Debates of Nov. 4th, 2016

Canada Pension Plan

[Kevin Lamoureux, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Mr. Speaker, we very much appreciate the fact that the New Democrats are supporting at least some aspects of the budget in regard to the increase to the GIS. It is also important that we acknowledge that the Liberal government is also reducing the age of retirement from 67 to 65. We have three public foundational pension programs. All three of them have been dealt with in a very positive way in the last 12 months by this government.

I wonder if the member might want to comment on how important it is that Canadians recognize there has been significant movement in this last year, more so than in the previous 10 years, on three very important social programs that Canadians truly love.

[Linda Duncan, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

Mr. Speaker, I want to congratulate the member and his party for bringing forward these changes, but I would like to see far more changes. We know we have had a lot of promises about additional changes coming forward, possibly after the next election. We welcome this change, but I ask that the Liberals please take action on the additional changes that we and that seniors have been calling for, for quite some time.

[Tom Lukiwski, Conservative, Moose Jaw—Lake Centre—Lanigan, SK]

Mr. Speaker, it might be helpful, or perhaps even instructive, if I prefaced my remarks by sharing with my colleagues the definition of a tax. A tax is defined as a “compulsory contribution to state revenue, levied by the government on workers' income and business profits, or added to the cost of some goods, services, and transactions”.

I would suggest that anyone with a reasonable outlook would know that hiking the CPP premiums is a form of taxation. It is in effect a payroll tax.

I would argue that raising taxes in times of a sluggish economy, in times of the weak economy we are experiencing here today in Canada, is absolutely the wrong thing to do. Raising taxes would have negative impacts on the Canadian economy. For example, it would restrict and reduce the ability of businesses to reinvest in their businesses. It would reduce the ability of Canadians to have more take-home pay, and it most certainly would reduce their ability to add to their savings. It would reduce the amount of of money they would be able to save.

It is simply the wrong approach to take. This payroll tax is regressive. It harms employers and employees alike. Most particularly, it is harmful to small businesses.

Let me share a small story from just a few weeks ago. I happened to be in Thunder Bay on some business. Since I had never been to Thunder Bay before, I went out for dinner to a restaurant that night with a colleague. I had a lovely dinner. Following dinner, the business owner and I engaged in a conversation. Once he found out I was a member of Parliament, he wanted to talk about the proposed hike in CPP premiums. He told me his profit margin was so skinny that any increase to the CPP premiums would result in only two things. One, he would be looking at a negative profit for the year, which might result in his closing his doors; or two, he would be forced to lay off employees. Neither of those two options was particularly attractive to this young employer. He said he had a business partner in another restaurant in Edmonton who was facing exactly the same situation.

I know it does not matter whether one is a small business owner in Surrey, British Columbia; Edmonton, Alberta; Winnipeg, Manitoba; Thunder Bay, Ontario; or Corner Brook, Newfoundland, because this is a problem for all small business owners.

The frustrating thing about this is there is no need to increase CPP premiums. The government's stated objective is to allow Canadians in their retirement years to retire more comfortably. However, the statistics do not indicate there is a problem today. Statistics indicate that fewer than 4% of seniors are living on a lower income, or below the poverty line. That is a great change from many decades ago. In fact, in 1970, 29% of seniors were living below the poverty line, so we have made great strides in the decades since 1970.

Additionally, statistics indicate that Canadians are saving more money today. In 1990, Canadians saved slightly more than 7.5% of their income. Today, it is almost twice that. Canadians are saving over 14% of their take-home pay, or at least their gross income, and putting it into savings vehicles like RRSPs, TFSAs, and the like.

We are making progress on that, so for the government to say it is doing this out of necessity is, frankly, disingenuous at the very least.

The government appears to be trying to create a solution for a problem that does not exist. The irony of all of this is that because of the government's reckless, out of control spending, the reality is that the government is creating a problem for which there is no solution, because of the billions of dollars of debt it is incurring and throwing upon the backs of taxpayers. It has no solution for getting out of debt. There is no plan to get back to balance.

It appears that the government's economic plan, if we want to call it that, is following very closely the path of the previous Ontario governments of McGuinty and, currently, Premier Wynne. That disastrous economic plan has resulted in the Province of Ontario, on a per capita basis, being more indebted than any jurisdiction in the world. What is even more frightening is the fact that two of the main architects of the disastrous economic policy of Ontario were Gerald Butts and Katie Telford, who are now two of the main economic advisers to the Prime Minister. I would hate to see these two do to Canada what they have done to Ontario, but that is certainly what appears to be happening.

