Debates of Oct. 16th, 2017

Taxation

[Alain Rayes, Conservative, Richmond—Arthabaska, QC]

Mr. Speaker, two million Canadians work in retail. They include youth, seniors, and students who work hard every day. Right now, these workers are getting mixed messages from Revenue Canada and the minister herself. We are still looking for answers. Does the government think that by taxing employee discounts, it has found a new way to extract even more cash from the pockets of ordinary Canadians?

[Diane Lebouthillier, Liberal, Minister of National Revenue]

Mr. Speaker, as I just said, the document in question did not reflect our government's intentions at all. It has been removed and is now being revised. I have instructed officials to clarify the wording of the document. Our government cares about the middle class and is taking concrete steps to help middle-class Canadians. We stopped the cheques the Conservatives were sending to the wealthiest families, and we replaced them with the Canada child benefit, which puts more money in the pockets of nine out of ten families. We have lifted more than 300,000 children—

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

The hon. member for Richmond—Arthabaska.

[Alain Rayes, Conservative, Richmond—Arthabaska, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the minister said she was never informed or consulted on the CRA's decision to tax employee discounts.

Does she know what is going on in her own department?

If so, can she tell us where the directive came from and how Canadians can trust this Liberal government, which sees middle-class workers as part of the wealthiest 1% in Canada?

[Diane Lebouthillier, Liberal, Minister of National Revenue]

Mr. Speaker, since day one, we have been focusing on helping the middle class and those wanting to join it. The document in question did not at all reflect our government's intentions. It has been removed and is being reviewed. We will continue to ensure that our actions support the middle class, and as I have said and as the Prime Minister stated, we will not be going after retail employee discounts.

Ethics

[Guy Caron, NDP, Parliamentary Leader]

Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Finance must not have had a pleasant week in his riding. First he was accused of not disclosing a private company and now we have learned that his business interests were never placed in a blind trust. Instead of taking responsibility, the Minister of Finance told us that the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner did not tell him that he was required to do so. The Liberals do not appear to be interested in following their own code of ethics.

Why are the Liberals not interested in using common sense?

[François-Philippe Champagne, Liberal, Minister of International Trade]

Mr. Speaker, common sense tells us that today is a great day for Canadians and small business owners.

In August 2015, we made an election promise that I am going to quote. “...we [will] reduce the small business tax rate to 9% from 11%....” Today we kept the promise we made. We are proud that we have kept our promise to reduce the business tax rate from 11% to 9%.

We really listened to Canadians, and the caucus, in order to make our tax system fairer for all Canadians.

[Guy Caron, NDP, Parliamentary Leader]

Mr. Speaker, if he does not want to answer my question, maybe he will come see me after question period. I might have a French villa to sell him.

The Liberals promised to set a new standard in ethics, yet they continue to miss the mark. Shortly after his appointment, the Minister of Finance admitted that he should place his interests in a blind trust, but he chose not to do so. I wonder why he did not think this necessary?

In what universe does the Minister of Finance think he can continue to run his affairs—

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

The hon. Minister of International Trade.

[François-Philippe Champagne, Liberal, Minister of International Trade]

Mr. Speaker, I can assure the House that our Minister of Finance is in the universe that works hard for Canadians. The minister has worked with the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner to make sure that all conflict of interest laws are followed.

The appropriate steps have been taken to ensure full compliance with the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner's recommendations. This is what Canadians want to hear. On this side of the House, we work on behalf of Canadians.

Taxation

[Nathan Cullen, NDP, Skeena—Bulkley Valley, BC]

Mr. Speaker, one of the great mysteries of political life in Canada is exactly how to get a Liberal to keep a Liberal promise. Well, now we have the answer.

When Liberals have totally screwed up a small business tax plan, when they have attacked small businesses while ignoring their wealthy friends, when they are backed so deep into a corner they have nowhere else to go, then and only then will Liberals honour their commitments to Canadians.

Why is keeping a promise the Liberal version of damage control?

[François-Philippe Champagne, Liberal, Minister of International Trade]

Mr. Speaker, as we know, it is a great day for small business owners in Canada.

In August 2015, we promised in our platform, and let me quote it because these members may want to hear the answer: “reduce the small business tax rate to 9 percent from 11 percent”.

We said we should be doing that, and we now are doing what we promised. Our government is proud to fulfill our commitment to lowering taxes on small business from 11% in 2015 to 9% in 2019. We have truly listened to Canadians and our caucus to ensure a fairer tax system that will benefit all Canadians.

