House of Commons Hansard #216 of the 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was shepell.

Topics

Opposition Motion—Minister of Finance's documents submitted to the Conflict of Interest and Ethics CommissionerBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

11:35 a.m.

NDP

Karine Trudel NDP Jonquière, QC

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague, whose work I admire very much and whose valuable contributions to these discussions I appreciate. We have the evidence, the facts, right here in the House. The question is why. Individuals who become MPs or even the Minister of Finance know that changes will be made to the tax system. The Minister of Finance has the power to give to and the power to take away from Canadians and must therefore adhere to a strict code of ethics. When information about assets in the Bahamas is brought to light here in the House, I need to know more. This is about tax evasion. Why is the government not digging deeper? Could it be to protect those very assets?

Opposition Motion—Minister of Finance's documents submitted to the Conflict of Interest and Ethics CommissionerBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

11:35 a.m.

Conservative

Gérard Deltell Conservative Louis-Saint-Laurent, QC

Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to participate in this debate today. It will give the government an opportunity to rebuild its image and credibility in public finance. We are simply asking the government to have the Minister of Finance release the documents related to his personal possessions that may have a direct impact on the management of his department, the Department of Finance.

I will not be alone in saying this, since I will shortly be sharing my time with my colleague, the hon. member for Langley—Aldergrove.

From the outset, I would like to say how much I respect and admire the Minister of Finance as a person. I respect him because, when a man of this calibre becomes involved in politics, the entire political class wins. I am pleased to reiterate that we must have very high standards, especially the Minister of Finance, because his department is key to the Canadian economy.

However, when the Minister of Finance is the owner of a $1-billion publicly traded family business that is directly impacted by each of the decisions made by the Minister of Finance, of course he has to be purer than the driven snow.

Unfortunately, over the past few weeks, the opposite has been happening. I do not remember, but there must have been a former finance minister whose authority has been so scratched and bruised, even by the Prime Minister. I will come back to that later.

Three weeks ago, in this very House, the member for Carleton tabled a document showing that the Minister of Finance's company, Morneau Shepell, has a subsidiary located in Barbados, a known tax haven for investors. That, in itself, is a major problem, which is why we would like the Minister of Finance to shed some light on this.

To make matters worse, it would seem that the Minister of Finance has forgotten, for two years, to disclose the fact that his company owned another company that in turn owned a villa in Provence. Everybody owns property, and I perfectly understand that someone with pots of money may own lots of properties all over the place. However, to have forgotten about owning a villa in Provence is a little suspicious, to say the least.

I should say, though, that perhaps it was at his villa in Provence that the Minister of Finance learned to speak such excellent French. I am not being sarcastic. I sincerely commend the minister on his proficiency in French.

In addition, we learned from CBC that it was only because it hounded the Minister of Finance that he finally admitted that he had forgotten to mention his villa. We also learned from The Globe and Mail, and this goes to the heart of today's debate, that although the Minister of Finance is an owner and shareholder of a company worth tens of millions of dollars, his properties and assets have not been put in a blind trust.

This is unfortunate, because it would have set the record straight and, more importantly, allowed the minister to act with his hands untied. It is not a failure to succeed in business, nor is it a failure to make a father's inheritance grow, as the minister did. Above all, it is not a failure to want to get involved in politics after having succeeded in business, quite the contrary. Still, there are ethical rules that we must follow at all times—exceed, even.

That is what we are asking of the Minister of Finance today through our motion. In fact, we are asking that he table all the documents so that we know the truth about this.

As I mentioned, three factors are tarnishing the moral authority of the Minister of Finance: the matter of his business in Barbados, a tax shelter and haven; the fact that he forgot to disclose that he owns a villa in Provence; and finally, the fact that he did not put his assets into a blind trust, which would have been the simplest and most effective solution.

That is nothing compared to the direct attack that the Minister of Finance launched against small business owners in recent months. Let us remember that, on July 18, in the middle of the summer, when it was nice and warm and half of Canada was on vacation, he started a consultation, barely 75 days long, to review the small business tax rate.

When a consultation of that kind is launched in the middle of summer, it is either because the government's mind is made up, or because it has no desire to hear from Canadians. Fortunately, Canadians from across the country rose up to tell the Liberals that they were making no sense. Fortunately, here in the House of Commons, the official opposition has been asking the government every conceivable question, and some that are inconceivable, in order to tell it that it is making no sense.

