrew Cash NDP Davenport, ON
Mr. Speaker, I have two petitions to present today.
Many telephone, Internet, television and banking companies have introduced a new pay-to-pay effect. It is in effect a $2.00 or more charge to get your bill in the mail. Many people in my constituency of Davenport are very concerned about this. It unfairly targets seniors, elderly people, people on fixed incomes, people who do not have access to the Internet and people who are concerned about online banking and decide not to do that.
The petitioners call upon the government to use the means it has at its disposal to end these unfair charges.
Andrew Cash NDP Davenport, ON
Mr. Speaker, the second petition pertains to urban workers. These are people in Toronto who have a job that has no pension, no benefits, no job security. Actually, almost 50% of the workers in the city of Toronto, as per a study done recently, do not have access to full-time employment. This means they are shut out of things like employment insurance.
The petitioners call upon the government to rectify that situation.
Bruce Hyer Independent Thunder Bay—Superior North, ON
Mr. Speaker, petitions continue to roll in regarding the Experimental Lakes Area, so today I have the pleasure of presenting a petition on behalf of the residents of Thunder Bay, Kaministiquia and Murillo.
The petitioners are opposed to the government's decision to close the ELA. They want the world-renowned facility to continue operations and the government to negotiate any hand-off of the ELA in good faith so vital freshwater research can continue uninterrupted.
Questions Passed as Orders for ReturnsRoutine Proceedings
Regina—Lumsden—Lake Centre Saskatchewan
Conservative
Tom Lukiwski ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons
Mr. Speaker, if Question No. 1223 could be made an order for return, this return would be tabled immediately.
Paul Dewar NDP Ottawa Centre, ON
With regard to Canadian assistance to Sudan and South Sudan going forward into the 2013-2014, 2014-2015, and 2015-2016 fiscal years: (a) what are the government's estimated projections for its funding of the Sudan Task force; (b) what are the government's estimated projections for its funding to the two countries through the Canadian International Development Agency; (c) what are the government's estimated projections for the number of personnel from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the Canadian Forces participating in United Nations-sanctioned operations; (d) what are the government's estimated projections for the number of personnel, expressed in full-time equivalents, from the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade working in the two countries; and (e) what support will be delivered to projects and activities in these two countries by the Stabilization and Reconstruction Task Force, through the Global Peace and Security Fund?
(Return tabled)
Tom Lukiwski Conservative Regina—Lumsden—Lake Centre, SK
Mr. Speaker, I ask that the remaining questions be allowed to stand.
Tom Lukiwski ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons
Mr. Speaker, I ask that all notices of motions for the production of papers be allowed to stand.
The Acting Speaker Conservative Bruce Stanton
I have the honour to inform the House that a message has been received from the Senate informing this House that the Senate has passed the following bill to which the concurrence of the House is desired: Bill S-15, An Act to amend the Canada National Parks Act and the Canada-Nova Scotia Offshore Petroleum Resources Accord Implementation Act and to make consequential amendments to the Canada Shipping Act, 2001.
Julian Fantino Conservative Vaughan, ON
moved that Bill C-60, An Act to implement certain provisions of the budget tabled in Parliament on March 21, 2013 and other measures, be read the second time and referred to a committee.
Shelly Glover ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance
Mr. Speaker, I would like to seek unanimous consent to split my time with the hon. member for Kamloops—Thompson—Cariboo.
The Acting Speaker Conservative Bruce Stanton
Does the hon. parliamentary secretary have the consent of the House to share her time?
Shelly Glover Conservative Saint Boniface, MB
Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleagues in the House.
I am pleased to have this opportunity to kick off debate on Bill C-60, the economic action plan 2013 act. As the name suggests, Bill C-60 would implement key measures from the recent federal budget, economic action plan 2013, which is a positive and forward-looking blueprint to help grow the Canadian economy today and into tomorrow. This plan would make our economy stronger by helping our manufacturers buy new equipment with tax relief, help small businesses create more jobs with a hiring credit, help rebuild our roads and bridges with record new support for infrastructure and much more.
Today's legislation, along with the standard second budget implementation bill, which will be introduced in the fall, will help implement that ambitious and positive plan.
Before I get into the substance of the bill, I would like to say that, as a proud member of the Standing Committee on Finance, I look forward to studying the bill in committee.
As the Minister of Finance said earlier this week, the study of the Economic Action Plan 2013 Act will not be exclusive to the Standing Committee on Finance.
In fact, the government members on the Standing Committee on Finance will move a motion that some other committees review specific aspects of the bill. I hope the opposition will give us its support.
In terms of the legislation we are dealing with today, we must not forget that the economic action plan 2013 is part of a comprehensive plan that goes back to 2006 when our Conservative government came to power. The priorities at the heart of the plan were the Canadian economy, job creation and tax cuts to help families keep more money in their pockets.
