Debates of Nov. 29th, 2021

The Economy

[Melissa Lantsman, Conservative, Thornhill, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the cost of everything is increasing. The government's printing of cash is unceasing. Too many dollars chasing too few goods makes life more expensive in our neighbourhoods. Inflation in the throne speech had only one single mention.

I will try this rhyme to get the government's attention:

Families from coast to coast are struggling,
The ballooning costs of everything they are barely juggling.
Business groups are looking for the government to tap the brakes on spending,
Our economic recovery is in jeopardy and the tab is never-ending.
Maybe they do not know; maybe they do not care,
For all of this, the government has no justification,
After all, to them this is just inflation.

Hanukkah

[Ya'ara Saks, Liberal, York Centre, ON]

Mr. Speaker, in my riding of York Centre and in communities across Canada and around the world, Jewish families are celebrating the festival of lights. It is a story of resilience and triumph against oppression. This year I am reminded of the dedication of our community, which has given up so much to love and protect the vulnerable and the elderly during these challenging times.

Hanukkah teaches us never to underestimate the power of a handful of dedicated people to change the world. Inspired by faith and perseverance then and so too today, the story of Hanukkah celebrates the faith and traditions of the Jewish people over centuries, a shining light of what freedom and diversity can and should look like in our society today. Diversity is a fact in our lives here in Canada. Inclusivity is a choice we make each and every day. It is a time to spread light and hope to everyone, and to keep the ruach, the spirit, of Hanukkah growing candle by candle each night.

On behalf of all of my constituents, I would like to wish all members of the House and all Canadians Chag urim sameach. Happy Hanukkah.

The Economy

[Candice Bergen, Conservative, Portage—Lisgar, MB]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians are watching the price of everything go up while the Liberals have been denying that their policies would cause inflation. However, by the end of last week, the finance minister was calling inflation a “crisis”. She does not think that the Liberals are responsible for it. It is almost like she is printing money so that she never runs out of bucks to pass.

If the finance minister and the Prime Minister believe that this is a crisis, what is she prepared to do to deal with it?

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, the member opposite would have Canadians believe that inflation is a made-in-Canada problem, but experts agree that this is an international challenge that all of our peer countries are facing too. In fact, last week, even the Leader of the Opposition admitted that rising inflation is “a global phenomenon”.

I therefore have a question to offer for the member opposite. Who is the real voice of economic policy for the Conservatives, the Leader of the Opposition or the deputy leader or maybe the member for Carleton?

[Candice Bergen, Conservative, Portage—Lisgar, MB]

Mr. Speaker, let me take the finance minister back to a meeting that she had just this Friday with Canada's most senior economist, and maybe she would want to ask them some questions and take their advice.

Most of them agreed that the government is making the inflation problem worse. In fact, BMO chief economist Doug Porter said, “I think at the margin there are some things fiscal policy can do,” which is the federal government's responsibility, “and that's basically to take the foot off the accelerator.”

What that economist was saying is that the government is contributing to the crisis, so take responsibility. What are the Liberals going to do?

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to quote another economist I respect very much, and I think Stephen Harper respected him too because Prime Minister Harper appointed him to be Governor of the Bank of Canada.

Stephen Poloz was asked in a weekend TV show whether he thought Canadian government spending was the cause of inflation. He was unequivocal. His answer was “I think that's not right.”

He is right; the Conservatives are wrong.

[Candice Bergen, Conservative, Portage—Lisgar, MB]

Mr. Speaker, what the finance minister is saying, then, is that the government has absolutely no control and has no ability to deal with inflation in this country. That is a big F right off the start; it is a fail for the government.

I believe the chief economists and experts in this country. What is the government going to do? Will the Liberals at least admit that they are in government and should have an answer for inflation? Are they going to do anything or just throw up their hands and say, “Not our problem. Too bad everybody. Keep paying high costs because the Liberals don't care.”

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, let me further quote Governor Poloz, an economist respected by all Canadians. He was asked whether the support we offered at the height of the COVID recession was the right thing to do. He said, “what the stimulus did was to keep the economy from going into a deep hole in which we would have experienced persistent deflation.... Read a book or two about the Great Depression in the 1930s and realize what was averted when we went through this.”

We know we did the right thing. Let me quote the Governor and urge the Conservatives to read a book or two and understand that.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship

[Alain Rayes, Conservative, Richmond—Arthabaska, QC]

Mr. Speaker, our entrepreneurs, our job creators, are on their last legs. In April and June, I personally wrote to the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship with ideas for solutions to help our businesses, which are hurting because of the severe labour shortage. It has been seven months, and nothing has been done to fix this problem.

When will the Prime Minister get to work and put forward concrete solutions to the labour shortage problem affecting every business across the country?

[Marco Mendicino, Liberal, Minister of Public Safety]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his question.

Those of us on this side of the House believe that immigration creates long-term jobs and prosperity. That is why we are working with the Government of Quebec. We have already kept our promises. This year, we set an unprecedented target for temporary foreign workers. This is the right approach, so we will keep going in this direction with the Government of Quebec.

[Alain Rayes, Conservative, Richmond—Arthabaska, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the minister can say whatever he wants, but on the official Immigration Canada website, it says that they are behind. It says in black and white that they are now processing 2019 applications. In one month it will be 2022. Businesses need help now, they need the means to address the labour shortage problem now.

When will the government get to work and offer real solutions?

[Marco Mendicino, Liberal, Minister of Public Safety]

Mr. Speaker, this is not just about words, it is about action. As I have said before, we have historic levels of immigration, not just in Quebec but across Canada. It is good for the economy and it is good for the long-term prosperity of our country, and we are going to continue to work closely with all the provinces, even Quebec, to follow the course.