Let us remember that more than 110 of the 120 questions that the official opposition was able to ask in the first week were on this issue. We have taken the matter seriously because the direct attack made no sense. The Liberals wanted to raise taxes for small businesses that want to sell to the next generation. That is complete nonsense. The current government wanted to raise taxes for entrepreneurs who are putting money aside. In the private sector, business owners put money aside to use in the bad years, to pay bonuses, to invest in equipment, and even to use as a pension fund. The government wanted to collect more taxes from them, and I am not even talking about income splitting.

We are talking three senseless direct attacks against our entrepreneurs. The minister did not have much time to answer questions yesterday because the Prime Minister did not want him to, but he did announce something that he seemed to think was the best thing since sliced bread. He was very proud to confirm that the government would be lowering taxes on entrepreneurs, on small businesses, to 9%. How wonderful.

Hang on. Does anyone here remember the Liberals making that promise and breaking it? Now they are following through. Why did they break that promise? In the 2015 budget, our government made a law stating that the tax rate, which was 11% at the time, would have to drop to 9%. What was the first thing the current government did in its 2016 budget with respect to small businesses? It scrapped that obligation to lower the rate to 9%, even though it promised to do so. That is terrible. The government made a promise, broke it, and then brought it back to the table as though it were reinventing the wheel. Canadians are not fools. They knew it made no sense.

Need I remind members of the sad fact that, when the government launched its full frontal attack on small businesses, the Prime Minister's two personal companies were miraculously unaffected by the changes the Liberal government wanted to impose? It is unbelievable. In addition, the Minister of Finance made it so that small businesses would have to pay more tax, while conveniently avoiding any impact to his family business. This is totally unacceptable and is what creates cynicism in politics.

Need I also remind members that the current government was elected on a promise of running small deficits, deficits that are now 80% higher than what was promised. We were also promised a return to balance by 2019, but now, we do not even know when the government will balance the books, which is totally unacceptable. This spendthrift government has completely lost control of the public purse and has no idea how to manage it properly, and it needs to be called out.

In closing, it is important that the Minister of Finance have the necessary authority to carry out his duties, as he is the architect of Canada's economic base and is the most important minister. I do not want to take anything away from anyone, but he is the most important minister in cabinet. That is why, under the leadership of the Right Honourable Stephen Harper, the then finance minister Jim Flaherty worked hand in hand with the Prime Minister. The same was true of the Honourable Joe Oliver.

The current Prime Minister publicly scorns his own Minister of Finance. As far as I can remember, I have never seen a Prime Minister so arrogant, smug and scornful of his Minister of Finance. Yesterday, in the middle of a question period with journalists in Ontario, the Prime Minister said the following:

Ask the question to the Prime Minister, you have the chance to have the Prime Minister in front of you, ask the question to the Prime Minister.

I have never heard that. Where is God?

It is absolutely incredible. At the risk of wading into partisan politics a bit here, even during the worst years of Prime Minister Jean Chrétien and his finance minister Paul Martin, two people who hated each other, never would Jean Chrétien have scorned his finance minister in that way. We are talking about the authority of the finance minister. We are in Canada. Canada is a strong and proud country that has to be led by a strong Prime Minister and a strong finance minister. When the Prime Minister undercuts the finance minister's authority, he undercuts the authority of Canada as a whole.

Opposition Motion—Minister of Finance's documents submitted to the Conflict of Interest and Ethics CommissionerBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

11:45 a.m.

Liberal

The Assistant Deputy Speaker Liberal Anthony Rota

Before moving on to questions and comments, I would remind the hon. member that traditionally in the House we try to have integrity and show respect for all members. When we are talking about other members, the Prime Minister, the leader of the opposition, we have to be sure not to use offensive language. If everyone can show that level of respect for themselves, then I think that will go a long way to improving the debate.

Questions and comments. The hon. member for Vancouver Kingsway.

Opposition Motion—Minister of Finance's documents submitted to the Conflict of Interest and Ethics CommissionerBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

11:50 a.m.

NDP

Don Davies NDP Vancouver Kingsway, BC

Mr. Speaker, during the last election, many Canadians voted for a new way of doing things. We have to remember that. Although this motion comes from the official opposition, the Conservative Party, the last four years of its administration were not exactly unmarred by ethical issues. There were many examples of Conservative senators who did not seem to know where they lived and claimed per diems in this city when they lived here, and to whom $90,000 was paid by operatives in the Prime Minister's Office, and there were attempts to suppress reports.

