Debates of July 22nd, 2020

Government Business No. 9

[Anita Vandenbeld, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of National Defence]

Madam Chair, I would like to thank the member for Edmonton Strathcona, with whom we just spent two days on the Subcommittee on International Human Rights, as well as doing some incredibly important work on the Uighurs.

I can see the member's commitment to her constituents and to making sure that people who are falling through the cracks are getting the support they need.

As we have been dealing with an unprecedented pandemic, I know that members of Parliament from all parties, through a phone call that was done every day at 4:30, through questions in the House and directly, have been bringing forward the ways in which programs need to be adjusted.

The programs are going out very quickly, and we normally would spend two or three years on them. We would have advisory groups, stakeholder consultations and policy analysis. It has been MPs who have been having to do that as the programs are rolled out to get them to Canadians quickly.

Could my colleague comment on some of the cross-party co-operation, and the ways in which individual MPs have been able to contribute to that process?

[Heather McPherson, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

Madam Chair, I feel like we have done a really great job. We have tried to do the best we can. However, I will say one thing: I think there was a simpler, more elegant solution, and that was a universal benefit that was available for all people who needed it. That could have been rolled out very quickly.

I understand these are unprecedented times. This is incredibly challenging as we go forward, but the solution is clear. The solution is not supposed to be about how we can keep people from getting help. The solution is supposed to be about how we can get more people help, and get that help faster. That is what we really would have liked to see.

However, I agree that we have seen parties from across the floor, and throughout the House, work together to do what they can to help their constituents. I firmly believe that members of Parliament in the House of Commons have worked as hard as they can for the people of Canada during the COVID-19 pandemic, and they should be proud of their efforts.

[Jenica Atwin, Green, Fredericton, NB]

Madam Chair, I very much enjoyed the speech from the member for Edmonton Strathcona. I always do, so I appreciate her work and her efforts. The member has been discussing a very important aspect, which is universal basic income, and how that could have come to the rescue of so many more Canadians.

Why does the member think the Liberal government is resistant to that idea?

[Heather McPherson, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

Madam Chair, it is curious to me, because it seems like there was a very simple solution proposed and not accepted.

My only thinking is that perhaps the end goal was to limit who was able to access the benefits for COVID-19 and to limit who was able to benefit from these programs. That is very sad. That is very disappointing, because we know that when this pandemic hit, within only a couple of weeks people were not able to buy their groceries. People were not able to pay their rent. People were not able to pay their employees, and yet the inequality in our country meant that we also had people making billions and billions of dollars.

To me, that was the real catch: We do not necessarily need to protect big business. We do not need to protect the very, very wealthy. We need to protect the workers. We need to protect Canadians. We need to protect the families in our communities.

[Matthew Green, NDP, Hamilton Centre, ON]

Madam Chair, I want first to state how proud I am to serve alongside the hon. member for Edmonton Strathcona who has been a completely passionate and courageous defender of her constituents and, of course, of human rights across the country.

In her speech, she covered people living with disabilities, students, child and family services and workers. However, she was cut a little short, so I am wondering if she would like to take a moment and reflect on any areas from her statement that may have been left out, because I believe that she was doing a great job of capturing how we can build back better here in Canada.

[Heather McPherson, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

Madam Chair, I also feel very honoured to work with my colleague, who is such a leader in our community.

I am thankful for the opportunity to talk a little more and say some of the things I did not get to say earlier. I wanted to include in my final statement that I want to be part of a government that builds back a Canada that takes climate change seriously by creating a diversified, strong economy and that protects workers and their families while creating a climate for our children and grandchildren.

At every critical moment in our history, we have seen what a Parliament that cares for and listens to its people can do in a crisis, but we should not need there to be a crisis to act. Over the coming months and years, we have an opportunity to build a better Canada, a Canada where everyone can live in dignity, a fair and just Canada. I am here to do this work with members for my constituents in Edmonton Strathcona, for people in Alberta and for all people in Canada.

[Cathay Wagantall, Conservative, Yorkton—Melville, SK]

Madam Chair, I appreciate the heart expressed here today. You are talking about building back better. That is a term that is being used extensively now in the House. Is it in regard to the suggestions on how we move forward as an economy, beginning with the Corporate Knights?

[The Assistant Deputy Chair (Mrs. Alexandra Mendès), Liberal, Alexandra Mendes]

I would ask the member to speak through the Chair.

[Heather McPherson, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

Madam Chair, could I ask the member to repeat that? I could not hear over—

[The Assistant Deputy Chair (Mrs. Alexandra Mendès), Liberal, Alexandra Mendes]

I would ask the member to please repeat her question.