However, I think there are alternatives to what the government is planning and proposing with Bill C-26. I have always thought it is instructive and helpful if opposition members, rather than just criticizing the government, offer alternatives or things the government could at least consider to replace flawed legislation—and Bill C-26 truly is flawed. My suggestions to the government would not cost the taxpayer a nickel.

The first suggestion I would make is this. Why does the government not work with its provincial and territorial counterparts and encourage them to add financial literacy to the K-to-12 educational curriculum? I think it would be extremely helpful for young people to learn why they need to save for retirement. It would helpful for them to learn how to save for retirement, to learn about the investment and savings vehicles that are available in Canada today, so that when they finally enter the workforce, they have a plan, or at least have charted out a course of action, to be able to work their lives and then retire with dignity. That no-cost item would, I believe, be extremely helpful.

The second thing is again a very simple concept. Of course, I believe it is totally alien to the government's thinking, but it would not cost the taxpayers a nickel, and it is simply to lower taxes. Do not raise taxes, but lower taxes. Allow Canadians to take more money home with them. Put more money in their jeans. Put more money into savings vehicles. At the same time, lowering taxes would stimulate the economy.

Our previous government had a low-tax, high-productivity agenda. It resulted in having the lowest tax regime in 50 years. What was the result? Well, we created 1.3 million net new jobs from the height of the recession until the day we left office. Why? It is because lowering taxes increases productivity. That is a concept the current government is totally unaware of. Bill C-26 is totally opposed to lowering taxes, because this bill would raise taxes.

For those reasons, and some of the others I articulated in the few moments I had for my address, my colleagues and I in Her Majesty’s loyal opposition will be vociferously opposing Bill C-26.

[Ken Hardie, Liberal, Fleetwood—Port Kells, BC]

Mr. Speaker, what we have heard is a message from the darkest heart of the Conservative core.

We have had a situation in the last 10 years in which 85 families in this country have had more wealth than 20 million Canadians. Those are the people who, yes, have been able to save. Their savings rate has gone up and, yes, it pulls up the national average. However, we have also had 10 years where we have relied on average Canadian citizens going further and further into debt to bolster the Canadian economy. Therefore, there is no money for fancy TFSAs, except at the top of the elite 1% of 1%.

The previous member did not respond to my question, and so I ask again, what about the 60% of Canadians in the private sector who, even though they have a job, do not have a company pension plan? What do we do for them?

[Tom Lukiwski, Conservative, Moose Jaw—Lake Centre—Lanigan, SK]

Mr. Speaker, outside of the fact there were a great many factual inaccuracies in my colleague's presentation and question, I will deal with the last part of his question first.

While it is true that many Canadians do not have a Canadian pension plan, the fact of the matter is that they should be in a position where they have made their own retirement plans and own retirement and savings decisions. As I pointed out during my presentation, fewer than than 4% of Canadians are living on a low-income, and more and more Canadians are saving more and more of their money on a daily, monthly, and yearly basis.

For the member to suggest for one second that it is a required course of action for the government to raise taxes, for the government to impose its will on Canadians on how they should be saving, is absolutely ludicrous.

[The Assistant Deputy Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

The hon. member for Moose Jaw—Lake Centre—Lanigan will have three minutes and 15 seconds for questions when we come back from question period.

Hydroelectricity

[Mario Beaulieu, Bloc, La Pointe-de-l'Île, QC]

Mr. Speaker, we know things are pretty bad when an ultra-federalist Liberal Party of Quebec minister like Jean-Marc Fournier says that Ottawa's announcement of a $3-billion loan guarantee for the Newfoundland and Labrador hydro project is inexplicable and unacceptable. That is what the Bloc Québécois has been saying for weeks.

We were hoping to prevent Quebeckers' money from being used against Quebec's economic interests yet again. Well, now it is official. Ottawa is setting up unfair competition against Hydro-Québec. As usual, federalist MPs from Quebec, be they Conservative, NDP, or Liberal, are putting Canada first.

Here in the House, 68 federalist MPs from Quebec are scuttling Quebec's national and economic interests and betraying the will of Quebeckers.

Federalism is costing us more and more—

[The Assistant Deputy Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

The hon. member for Scarborough Centre.

Project Toronto Welcomes

[Salma Zahid, Liberal, Scarborough Centre, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to recognize an amazing group of people that is making a difference in my riding of Scarborough Centre.