When I campaigned during the last election, I heard a very clear message from Canadians that they wanted a strong recommitment to ethics in their government. The Liberal finance minister said that he would put his considerable assets in a blind trust, and two years later we find out that he did not. He forgot to list a numbered company that owns his villa in France, even though he is obligated to report all of his assets, including numbered companies. We found out he has assets parked offshore in noted tax havens like Barbados. Finally, we found out that he has been sitting at the cabinet table making decisions every single day for the last two years when he knows what his assets are and is making decisions on issues that would affect the value of those assets. At the same time, I have heard Liberals ask what the problem is. They do not seem to understand that there are clear conflicts of interest. Frankly, there are real conflicts of interest, not just apparent conflicts of interest, and serious ethical breaches.

What is my hon. colleague's comment on the Liberals saying today that there is really nothing to see here, that Canadians should not be concerned about the Liberal finance minister, but we should, instead, be talking about other issues like the economy?

Opposition Motion—Minister of Finance's documents submitted to the Conflict of Interest and Ethics CommissionerBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

11:50 a.m.

Conservative

Gérard Deltell Conservative Louis-Saint-Laurent, QC

Mr. Speaker, my colleague made some comments about the last four years the Conservatives were in office. Yes, people judged us. That is why Quebec NDP members in the House of Commons went from 50-plus members to 16 and the Conservatives went from five to 12. That was the result in the last election and it will be interesting two years from now to see how the NDP do in Quebec.

I see my Liberal colleagues laughing. Just be quiet, I will get back to you guys.

The finance minister is a very important person in cabinet and an even more important person in Canada. We need a strong finance minister. I respect the fact that the involvement of this millionaire finance minister in politics is a plus for everyone When someone of his level joins the political fight, it is great for all of us, but there needs to be a clear mandate and we need a clear view of everything to be sure that every decision made by his government will not benefit his own business. Morneau Shepell is one of the greatest Canadian businesses, but day after day it has to deal with the finance minister's decisions. This is why the finance minister should have no link at all with that business.

Opposition Motion—Minister of Finance's documents submitted to the Conflict of Interest and Ethics CommissionerBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

11:50 a.m.

Liberal

The Assistant Deputy Speaker Liberal Anthony Rota

I will remind hon. members that they are speaking through the Speaker and not to the Speaker, so when someone says, “You do this”, or, “You just wait”, it was not aimed at me. I do not want to take offence at that.

Questions and comments. The hon. member for Winnipeg North.

Opposition Motion—Minister of Finance's documents submitted to the Conflict of Interest and Ethics CommissionerBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

11:50 a.m.

Winnipeg North Manitoba

Liberal

Kevin Lamoureux LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons

Mr. Speaker, I want to emphasize the importance of what the Ethics Commissioner actually said and ask my knowledgeable colleague a question, because I am sure he is aware of these types of situations.

Let us go back to the Harper budget or even that government's legislative means in dealing with the Canadian Wheat Board. Their measures had fairly profound impacts on the Canadian Wheat Board. No doubt there were many Conservative farmers who would have been directly impacted. When we pass a budget, there are huge impacts. Maybe the member could clarify for Canadians why parliamentarians have to participate and why we have the Ethics Commissioner in the first place.

Opposition Motion—Minister of Finance's documents submitted to the Conflict of Interest and Ethics CommissionerBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

11:55 a.m.

Conservative

Gérard Deltell Conservative Louis-Saint-Laurent, QC

Mr. Speaker, based on what the member said, we are all in a conflict of interest. Why? It is because we pay taxes and vote on budgets that include tax measures. Based on that, we are all in a conflict of interest. This is why we have to be very clear and declare exactly what our assets are. Yes, some farmers are making profits for sure, but we are not talking about $1 billion, like Morneau Shepell. We are talking about family ownership and a few hundred dollars a year compared to a $1 billion. That is why this is a special case and why we need clarity and clarification. The first one who would benefit from that is the Minister of Finance.

Opposition Motion—Minister of Finance's documents submitted to the Conflict of Interest and Ethics CommissionerBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

11:55 a.m.

Conservative

Mark Warawa Conservative Langley—Aldergrove, BC

Mr. Speaker, it is a true honour to be in the House today to speak on this very important issue. I thank my colleague who just spoke for his tenacity in standing up for Canadians. It is a real honour to be part of the Conservative Party of Canada with its legacy of standing up for Canadian taxpayers.