[Cathay Wagantall, Conservative, Yorkton—Melville, SK]

Madam Chair, I am wondering about the term “building back better”. I have heard it used extensively within the context of the Corporate Knights organization, which is working on how our economy will come out of the COVID crisis. I am wondering if that is the member's reference.

[Heather McPherson, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

Unfortunately, Madam Chair, no, that is not where that came from. In fact, we have been working within the NDP to develop what our strategy would look like for a new and better Canada.

I acknowledge what the member has said, and this is something we have heard from a number of different areas. One area I am particularly passionate about is our obligation around the world. When we build back better, one of the things we may want to consider is how we can support people around the world. Canada can take a stronger role in the world, making sure, as we go forward, that we recognize that until COVID is addressed all around the world, COVID will be addressed nowhere in the world.

We need a strong commitment to 1% of COVID spending going to our efforts overseas. I have worked very closely with other members of the House in asking for this.

[Lindsay Mathyssen, NDP, London—Fanshawe, ON]

Madam Chair, I too am so proud to be able to work with the member for Edmonton Strathcona. She is an amazing representative.

This was not necessarily in her speech, but earlier today in the House, as members worked together, we talked a lot about child care. I have heard repeatedly, as the NDP critic for women and gender equality, that we are not going to restart this economy until we have a meaningful, universal, publicly funded system of national child care.

I would ask the member to comment on some of the programs that are unfolding, some of the asks that experts in that field have made of the government in the last few days and what we need to move forward in terms of a national strategy?

[Heather McPherson, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

Madam Chair, that is an incredibly important question, and the work the member has done on this file has been phenomenal.

We know there can be no recovery without a child care strategy. We cannot leave women behind in our economic recovery from COVID-19. The NDP is asking, and many other groups are also asking, for $2.5 billion to be put into a strategy for child care for this year. We are asking for that because we need to make sure that when our economy opens up, women can participate fully by being in their workplaces and not bearing the undue burdens of child care.

I am a mother. I have two children, who are awesome, and I can say that child care is something we all need to be looking at. It is very important to me that we look at it as a child care act, not something that we allow the provinces to run themselves, but something that we have strings attached to.

[Anita Vandenbeld, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of National Defence]

Madam Chair, it is a pleasure to be here today to speak about our government's response during the COVID-19 pandemic and how we are working to support the reopening of the economy, including the steps we took right here this week to move forward with a redesigned Canada emergency wage subsidy.

Obviously, the COVID-19 pandemic is one of the greatest challenges we will face in our lifetime. This is an unprecedented crisis, and our government has been working tirelessly to protect jobs and stabilize the economy to ensure that our businesses can prepare for better days and to provide come certainty to the workers and families who depend on the jobs at those businesses in these extremely uncertain times.

Our government has put in place a rapid and substantial COVID-19 economic response plan that is supporting Canadians and Canadian businesses and working hard to leave no one behind. We did this to ensure that Canada is well positioned to recover as public health conditions allow. Since March, the government has been taking actions through the COVID-19 economic response plan to support Canadians and their families in this very difficult time. The economic response plan is providing broad-based support that is keeping our economy stable and protecting jobs.

Canada's COVID-19 economic response plan includes more than $230 billion in measures to protect the health and safety of Canadians and provide direct support to Canadian workers and businesses including liquidity support through tax and customs duty deferrals. This represents nearly 14% of Canada's GDP, making Canada's plan one of the most generous response plans in the world. The supports our government has put in place are making sure Canadians can pay their mortgages or rent, put food on the table and fill prescriptions. They help our workplaces remain in business during this time of incredible uncertainty.

Last week, the Prime Minister announced the safe restart agreement, supported by over $19 billion in federal investments, to help the provinces and territories restart the economy over the months ahead while making Canada more resilient to possible future waves of the virus. We have already made major funding announcements and will continue to do so in many areas, including health care, child care and municipal services.

A pillar of our government's support has been the Canada emergency wage subsidy. The Canada emergency wage subsidy provides qualified employers with a subsidy for remuneration paid to employees. The CEWS protects jobs by helping businesses keep employees on their payroll and encourages employers to rehire the workers who were previously laid off. To date, this program has supported nearly three million workers.

Bold and ambitious programs like the Canada emergency wage subsidy are one of the key reasons Canada has stayed strong through this crisis. Measures like this one have been crucial to preventing worse outcomes. Without this support, millions might have lost their jobs and businesses would have lost workers. The important connection between an employer and employee would have been severed, leaving our businesses in a worse-off position and slow to recover, and leaving Canadians with uncertainty about whether, as things improve, they would have jobs to go back to.