The more than 30 members of Project Toronto Welcomes came together through Facebook out of a desire to do something concrete and practical to help ease the humanitarian crisis in Syria. The group has raised over $100,000 to support a large Syrian family and has been busy with dinners, comedy shows, and good old-fashioned bake sales.

I recently had a chance to join Project Toronto Welcomes at a very successful fundraising concert, headlined by a great Canadian artist, Jim Cuddy.

There are groups like Project Toronto Welcomes across Canada that are making a difference. I ask the House to join me in saluting all these amazing volunteers who make us proud to be Canadians.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship

[Shannon Stubbs, Conservative, Lakeland, AB]

Mr. Speaker, if the minister does not care about killing jobs in town by closing the Vegreville immigration centre, maybe he will care about the social impact. Seventy-six per cent of CPC Vegreville employees are women. Therefore, he is ripping the mothers, daughters, babas, the volunteers, and the leaders out of town. Everyone will be hurt by this edict.

CPC Vegreville employees raise money every year during the Government of Canada workplace charitable campaign. This year, they raised over $12,000 in one month. These donations went to the Vegreville food bank; Vegreville breakfast club; and Vegreville KidSport, which helps disadvantaged kids join teams in town. Funds also went to VALID Association, which helps people with disabilities find work and housing and live in dignity. It has partnered with CPC Vegreville for many years. This bond is a model for all of Canada. On top of this, employees have raised over $300,000 for United Way since 1994.

Charities and local groups will suffer. This edict will hurt the most vulnerable. The minister should reverse it immediately.

Jacques Viger, John Dubeau and Roméo Rock

[David Graham, Liberal, Laurentides—Labelle, QC]

Mr. Speaker, Remembrance Day is next week.

I rise to pay tribute to three veterans from my region who passed away in 2016. These inspiring Canadians fought for our country and to defend the values we uphold.

I wish to salute the memory of Jacques Viger of Nominingue, who passed away on October 17 at the age of 93. In 1944, Mr. Viger was 19 years old and a soldier with the Royal 22nd Regiment when he suffered serious injuries to both legs in Italy.

I want to pay homage to John Dubeau of Arundel, who fought across western Europe in the Second World War. He was decorated by both Canada and France. Always a personality, he left us on August 17, at the ripe young age of 101.

I also salute the memory of Roméo Rock of Saint-Faustin—Lac-Carré, who passed away on July 23 at the age of 89. He gave two years of his life to military service in 1944 and 1945.

I want to pay homage to all veterans from the Laurentian region and across the country. Lest we forget.

Saint-Hyacinthe—Bagot

[Brigitte Sansoucy, NDP, Saint-Hyacinthe—Bagot, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I am so proud to represent a riding that is home to dynamic small and medium-sized businesses that are constantly innovating.

According to the Canadian Federation of Independent Business’s ranking of Canada's top entrepreneurial cities, Saint-Hyacinthe is the sixth best city in Quebec to start up and develop a business, and the 20th in Canada.

Success like that is not achieved single-handedly; rather, it is thanks to partnerships among the chambers of commerce and economic development of two RCMs, namely Maskoutains and Acton, as well as the Saint-Hyacinthe Technopole and the Société d'aide au développement de la collectivité d'Acton. Businesses in my riding are widely recognized for their success.

In the agrifood sector, we have businesses like Barry Callebaut, Brookside, Liberté, Exceldor, Baxters, Saputo, Agropur, Jefo, and Lassonde, to name a few. In furniture manufacturing, we have Dutailier Group and Groupe Lacasse in Saint-Pie, while Acton is home to businesses like Beaulieu, Airboss, Roski Composites, and Burnbrae Farms.

I am very proud of them all.

Infrastructure

[William Amos, Liberal, Pontiac, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I will begin by congratulating my colleague, the Minister of Finance, on his announcement of $2 billion over the next 10 years for rural communities across Canada.

This $2 billion in infrastructure funding demonstrates how our government is committed to a promising future for Canada's small towns and villages. It is an investment that builds on the $500 million that budget 2016 allocated over five years for rural high-speed Internet access. Our government is listening to folks who live outside the urban setting, and we are supporting sustainable rural development across Canada.

However, after one year in office, this government's work is far from done. Along with my colleagues, I am working to overcome the previous Conservative government's legacy of de-funding and shutting down the rural secretariat in 2013. There must be an institutional mechanism within the Government of Canada to ensure that all federal departments take into consideration rural realities, to coordinate across departments, to invest in small local businesses, and to create a dialogue with stakeholders in the smallest of Canadian towns.

