Debates of March 9th, 2021

Natural Resources

[Erin O'Toole, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, we are two months from Michigan's May 12 deadline for Line 5. Government officials said it was their preference to have Enbridge fight for Line 5 before they had to get involved. The minister even said the government did not have a formal analysis of how many jobs were at risk.

What is it going to take for the government to stand up for Line 5?

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

Mr. Speaker, our government is standing up for Line 5. We know that it is a vital source of fuel for homes and businesses on both sides of the border. We support its continued safe operation and we are advocating for that. We are explaining, as we did during the NAFTA negotiations, that Canada is a safe and reliable supplier of energy to the United States.

[Erin O'Toole, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, it is more than just fuel; it is thousands of jobs in Ontario. The Deputy Prime Minister forgets about jobs in southwestern Ontario. Canada's ambassador to the U.S. said that discussions have broken down between Enbridge and the Government of Michigan, but the government's plan still seems to be to let Enbridge stand up for the jobs of Canadians while it sits on the sidelines.

How much longer will the thousands of Canadian workers the Deputy Prime Minister just forgot about have to wait before they have someone standing up for their jobs?

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

Mr. Speaker, as our government demonstrated during the NAFTA negotiations, and as we demonstrate every day during the COVID pandemic with our support for Canadian workers and Canadian jobs, we will never forget about Canadian workers. We will never forget about Canadian jobs, whether they are in southwestern Ontario or anywhere else in the country.

Line 5 continues to operate and supply refineries in Canada and the United States, and we are going to continue to fight for Line 5.

Small Business

[Erin O'Toole, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, speaking of thousands more forgotten by the government, 58,000 small businesses have closed due to COVID-19. Only half of the small businesses in the entire country are fully open and less than 40% have full staffing levels. Small businesses are the backbone of our economy and the Liberals have no real plan for their futures.

As main streets across Canada go dark, when are Canadians going to get a real plan to save small business?

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

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives need to pick a lane. Last spring, when asked about what support the government should offer Canadians, the member for Carleton said: “You might want to address [COVID-19] with big, fat government programs. We're Conservatives, so we don't believe in that.” However, today the Conservatives are calling for support measures that our government actually created last year.

The Conservative leader cannot seem to decide what he believes in and seems ready to say anything to score cheap political points. We believe in supporting Canadian workers and Canadian businesses, and we are going to keep on doing that.

[Erin O'Toole, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, the last time the Liberal government tabled a budget was in March 2019, meaning it has gone two years without a budget and has continued to spend money with no plan and no oversight.

When will the Prime Minister come up with a plan for our spending and for an economic recovery in every sector and every region?

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

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives need to pick a lane.

Last spring, when asked what type of support the government should be providing to Canadians, the hon. member for Carleton said: “You might want to address [COVID-19] with big, fat government programs. We're Conservatives, so we don't believe in that.”

Our government understands that we must support businesses and workers. It is time for the Conservatives to explain what they believe in.

[Erin O'Toole, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, nearly 60,000 small and medium-sized businesses have closed because of COVID-19. Only half of our small businesses are fully open, and more than 60% have let employees go. Small and medium-sized businesses are the backbone of our economy. They are in crisis, and they need a plan for the future.

Where is that plan?

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

Mr. Speaker, I thank the leader of the official opposition for that question because it gives me an opportunity to point out the Conservatives' cynicism and hypocrisy.

Yesterday, they voted against a bill that would support urgent financial assistance for small businesses. Today, however, they claim they support small businesses. Their actions belie that claim.

Health

[Alain Therrien, Bloc, La Prairie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, since the mandatory hotel quarantine went into effect, there has been a drop in the number of travellers returning by air. Oddly, at the same time, there has been a rise in people arriving at land borders.

That is because everyone has realized that it is possible to get around the rules. People fly to Burlington, take a bus or their car, cross the border, save $2,000 and return home without being subject to the mandatory quarantine. That is outrageous.

Why not apply the same rules to all non-essential travellers?

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

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

Canada has one of the strictest border control systems in the world. It is necessary. It is the right thing to do because we understand that we must protect Canadians against COVID-19. Furthermore, we have also protected essential trade between Canada and the United States. That is also important. We should all be proud of these two essential steps we have taken.

[Alain Therrien, Bloc, La Prairie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the minister did not answer my question, but that is okay, I will try again.

By creating two sets of rules, one for air travellers and another for land travellers, the government is only taking business away from airports. The fact that hotel quarantines can be avoided by crossing land borders is so widely known that some companies are even openly offering this particular service to non-essential travellers. Circumventing the rules has literally become a commercialized service.

Does the government at least realize what a laughingstock it has become?

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

Mr. Speaker, Canada's travel and border measures are among the strictest in the world.