I am pleased to say that the plan worked even in the worst global recession since the Great Depression. As we conduct our study, the NDP and the Liberals will try to have us swallow bogus figures, if you will, on Canada's labour market. They will distort the facts and play every conceivable shell game to conceal the truth.
However, the facts are in. All of Canada's credible, independent organizations, such as the Bank of Canada and even Statistics Canada, have the figures and can substantiate them. Canada has created slightly more than 900,000 net new jobs since the depths of the recession in July. More than 90% are full-time jobs and nearly 80% are in the private sector.
This outstanding record has made Canada the top G7 country in terms of job creation since the end of the global recession.
Despite what the NDP and the Liberals would have Canadians believe, over 1.4 million net new jobs have been created since January 2006 when the Conservative government took power. We have also seen that as the best job creation in the entire G7 during that entire time period.
It is not only on the job front where Canada is leading the way. I want to share some of that positive news to counter all the talking down of Canada and of our economy that we are hearing from the NDP and the Liberals.
While the opposition will try to bash the Canadian economy with negative messages and their procedural games to scare people watching at home, I am going to try to build it up with positive facts about the relative success story Canada's economy has been.
To start with, both the independent International Monetary Fund and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development are projecting that Canada will have among the strongest growth in the G7 in years ahead. Even better, here is what the IMF had to say about Canada only a few weeks ago, “Canada is in an enviable position”. For the fifth straight year, the World Economic Forum has ranked Canada's banking system the soundest in the world. Canada has the lowest overall tax rate on new business investment in the G7.
All major credit rating agencies, like Moody's, Fitch, and Standard and Poor's, have affirmed Canada's rock-solid AAA credit rating. Our net debt to GDP ratio remains the lowest in the G7 by far.
The list goes on and on. Little wonder, when asked about Canada's economy recently, Don Drummond, a well-known and widely respected Canadian economist, said the following:
We look like the poster child for the fiscal messes around the world. We are in pretty good fiscal shape, certainly relative to everybody else.
I could not agree more with him, but as Don Drummond noted, there are some fiscal and economic messes around the world, as we are reminded on the evening news or in the morning newspapers all too often.
Some big global economic challenges from beyond our borders remain, especially in the United States and Europe. These are among our most important trading partners. Even though these are not made in Canada problems, they will continue to negatively impact Canada. Like any smart person would in any situation like this, if a problem is out there, we protect ourselves against it. That is exactly what we are doing in economic action plan 2013 by staying squarely focused on what matters when facing a challenging global economy: jobs and economic growth, keeping taxes low and balancing the budget by 2015.
What we are not doing is listening to the NDP and Liberal calls for spending, spending and more spending in order to expand government and add to the national debt.
The NDP and Liberal proposals are doomed to failure and will mean ever-increasing taxes.
Canadians know what happened in European countries that chose to expand government and spend endlessly, which is what the NDP and Liberals are suggesting. Those countries ended up with monster deficits, paralyzing government bureaucracy and massive unemployment.
Just this week we learned that unemployment in the eurozone climbed to 12.1% in March, an all-time high according to EU statistics agencies.
The NDP likely does not want to hear that its economic philosophy of unlimited spending and ever-increasing taxes does not work. However, economic ruin in Greece and Spain illustrate the consequences of the very policies the NDP wants to bring to Canada.
Our Conservative government understands what the NDP and Liberals refuse to believe. In an uncertain global economic economy, the best way for government to build confidence is to maintain its own sound fiscal position, not engage in reckless deficit spending. That belief is at the very heart of economic action plan 2013 and that is why the Liberals and the NDP so vigorously oppose it.
I want to read a great quote by one of the most respected newspaper columnists in Canada, Peter Worthington. It is worth reading at length. He said:
The federal budget...is one of those things that should please every thinking Canadian...it's reality....Think for a moment....When you look at Cyprus, Europe, the U.S. and the rest of the world, this should be a huge relief to Canadian taxpayers...jobs are more or less secure as are pensions and health-care costs. Working Canadians will continue to be the blessed of the developed world.
Although I hear the NDP and Liberals making the heckling noises, it is because they do not buy into the fact that we are leaders. We cannot help the fact that we are leaders. The world looks at us with envy because we did not follow its suggestions and we will not follow its suggestions. Canadians can rest assured that this Conservative government will maintain a low-tax plan, we will maintain a plan for job creation and we will look to prosperity for our country for years and years to come.
Peggy Nash NDP Parkdale—High Park, ON
Mr. Speaker, most observers will agree that investing in young people is absolutely essential for the future of our society and for a healthy economy. The fastest-growing demographic of youth in Canada is aboriginal youth. I would like to know why the government has provided a mere pittance to address the 30% gap between what children of first nations on reserve get compared with kids in the rest of the country. Why the gap and why did the CEO of the Assembly of First Nations tell the finance committee yesterday that the government had no meaningful consultation with first nations about education or any other topic?