I am confident our government will deliver a vision of rural-urban complementarity where the resources of—

[The Assistant Deputy Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

The hon. member for Edmonton Griesbach.

Veterans

[Kerry Diotte, Conservative, Edmonton Griesbach, AB]

Mr. Speaker, before I was elected as a member of Parliament, I was a journalist for 30 years. One of my most rewarding assignments involved commemorating the 50th anniversary of D-Day. I accompanied hundreds of Canadian and American D-Day vets aboard the QE2 to revisit the beaches of Normandy.

On that trip, I made friends with a veteran named Paul Lefaivre of Edmonton. He was just 20 years old when he answered the call of duty and landed on Gold Beach. He was just a kid, who answered the call to serve his country.

Paul taught me a lot on that trip. He taught me about bravery, about love of country, and about duty. I am inspired by his generation and how they responded when duty called.

I kept in touch with Paul. He is 93 years old now. Just this week, he told me his strong religious faith gets him through the day.

Remembrance Day is just around the corner. Today, I would ask members of this House to salute Paul and all the veterans who have served the greatest country in the world, Canada.

International Trade

[Jean Rioux, Liberal, Saint-Jean, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to acknowledge the excellent work done over the past few months that culminated in the signing of a comprehensive economic and trade agreement that will protect the environment and workers, while creating bright future prospects for the middle class.

Thanks to this progressive agreement, Canada will have access to a market of more than 500 million consumers in the European Union. Many businesses in the riding of Saint-Jean will benefit from this historic treaty. Gaining preferential access to this market will translate into creating good jobs for Canadians.

The dynamic negotiations and the work done by the Minister of International Trade mobilized the European Union, federal and provincial politicians, as well as civil society. These considerable efforts brought together the necessary forces to make Canada a key trading partner with Europe.

I hope that these final steps will lead to the implementation of an agreement that benefits all Canadians.

Hindu Encyclopedia

[Terry Duguid, Liberal, Winnipeg South, MB]

Mr. Speaker, I wish to rise today and recognize a constituent of mine, Dr. Madhav Sinha, who recently helped complete a one-of-a-kind literary masterpiece, the Hindu encyclopedia.

This 17,000 page, 11 volume collection, is a first of its kind in English, taking over 20 years and more than a thousand scholars to complete. It explores Hinduism's religious, philosophical, and cultural ideas, as well as its place in Indian history and the history of South Asian peoples across the world.

Dr. Sinha was in charge of quality, ensuring the authenticity and accuracy of the encyclopedia's references. To ensure this vast work reaches all audiences, there are plans to translate it into Hindi and make it available online.

I wish my heartfelt congratulations to Dr. Sinha on this wonderful achievement.

Bahut Bahut Dhanyavaad, Dr. Madhav Sinha.

Remembrance Day

[Rachael Thomas, Conservative, Lethbridge, AB]

Mr. Speaker, as Remembrance Day draws near, I would like to congratulate the Royal Canadian Legion General Stewart Branch #4 in Lethbridge on its 90th anniversary. This impressive legacy of service is certainly something worth celebrating.

I would like to thank the legion for providing support to our veterans and for promoting the importance of honouring those who fought and those who continue to fight for the sake of our great country.

On this Remembrance Day, I would also like to thank and honour the veterans of Lethbridge. I thank them for their dedication and service. I thank them for their selfless act of service on behalf of their neighbours. I thank them for enduring hardship and risk so we might live in peace. I am grateful for their courage, and we honour the sacrifices they have made.

Lest we forget.

[Deb Schulte, Liberal, King—Vaughan, ON]

Mr. Speaker, today I rise to recognize veterans who served and fought for freedom around the world.

Remembrance Day marks the anniversary of the Armistice in Europe, which ended the First World War in 1918. The First World War was to be the war to end all wars, and as history has shown, peace has not yet been realized.

I am honoured to attend Remembrance Day services in my riding in Kettleby, hosted by the Kettleby Cemetery, and at the Schomberg Cenotaph, hosted by the Schomberg Lions and the Schomberg Agricultural Society.

In honour of their sacrifices, we must continue to work toward a more peaceful world.

We made a vow to always remember. Lest we forget.

Ability First

[Kate Young, Liberal, London West, ON]

Mr. Speaker, it gives me great pleasure to stand in this place today to tell members about an organization that is near and dear to my heart in my home town of London, Ontario.

