House of Commons Hansard #179 of the 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was chair.
Marilyn Gladu Conservative Sarnia—Lambton, ON
Mr. Speaker, it gets harder to believe the Prime Minister's story about his trip to billionaire island every day. We now know billionaire island is held by a corporate entity with a murky ownership scheme. Not only is the island not owned by his long-time family friend, but the private helicopter was not either.
Did the Ethics Commissioner ask the Prime Minister who owned the island? If she did, what story did he give her?
Bardish Chagger LiberalLeader of the Government in the House of Commons and Minister of Small Business and Tourism
Mr. Speaker, as has been said time and time again, the Prime Minister will answer any and all questions the commissioner of ethics has.
What is important to know is that our government is committed to responding to the very real challenges Canadians are facing. That is why we have lowered taxes on middle-class Canadians. That is why we are giving more money to families with children that need it the most. That is why we are making strategic investments in infrastructure, working better with provinces, territories, and municipalities.
We know we can do better, and we will continue to improve the conditions and create the conditions for growth for Canadians and our economy to benefit.
John Brassard Conservative Barrie—Innisfil, ON
Mr. Speaker, in the warm Caribbean waters, pirates used to throw their secrets overboard, believing they would sink to the bottom of the sea, never to be found again. Some secrets are now bubbling to the surface.
Billionaire island is not owned by the Prime Minister's long-time friend but rather by a labyrinth of shell companies that try to hide assets or avoid taxes. Even the ownership of the private helicopter in question appears to be murky.
Since it is Wednesday, I would like to ask the Prime Minister: What other secrets has the Prime Minister thrown overboard about his $200,000 taxpayer-funded vacation?
Diane Lebouthillier LiberalMinister of National Revenue
Mr. Speaker, our government is working extremely hard to crack down on tax evasion and aggressive tax avoidance in order to ensure that the tax system is fair and equitable for all Canadians.
Last year, we created an independent panel made up of highly respected professionals who volunteered to help improve the tax system. This panel of volunteers, honest people of integrity, submitted a report that will help us to strengthen our tax rules.
John Brassard Conservative Barrie—Innisfil, ON
Mr. Speaker, it is a great answer. Meanwhile, questions keep going unanswered, while Canadians grow tired of the scripted talking points parroted by the Liberals. They may think their performance is like finding a hidden treasure, but no one is buying what they are saying, and the lip-synching act is giving the Liberals as much credibility as Milli Vanilli.
It being Wednesday, I am glad to have the opportunity to ask the Prime Minister: What other buried secrets is the Prime Minister hiding from the Ethics Commissioner?
Diane Lebouthillier LiberalMinister of National Revenue
Mr. Speaker, I am very proud of our government, which has made cracking down on tax evasion and tax avoidance a priority.
If my colleague opposite needs tangible results, he need look no further than the $13 billion that we recovered last year, including $1.3 billion through the voluntary disclosures program. That, for me, is a tangible result. We have done a lot better than the previous government, which was never able to accomplish what we have.
The Speaker Liberal Geoff Regan
Order. I am hearing a lot of noise from some members, including the hon. member for York—Simcoe and some around him. Perhaps they could try to restrain themselves and show respect for this institution.
The hon. member for North Island—Powell River.
Rachel Blaney NDP North Island—Powell River, BC
Mr. Speaker, respect is shown through real answers.
As with most banks, the goal of the Liberal infrastructure bank is not about helping hard-working Canadians but about increasing profits for wealthy investors.
Yesterday the NDP moved a motion to invite some of those large investors to committee because they helped develop the scheme and they stand to profit millions from it. Guess what happened? The Liberals on the committee shut it down, so we are never going to hear from them.
My question is simple. Why are the Liberals so scared of hearing how their bank will help their—
Amarjeet Sohi LiberalMinister of Infrastructure and Communities
Mr. Speaker, for the entire last year, we engaged with a wide range of stakeholders, municipalities, provinces, territories, labour unions, trade councils, the IMF, the World Bank, private investors, and our own pension funds, which invest in other countries. We want to make sure they invest here, in our own country, to create jobs here for the middle class, to create prosperity here in Canada, to make sure that we build infrastructure our communities need. What is wrong with that? The NDP might have an issue with that. We do not.
Alexandre Boulerice NDP Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie, QC
Mr. Speaker, we all know that with the Liberals' new infrastructure privatization bank, Canadians will be the ones who end up paying for bridges and roads through user fees.
That much is certain, there is no other option. How are the private investors supposed to make a profit unless tolls and user fees are levied all over the place? Since the private sector will decide which projects are selected, of course it will choose the ones that are most profitable, not the ones that meet the needs of Canadians.
Are the Liberals not ashamed of imposing new fees and an additional financial burden on families that are already struggling?