With the new variants, we know that we need to take additional measures to protect Canadians against COVID-19. That is what we did.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, we have made it quite clear that no one should be travelling because that could endanger the traveller and those close to them.

Small Business

[Jagmeet Singh, NDP, Burnaby South, BC]

Mr. Speaker, small businesses have been hit hard by the pandemic. They worry that they will have to close their doors.

The Liberal government gave $750 billion to help and support the big banks, but there is no plan to help small businesses. Limiting credit card fees could help small businesses. Will the Prime Minister limit credit card fees to help small businesses?

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

Mr. Speaker, I must say that I agree with the hon. member and leader of the NDP that it is very important to help small and medium-sized businesses. That is what our government is doing.

That is why we urgently need to adopt Bill C-14. I want to thank all hon. members who joined us and supported this urgent and important bill.

Credit card fees are also an important issue and we are looking into it.

[Jagmeet Singh, NDP, Burnaby South, BC]

Mr. Speaker, last week I spent time with small businesses in B.C. They are worried and afraid that they will have to shut down their businesses and never open again.

We saw the Liberal government move very quickly early in the pandemic to give nearly $750 billion of support to big banks, but there is no clear plan specifically for small business. A limit on credit card fees would help small businesses. They have said so.

Will the Prime Minister cap credit card fees at 1% to help small businesses in this difficult time?

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

Mr. Speaker, let me start by saying that our government agrees with the leader of the NDP that it is absolutely essential to support small businesses. That is why I would like to call on all members of the House to join us in supporting Bill C-14. Small businesses need it.

Let me say that we are here for small businesses, and let me point to just one program, the CEBA. Over 842,000 small businesses across the country have received CEBA loans as of March 4. Credit card fees are another important issue that we are looking at closely.

The Economy

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Carleton, ON]

Mr. Speaker, Dr. Richard Audas, a health statistician and economist at Memorial University, has published a COVID misery index, and the results for Canada are, well, miserable. In fact, Canada ranks 11th because of the government's poor performance on the health and economic side.

With the worst deficit, the worst unemployment and the worst vaccination rates in the G7, why is the government so miserable?

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

Mr. Speaker, I cannot speak for the misery on the other side of the House, but let me just say that on our side of the House, we are so grateful to Canadians for their hard work and resilience. Thanks to that hard work and the strong support from our government, let me share the great news with the House that in the fourth quarter of last year, our GDP grew by nearly 10%. That is higher than that of the U.S., the U.K., France, Germany or Italy. Well done team Canada.

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Carleton, ON]

Mr. Speaker, there are excellent grades for Canadians but terrible grades for the government. In the last quarter of the year, the Liberals had far more ground to make up because our economic downfall was far greater. In fact, after all the quarters are done, Canada still has the highest unemployment in the G7, which the Deputy Prime Minister and the Prime Minister have long said is the best measurement to determine the job market.

Now an independent scientific study shows that Canada has the highest COVID misery index out of 11 countries. We rank 11th out of 15, even worse than the United States. Why such miserable results?

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

Mr. Speaker, let me urge the member opposite to take a closer look at the international data. Canada has a higher labour force participation rate, at 64.3%, which is a higher rate than Germany, the U.S. and Japan. Canada has recovered 71% of the jobs lost in the wake of the pandemic. That compares with just 56% in the U.S.

Again, let me thank hard-working Canadian small businesses and hard-working Canadians. They are so resilient, and our government will be here to support them for as long as it takes.

[Ed Fast, Conservative, Abbotsford, BC]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday, it was reported that the minister will not be tabling a federal budget this month. For over 700 days Canadians have been left without a plan for our economy. Canada is suffering from the worst unemployment in the G7 after spending the most among the major advanced economies.

Tourism, hospitality, charities and thousands of other small businesses are calling out for help. Is the minister listening? When will she finally table a budget for all to see?

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

Mr. Speaker, our government is definitely listening to Canadians, and I would like to thank the Canadians who submitted 58,000 written submissions in our pre-budget consultations. I would like to take this opportunity to ask the Conservatives whether they are listening to small business and whether they heard Dan Kelly, who said, “Bill C-14 has some important measures for small business.... CFIB urges all parties to ensure this support is passed quickly”.

Let me echo Mr. Kelly and urge the Conservatives to stop playing partisan games and support small business with a vote.

[Ed Fast, Conservative, Abbotsford, BC]

Mr. Speaker, that is really cute because I have met with Mr. Kelly three times in the last month. It is utterly irresponsible for the Liberal government to go two full years without tabling a budget for Canadians to see. That is the longest period in Canadian history without an economic plan. Without a plan, we cannot reopen our economy, cannot get Canadians back to work and cannot help the hardest hit businesses to survive.

It has been two years. What is the date for the budget, or is the minister even listening?