Madam Speaker, it is a great privilege for me to address the House today. This is a precious moment because it is my opportunity to thank the people of Laval—Les Îles for trusting me to represent them here in the House of Commons. I truly appreciate it. I will do my utmost to serve the people of Laval—Les Îles, and I will do everything in my power to meet their expectations.
As I stand in the House as a proud Canadian citizen, I shall represent with dignity and honour all of my Laval—Les Îles riding constituents.
As we begin a new mandate and enter a new era, this budget is even more important for Canada because it puts an end to the Conservative government's regressive policies, which were rejected by a majority of Canadians.
This budget and this new government are marking a new era. This budget is in keeping with the tradition of Liberal policies that have made this country one of the greatest places to live, and for good reason. I would like to highlight what I see as the most important social measure outlined in this budget. This measure will affect many of my constituents, as well as nearly all families with children in Canada.
The Canada child benefit, or CCB, is much more generous than the Conservatives' benefit. First of all, it is tax free. Furthermore, this money will go directly into the pockets of Canadians. Beginning in July, it will help nine out of 10 Canadian families improve the quality of life of hundreds of thousands of children in Canada.
The CCB will boost our economy by injecting $5.4 billion a year into it, beginning this July. The multiplier effects of this spending by Canadian households will lead to job creation and sustained economic activity month after month after month.
In practical terms, this social measure will give a single mother over $6,000 a year tax free, or over $500 a month. This social measure lives up to our Canadian tradition of sharing, as well as the excellent reputation Canada enjoyed for its social measures when I first arrived in this country.
As we know, as soon as our government came to power it cut the taxes for the middle class. In fact, the second personal income tax rate, that of the middle class, dropped from 22% to 20.5%. This measure affects almost nine million taxpayers and provides a general tax reduction. Since December 2015, this measure has resulted in a net addition of $1.4 billion a year to our Canadian economy.
These two measures alone will inject $6.8 billion into our economy by targeting a majority of Canadians with immediate measures to give them more money. The government is using a strategy that will immediately stimulate the economy, create more jobs in the short term, and improve the quality of life for low-income Canadians.
The genius of this budget lies in the short-, medium-, and long-term measures that will restructure and kick-start our economy.
The Minister of Finance is making available to Canadians $120 billion over 10 years for infrastructure projects, or nearly $15 billion for the next five years. Beginning this year, several billions of dollars will help stimulate Quebec's economy, which has slowed. The money remained in federal coffers for too long because of a lack of projects.
I plan to work with the City of Laval so that we can quickly submit infrastructure projects that the people of Laval and their mayor, Marc Demers, want.
There are three reasons why I want to act quickly. First, the Government of Canada will finance up to 50% of Laval's priorities. Second, our water and waste water systems are a priority for both the Minister of Finance and the Laval municipal administration. Third, the Government of Canada's 50% contribution will only be available for three years. That is forcing us to act quickly.
Investments in cultural, road, and public transit infrastructure are also needed in order to improve the quality of life of my constituents in Laval. I am also thinking of such projects as the subway extension to Montmorency and the extension from Côte-Vertu to Laval, which would reduce traffic congestion and the greenhouse gas emissions associated with it.
These projects mean that my colleagues from Laval and I need to show leadership so that our region gets its fair share of the infrastructure investments promised in this budget over the next few years.
The Table régionale de concertation des aînés de Laval reminded me that Laval is one of the cities with the highest proportions of people aged 65 and over. Many of these residents have asked me to be their spokesperson. They have urgent needs, including home care services, medical services, paratransit, and income support. Many of them are in a precarious position and are also calling for affordable housing.
I am pleased that this budget already meets some of their needs. The guaranteed income supplement will be increased to nearly $1,000 a year for single seniors. Old age security and the guaranteed income supplement will be indexed to consumer price inflation and the cost of living. The age of eligibility for the guaranteed income supplement will be 65, contrary to the previous Conservative government's plan to increase it to 67.
Along the same lines, my government has also already announced that it will work with the provinces to improve the Canada pension plan. I hope that I will soon have the opportunity to announce more generous pensions.
It is clear that the Liberal government will reinforce the middle class, care about our citizens, encourage job creation and investment, protect our environment, and deliver an important infrastructure program. Most important, the Liberal government is dedicated to taking care of our vulnerable citizens.
I should point out that we did not forget our veterans or CBC/Radio-Canada.
In closing, on behalf of my constituents in Laval—Les Îles, I want to thank the Minister of Finance for this first budget, which was no easy task, in this challenging global context. Against difficult odds, the budget measures will help maintain or create 43,000 jobs.
This budget inspires hope for a fairer and more prosperous future. It puts Canada back on the path to growth, and I am very proud of it.