Over the years, when Canadians have seen fit to elect a party with an entitlement mentality like the Liberal party, eventually it creates a huge mess. We see Canada heading in that direction again. We are ready and committed to clean up any Liberal mess left over.

I am particularly honoured to be able to share what I heard from my youth advisory board. I notified youth in my riding of Langley—Aldergrove that I would like to hold a monthly youth advisory board meeting with them to discuss issues that were important to them. We have held two meetings. The first was on the marijuana issue. These are youth in grade 12 up to and in university, some working on undergraduate degrees. They are very mature, wise, bright, and engaging young people, and it was interesting to get their perspective. It is a non-partisan youth advisory board, with people with all kinds of opinions. The consensus within the group on marijuana was that the government was moving way too fast, that it needed to provide education, to listen to police boards across the country, and to slow the process down. Many of them are okay with the legalization process for marijuana, but not the way the Liberal government is doing it. It is moving way too fast. It seems to have this artificial date of July 1 of next year that legalization must be in place by Canada Day, so that everyone can start smoking then. The group is very concerned about the government's approach to marijuana.

I asked them what topic they would like to talk about next, and they said the new tax the government is wanting to put on Canadian small business. I found that fascinating. We met last Saturday morning and had another really good meeting that lasted for about an hour or an hour and a half. Some of the youth went into the meeting thinking that maybe the government was right and that some Canadians are not paying their fair share of taxes. To prepare for the meeting, the materials they received were general materials that all Canadians have access to. Much of it was non-partisan, and some partisan.

Overwhelmingly, those who went into the meeting thinking that maybe the government was right changed their position 180 degrees and came out of the meeting saying that the government was wrong. Calling hard-working Canadians tax cheats is shameful, and they were really shocked at the government taking that approach. They also said that the government needed to slow the process down. The number one thing that every Liberal member of Parliament heard regarding their so-called consultations was to keep the consultations going. The Liberal Party held the consultations during the summertime, starting in the middle of July and continuing in August and September and ending at the beginning of October. In those two and a half months, people were on holidays, and the consultations were often held in the middle of the week at three o'clock in the afternoon when Canadians were at work. Those who were not on holidays were working, yet the Liberals still held these so-called consultations.

The Liberals heard over and over again that they should keep the consultations going so they could continue to hear from people because they were not happy. The answer from the Liberal members was that the people were confused, that Canadians are confused and business is confused, so they would end the consultations to avoid the confusion. They would provide legislation so there would be no more confusion.

The youth advisory board also said that this process needed to continue and that there needed to be additional consultations. I am very proud and happy to be able to pass on what I heard from them this last Saturday morning. It is a very wise group of young people.

Today, we are debating a motion by Her Majesty's official opposition. I have listened to the debate and the comments made so far, and I think back to Jim Flaherty, who was a finance minister in the Stephen Harper government. He was appointed and very quickly earned the reputation of being the greatest finance minister in the world.

What an honour it was to be part of that government. He did deserve that title. He was an extremely bright, ethical, funny man. He had a great sense of humour. People liked to be around Jim. There was great sorrow at his untimely death. He was known as the greatest finance minister Canada probably has ever had. At the time, he was greatest in the world.

Just yesterday when I was watching the news I heard the questions by the media as the government was trying to calm down people. There was a news conference where the government was saying that it is really looking out for what is good for Canadians, that it wants tax fairness and is launching its new programs around fairness and taxes.

Canadians do not believe this. The media does not believe it. There is this cloud hanging over the finance minister. As has been pointed out, the office of the finance minister is extremely important. The finance minister is probably the most powerful posting in government in Canada. That finance minister has to be squeaky clean.

I really do not want to attack that individual, because I do not know his intent. However, it is the responsibility of the government to make sure that everything is squeaky clean. That is what this Prime Minister promised, that he was going to be squeaky clean and all his ministers were going to be squeaky clean. Throughout the last two years, the first half of a one-term mandate, they were going to do things that were squeaky clean and transparent.

There is great suspicion that things are not squeaky clean. I am hearing a lot of angst among Canadians that the government is not keeping its promises time and time again. The small business tax was supposed to be reduced. That was in the platform of the previous Conservative government, and it would have happened immediately. Now we are two years into this government's mandate, and look at what has happened to that. The government is in trouble now. Canadians are very upset with what is happening.

