Debates of April 28th, 2015

Financial Statement of Minister of Finance

[Pierre Dionne Labelle, NDP, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

Mr. Speaker, based on past promises to maintain an increase of 6% for health transfers and based on the Conservatives' plan to reduce it to 3%, overall, there will be $36 billion less in the provinces' coffers. That is easy to understand.

It is not complicated; the federal government will transfer proportionally less than it is currently transferring. It is as simple as that. A little lesson on the rule of three would be good for everyone here.

[John Duncan, Conservative, Minister of State and Chief Government Whip]

Mr. Speaker, I will be splitting my time with the member for Whitby—Oshawa.

I am dedicating the 10 minutes I have to speak to the budget today to my friend Darrel Wong, who passed away much too young on the weekend. Darrel was the very long-time president of the large International Woodworkers local in Courtenay, British Columbia, and subsequently the Steelworkers local after the unions merged.

We collaborated on many issues. Our goal was the same: to represent our constituents. He represented his membership at all times. Perhaps his greatest triumph was to negotiate the Coast Sustainability Trust, a $35 million fund to assist union and non-union members, their families and communities, including first nations communities on the coast.

I am reminded of our collaboration by the upcoming softwood lumber agreement anniversary in October, as 10 years ago, we held a series of joint press conferences in B.C. and Ottawa, pushing for free trade in lumber with the United States. Of course, two-thirds of our production is exported, and two-thirds of our export goes to the U.S. That was a very important measure.

Darrel was non-partisan because he wanted to work in the best interests of the larger community, and he succeeded. The proof was in the pudding, which is why he was re-elected so many times by the membership.

I am pleased to see in the budget that the forest sector, which contributes $21 billion to Canada's GDP, is recognized with a provision to extend for two years the innovation and expanding market opportunities programs.

The budget is a large document and it is of much interest. I can only touch on a piece of it during my speech. We all know that in the lead-up to the budget, there is much speculation. In the case of this year's budget, most of the speculation revolved around pre-election posturing. There was no speculation about new taxes. This is unlike speculation about new revenue sources, also known as tax increases, in previous federal administrations and as we just witnessed, in Alberta and Ontario. Governments in many jurisdictions continue to do exactly the things that got previous governments into trouble. I am very proud to be part of a government that is consistent and reliable, that displays respect for the taxpayer, and that is leading Canada in a direction that is responsible and increasingly is the envy of much of the world.

Canada's economic action plan is working. Our job creation record since the depths of the recession is the best in the G7. Our overall federal tax burden is at its lowest level in more than 50 years. Canada's net debt to GDP ratio is less than half of the G7 average. Since 2006, we have reduced greenhouse gases by almost 6% while growing the economy by 11%.

Former finance minister Jim Flaherty delivered great budgets before, during and after the global recession. His wish was to deliver a balanced budget post-recession, and he almost achieved it last year. Pre-recession, he paid down $37 billion in debt. Our current finance minister delivered a surplus budget on April 21, with the promise of growing surpluses in succeeding years. At the same time, the budget supports job-creating businesses, contributes to safe and healthy communities, supports families and seniors, and strengthens our security and enhances improvements to meet the needs of veterans.

I would like to talk about the doubling of the tax-free savings account contribution limit to $10,000. As the member of Parliament for Vancouver Island North and with a brother living and paying taxes in the U.S., I became intrigued by the tax-prepaid Roth, individual retirement accounts that the U.S. introduced in 1998.

Subsequently, I put forward a private member's motion in 2004 to urge the government of the day to initiate a tax-prepaid savings plan in Canada. I had heard that Paul Martin had thought about it. In 2005, at the Conservative national convention in Montreal, I brought my private member's motion as a Vancouver Island North constituency organization-backed resolution, and the party adopted it. This became the rationale for Jim Flaherty making it the centrepiece of the 2008 budget.

There are now 11 million Canadians with tax-free savings accounts, and 60% of tax-free savings account holders who max out their contribution earn less than $60,000 a year. Over half of those who have these accounts earn less than $42,000 a year. I am proud to have been part of this development. I do not understand the opposition stating that tax-free savings accounts only benefit the wealthy.

