Debates of March 9th, 2017

Taxation

[Rona Ambrose, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, we know that the Prime Minister has now written and rewritten his budget a few times. It seems he cannot quite find the right way to tell Canadians he wants more of their money.

With Mr. Trump moving to drastically reduce taxes, what businesses need to hear is that we will do the same thing here in Canada to create jobs. Lowering taxes to compete with the United States should be done in this budget, and the sooner the better. What is the Prime Minister's plan to make sure that Donald Trump does not steal our jobs?

[Scott Brison, Liberal, President of the Treasury Board]

Mr. Speaker, budget 2016 invested in jobs, growth, infrastructure, and innovation and it cut taxes for Canada's middle class. The Conservatives voted against those tax cuts. Furthermore, it invested in a Canada child benefit that is lifting 300,000 Canadian kids out of poverty. Canadians can be assured that budget 2017 will continue to invest in a pro-growth, pro-middle-class agenda that will be good for the Canadian economy.

[Rona Ambrose, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister is making Canada a less attractive place to do business and create jobs every single day. Business investment has fallen every single quarter since the Prime Minister took office, and when people are not investing in our economy, jobs are not created. It is about to get worse as Donald Trump lowers taxes and cuts red tape while the Prime Minister is going in the exact opposite direction.

Will the Prime Minister wake up, lower taxes, cut red tape, and protect Canadian jobs?

[Navdeep Bains, Liberal, Minister of Innovation]

Mr. Speaker, the member opposite wants to talk about jobs, so let us talk about jobs. There have been 286,000 jobs created since the Liberals formed government. These jobs are being created across the country. Let me highlight a few key examples because of our policies. We worked with Bell Helicopter to secure 900 jobs and, more important, create an additional 100 new jobs. GE invested in Welland to create 220 jobs. Thomson Reuters is investing in up to 1,500 jobs. GM Canada hired 1,000 new engineers. There are more jobs to come.

[Rona Ambrose, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, these are mostly part-time jobs and this is a serious issue that is coming up in this next budget.

Small businesses are bracing for this next budget. They already know that they have been hit by the Prime Minister's carbon tax, the EI hike, the CPP tax hike, and his cancellation of the small business hiring credit. At the same time, they are worried about the impact of Donald Trump's low tax rates. Small businesses are the backbone of our economy, and yet the Prime Minister just keeps taxing them more and more.

When will the Prime Minister give small businesses a break?

[Bardish Chagger, Liberal, Leader of the Government in the House of Commons and Minister of Small Business and Tourism]

Mr. Speaker, I appreciate rising in this House to remind members as well as Canadians that we take our small businesses very seriously. Yes, they are the backbone of the economy. We know that through our investments and through our plan they will be able to be more productive, more innovative, and export-oriented. Small businesses want to export, so we are creating the conditions to make it easier. If we look at the accelerated growth service, we are looking at the high-impact, high-growth firms and giving them catered services so that they can actually advance the services and products that they have. We will continue to work hard for small businesses.

Finance

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

Mr. Speaker, the budget will not be balanced until 2055.

That means my 15-year-old daughter, who is listening to us online today, will be 53 by the time the government gets public finances under control. That means our kids will pay for the Liberal deficit. If nothing changes, my daughter will have to pay extra taxes for 38 years because of the Liberal government's irresponsibility.

What does the Prime Minister have to say to my daughter, who is listening to us right now?

[Scott Brison, Liberal, President of the Treasury Board]

Mr. Speaker, in budget 2016, we invested in jobs, middle-class growth, infrastructure, and innovation. We cut taxes for the middle class and introduced the Canada child benefit.

The economy has improved, but we still have work to do. We have to keep making major investments in the middle class to generate economic growth for all Canadians.

Small Business

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

Mr. Speaker, let us talk about economic growth.

According to the business community, through a recent report by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, and I quote, “Small business owners know that today’s deficits are tomorrow’s taxes.” They believe that the government should commit to eliminating the deficit in five years, not 38.