Ethics

[Nathan Cullen, NDP, Skeena—Bulkley Valley, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the finance minister seems so very forgetful these days. He forgot that cutting small business taxes was a promise that he ran on. He forgot he owned a luxury villa in France, but, hey, what middle-class Canadian has not? He also forgot to tell us that his vast wealth was not in fact in a blind trust, and he only comes clean when he is in a world of trouble.

Why does this forgetful finance minister never remember his promises to Canadians but always remembers ways to protect his own wealth?

[François-Philippe Champagne, Liberal, Minister of International Trade]

Mr. Speaker, it is indeed a good day for Canadians. Canadians know that when we make a promise to Canadians, we fulfill this promise.

Let me answer the member's question. The minister has worked with the Ethics Commissioner to ensure that all conflict of interest rules are indeed followed. Appropriate measures and screens have been put in place in order to fully comply with the recommendations provided by the Ethics Commissioner. These members would better listen to Canadians.

[Peter Kent, Conservative, Thornhill, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the finance minister's apparent wilful disregard of the Conflict of Interest Act raises some serious questions. Did the minister intentionally mislead the Ethics Commissioner about the nature of his private interests in France? Why did he withhold details of his private corporation in France? Why does this extremely wealthy minister believe he is above conflict of interest and ethics reporting rules?

[Joël Lightbound, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, I want to reassure the member that the Minister of Finance has always worked with the Ethics Commissioner to make sure that all rules are followed and will continue to do so, but if they want to play politics while we work for Canadians, it is their business.

I am very proud to work with a finance minister who has achieved more growth in two years than they ever could, and who has done it at the same time as reducing child poverty by 40%, helping 900,000 seniors, and reducing taxes for nine million Canadians. I am proud to work with him.

[Peter Kent, Conservative, Thornhill, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the government is guilty of any number of lapses of judgment, but the finance minister's violation of the straightforward requirements of the Ethics Commissioner's disclosure declaration for all members of cabinet raises serious questions, not only of ethics, conflict of interest, and credibility, but of the confidence that Canadians have lost in the government.

When will the minister come clean with the Ethics Commissioner and Canadians?

[Joël Lightbound, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, I want to reassure my colleague that the Minister of Finance has always worked closely with the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner. He will continue to do so to ensure that he is in compliance with the law and with the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner's directives.

The member is trying to ignore all of the good things we are doing for small business owners by fulfilling a commitment we made in the 2015 campaign and by lowering the small business tax rate to 9%. We support our small business owners and our small businesses, and we will always support them. We know just how important they are to Canada's economy.

[Gérard Deltell, Conservative, Louis-Saint-Laurent, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the parliamentary secretary seems to forget that in its first budget, his own government abolished the tax cuts that our government had proposed. That is the reality of this government.

The CBC's reports last week were extremely troubling to Canadians. For two years, the Minister of Finance hid the fact that he owned a corporation from the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner. This corporation owns a villa in Provence, France. I remind members that this is the same Minister of Finance who is going after business owners to take more of their money—

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

The hon. parliamentary secretary.

[Joël Lightbound, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, as I said, the Minister of Finance has always worked closely with the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner and will continue to do so to ensure compliance with all of the commissioner's recommendations.

The member is forgetting what we have always said and what we said in August 2015. I am very proud that we are lowering the small business tax rate, but we have always said that it must be done in the context of revamping our tax system to make it fairer. I am also very proud that we are doing this after having listened to Canadians from coast to coast.

[Gérard Deltell, Conservative, Louis-Saint-Laurent, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the parliamentary secretary claims that the Minister of Finance is working hand in hand with the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner, but that he just forgot to mention that he owns a company and a villa in France. A minor oversight, to be sure. He and the commissioner may indeed work well together, but he is forgetting to mention the important stuff.

Will the Minister of Finance promise not to hide anything else from the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner?

[Joël Lightbound, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, I can reassure the opposition member that the minister will always work with the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner to ensure compliance with all of the rules. All appropriate measures will be put in place.

[Candice Bergen, Conservative, Portage—Lisgar, MB]

Mr. Speaker, this cannot be sugar-coated. According to the law, the Minister of Finance had 60 days to disclose his assets to the Ethics Commissioner. He did not do it. It is that plain. It is that simple. Has the finance minister become so arrogant and so entitled that he actually thinks he is above the law?

[Joël Lightbound, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, I want to reiterate that the minister has worked with the Ethics Commissioner to make sure that all conflict of interest rules are followed and that appropriate measures and screens have been put in place in order to fully comply with the recommendations provided by the Ethics Commissioner. I am very proud to be working with this minister, who today announced that we are lowering the tax rate for small businesses from 10.5% to 9%. We stand behind small businesses in this small business week, and we have always done so.