We have had much speculation about the tax-free savings accounts since the budget. I can quote a little from The Globe and Mail:

For retirees, the increased limit has placed a greater light on TFSAs being efficient tools to use in tax planning

We have another vehicle that is becoming much more useful with tax-free growth, and we are running the math and seeing that instead of waiting until someone is in their 70’s, we should be drawing out smaller amounts of money earlier than we historically would’ve but at a lower rate of tax over all and then shift it into the TFSA.

For young people buying their first house or condo in their 20s or early 30s, the advice we have been giving if you are in a lower tax bracket is don’t even contribute to an RRSP because chances are you will be in a higher bracket when you have to take it out.

Clients also have the added benefit of having a flexible repayment plan....as anything taken out of the TFSA will be added to your contribution room for the following year (unlike the home buyers' plan, which requires investors to start repaying the fund two years after the withdrawal).

This has changed many things in a positive direction.

I think I have a minute or two. The ground is shifting on the comprehension and understanding of the federal role in providing funding to the provinces for health care. I can quote from Maclean's magazine, Paul Wells, on April 20, and this has to do with health care transfers:

....the Conservatives have kept transfers to the provinces growing at six per cent a year for as long as they’ve been in office. But after 2017, that rate of growth will fall to somewhere between three per cent and six per cent, depending on how fast the general economy grows.

But something odd has happened. Growth in health spending has slowed right down, as provinces with very different governments decided, all by themselves, to curb this runaway budget line. In 2011-12, health spending grew by 6.2 per cent in British Columbia, six per cent in Alberta and 4.4 per cent in Ontario. This year it will grow by 2.9 per cent in B.C. and 1.8 per cent in Ontario. Alberta will cut health spending every year for the next three, then let it grow again at less than three per cent per year.

As we can see, the federal transfers are greater than what the provinces are currently budgeting. Therefore, what we are providing is leading to less provincial input into health care spending. That is an observation made by anyone who does the math.

I see my time has elapsed. We are moving in the right direction with budget 2015.

[Alain Giguère, NDP, Marc-Aurèle-Fortin, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I noted my colleague's interest in lowering taxes. One of his colleagues said that he was proud of the government for lowering taxes for more than 2 million Canadians.

However, I must emphasize that Canada has a population of 35 million people. It is all well and good to lower taxes for 2 million people, but what about the other 33 million?

They have infrastructure that has not been modernized, roads that are crumbling, bridges that are falling down, inadequate public transit and hospital services that are harder and harder to obtain.

Can my colleague explain how his budget helps the vast majority of Canadians?

It is great to hear him talk about the people who will benefit from his budget, but as far as I know, we are the government of all Canadians, not just the wealthiest 5%.

[John Duncan, Conservative, Vancouver Island North, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I have a much larger speech that I have been using as my constituency-based speech on the budget. I can talk for 40 minutes on the budget at the drop of a hat. A lot of what I was speaking about is exactly what we are doing in the budget for seniors, for families, for businesses, for communities, for growing the economy and for providing jobs.

One thing that really attracts a lot of attention, particularly from municipal governments, which are the closest government we have to the people, is what we as a government have done consistently with respect to infrastructure throughout the piece. Our infrastructure investments are actually three times what they were under the previous Liberal administration.

[Francis Scarpaleggia, Liberal, Lac-Saint-Louis, QC]

Mr. Speaker, when we interview people to do a job, we often ask them if they have done the job before. If they do not have that much direct experience we might ask if they have done something comparable that could build our confidence that they would be able to do the job.

The government tells us that it will have a balanced budget and that it will have a surplus and so on, but what is that claim rooted in? Has the Conservative Party in government ever done that before? I do not think so. Perhaps once under R.B. Bennett during the Great Depression. Therefore, there is very little confidence-building matter here.

In terms of a more recent example, I would just like to talk about the Mulroney government experience. Under the Trudeau government, the annual average deficit was 2.9% of GDP between 1969 and 1980. Under the Mulroney government, the average annual deficit was 6.7% of GDP, and the debt burden rose dramatically under the Conservative government of the day, from 37.5% of GDP in 1983-84 to 66.6% in 1994-95.

