Madam Speaker, as my colleagues from the Bloc and I have said, we will support the Conservative Party motion since we are convinced that it is high time that the government take action, and above all, change course.
The Bloc Québécois has long been calling for effective and productive support by proposing a comprehensive vision that is tailored to the hardest-hit sectors where the needs are the greatest.
I was listening to my colleagues' speeches earlier. It is true that the reality was not the same for certain SMEs and every sector of the economy. Some SMEs had an easier time of it due to certain favourable conditions. However, other sectors such as tourism, housing, the restaurant industry, information or arts and culture had a harder time. These are sectors that deserve better than more emergency measures negotiated on a piecemeal basis.
I mentioned a comprehensive vision. We need to think about how long the crisis will last for these sectors. Will it take one year or two for the recovery to take hold? How will we ensure that the measures are meaningful and sustainable and that no one is left out?
I want to share some figures. According to a survey by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business published on September 30, 24% of hospitality businesses were considering bankruptcy. That figure was 26% in the arts and recreation sector.
According to a report by the Institut du Québec, more than 30,000 jobs were lost in the information, arts and culture sector. In 2019, in Quebec, this industry represented more than 4% of Quebec workers. As far as the food and accommodation sector is concerned, more than 56,000 jobs were lost. In 2019, this industry represented nearly 6% of workers. These sectors are struggling because the measures in place are ineffective.
The Bloc Québécois has been shedding light on these shortcomings for months and has made several proposals that could help the businesses. I will not list them all or talk about making some of these measures permanent. I will provide an example, the Canada emergency response benefit. I did not say anything in the early days when nine million workers across the country found themselves unemployed and we needed to act quickly.
A few weeks later, however, it was already clear that some people had been left behind. We were the first to speak up about seasonal workers. As I was saying earlier, the tourism and hospitality sectors are interconnected. These sectors have been devastated in some parts of Quebec and Canada. Workers did not necessarily lose their jobs because of COVID-19, but they were unsure whether they would have a job to go back to because of COVID-19. It took weeks for CERB to be adjusted.
It is a life or death situation for some sectors of the economy. The second wave of the pandemic has shaken the Quebec tourism industry, which was already quite rattled from the first wave. On October 22, Tourisme Montréal sounded the alarm, noting that summer 2020 had been the worst summer in history and that spending by international tourists had dropped 95%. Montreal is a ghost town right now. The industry is suffering and workers are suffering just as much.
A number of tourist establishments plan to shut down permanently, and the Prime Minister has said twice that he planned to take specific action for these sectors. When will that happen?
What we are hearing is that they have a lot of empathy for them. Last week or the week before that, we saw the entire government stand up in celebration of Small Business Week. It truly was a sight to behold. I feel it was honest and sincere.
Aside from paying tribute to small businesses and saying they are making a difference in Quebec's economy, in addition to listening to them and meeting with them, can we not try to find solutions that will give, not false hope, but rather the hope that measures will provide structure and that companies will be able to get through the crisis, which may last for weeks, months, or even years?
We therefore ask the government to answer the question “What are you waiting for?”, because the workers of an entire industry cannot make ends meet. We need a solid long-term plan to deal with the crisis. We find the government's lack of vision deplorable. It has acted in a piecemeal manner by adopting emergency measures poorly adapted to businesses that have been largely, if not totally, confined since March.
The Prime Minister talked about the holiday season. He said that winter was going to be tough, but that we were going to have a spring and a summer. That, I admit, is not very inspiring and it does not give us much hope that things are going to change. Looking beyond the turkey or tourtière that we will be eating around the table with our families, we see many industries, entrepreneurs and thousands of workers wondering what tomorrow will look like in their sector. This is where action is needed.
The commercial rent assistance has long been a failure. The proof is that about half of the $3 billion originally planned ended up being spent, not because businesses did not need it, but because the program is too complex and poorly designed. We have known this for a long time. Last June, Quebec's economy and innovation minister criticized the program's lack of effectiveness. The Bloc has said so repeatedly. Ever since the bill was passed, we have known that it would end on September 30. Why wait until yesterday to act?
As for the Canada emergency wage subsidy, I would say it is high time they adapted it to the current context because all businesses have the same needs. Flexibility is key. Once again, I applaud the government for listening to us and introducing more flexibility, but my question, once again, is this: Why did the government wait until yesterday to announce improvements to the program?
As an aside, if it is a cash flow problem, we would like to remind the Liberal Party that it can repay the $1-billion loan it collected from the wage subsidy. I believe the Conservatives have already done so. I will let the other two parties speak for themselves.
As for the Canada Revenue Agency's audits, I think this motion is meant to make things easier for businesses, not create unnecessary stress. We therefore ask the government to adopt the motion and join those who are asking it to delay the audits. The Canadian Federation of Independent Business made the same request, which was denied.
In conclusion, the crisis affects everyone, but it does not affect everyone equally. Some sectors of our economy, some of our workers, are in more urgent need. They do not just need to be reminded of what has been done for them. They need to be told what the government is going to do for them starting now and what long-term measures the government will introduce.