The Environment

[Alain Therrien, Bloc, La Prairie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the commissioner of the environment slammed the Liberals' record on climate change.

Since they took office, the commissioner said, and I quote, “Canada...has become the worst performer of all G7 nations”. Nevertheless, the government is still subsidizing oil companies so that they can increase production—but in the hopes that they will do so in a cleaner way.

What a smart bunch. They are still trying to put out the fire with a flame-thrower. Will the government finally figure out that we need to put a cap on fossil energy?

[Steven Guilbeault, Liberal, Minister of Environment and Climate Change]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my distinguished colleague for his question.

However, I would invite him to read very carefully the report from the commissioner of the environment and sustainable development, which clearly shows that his analysis pertains to the years before our government took office. The commissioner himself acknowledged that he did not look at the some 100 measures we put in place in our 2016 and 2020 action plans, namely, the $100 billion or so that we invested in recent years.

I look forward to seeing the environment commissioner's next report, which we hope will focus on the measures that we have implemented to reduce pollution in Canada.

[Alain Therrien, Bloc, La Prairie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, this is the only government that has increased its greenhouse gas emissions since 2015, so it is in no position to lecture anyone.

If the government's plan were as good as my colleague claims, fossil fuel companies would not be celebrating. The Canadian Association of Energy Contractors was happy to announce last Tuesday that no fewer than 1,363 new wells would be drilled in 2022. That is an increase of 25% over this year. They are literally popping the champagne, and all this comes barely two weeks after COP26.

Can the government at least warn the industry that 1,363 new wells is a very bad idea?

[Steven Guilbeault, Liberal, Minister of Environment and Climate Change]

Mr. Speaker, I would remind my colleague that we already have one of the highest carbon prices in the world. In terms of carbon pricing, we have surpassed Quebec, California and British Columbia, and we will surpass Europe in 2022.

Of all the countries in the world, especially oil- and gas-producing countries, Canada has the highest target for reducing emissions of methane, a very potent greenhouse gas. We have also decided to cap greenhouse gas emissions from the oil and gas sector, which no other oil-producing country has done so far.

Health

[Don Davies, NDP, Vancouver Kingsway, BC]

Mr. Speaker, no one is protected from COVID-19 until everyone is protected. The omicron variant makes this clear. For months, health experts, the WHO and New Democrats urged the government to ensure vaccines are available around the world. This is not just for equity reasons, but because it is essential to keep Canadians safe from new COVID variants. Not only did Liberals ignore this advice, but also they opposed developing countries manufacturing vaccines for their own citizens.

Will the Liberals stop defending big pharma and start protecting Canadians?

[Harjit S. Sajjan, Liberal, Minister of International Development and Minister responsible for the Pacific Economic Development Agency of Canada]

Mr. Speaker, the COVID‑19 pandemic does not recognize borders and will be overcome only through coordinated global action. We have been very clear from the start that no one is safe until everyone is. We committed to donate the equivalent of at least 200 million COVID‑19 vaccine doses to the COVAX facility by the end of 2022. We have committed over $2.6 billion in the global COVID‑19 response since February 2020 and have made an additional $1 billion available for the International Monetary Fund in related donations.

[Niki Ashton, NDP, Churchill—Keewatinook Aski, MB]

Mr. Speaker, the emergence of a new COVID variant is a serious reminder that, as long as the virus continues to spread, it could become more dangerous. The solution is to ensure that the entire planet is vaccinated. Canada can help achieve this, but instead prefers to protect big pharma. A Canadian company is even prepared to export vaccines to Bolivia, but the government is stopping it from doing so. When will the Liberals temporarily waive COVID vaccine patents to help everyone fight the pandemic?

[François-Philippe Champagne, Liberal, Minister of Innovation]

Mr. Speaker, I would first like to thank my hon. colleague for her important question. As members of the House know, from the beginning, we have been strong advocates for equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines around the world, specifically through the COVAX system. That is why we will continue to work with our international partners to overcome potential barriers. We are also leading an initiative within the Ottawa Group to make these vaccines available to people around the world. We will continue to play a leadership role in ensuring that vaccines can reach every citizen on the planet.

Housing

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Carleton, ON]

Mr. Speaker, 27-year-old José of Greely called me on Friday from his parents' basement. I see the Liberals are laughing about that. He cannot afford a home. He has a job, the same job his mother had in fact, but while her family could afford a two-acre lot and a nice property to raise the kids, he cannot even afford a condo.

He wants to know why, during COVID, while wages were down and immigration was next to zero, housing prices rose under the current Liberal minister by 22%. Can she tell José why, according to Bloomberg, Canada has the second-worst housing bubble in the world?

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, let me talk about some of the very specific ways our government is helping Canadians with the very real challenge of affordability. A single parent with two children will receive $13,600 from the Canada child benefit. The average family in Saskatchewan will get almost $1,000 from the carbon price rebate. Seniors received an extra $500 this summer. A student will save more than $3,000 through our plan to eliminate federal interest on student and apprentice loans.

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Carleton, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the problem for José is he cannot start a family without a house and he cannot get a house because, under the current minister, housing prices are up 20%, led by increases in land prices. We cannot blame land prices on supply chains, because land does not have supply chains.

The reality is this. We have the second-biggest land mass in the world and the second-biggest housing bubble on planet earth, with only New Zealand, an island in the South Pacific, having more expensive housing. Can the minister please explain why, under her short tenure as finance minister, housing prices are up 22%?

[Ahmed Hussen, Liberal, Minister of Housing and Diversity and Inclusion]

Mr. Speaker, it is very rich for the hon. member to talk about housing. When he was in office, his government invested just $250 million a year on affordable housing—

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!