Why should Canadians believe that the government will be able to balance the budget and run a surplus when it has not done so for a very long time?

[John Duncan, Conservative, Vancouver Island North, BC]

Mr. Speaker, we have the advantage of having had only two finance ministers in government since 2006. Our first finance minister paid back $37 billion on the national debt. One does not do that unless one has a balanced budget, so it is obvious that the person who asked the question had not done his homework to even know that we ran surpluses prior to the recession.

Contrary to the member's assertions, under Pierre Trudeau's government, during his 14 years in power, he increased spending by an average of 14% a year for 14 years, completely unsustainable. It changed us from a government that was small and efficient to one that was bloated and inefficient. We have been trying to get back to a decent and responsible place ever since.

[The Acting Speaker, Conservative, Bruce Stanton]

We will resume debate, but I will let the hon. member for Whitby—Oshawa know that statements by members will start in a few minutes, so she will have about three minutes to get under way for her 10-minute remarks. The remaining time, of course, will be available to her when the House next resumes debate on the question.

Resuming debate, the hon. member for Whitby—Oshawa.

[Pat Perkins, Conservative, Whitby—Oshawa, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague, the Chief Government Whip, for his comments and sharing his time.

It is an honour and privilege to rise in the House to talk about economic action plan 2015, a budget that provides a low-tax plan and that will continue to provide jobs, growth and security for all Canadians.

Under the leadership of our Prime Minister, Canadians from coast to coast to coast have seen the creation of over 1.2 million net new, full-time and well-paying private sector jobs since the depths of the great recession. Since being given the clear mandate of responsible spending, job creation and lowering taxes in 2006, our government has delivered on the promise of making life more affordable for all Canadians. Economic action plan 2015 builds on this mandate and ensures that Canadians are the direct recipients of sensible economic measures that will help them save money and improve their everyday lives.

Moreover, this budget also supports the growth and development of job-creating businesses. I am happy to use my time today to outline just a few of the many proposed sensible and effective measures that are going to specifically benefit the lives of all Canadians and businesses while fulfilling our promise of a balanced budget.

This year's budget would build on our low-tax record, with our government proposing measures like the new family tax cut. This tax cut would provide a federal non-refundable tax credit of up to $2,000 for couples with children under 18 years of age. This budget would also provide enhancements to the universal child care benefit by adding an increased benefit of $160 per month for children under six years old or a benefit of $60 a month for children aged six through 17. In fact, when we factor in all of these money-saving measures, this year a two-income family of four would save approximately $6,600 in taxes. That $6,600 in savings would stay in the pockets of Canadian families and allow them to use their hard-earned funds on what matters most to them.

[The Acting Speaker, Conservative, Bruce Stanton]

The hon. member for Whitby—Oshawa will have seven minutes remaining for her remarks when the House next resumes debate on the question.

Eastern Quebec Port Facilities

[Jean-François Fortin, Forces et Démocratie, Haute-Gaspésie—La Mitis—Matane—Matapédia, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the government issued a simple press release last Friday evening to announce that it was going to divest itself of 25 ports in eastern Quebec. In most cases, this is fundamental infrastructure that is at the heart of the communities' history and economic activity.

The mayors in my region, who lament the fact that the federal government announced this under the radar, are concerned that they do not have all the details they need to properly prepare themselves. They are wondering how the municipalities are going to cover these expenses, when even the federal government is saying that it does not have the means to do so. The threat of privatization or the complete abandonment of these port facilities is also hanging over their heads.

What the mayors are asking for is simple: the government must upgrade these ports and provide the communities the financial support they need to be able to acquire and operate the facilities instead of making them foot the bill for infrastructure that has been neglected by the federal government.

Railway Safety Week

[Joyce Bateman, Conservative, Winnipeg South Centre, MB]

Mr. Speaker, this week is Railway Safety Week. Every year in Canada, approximately 300 collisions occur at railway crossings. Virtually all of these could be avoided. The goal of Railway Safety Week is to give awareness to Canadians in order to prevent collisions between trains and motor vehicles.