The government has now announced that it will reduce the small business tax back down to the 9%. Well, actually, it will go down to 10%, and then just before the election it will be lowered to 9%. That is not what Canadians want. They have not been told the truth throughout the whole process.

This motion is about wanting information. What did the finance minister declare to the Ethics Commissioner from the time of his appointment to July of this year when the consultation period started? That would indicate whether there was any intended self-benefit, or whether there is a conflict of interest. What is the motive of the Prime Minister and the finance minister?

I have heard Canadians say that these two people have really not lived like hard-working Canadians. They live off a trust. They have multi-million dollar assets. They are not like you and me, Mr. Speaker. They are not like normal Canadians. They are very wealthy people. To whom much is given, much is required.

Accountability is a critical promise by the Prime Minister. We need accountability from him, and we have not had it. We need accountability from the finance minister, and to this point we have not had it.

It will be interesting as we go to a vote on this motion, probably later today, to see if the members of the Liberal Party keep the promises that were made in the Speech from the Throne at the start of this Parliament that they would be a transparent, accountable government. We are not seeing that from the leadership within the cabinet. Will the Liberal members demand that their Prime Minister and finance minister be transparent and provide the House with the details necessary for transparency?

Opposition Motion—Minister of Finance's documents submitted to the Conflict of Interest and Ethics CommissionerBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

12:05 p.m.

Liberal

Ken Hardie Liberal Fleetwood—Port Kells, BC

Mr. Speaker, I have great confidence in my friend and hon. member across the way, and in fact, all of them on the other side, because their job is to take a situation and for the benefit of Canadians, paint the blackest, bleakest possible picture. However, I have even more confidence in the non-partisan commissioner whose job it is to review this and truly assess it from a non-partisan perspective.

If the Ethics Commissioner reviews this and finds that everything is good and above board, will that be good enough for the Conservative Party and for him?

Opposition Motion—Minister of Finance's documents submitted to the Conflict of Interest and Ethics CommissionerBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

12:05 p.m.

Conservative

Mark Warawa Conservative Langley—Aldergrove, BC

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the member for Fleetwood—Port Kells for his kind compliment, and I return that. I think highly of him. He has worked hard. I have heard good reports about his constituency office work and his helping his constituents, so I congratulate him on that.

Our concern is with the leadership of the Liberal Party and this entitlement mentality and the lack of transparency. The Ethics Commissioner can only make decisions based on the information provided. I think that is the issue today. Has the finance minister provided all the details of his assets?

We cannot always believe the media, but we have heard reports that there are unreported assets. If that is the case, the Ethics Commissioner would not be able to make a true ruling. That is why we have this motion today that asks the finance minister, in full transparency, what he reported to the Ethics Commissioner. If he did not report all these assets, why not, and is he fit to be the finance minister of this country?

I think it is very important, and it is fair. It needs to be transparent.

Opposition Motion—Minister of Finance's documents submitted to the Conflict of Interest and Ethics CommissionerBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

12:05 p.m.

NDP

Gord Johns NDP Courtenay—Alberni, BC

Mr. Speaker, The Globe and Mail places the value of the finance minister's shares in Morneau Shepell at around $43 million. We know it is possible that with the proposed tax changes, HR management and pension consulting companies like Morneau Shepell could benefit from increased sales of individual pension plans as business owners shift their retirement savings from private corporations. We also know that Morneau Shepell has subsidiaries in Barbados and the Bahamas, where corporate tax rates are as low as 2.5%. We know that Morneau Shepell and the Morneau family trust are sheltered from the proposed tax changes, as is the Prime Minister's family fortune.

When we add this all up and think about the small-business people at home who have now become a target of these proposed tax changes, do they have confidence that the government will do them justice when it looks at tax fairness as a whole? I wonder if they feel that CEOs and tax havens and the wealthiest Canadians are going to be under the same scrutiny, when we hear that the finance minister himself has these connections, potentially.

Given all that, does the member feel that the business people in his community have that confidence in the finance minister?

Opposition Motion—Minister of Finance's documents submitted to the Conflict of Interest and Ethics CommissionerBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

12:10 p.m.

Conservative

Mark Warawa Conservative Langley—Aldergrove, BC

Mr. Speaker, I do not believe the business community in my community or across Canada has confidence in the Liberal government, its proposals, and the drastic tax changes that have been done or are being proposed without proper consultation.