Ability First is an organization that brings together businesses to share best practices and experiences related to hiring and retaining persons with disabilities.

I was on the founding board of Ability First 10 years ago, and yesterday it held its annual award breakfast. I am once again humbled by the incredible work businesses in London are doing by hiring for Ability First.

Many employers now realize it is good business to hire someone with a disability. We know that when we hire a person with a disability, we are taking on a devoted individual who will work tirelessly.

This year, three London businesses were honoured: Pets 4 Life, Valu-mart on Oxford Street, and Spectra Venue Management Budweiser Gardens. All of these employers are fine examples of how hiring for Ability First can make all the difference, not only to a person with disabilities but to the general workforce as well.

Veterans

[John Brassard, Conservative, Barrie—Innisfil, ON]

Mr. Speaker, over the next week, millions of Canadians will gather at cenotaphs and memorial squares from St. John's to Victoria. They will gather in silence and while many will cry, all will be thankful.

There are, however, a great many of our veterans who will suffer in silence next week, as they do every day, haunted by what they had to deal with in the service of their country. They need not be silent, and my message today to veterans is that there is help if they seek it and it is okay to ask for help.

As a country, we have come a long way to end the stigma and barriers related to mental health and suicide. Canadians are good with the fact that we are having a national conversation about this, and it is okay to talk about it as individuals.

Canada owes our veterans, and we must do much more to help our veterans and their families, suffering from the effects of occupational stress injuries, PTSD, mental health issues, suicide, and homelessness.

Remembrance Day

[Leona Alleslev, Liberal, Aurora—Oak Ridges—Richmond Hill, ON]

Mr. Speaker, today we honour our veterans for their courage, service and sacrifice, men and women in uniform who have answered the call and stood their ground to defend our democracy.

We must remember our veterans who have given their lives in times of war and also those who have served our country in times of peace.

We, as Canadians, are people of peace. Internationally, Canada stands as beacon of democracy. It is because of our veterans that Canada remains this way. For their service, their sacrifice, for our freedom, we thank them.

On November 11, I encourage all hon. members and Canadians to take a moment to remember, to share a family story, to shake a veteran's hand, to observe the clock striking 11 o'clock. Understand that our peace is not without sacrifice. Lest we forget.

Incubator Seed Farm

[Alistair MacGregor, NDP, Cowichan—Malahat—Langford, BC]

Mr. Speaker, last month, I had the pleasure of visiting the first of its kind in Canada, incubator seed farm. Located in the beautiful Cowichan Valley, this farm will focus specifically on training new seed farmers.

A secure, diverse, and regionally adapted seed supply is essential to a community's food security. The Cowichan incubator seed farm will host aspiring farmers who will undergo a year of education and training in the basics of organic farming and seed production. The result will be skilled seed producers ready to contribute to our local seed capacity.

This project will cover all aspects of farming, from local food production, processing and distribution to business planning, marketing and sales.

I would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge the hard work of the staff and board of the Cowichan Green Community who brought this important project to life.

Remembrance Day

[Pierre Paul-Hus, Conservative, Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles, QC]

Mr. Speaker, as a former commanding officer of the Régiment de la Chaudière, I got to spend some time with the heros who sacrificed everything to spend years training in order to be ready to join the invasion of Europe on the beaches of Normandy.

These heroes did not see themselves as such. To them, the real heroes were the fallen comrades in Flanders fields. Hundreds of thousands of Canadians from across the country and from all backgrounds, answered the call to defend liberty against oppression.

Those who served under the flag, those who worked in the arms industry to support the war effort, and the country as a whole were united in this fight. When the times called for it, an entire generation sacrificed everything.

As Canadians, we have a duty to remember these heroes. Lest we forget.

The Liberal Government of Canada

[Sherry Romanado, Liberal, Longueuil—Charles-LeMoyne, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in the House to mark the first anniversary of our government. As the member for Longueuil—Charles-LeMoyne, I would like to congratulate our Prime Minister and all my colleagues in the House for their excellent work.

In the last election, Canadians opted for real change, which is now under way as a result of a new relationship with First Nations, and the Canada child benefit, which helps those families most in need. In my riding, there are 10,000 families receiving this benefit.

There will be support for students and seniors, and historic investments in infrastructure in Canada's transportation network. I am proud of this government's accomplishments over the past year, but there is more to be done. I look forward to working with all members to continue implementing the real change that Canadians voted for.