Rail safety is of the utmost importance to me. Ensuring that our families and our communities remain safe is something for which I passionately advocate. In fact, my private member's bill, Bill C-627, an act to amend the Railway Safety Act (safety of persons and property), which has recently passed the committee stage, seeks to give additional powers to the Minister of Transport and railway safety inspectors so they may intervene when required in order to better ensure the safety of citizens, property and communities.

I am confident the bill will make a positive change, and I encourage all Canadians to become involved and promote rail safety. One injury or fatality is one too many.

Railway Safety

[Mike Sullivan, NDP, York South—Weston, ON]

Mr. Speaker, people in my riding of York South—Weston are still concerned about rail safety. Since the tragedy at Lac-Mégantic in 2013, little has changed, while the volume of explosive crude oil transported through Weston, Mount Dennis and the Junction neighbourhoods has continued to grow.

The Auditor General and the Transportation Safety Board have both scolded Transport Canada for its lack of attention to rail safety, while the government cut its budget.

This winter's oil train wrecks in northern Ontario add to the growing list of wrecks all over North America. The resulting fireballs are from the newer, supposedly safer 1232 tankers. They were travelling at speeds much lower than the minister's new limit and they still burst into flames.

The attitude of the government, that we should just pray that train wrecks do not happen in a populated area, is not calming the fears of the residents of York South—Weston or anywhere.

A Toronto group of hard working volunteers called, Safe Rail Communities, has taken up the cause, and will be testifying before the Transportation Committee this afternoon. Let us hope the government is listening.

World Immunization Week

[Ron Cannan, Conservative, Kelowna—Lake Country, BC]

Mr. Speaker, last Friday, I was honoured to welcome the Minister of Veterans Affairs to my beautiful riding ofKelowna—Lake Country.

As Rotarians, the minister and I started our day off at the Kelowna Sunrise Rotary Club, one of the many clubs across Canada that partner with government to make life better for people locally and globally. One of those steadfast partners is the Canadian government, which has been, and remains, a global leader with Rotary International and the Global Polio Eradication Initiative.

April 24 to 30 is World Immunization Week and Rotary International is calling on all countries to “Close the Immunization Gap".

It takes less than a dollar to vaccinate a child against polio. Although the world is 99% of the way there, one in five children still misses out. In 2013, an estimated 21.8 million infants did not receive lifesaving vaccines.

We have a narrow window of opportunity to close the gap. I encourage all members in the House and everyone to support their local rotary clubs and Rotary International and help reach the goal to end polio now.

Christine Stewart

[Stéphane Dion, Liberal, Saint-Laurent—Cartierville, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to commemorate a life of service. Christine Stewart passed away last Saturday. She dedicated her life to her family and to social service, as a nurse, school board trustee, tireless volunteer involved in charities, arts bodies, international development, co-founder of NGOs whose names are, as such, a reflection of her whole life: “Horizons of Friendship” and “Northumberland Fare Share Food Bank”.

She invested her passion as a liberal MP for the riding of Northumberland, which she proudly represented from 1988 to 2000.

As secretary of state, she improved Canadian involvement in Latin America and Africa. As minister of the environment, Christine Stewart negotiated and signed the Kyoto protocol, improved the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, the Species at Risk Act and the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act.

After leaving politics, Christine never stopped her life of service. She will be deeply missed.

Taxation

[Robert Sopuck, Conservative, Dauphin—Swan River—Marquette, MB]

Mr. Speaker, our Conservative government believes that parents know what is best for their children. That is why we are increasing the child care expense deduction to $8,000, increasing the universal child care benefit to $1,920 annually for children under age 6, and expanding it to $720 annually for children aged 6 to 17.

Policy is much more than numbers on paper. The right policy has an important human dimension, as I learned from one of my constituents. Ms. Ms. Mackenzie Danard, from Swan River, Manitoba, wrote me a letter to say, “This helps a lot for single parents. Thank you for helping us raise our children”.

Our government is delivering support directly to families like Mackenzie's. The Liberals and the New Democrats want to take that money away from Mackenzie and families like hers. That is shameful.