I was also shocked when the finance minister was asked in the House about his involvement and if there would be any direct benefit from this and whether he thought he would be in conflict. The finance minister said, “Not only did I not abstain, but I actively engaged in” the discussions. For the finance minister to be bragging of his engagement on this, when the optics are that he could be in conflict, is shocking.

Small businesses, and Canadians in general, are very concerned about the entitlement attitude of the government.

Opposition Motion—Minister of Finance's documents submitted to the Conflict of Interest and Ethics CommissionerBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

October 17th, 2017 / 12:10 p.m.

Liberal

Chris Bittle Liberal St. Catharines, ON

Mr. Speaker, I am happy to rise here today to defend an individual of incredible integrity. We have heard a lot of attempts in this place to attack the integrity of the finance minister, but as we have heard, he has worked with the integrity commissioner, and to any questions, he has been more than forthright. Therefore, I am happy to rise here today to talk about the accomplishments of this minister and what he is doing, along with our government, to build a stronger middle class.

Building a stronger middle class does not come without changes. The issue of tax planning and using private corporations is one of those changes that is required to finally bring equity to our tax system, something the finance minister has been behind from the start. We have been working, from the moment we took office, to implement these changes that benefit the middle class and those working hard to join it. These changes that are forthcoming are just another step in setting things right for the middle class, again something the finance minister talked about as a candidate and has now as the Minister of Finance.

We took our first steps when Parliament resumed in December 2015, lowering taxes on the middle class, as promised, and raising them on the wealthiest 1%. Unfortunately, both the Conservatives and the New Democrats voted against that. This middle-class tax cut has been benefiting nine million Canadians, and we are extremely proud of that.

We brought in the new Canada child benefit, which has lifted thousands of children out of poverty, including 16,000 in my riding of St. Catharines. This is a significant accomplishment, and one of the architects of it was, of course, the finance minister. As a result of the Canada child benefit, nine out of 10 families are getting more in benefits than they did under the previous government. With the CCB, we have ensured that child benefits are more generous and are actually targeted to those who need them most.

Our government, under the leadership of the finance minister and working with the provinces, expanded the Canada pension plan to ensure that Canadians have financial security after a lifetime of hard work. The strengthened CPP will provide more money to Canadians when they retire, allowing them to focus more on what matters most: time with family.

As members can see, our actions and the actions of the finance minister could not be clearer. The guiding principle of fairness is essential, and indeed, is the defining piece of our plan to strengthen the middle class. It is abundantly clear that when we have an economy that works for the middle class, we have a country that works for everyone.

It is fitting that we are having this debate during Small Business Week, so let us talk about small businesses. We know that small businesses are the backbone of our economy. They are a key driver of Canada's economy. I think everyone in this chamber would agree with that. Small businesses account for 98% of all businesses and more than 70% of all private sector jobs. In recognition of how critical small businesses are to Canada's growth, our government, and again, the Minister of Finance, are taking action to help small businesses grow, invest, and create good, well-paying jobs.

Yesterday the finance minister announced, along with the Prime Minister and the Minister of Small Business and Tourism, the government's intention to lower the small-business tax rate to 10% in 2018 and then to 9% in 2019. As a result, the combined federal-provincial-territorial average tax rate for small businesses will be lowered to 12.9% from 14.4%, ensuring that Canadians by far will continue to have the lowest small-business taxes in the G7 and the fourth-lowest among the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development countries. This lower rate will mean that small-business owners can retain more of their earnings to reinvest, to support the growth of their businesses, and for job creation.

The finance minister also announced the government's intention to move forward on proposals to fix a tax system that is inherently unfair to the middle class. We have heard a lot of criticism about the finance minister, but he is one of the leading voices in this country on this side of the House to fight for a system that benefits the middle class and against those policies that are unfair to the middle class.

We have a tax system currently that encourages wealthy individuals to incorporate just so they can get a tax advantage. This cannot continue. It leads to a solution where someone making hundreds of thousands of dollars can get a lower tax rate than a middle-class worker making much less. A person making $300,000 per year can save as much tax as an average Canadian can earn in a year. This is not acceptable, and our government and the finance minister are going to fix it.

In July, the finance minister launched consultations to hear from Canadians on how to fix things and how to then make—

Opposition Motion—Minister of Finance's documents submitted to the Conflict of Interest and Ethics CommissionerBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

12:15 p.m.

