House of Commons Hansard #195 of the 41st Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was information.
Pierre Poilievre ConservativeMinister of Employment and Social Development and Minister for Democratic Reform
Mr. Speaker, the best way to stimulate employment is to put money directly into the pockets of families. That is what we have done by lowering taxes for families and increasing the child care benefit.
The Liberals voted against the child care benefit. They do not support it and want to take this money away from families by increasing taxes.
We will continue to create jobs. More than one million jobs have been created since the recession, and we will continue to create them.
Scott Brison Liberal Kings—Hants, NS
Mr. Speaker, while Canadians wait for the budget, the Minister of Finance is actually cutting funds for his department's fiscal and economic analysis unit by more than a third. The minister has a history of making mistakes and introducing bad policy. There is his so-called small business job credit, which rewards firing workers. Then there is his $2 billion a year income splitting plan, which manages to be unfair, fiscally irresponsible and bad for growth.
Why is the minister getting rid of the evidence that might prevent him from making more mistakes?
Candice Bergen ConservativeMinister of State (Social Development)
Mr. Speaker, it is no mistake that we are giving families tax cuts and tax benefits. It is also no mistake, and Canadians know, that just as we are giving them those benefits, if the Liberals had the chance, they would end the income splitting for families, they would end income splitting for seniors. They are going to vote against the expanded and increased UCCB, so we know what they are going to do with that.
We will continue to give money back to Canadian families, Canadian seniors, Canadian job creators. The Liberals can try to take it away and increase taxes. We will never do that.
Scott Brison Liberal Kings—Hants, NS
Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives are more focused on advertising the budget than they are on writing it. Now they are spending $7.5 million tax dollars on budget ads this spring. Meanwhile, young Canadians are struggling to find summer jobs.
A single ad during the hockey playoffs could help pay for more than 30 jobs in the Canada summer jobs program. When will the Conservatives stop wasting tax dollars to promote themselves and when will they start investing in summer jobs for Canadians and help young Canadians get the jobs they need?
Pierre Poilievre ConservativeMinister of Employment and Social Development and Minister for Democratic Reform
Mr. Speaker, I think Canadians are always amused when the Liberal Party talks about government funding for advertising. We are still looking for the missing $40 million from over there.
What our advertising will tell Canadians is that they are entitled to claim $1,000 for the children's fitness tax credit to help soccer moms and hockey dads, that they will get an increased universal child care benefit of almost $2,000 for kids under 6 and $720 for kids 6 through 17, and that income splitting for families and pensioners will put money directly into the pockets of the middle class.
The Liberals do not want people to know about it because they would take that money away.
Lysane Blanchette-Lamothe NDP Pierrefonds—Dollard, QC
Mr. Speaker, the senators are complaining about having to answer the Auditor General's questions. According to Senator Ruth, investigators do not understand senators' obligations. She thinks that taxpayers should have to pay for her in-flight meals because she cannot be expected to eat the airline meal of cold Camembert with broken crackers. Poor her. What a shame. She thinks that people do not understand, but Canadians do in fact understand that senators are unelected and unaccountable. People understand quite well that senators are the privileged friends of the Liberals and Conservatives.
Mr. Speaker, when will the Senate be abolished?
Paul Calandra ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister and for Intergovernmental Affairs
Mr. Speaker, as you know, it was the Senate that invited the Auditor General to examine all of the senators' expenses.
At the same time, there has been an investigation in the House, and it has been discovered that the NDP owes $2.7 million for illegal offices and over $1 million for illegal advertising. I would encourage the NDP members to repay the millions of dollars in illegal expenses that they incurred. They should not wait.
That party has a history of being found guilty, whether it is accepting illegal union donations or robocalls. Here it has an opportunity to repay the $3 million.
Niki Ashton NDP Churchill, MB
Mr. Speaker, there is a major disconnect between what we hear coming out of the Senate and the serious issues that Canadians face on a daily basis.
Very soon the government will face a situation where many senators may end up in the same boat as Mike Duffy and Pamela Wallin. What is the government's plan? What is it planning to do to the Senate?
Paul Calandra ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister and for Intergovernmental Affairs
Mr. Speaker, it was the Senate that invited the Auditor General to review all of the expenses of the Senate. I thought that was a good step to take.
At the same time, we also know that 67 members of the NDP have been found guilty of illegally using House resources. I would encourage them to repay it. I know a lot of them think is actually funny, that owing the taxpayers close to $4 million is a funny thing. Taxpayers do not think it is funny. They think they should simply do the right thing and pay it back.
Sadia Groguhé NDP Saint-Lambert, QC
Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives are making progress. They finally set a date to deliver the budget. Now all they have to do is find some real solutions to help Canadian families.
The promise to enhance the universal child care benefit is nothing more than smoke and mirrors. According to the Parliamentary Budget Officer, it is families with no child care expenses at all that will benefit the most.
Why not invest that money in a child care program that would really help families?
Candice Bergen ConservativeMinister of State (Social Development)
Mr. Speaker, the insult to Canadian families just does not stop from that side of the House.
To somehow suggest that families that are not using licensed daycare and paying a specific bill are not incurring costs to themselves, they are completely out of touch with Canadian families.
We are going to increase it and expand it. We are listening to Canadian families.
Jinny Sims NDP Newton—North Delta, BC
Mr. Speaker, talk about being out of touch.
Canadian families know they will not be getting the help they desperately need from the Conservative budget. Instead of moving forward with the NDP's plan for affordable child care available to all families, the Conservatives are happy to push forward their income splitting scheme that will only see the wealthiest families in the country benefit.