Air Force Appreciation Day

[Dany Morin, NDP, Chicoutimi—Le Fjord, QC]

Mr. Speaker, today is Air Force Appreciation Day. This is an important day for me as the Bagotville military base is in my riding. I constantly see what a great contribution air force members and their families make to communities across Canada.

During my term in office, I have had the pleasure of forging strong ties with senior air force officials, officers at Bagotville, members of the air force and civilian personnel who support our military members.

I would first like to thank the commander of the Royal Canadian Air Force, Lieutenant-General Yvan Blondin. In addition to the remarkable work he has done in every position he has held, he has played a crucial role in ensuring that the mental health issues of our forces are no longer as taboo as they were in the past.

It has also been an honour to regularly meet with Colonels Paul Prévost, Sylvain Ménard and Érick Simoneau and to see how they support members of the forces and their families through difficult times and also how they serve the community where they are based.

I have such an appreciation for so many officers and members of the air force in Bagotville that I cannot name them all. Please know that I am proud of your efforts and proud to represent you in Ottawa.

[Mark Strahl, Conservative, Chilliwack—Fraser Canyon, BC]

Mr. Speaker, today is Air Force Appreciation Day on Parliament Hill, and I am pleased to honour my constituent, retired Chief Warrant Officer Reginald Daws.

Reg joined the Royal Canadian Air Force in 1955 and served with distinction during his 36-year career in postings across Canada, including at the Canadian Forces School of Military Engineering in Chilliwack. He has been a member of the RCAF Association for over 20 years. Reg never misses a ceremony at our local cenotaph, and he has been instrumental in preserving the memory of the fallen, particularly with our youth.

For his leadership abilities, people skills and dedication, he received the Distinguished Service Award in 2013. Today, Reg will be honoured with the Len Baldock Memorial Award, which recognizes skill, enthusiasm, direction and leadership in association activities above the ordinary.

I invite all members to join with me to congratulate Reginald Daws and salute all Canadian Air Force personnel, past and present, for their outstanding service to Canada.

Taxation

[Earl Dreeshen, Conservative, Red Deer, AB]

Mr. Speaker, my constituents of Red Deer know that it is only our Conservative government that will lower taxes for the middle class.

Middle-class families in my riding are looking forward to receiving the benefits from the family tax cut and the enhanced universal child care benefit. These benefits will leave 100% of families with kids with more money in their pockets.

The Liberals and the NDP would take this away and raise taxes on middle-class families, raise taxes on middle-class seniors and raise taxes on middle-class consumers. That is their plan for the middle class.

Our government's plan is for reducing taxes for the middle class.

National Day of Mourning

[Wayne Marston, NDP, Hamilton East—Stoney Creek, ON]

Mr. Speaker, today, in Hamilton and in communities across Canada, workers are marking the National Day of Mourning for workers injured and killed on the job, and those who have become ill because of their workplace.

The National Day of Mourning is not only a time of reflection and remembrance, it is also a day to rededicate ourselves to the goal of keeping workers safe at their jobs. Every day, four workers die on the job and each year another one million are injured. Such statistics are clearly unacceptable, but equally staggering is the fact that one in seven young workers is injured on the job. These are our sons, daughters, brothers and sisters.

Canadian workers lose their lives because workplace safety is thrown out of the window in the interest of the bottom line. When workers are killed, it is far too often because they have been pressured into doing unsafe work.

I would close with one of the labour movement's most important mottos: an injury to one is an injury to all.

Public Safety

[Nina Grewal, Conservative, Fleetwood—Port Kells, BC]

Mr. Speaker, residents of my riding and across all of British Columbia are concerned about the crime epidemic in Surrey. That is why our Conservative government has taken strong action to increase front-line RCMP officers in our communities. We have passed more than 30 new measures to combat crime and we have made the youth gang prevention fund a permanent program.

Unfortunately, the Liberals and the New Democrats have opposed and obstructed us every step of the way. The Liberals' solution to drug-fuelled gang warfare is to make marijuana easier for all children to buy and smoke.

British Columbians know that it is only the Prime Minister and this Conservative government who can be trusted to protect them from violent crime.