Throughout this crisis, our government has actively monitored the situation and remained ready to adjust programs to meet the evolving needs of this unprecedented crisis. That has included input from all 338 members of Parliament in the House.

In support of this objective, yesterday the House voted in favour of Bill C-20, which would see a redesign of the Canada emergency wage subsidy. The redesign takes into account the valuable perspective gained through our government's recent consultations with business leaders and labour representatives on how this program can best serve the needs of employers and employees as the economy restarts. Bill C-20 would extend the program beyond our originally announced extension of August 29, extending it to November 21, 2020, with the intent of providing further support into December.

The bill would also make the wage subsidy more accessible by making the base subsidy available to all eligible employers that are experiencing a decline in revenues, no matter how much. As I heard from a number of businesses in my riding, we had to make things more flexible, especially as they are beginning to open up and some are starting to make revenue again. By removing the 30% revenue decline threshold, we will also be able to support businesses that have been receiving the subsidy as they are returning to growth.

Our government recognizes that this virus is still with us and that economic recovery will be a gradual process. We want to make sure that no employer feels the need to choose between getting the support that they need and returning to growth.

With the bill, we are also proposing to introduce a top-up subsidy for the most adversely affected employers. This would help make the Canada emergency wage subsidy more responsive, with those who have had the largest decline getting more support and those who are recovering having gradual decreases as business picks up.

By reducing disincentives to create jobs and increasing revenues over the summer and into the fall, the redesign of the Canada emergency wage subsidy will support a strong restart for Canadians and employers.

I would now like to speak about other measures that we have put in place to provide support to Canadians during this unprecedented pandemic.

The Canada emergency response benefit has been a crucial lifeline for millions of Canadian families. More than eight million Canadians have applied for this support. It has made sure that in the face of a historic emergency, Canadians have had the money for essentials. In my constituency, some Canadians were not able to buy healthy, nutritious food for their children because they had lost all sources of income. The fact that we were able to make this more flexible as we went along, so that people making less than $1,000 who could not make ends meet were able to get the benefit, is a testament to the hard work of the members of the House.

We have also put in place a number of other measures to help families during this challenging time. Families received a special Canada child benefit top-up payment of $300 per child in May. I want to take a moment to remind families that beginning July 20, which is this week, we are increasing the CCB once again, as we do every year. We have also supported 12 million low- and modest-income families with a special payment through the goods and services tax credit. The average additional benefit was close to $400 for single individuals and close to $600 for couples, which helped a number of families in the initial stages to deal with the extra costs they had because of this pandemic.

The COVID-19 crisis has left many homeowners in Canada without a job or with reduced hours wondering how they are going to pay their mortgage. Homeowners facing financial stress have been eligible for a mortgage payment deferral of up to six months to relieve their financial burden. In addition, with the bill, we are proposing to support an estimated 1.7 million Canadians with disabilities, through a one-time, tax-free payment of $600 to assist with the additional expenses that they are facing in this pandemic. I want to thank all members for working so hard to make sure this will happen.

The government continues to assess the impact of COVID-19. As we have said since the start of this crisis, we stand ready to take additional actions if necessary.

This week, this House has taken measures to ensure that Canadians receive timely help, thereby ensuring that our economy opens up again in a safe and effective manner.

Together we will get through this. Together, by working with provinces, municipalities and across all parties, we will be able to help Canadians get through the crisis. As the crisis eventually and gradually dissipates, we will be in a better position to rebound and build a stronger country.

[Cathay Wagantall, Conservative, Yorkton—Melville, SK]

Madam Chair, there are a couple of areas here that my constituents have talked to me about, in large numbers, and that the member has not commented on today.

One, they are very thankful for the help provided to Canadians because the economy was shut down. It has been crucial, there is no question about that, but they are incredibly aware that it will need to be paid back. Although they are receiving the help now, that help means that, at some future date, they are going to be on the ground paying the taxes, paying the expenses to return us to a healthier environment. That is the first thing I would mention.

Second, the other question I get asked a great deal is this: Why did the government not respond sooner? We know today, again, that it has been revealed that our Canadian Forces Intelligence Command informed the government on January 17 that we were facing a crisis. The government group did not even meet until 10 days later to begin to respond. What would have happened, I am asked, if our borders had been closed immediately and international travel had been shut down? Would we be facing the circumstances we are facing today?

[Anita Vandenbeld, Liberal, Ottawa West—Nepean, ON]

Madam Chair, I would like to thank my hon. colleague for both of those questions.

