Madam Speaker, I am pleased to rise in this chamber to speak about the government's plan to support tax fairness for Canadians, its efforts to help the middle class, and the Minister of Finance's efforts to make Canada's economy one that grows and is prosperous for every Canadian.
As members know, earlier this month, the government finished its consultations on its proposals to address tax planning using private corporations. These consultations went on for a number of months, and we heard from Canadians across the country.
I think it is fair to say that we heard from a record number of Canadians during this government's consultations. The Minister of Finance received 21,000 responses. The minister met with Canadians from St. John's to Vancouver, at round tables and also held online town halls.
I know that a number of members did the same for their constituents. As the new Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance, it is important for me to meet as many Canadians as possible, including small business owners, farmers, and representatives from the agricultural sector to discuss the proposals.
I also used a variety of forms of media to speak to Canadians in our two official languages.
On behalf of the Minister of Finance, I would like to thank everyone that took part in the discussion. I especially want to thank them for their frank and extensive dialogue, which helped our government strike the right balance in carrying out the promise it made to Canadians in 2015 to improve tax fairness, reduce inequality in this country, and secure the means to achieve our ambitions.
Last Monday, the Prime Minister, accompanied by the Minister of Finance and the Minister of Small Business and Tourism, announced the steps our government plans to take to further support Canada's small businesses. This important announcement delivered on a core commitment of our election platform. Before I get into that, however, I would like to remind my colleagues how we got to where we are today.
First and foremost, I want to assure all parliamentarians that our government is committed to guaranteeing a healthy, business-friendly economic climate, as well as protecting the ability of Canadian businesses to invest, grow, and create jobs.
In the two years since we took office, more than 400,000 jobs have been created, most of which are full-time. Due in part to strong economic growth and our government's sound, strategic investments in Canadians and for Canadians, our budget situation is better today than what we had foreseen in March. Indeed, the fiscal year that ended on March 31 saw a budget deficit of $17.8 billion, $11.6 billion less than what he had anticipated in 2015.
We are currently the fastest growing economy in the G7 by far. In the second quarter of this year, economic growth was at an impressive 4.5%. Over the last four quarters, our economy has posted the fastest growth since 2006.
This strong economic growth is proof that the plan we put in place two years ago is working. We laid the foundation for this economic growth the moment we took office. The first thing we did when we started our mandate two years ago was raise taxes on the wealthiest 1% so we could cut taxes for the vast majority of Canadians, in fact for nine million Canadians. That middle-class tax cut has been benefiting nine million Canadians, and we are proud of that. Single individuals who benefit from this tax cut are saving an average of $330 each year, and couples who benefit are saving an average of $540 each year.
Our government has also made child benefits more generous and progressive and better targeted to those who need them the most. With the new Canada child benefit, we have lifted hundreds of thousands of children out of poverty. Since July 2016, nine out of 10 Canadian families with children have received more in child benefits than they did under the previous system.
We also expanded the Canada pension plan to ensure that Canadians are better off financially in retirement. The strengthened CPP will provide more money to Canadians when they retire so they can worry less about their savings and focus more on enjoying time with their families. Strengthening the CPP will increase the maximum benefit by about 50% over time, giving retired Canadians a more dignified retirement.
Now we are moving on to the next step in our plan to grow the economy and achieve better tax fairness for middle-class Canadians. We will be the first to point to small business as one of the reasons this economy is in the enviable position it is in.
Our government has committed to ensuring that businesses are able to prosper in Canada. In keeping with that commitment, I am proud to inform the House that the Prime Minister has announced that our government intends to lower the small business tax rate in 2019, while presenting proposals aimed at correcting a tax system that is intrinsically unfair to the middle class.
Our government plans to lower the small business tax rate to 10% as of January 1, 2018, and to 9% as of January 1, 2019.
This small business tax cut is offered in recognition of small businesses' important contribution to the lives of Canadians, and their contribution to the Canadian economy. Small businesses are at the heart of the Canadian economy, represent 98% of all businesses, and account for 70% of all private sector jobs. Canada’s low corporate tax rates are aimed at encouraging capital investment in businesses. Those investments, whether to acquire equipment or more efficient technology or to hire additional staff, make businesses more productive and more competitive.
Those investments also stimulate economic growth, help create jobs, invest in our communities and raise salaries. For example, as the government lowers taxes for small businesses, we must ensure that Canada’s low corporate tax rates support businesses, rather than confer benefits we believe to be unfair and unwanted to a small number of wealthy individuals with high income, who use private corporations primarily as a tax planning tool.
We inherited a tax system that encourages the wealthiest to set up corporations to obtain a tax advantage. That creates a situation in which people earning hundreds of thousands of dollars a year can sometimes have a lower tax rate than middle class workers that earn far less. That is not fair. Our government is committed to correcting that situation.
The government has presented the approach that it plans to use to better target tax schemes used by a relatively small number of high-income individuals who gain the most from the current tax rules. To that end, we rely on the comments gathered from Canadians during recent consultations on tax planning through private corporations.
We have listened to small business owners, professionals, farmers, and fishers during the consultation, and we will act on what we have heard to avoid unintended consequences.
In all cases, the changes by the government will support small businesses and their contribution to communities and to the Canadian economy, maintain a low small business tax rate and support small business owners, so they actively invest in their growth, create jobs, strengthen entrepreneurship and stimulate growth—