I talked about our children earlier, and now I want to talk about our job creators, who are also extremely worried. The last thing they need is more taxes and larger deficits.

What does the Prime Minister have to say to them today? They are listening to us today, too.

[Bardish Chagger, Liberal, Leader of the Government in the House of Commons and Minister of Small Business and Tourism]

Mr. Speaker, this is a good day, because we made an announcement today.

Working together to invest in our Canadian entrepreneurs, we are investing not only in the Canadian economy, but also in our future. The funding announced today will support business expansion. It will support the women and men who are working hard to develop businesses and create even more jobs for the middle class across the country.

We will continue to work very hard for small and medium-sized businesses.

Public Safety

[Matthew Dubé, NDP, Beloeil—Chambly, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security will be in Ottawa tomorrow for meetings with the government, including the Minister of Public Safety. Ever since President Trump came into power, at least three Quebeckers have been turned away at the U.S. border.

Can the minister confirm that he is going to discuss the specific cases of Canadians turned away at the border when he talks to John Kelly and ensure that there will be no further impact on Canadians who want to visit the United States?

[Ahmed Hussen, Liberal, Minister of Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, while I will not speak to a specific case, our expectation on both sides of the border is that travellers will be treated with respect and in accordance with the rule of law. To facilitate smooth passage at the border, travellers who are aware of issues related to mistaken identity are encouraged to communicate with American authorities in advance.

Officials from Canada Border Services Agency and U.S. customs and border protection are in continuous contact on these matters and the issues related to travellers' screening will be discussed tomorrow in the meeting with the U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security.

[Matthew Dubé, NDP, Beloeil—Chambly, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the minister will not speak about specific cases, but I hope tomorrow they will raise those specific cases with the Secretary of Homeland Security.

Still at the border, hundreds of asylum seekers have crossed into Canada in recent months and many are risking their lives in harsh winter weather. On Tuesday, a pregnant woman and a toddler crossed into Emerson during a winter storm.

We can no longer have confidence that refugees in the United States have access to a fair process, so will the minister finally do the right thing and immediately suspend the safe third country agreement with the U.S. to allow these people to cross safely while seeking asylum in Canada?

[Ahmed Hussen, Liberal, Minister of Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, Canada's refugee system is lauded around the world for being one of the most compassionate. The safe third country agreement is an agreement between the United States and Canada to properly manage asylum seekers. The member opposite should know that the UN refugee agency supports the principle behind the safe third country agreement to prevent asylum shopping. If the New Democratic Party members are prepared to engage in an argument with the UNHCR, they are more than welcome to do so.

International Trade

[Tracey Ramsey, NDP, Essex, ON]

Mr. Speaker, this week the United States signalled its priorities in regard to NAFTA. It has indicated its number one priority involves sourcing auto parts at home. This would have a huge impact on Canada's auto sector which is deeply integrated with its North American counterparts, and still the Liberal government remains silent on its NAFTA priorities.

Will the minister ensure that any NAFTA renegotiations will protect Canada's auto jobs and respect the sector's integrated nature?

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, Minister of Foreign Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, I am delighted to assure the member opposite that I will fight for precisely that. I have had several meetings with labour representatives, with representatives of our auto parts sector, and we are very aligned on fighting for a great deal for Canada. I am confident we can do it, because that is our government's record on trade. We have overturned discriminatory cool legislation in the United States. We persuaded Mexico and China to end their bans on Canadian beef. We convinced China to lift its embargo on our canola, and exports of Canadian canola have more than doubled since October.

[Tracey Ramsey, NDP, Essex, ON]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians are not delighted or reassured by the minister's talking points. The U.S. Secretary of Commerce said very clearly that Canadians know “times are different”, and that they know “they're going to have to make concessions”. Concessions? There is too much at stake for Canadian workers. The tone has changed from a tweak to a threatening big bazooka, and apparently the Prime Minister still has nothing to say.