Will the Conservatives drop their regressive income splitting plan and put forward in their budget a solution that helps all Canadian families?
Candice Bergen ConservativeMinister of State (Social Development)
Mr. Speaker, the evidence shows that only about 10% of all Canadian families use licensed or regulated daycare spaces. Those are the only people their plan would help.
Our plan helps every Canadian family, because Canadian families want to use a variety of options when it comes to caring for their children. They are all incurring costs.
To suggest that Canadian families, when they decide one parent will stay at home or they will use another family member, are not incurring costs is absolutely absurd. It is wrong.
Our plan helps every Canadian family with children.
Guy Caron NDP Rimouski-Neigette—Témiscouata—Les Basques, QC
Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives' actions often raise more questions than answers. The National Energy Board laid off 15% of its staff, yet the number of energy projects in Canada continues to grow.
Canadians' trust in the safety of oil transportation is eroding, largely as as result of this Conservative government's cuts to environmental standards.
How can the government justify new cuts when Canadians' safety is at stake?
David Anderson ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Consular
Mr. Speaker, the member opposite should quit misleading Canadians.
To be clear, there are no cuts to the National Energy Board. Our government has a proven track record of increasing funding to the NEB and providing it with the resources it needs to operate.
What does the member opposite have a proven record of? It is for voting against the increased funding for the NEB every time it has been proposed.
Megan Leslie NDP Halifax, NS
Mr. Speaker, there are cuts, and it does not make any sense. Cutting 24% of the National Energy Board's resources, when it actually needs more oversight and more resources, is just plain wrong. Provinces have serious concerns about the NEB's capacity, and so do local communities across this country.
How can Canadians trust that their safety is the number one priority of the Conservative government when these cuts are going ahead?
David Anderson ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Consular
Mr. Speaker, as I just said, there are no cuts to the National Energy Board.
What do the member's opposite do? They voted against increasing inspections. They voted against increasing audits. They voted against implementing fines against companies that break the law.
We will take no lectures from them about the proper regulatory structure we need in this country to protect these projects and the environment.
Élaine Michaud NDP Portneuf—Jacques-Cartier, QC
Mr. Speaker, the Minister of National Defence continues to make gaffe after gaffe. Yesterday he was even forced to admit that he had fabricated information to justify Canada's participation in the mission in Iraq and Syria, but for an issue as important as this one, Canadians expect a basic level of professionalism from the minister.
The cost of the war will hit $528 million by the start of next year. Will the minister finally take his job seriously and at least check his information before making statements?
Jason Kenney ConservativeMinister of National Defence and Minister for Multiculturalism
Mr. Speaker, last week I disclosed the estimates of the cost of Operation Impact against the terrorist and genocidal Islamic State. We believe that the additional cost of about $400 million is completely justified to respond to the threat that the Islamic State poses to the safety of Canadians and to the world. We must obviously combat this threat, and that is what we are doing right now in Iraq with our air force.
Jack Harris NDP St. John's East, NL
Mr. Speaker, the Minister of National Defence says he regrets the inaccurate information he put into the public domain regarding Syria. Well, he made no apology for his statements nor about his claim that Canada was asked to extend the mission to Syria because we were the only country with precision-guided munitions, even though there are actually a dozen.
Who made this request to the minister? Did it even happen? Why did the Conservative government use false information to justify Canada's decision to expand bombing into Syria?
Jason Kenney ConservativeMinister of National Defence and Minister for Multiculturalism
Mr. Speaker, again, I reported publicly the information that I received in briefings from the Canadian military. As the Chief of the Defence Staff has said, when new information came to light, he corrected the record. As minister, ultimately I am responsible for all information provided to the department, and I do regret that inaccurate information was provided.
Having said that, the real reason, of course, that we are now preparing to strike ISIL targets in Syria is so that this genocidal terrorist organization does not have a safe haven in which to plan terrorist attacks against Iraq or other countries, including Canada. We are doing the right thing by taking on this genocidal terrorist organization.
Peter Stoffer NDP Sackville—Eastern Shore, NS
Mr. Speaker, the recent legislation brought forward by the government, when it comes to caregivers for our veterans, is, unfortunately, woefully inadequate.
The Conservatives identify that possibly 250 caregivers by 2020 may be able to receive a $7,000 grant. However, if a woman has to quite her full-time job to provide 24-hour round-the-clock care for the heroes of our country, she requires more financial resources than a $7,000 stipend.
Would the parliamentary secretary for veterans affairs please advise if the Conservatives would be willing to not only change their criteria of the definition of a caregiver but also increase the amount--
The Acting Speaker Conservative Barry Devolin
Order. The hon. Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Veterans Affairs.
Pierre Lemieux ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Veterans Affairs
Mr. Speaker, the family caregiver relief benefit is an important new benefit that recognizes the vital contribution of informal caregivers to the health and well-being of veterans with severe and permanent service-related injuries. The proposed new family caregiver relief benefit will provide veterans with an annual tax-free grant of more than $7,000. This new benefit will require little to no paperwork, and it will not require receipts. It will provide the informal caregiver relief while ensuring that veterans continue to get the support they need.
This is an important new initiative that the opposition should support.
Judy Sgro Liberal York West, ON
Mr. Speaker, yesterday we discovered a $9-million cut to the youth employment strategy, and in other news, Conservatives found $7.5 million to spend on more wasteful ads. Conservatives seem set on a strategy that moves money from helping the unemployed to phony ads that tell the unemployed that they are being helped.
Conservatives spend widely on self-promotion during hockey playoffs and the Super Bowl yet cry poverty when it comes to real job creation. When are the Conservatives going to stop being more interested in selling themselves than in helping find real--