Mr. Speaker, whether it is during my tours of seniors residences or when I go to the Salon de la famille this Friday, May 17, from 9:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. at Galeries St-Hyacinthe, seniors come up to me to tell me that they are having a tough time financially because their expenses are increasing whereas their income does not.
That is not surprising when we know that many families, seniors, and singles spend half their income on housing. It is not surprising when drugs cost so much; when families are not fully covered for dental fees and they pay a fortune to go to the dentist; when six out of 10 Canadians are not eligible for employment insurance; when our seniors do not automatically get the guaranteed income supplement. They need it now, not in 2020.
I go door-knocking every Saturday. The past two Saturdays, I had a petition signed calling for GIS payments to be made automatically for everyone. Everyone I met signed it because they think it makes no sense that we are not already doing that.