Workplace Safety

[Carol Hughes, NDP, Algoma—Manitoulin—Kapuskasing, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I rise in solidarity with working Canadians who gather in places like Kapuskasing, Elliot Lake and AOK First Nation because no one deserves to die at work, which is what happens to an average of four people in our country every day.

Workers die from traumatic injuries sustained on the job, occupational diseases and even violence in the workplace. That does not include individuals who die from work-related conditions and diseases that go unreported.

While the number of workplace-related deaths has grown in Canada, other OECD countries have seen their numbers go down. Canada has laws for criminal responsibility in some cases of occupational death, but they are so rarely applied that there is no incentive for employers to address dangerous working conditions. We are trading the safety of our workplace for profits. However, for families who have lost loved ones, there is no amount that can provide comfort.

While so many workers needlessly lose their lives year after year, we have to ask ourselves: How many men, women and teenagers have to die before governments finally take action?

Taxation

[Lawrence Toet, Conservative, Elmwood—Transcona, MB]

Mr. Speaker, last week the Minister of Finance tabled a balanced budget in this House. Now that we have balanced our budget, we would help hard-working Canadian families balance theirs through our new family tax cut and enhanced universal child care benefit. These measures would benefit 100% of families with children, leaving every family with more money in its pocket to spend on its priorities.

Sadly, the Liberals and the the New Democrats have a different plan, and it is a simple one. They want higher taxes on middle-class families, higher taxes on middle-class seniors and higher taxes on middle-class consumers so those parties can afford their plans to expand their control on the finances of Canadian families. They philosophically believe that government is better suited to handle the finances of Canadian families than the hard-working people of Canada.

That is the wrong plan for hard-working Canadian families. That is why our Conservative government is reducing taxes on the middle class.

The Economy

[Costas Menegakis, Conservative, Richmond Hill, ON]

Mr. Speaker, our government's top priority is creating jobs, growth and long-term prosperity. Our plan is working.

Since the depths of the global economic downturn, over 1.2 million net new jobs have been created, overwhelmingly full-time, well paying and in the private sector. Indeed, Canada has had one of the best job creation records in the G7 over the recovery.

Economic action plan 2015 builds on the government's plan for jobs and growth by supporting the manufacturing sector, helping small business and entrepreneurs, training a highly skilled workforce, investing in infrastructure, growing trade and expanding markets. The list goes on.

My constituents in Richmond Hill and, indeed, all Canadians know that our government is the only one they can trust to cut taxes and put money back in their pockets. They cannot afford the Liberal and the NDP plan that would raise taxes on middle-class families, on middle-class seniors, on middle-class consumers and on small businesses.

National Day of Mourning

[Rodger Cuzner, Liberal, Cape Breton—Canso, NS]

Mr. Speaker, on behalf of the entire Liberal caucus, I wish to extend my deepest sympathies to all families who have been affected by death or injury in the workplace. Their sacrifice and that of all their families must serve as a lesson to us all.

The National Day of Mourning is held on April 28 every year to remember those who have suffered and died on the job, and to renew our efforts for safe workplaces. Today, there is pronounced sadness and, at the same time, frustration that needless injuries and deaths can continue to occur as a result of not enacting the right law or not doing a good enough job enforcing the laws that exist.

The April 28 monuments are often inscribed with the words “Fight for the Living, Mourn for the Dead”. Today is the day we honour the dead, but also a day to remind us that, as parliamentarians, we have a never-ending obligation to make workplaces safer by enacting and enforcing laws that prevent workplace injury, illness and death.

[Alexandre Boulerice, NDP, Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, today we commemorate the National Day of Mourning.

Statistics show that today, three people—fathers and mothers—will go to work and will not return home. In 2013, 902 people died on the job, thousands of others were involved in workplace accidents, and even more people developed occupational illnesses. These statistics are alarming and disturbing. Lives and families are ruined.

That is why, on this National Day of Mourning, we pay tribute to these workers and we reiterate our commitment to protecting each and every one of them. The NDP is committed to improving workplace safety and to reducing the number of accidents.

On this day of remembrance, and each and every day, we will fight to ensure that every worker has the right to safe working conditions. We will not forget them. No one should lose their life while trying to earn a living.