Mr. Speaker, I would like to congratulate the Minister of Finance on his appointment. We have talked on a few occasions, and I am looking forward to working with him over the next few years.
I would like to begin with some comments on the much-touted middle-class tax cut. That is what the government is calling it. There are various ways to define the middle class. One way is based on median income, which divides Canadians into two equal groups, half earning income above that amount and half below. In Canada, the median income is about $31,000. If we were to expand that definition and include everyone who is not part of the poorest 20% or the wealthiest 20%, the range would be from $20,000 to about $60,000 per year.
The Liberals' proposed tax cut, the so-called middle-class tax cut, excludes virtually all incomes under $89,000. An individual earning between $43,000 and $57,000 would get only about $26 on average. Basically, this tax cut takes money away from the richest 1% and gives it back, more or less, to the richest 20%, leaving most of the 80% who earn less out in the cold.
My question is simple. What is the Liberal government's definition of the middle class?