Amarjeet Sohi LiberalMinister of Infrastructure and Communities
Mr. Speaker, Canadian pension funds like the Canadian Pension Plan Investment Board, the Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement Fund, the Caisse de dépôt, the Alberta Investment Management Corporation are credible organizations that invest in places like Latin America and Australia. We want to make sure that they invest in our own country to create jobs here in our own country so that the middle class can grow and those people working hard to be part of the middle class have the opportunity for employment, communities that need infrastructure have the infrastructure to reduce traffic gridlock, and—
Dianne Lynn Watts Conservative South Surrey—White Rock, BC
Mr. Speaker, it is Wednesday, so can the Prime Minister please clear this up?
The finance minister claims that the Liberals' so-called infrastructure bank will be independent, but if the minister read his own legislation, he would see clearly that it is exactly the opposite. The Minister of Finance will approve loan guarantees. The Liberal cabinet will appoint boards of directors and the chairperson. The Liberal cabinet will have the final approval over the CEO.
Which is it? Is the bank going to be independent, or will the bank continue to be just an arm of the PMO, cabinet, and the finance minister to reward their Liberal friends?
Amarjeet Sohi LiberalMinister of Infrastructure and Communities
Mr. Speaker, after consultation with Canadians from wide experience and backgrounds, we have been able to create the right balance. We will make sure that the bank is an independent arm's-length crown corporation that is able to make decisions on its own but at the same time will be accountable to this House, to the people's House, to Parliament. As well, we will make sure that we are there to protect the public interest, that we are there to ensure that private bank funds are in the public interest and are needed to meet the needs of Canadian communities.
That is our goal. That is exactly what we are doing.
Luc Berthold Conservative Mégantic—L'Érable, QC
Mr. Speaker, here is the Liberal version of Robin Hood. This is the story of the Minister of Finance who invites his rich billionaire friends to pick the pockets of poor Canadian taxpayers.
Here is the recipe: borrow billions of dollars, to be paid for by future generations of young Canadians; take those billions of dollars and give them all to your rich Liberal friends, while promising them risk-free returns; call it the “Robinbank” of infrastructure.
When will the “Robinbank” stop taking money from middle-class Canadians and giving it away to rich Liberals?
Amarjeet Sohi LiberalMinister of Infrastructure and Communities
Mr. Speaker, the pension funds that I talked about are where Canadians are investing for their retirement. That is the money we want to use to build the infrastructure that our Canadian communities need. I really do not understand why the member of the opposition is so much against organizations like Caisse de dépôt, which a very credible organization, or CPPIB, the teachers fund, or IMCO. These are credible organizations that invest on behalf on Canadians, creating jobs in our own country to help us grow our own economy. What is wrong with that?
They may have issues with private investors investing. We do not, because we know—
Pierre Poilievre Conservative Carleton, ON
Mr. Speaker, businesses accept that risk goes with making a profit. Risk is a real thing, but not for electricity company lobbyist and former Liberal cabinet minister Sergio Marchi, though, who told the transport committee yesterday that the infrastructure bank will de-risk his clients' electricity investments through loan guarantees from taxpayers.
Imagine: the risk disappears. Will taxpayers' money disappear along with it?
Amarjeet Sohi LiberalMinister of Infrastructure and Communities
Mr. Speaker, I would like to tell the hon. member that he is absolutely wrong. The bank will shift the risk to the private sector appropriate to the investment that it makes. Every deal will be structured in the public interest. We want to make sure the public interest is protected.
That is why we want to attract the right people for the CEO, the board members, and the board chair. We encourage everyone to apply so that we can have the right expertise to make sure that we structure our deals in such a way that they are in the public interest, that we build more infrastructure that our communities need—
Pierre Poilievre Conservative Carleton, ON
Mr. Speaker, these companies already invest billions of dollars in electricity infrastructure. According to J.P. Morgan, they expect, on average, 20% rates of return. Now they want taxpayers to take any losses.
The Liberals' paid lobbyist, Sergio Marchi, has lobbied the government 40 times on infrastructure. He represents the same crony capitalists that Kathleen Wynne has enriched by forcing Ontarians to pay through the nose for electricity.
Why is the Liberal government forcing taxpayers to backstop the profits of Liberal wealthy elites?
Amarjeet Sohi LiberalMinister of Infrastructure and Communities
Mr. Speaker, we are engaging through our partners. One thing we have learned is that for the last decade the Conservative government underfunded infrastructure. We have a huge infrastructure deficit in our Canadian communities.
We are making historic investments of $186 billion over the next decade. Despite that, there still remains or will remain an infrastructure deficit. Our goal is to mobilize private capital to build the necessary infrastructure, to grow our economy, create jobs, and support our municipalities in helping—
Randall Garrison NDP Esquimalt—Saanich—Sooke, BC
Mr. Speaker, for over five years, New Democrats have been urging the federal government to remove the transphobic regulation governing air passenger screening. This regulation has nothing to do with safety. Rather, it subjects transgender Canadians to public humiliation in facing questions about their gender and obstructs their right to travel.
In 2012 the Liberals supported the NDP motion to repeal this regulation. In question period, the member for Papineau himself asked the Conservative government of the day to ditch the regulation. If he supported removing this discriminatory regulation then, why as Prime Minister has he taken absolutely no action?