Conservative

The Deputy Speaker Conservative Bruce Stanton

Order, please. I see the hon. member for Cypress Hills—Grasslands rising on a point of order.

Opposition Motion—Minister of Finance's documents submitted to the Conflict of Interest and Ethics CommissionerBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

12:15 p.m.

Conservative

David Anderson Conservative Cypress Hills—Grasslands, SK

Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order. There are a number of us here who are very enthused about this subject and about hearing the government's perspective on the motion we have before us. However, the member is about seven minutes into his speech and has not yet touched on the motion. I would ask if you could encourage him to speak to the motion and to the tabling of documents that have to do with the minister's ethical lapses and his failure to abide by the ethical conditions that have been laid out for him by the Ethics Commissioner and others, including the Prime Minister. If he could speak to that, we would be glad to hear his opinion.

Opposition Motion—Minister of Finance's documents submitted to the Conflict of Interest and Ethics CommissionerBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

12:15 p.m.

Conservative

The Deputy Speaker Conservative Bruce Stanton

I thank the hon. member for his intervention. I recognize that the hon. member for St. Catharines, in his initial comments, made reference to the activities of the finance minister in a general sense. Considering that the subject of the motion today pertains to the performance of the finance minister in the course of his duties, I so far have not heard anything that is impertinent and not relevant to the discussion. Certainly, in the course of his time, the member for St. Catharines will bring the dialogue back in reference specifically to the motion. I am sure he will do that in the minutes ahead.

The hon. member for St. Catharines.

Opposition Motion—Minister of Finance's documents submitted to the Conflict of Interest and Ethics CommissionerBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

12:15 p.m.

Liberal

Chris Bittle Liberal St. Catharines, ON

Mr. Speaker, hearing the attempt by the official opposition to criticize the finance minister, I am standing here to speak of the great work he is doing. The finance minister has worked with various commissioners, and there is no wrongdoing. I mentioned this to a colleague earlier, from the old commercial from the 1980s: where is the beef? This is a fishing expedition and an attempt to undermine the credibility of the finance minister.

As I was stating, yesterday our government announced the intention to simplify the proposal to limit the ability of owners of private corporations to lower their personal income taxes by sprinkling their income to family members. We want to be very clear on this next point that the vast majority of private corporations will not be impacted by these sprinkling measures. Only an estimated 50,000 family-owned private businesses are sprinkling income. This represents only around 3% of privately controlled corporations. Again, we have a finance minister who is looking at what is best for the middle class. These are policies the previous government did not go after, policies that generally disproportionately benefit the wealthiest Canadians

In addition, our government announced that it will not be moving forward with proposed measures to limit access to the lifetime capital gains exemption.

As we continue to make progress, we will also continue to listen carefully to the submissions that have been received on these matters.

As I conclude my remarks, I want to assure my hon. colleagues of the finance minister's, and the government's, plan to grow and strengthen the middle class.

Job creation has been robust since we came to power, with 400,000 jobs created. Over the last 12 months, nearly 90% of the jobs created have been full-time positions. In the second quarter of this year, the economy grew by an impressively strong 4.5%. Over the last four quarters, our economy has had the fastest growth since early 2006. The Canadian economy is the fastest-growing economy in the G7 by a wide margin. A lot of that is thanks to the hard work of the finance minister. That is news Canadians can be happy about. It is great news.

The finance minister continues to work hard to create a healthy and growing economy in which businesses can generate good-paying jobs and where the middle class and those working hard to join it can have confidence that they will succeed.

Opposition Motion—Minister of Finance's documents submitted to the Conflict of Interest and Ethics CommissionerBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

12:20 p.m.

NDP

Gord Johns NDP Courtenay—Alberni, BC

Mr. Speaker, the member talked about the finance minister, and described him as if his actions could not be clearer and more fair. He also talked about the middle-class tax break. However, when I think about the middle-class break, 17.9 million did not get a benefit from the middle-class tax break, which is two-thirds of working Canadians. Anyone who works full time and earns $23 an hour or less got nothing.

The Liberals talk about how they want to help those who are not in the middle class to join the middle class, but when we talk about actions that could not be clearer, let us talk about how clear it is. They are forgetting about those who want to join the middle class every step of the way. They turn their attention to small business when they talk about tax fairness instead of CEO stock-option loopholes, and instead of tax havens. We want tax fairness. We want to see actions that could be clearer so that we actually see the clear picture.