On the issue of paying back, we have taken on these programs as a government so that individual families do not face the crushing kind of debt they would have faced if they did not have these programs. Those families that are getting the CERB, that are getting the wage subsidy, would have had to dig into their credit cards and borrow significant amounts just to be able to make ends meet. This is something that is incredibly important. We all know, as a country, that these are unprecedented times, but we went into this crisis with a very strong economy. Our primary goal right now is making sure that the connection between the worker and the employer is there, that those jobs are going to be there as the health crisis improves, so that our economy can improve significantly as well.

To respond to the member's other question, the Canadian Armed Forces receives regular intelligence briefings about any threat that could affect either the Canadian Forces or Canadians. These are shared as they need to be. Obviously, we cannot comment on specific individual intelligence briefings, but these are all shared, and these are things that we act on. I am very proud that we have incredibly good intelligence and we have very good information, which is shared with the whole of government, and this is one of the things we are able to do to keep Canadians safe.

[Christine Normandin, Bloc, Saint-Jean, QC]

Madam Chair, my colleague spoke a lot about the wage subsidy. I would like her thoughts on other suggestions that the Bloc made to help businesses.

I am thinking about the SMEs back home that do not necessarily have a large payroll. Sometimes there is a single owner, no other employee. Sometimes these same people also own their work space. They do not have access to rent support.

What does my colleague think of the Bloc's suggestion of creating a business support program for fixed costs?

[Anita Vandenbeld, Liberal, Ottawa West—Nepean, ON]

Madam Chair, I thank my colleague for her very important question.

In my riding, business owners are constantly calling to ask about this. It may not be about the wage subsidy, but there are other programs.

There are the loans we are providing to businesses: the $40,000 loans, of which $10,000 can be given back to the business. We have made liquidity very available in our economy. We have worked with the provinces on the commercial rent subsidy, which has not necessarily worked as well as we wanted it to, but we are still working with provinces to make sure that it is working. I think the most important thing is that we have been listening and have been working very closely with parliamentary colleagues on all sides of the House. As we have seen, these programs have adapted and changed over time, and of course we remain open to all ideas from all members of this House.

[Heather McPherson, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

Madam Chair, I would like to thank the member for her comments and the tireless work that she does for her constituents in Ottawa.

I have a quick question for her. As much as we have seen the CERB help so many Canadians across the country, of course I would have preferred a more universal system. When will we know what the government's plan is, going forward, with regard to the CERB program? It is set to expire in August, and I just want to know if we expect our constituents to wait until the very last minute to find out what that looks like, or whether we will be able to hear sooner what the plans are to continue the CERB to help those people who have not been able to recover yet from COVID-19.

[Anita Vandenbeld, Liberal, Ottawa West—Nepean, ON]

Madam Chair, we know this pandemic is unpredictable. When we left this place in March, many of us thought we would be back in three weeks or four weeks. We have to ensure that our programs are adapting and that we are listening to Canadians. I can assure Canadians that we are not going to leave people in the lurch. We are not going to leave people who have no possibility of finding employment and cannot even buy groceries. I can reassure Canadians of that.

We also know that things could improve more quickly or less quickly than we anticipate. As the health crisis starts to hopefully improve, we have to be cognizant of a potential second wave. People want to go back to work. I know many families that want this. I truly believe that if businesses are able to open up, people want to be contributing. We need to ensure that is a possibility as well.

We have seen throughout this crisis that as people are suffering, and there is a tremendous amount of suffering, the government has been here every step of the way, listening to all members, responding and ensuring Canadians have the supports they need. I assure the member that we will all be fighting hard for our constituents to ensure they continue to have the support they need as we rebuild our economy.

[Jenica Atwin, Green, Fredericton, NB]

Madam Chair, our chamber of commerce in Fredericton held a webinar with the Minister of Economic Development. She mentioned the process of dealing with COVID-19 as stopping the bleeding, sewing up the wound and then healing. I feel like we have done a pretty good job of stopping the bleeding. We have incredible programs in place now. We have made some tweaks and improvements, which is what I would call sewing up those wounds.

What does the member believe would be the best way to support this next stage of healing for which Canadians are looking?

[Anita Vandenbeld, Liberal, Ottawa West—Nepean, ON]

Madam Chair, my hon. colleague's incredibly important question is one that almost all Canadians are now starting to ask themselves. That is precisely why we have the wage subsidy. The changes we made with Bill C-20 are specifically to ensure that as businesses are starting to reopen, maybe not fully, the connection between the worker and the employer is kept and those businesses can gradually—

[John Brassard, Conservative, Barrie—Innisfil, ON]

It's only a matter of time.

[The Assistant Deputy Chair (Mrs. Alexandra Mendès), Liberal, Alexandra Mendes]

Order, please. Would the hon. member for Barrie—Innisfil please respect the member who is speaking.