Mr. Speaker, I listened with interest to the member opposite, who said that this budget did nothing for the Kitchener-Waterloo region. Let me quote what Kitchener Mayor Berry Vrbanovic called it. He called this budget transformational. He said, “This budget is transformational because it empowers local governments to deliver outcomes for Canadians: shorter commutes, more affordable housing and a better quality of life”, and, in particular, it will focus on talent development, attraction, and retention to make Canada a global leader in the world of infrastructure and technology, critical issues for Kitchener-Waterloo.
The member opposite said that he had heard no criticism from this side of the House on the tax changes around monthly charges for transit passes. Is he aware that the tax that the Harper government brought in did not change one travel pattern, according to the data? In fact, the non-refundable tax credit meant that the 40% lowest-income group of transit riders did not qualify for the tax credit. Only affluent riders did. Further to that, those with the lowest of the lowest income, the poorest of the poor who paid with cash or single tickets because they cannot afford a multi-pass could not even qualify for the tax credit. That is why we removed it. We do not believe in taxing the poor to pay for the rich. We believe in investing in services. The $22 billion for transit is exactly why Kitchener-Waterloo would benefit. Above and beyond that, the GO Transit investment is even higher and will create all-day service to Kitchener-Waterloo in a way that it has never been there before.
Is that not good news for his region and why will he not support the budget because of it?