How can the Liberals defend or understand the middle class when the finance minister himself is so rich that he cannot even remember he has a holding company in France and others elsewhere in the world?

We want a fair system. We want a finance minister who actually backs up his commitment to helping those join the middle class and the real middle class here in Canada. I would like to hear the member comment about those proposals that he is so proud of.

Opposition Motion—Minister of Finance's documents submitted to the Conflict of Interest and Ethics CommissionerBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

12:20 p.m.

Liberal

Chris Bittle Liberal St. Catharines, ON

Mr. Speaker, the member mentioned the nine million Canadians who did benefit from the middle-class tax cut. However, the one thing he did not point out is the Canada child benefit, which lifted 300,000 children out of poverty. This is working for the middle class and those working hard to join it. Unfortunately, the NDP voted against that proposal.

This is a finance minister who cares about individuals, and cares about making an economy that works for everyone. The proof is in the pudding. We have delivered on those commitments. We are seeing the impacts, and we are seeing the growth in our economy, because the money is going to individuals who are going to spend it back in the economy. We are seeing that, and we are seeing the growth.

The current Governor of the Bank of Canada, who was appointed by the previous prime minister, agrees. This plan is working, and the finance minister's policies are helping out.

Opposition Motion—Minister of Finance's documents submitted to the Conflict of Interest and Ethics CommissionerBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

12:20 p.m.

Conservative

Pat Kelly Conservative Calgary Rocky Ridge, AB

Mr. Speaker, the member's speech contained many things that would be certainly worthy of debate and discussion. However, I want to focus on the motion itself, and I would ask for the member's comments, as there are Canadians questioning the disposition of the finance minister's assets and want to know whether or not he still owns shares in Morneau Shepell, which is a company that offers retirement and pension management advice to businesses that are affected by the very tax proposal that was announced on July 18.

Opposition Motion—Minister of Finance's documents submitted to the Conflict of Interest and Ethics CommissionerBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

12:25 p.m.

Liberal

Chris Bittle Liberal St. Catharines, ON

Mr. Speaker, as I said in my speech, the finance minister has complied with everything that has been requested. Assets have been disclosed. There is no issue. There is no report from any commissioner. The finance minister did his job, followed the rules, and continues to work with whichever commissioner has any questions for him. He worked very closely and disclosed everything.

At the end of the day, if opposition members were as concerned about child poverty in this country as they were about going on a fishing expedition, I think we would have a better place to live. I am glad the finance minister is concerned about issues like that and growing the middle class.

Opposition Motion—Minister of Finance's documents submitted to the Conflict of Interest and Ethics CommissionerBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

12:25 p.m.

Scarborough Southwest Ontario

Liberal

Bill Blair LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada

Mr. Speaker, I was very pleased to hear my colleague mention the integrity of the finance minister.

I have heard many comments from members opposite about the circumstances of the finance minister's birth, but very little comment about the circumstances of the life of service that he has led. The finance minister I know has served his community, for example, on the board of Covenant House, which is the largest homeless shelter in the country. He served on the board and as the chair of St. Michael's Hospital, which serves the largest homeless population in the country.

The Saskatchewan finance minister, Kevin Doherty, said about our finance minister in his discussion around his negotiations over CPP policy issues that:

He did a masterful job in listening to the different positions and understanding why there were concerns...The thing with Bill is that when he tells you something, you can take it to the bank...There’s no hidden agenda. There’s no telling you one thing and telling somebody else something else to try to get a deal.

This is the essence of integrity—

Opposition Motion—Minister of Finance's documents submitted to the Conflict of Interest and Ethics CommissionerBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

12:25 p.m.

Conservative

The Deputy Speaker Conservative Bruce Stanton

I would remind the parliamentary secretary, even when another hon. member's name appears in a quote we have to avoid that and use another reference in that case. I will just add that for member's benefit for next time.

The hon. member for St. Catharines, a short response, please.

Opposition Motion—Minister of Finance's documents submitted to the Conflict of Interest and Ethics CommissionerBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

12:25 p.m.

Liberal

Chris Bittle Liberal St. Catharines, ON

Mr. Speaker, I agree with my hon. colleague. Here is an individual who works tirelessly, even before the campaign to help with the party's platform, despite his birth and his circumstances, to grow the middle class, and to cut child poverty. This is a person who should be celebrated, and whose integrity is without question.