Canadians need to know that their government is going to fight for their jobs. What is the government going to bring to the table during NAFTA renegotiations?

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, Minister of Foreign Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to start by reminding the member opposite and everyone in the House that NAFTA negotiations have not yet begun and now is not the time for us to prematurely lead our cards on the table.

I want to assure everyone that we will continue to get a great deal for Canadians and our record proves it. Let me share some great news. In January, Canada posted its third straight trade surplus. The drivers of our strong export performance included the car sector where exports were up 7.7%.

National Defence

[James Bezan, Conservative, Selkirk—Interlake—Eastman, MB]

Mr. Speaker, the Liberals are clearly feeling the pressure to increase defence spending. Reports this week noted that the Liberals are actually going to spend less on defence, but they are planning on cooking the books in hopes of fooling our NATO allies. Instead of including the Coast Guard's budget in defence spending, which is nothing more than just a shell game, the Liberals should pay our troops what they deserve when they are out there fighting ISIS.

Will the minister stop playing shell games with our defence spending and retroactively pay back all the danger pay? I mean retroactively pay it all back to all our troops who are stationed in Kuwait.

[Harjit S. Sajjan, Liberal, Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, the member opposite knows my strong will and desire, as well as our government's desire, to make sure that our troops who are deployed get all the benefits they want.

However, if the member wants to bring up certain facts, what about the deficit reduction plan that the previous government had, which cut billions of dollars from defence? This is one of the reasons why we launched the defence policy review, to look at a thorough plan for the next 20 years, which will look at the proper defence investment that will look after our troops into the future.

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

Mr. Speaker, everyone knows that the Liberals like to throw money around. Now, they are showing us the dark side we know them to have by cheaping out on CF members who are fighting ISIS. They are taking $1,800 a month away from them. That is pretty shameful, thank you very much. We are talking about a significant amount for military spouses, who must make ends meet in their absence.

Who in this government thinks it is a good idea to take $1,800 a month away from military spouses?

[Harjit S. Sajjan, Liberal, Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for the passion he has for our troops, and I think we all share that.

When it comes to looking after our troops, as I stated, we want to look after our troops who are not only in Operation Impact but in other operations as well. As I stated, we have launched a review.

I wish members opposite had had the same level of compassion and desire they have now when they were actually in government, to make sure that our troops were not sent without the tax-free allowance.

Finance

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Carleton, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the report written under the direction of the former parliamentary budget officer was released this week. It said that “The magnitude of the government’s two-year program spending increase is unprecedented in modern times,” with a 12% increase in spending over this period. It goes on to say:

If interest rates increase or economic growth further weakens relative to planning assumptions, young people will be paying dearly for today’s deficit-financed activities.

The finance minister is grasping for Canadians' wallets to pay the bills for all of this out-of-control spending. How much exactly will the federal government raise in new revenues from its proposed carbon tax?

[Ginette Petitpas Taylor, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague for his question, even though I do not agree with the premise of it.

Our government is committed to helping middle-class Canadians and those working hard to join the middle class. I will tell members what we have done thus far.

So far, we have lowered taxes for middle-class Canadians. We have put in place a historic agreement called the Canada child benefit program, which has lifted hundreds of thousands of children out of poverty. We have helped our seniors by putting in place an increase in the guaranteed income supplement.

We are supporting Canadians. We are going in the right direction, and we are going to continue to do so.

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Carleton, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the Financial Post today has a headline: “Bank for International Settlements says Canada is showing early warning signs of financial crisis”. The article goes on to say that:

In its fall report, the BIS indicated that Canada had one of the highest credit-to-GDP ratios among developed nations. That report said the country’s “unusually” elevated level posed a threat to the country’s banking system.

Our country has the highest level of household debt to income in the OECD. When will the government realize that Canadians have too much debt of their own and they cannot afford the government?