Debates of May 26th, 2021

Finance—Main Estimates, 2021-22

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, University—Rosedale, ON]

Madam Chair, the interpretation problems may be related to the fact that it is hard for the interpreters to follow us. I thank them for their work.

No one has been abandoned in our budget.

[Luc Berthold, Conservative, Mégantic—L'Érable, QC]

Madam Chair, does the minister believe that pensioners under 75 have fewer expenses and more means than those who are older?

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, University—Rosedale, ON]

Madam Chair, I believe and I know that people who are 75 and up are older, so it makes sense that they would have greater needs.

[Luc Berthold, Conservative, Mégantic—L'Érable, QC]

Madam Chair, that is like saying it is light out in the daytime.

Can the minister tell us what the inflation rate is right now in Canada?

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, University—Rosedale, ON]

Madam Chair, that is correct, it is exactly like saying it is light out in the daytime, and that is why our program is clear and correct.

[Luc Berthold, Conservative, Mégantic—L'Érable, QC]

Madam Chair, can the minister tell us what the inflation rate is right now in Canada?

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, University—Rosedale, ON]

Madam Chair, if the member has questions about inflation and interest rates, I want to assure him that we have a prudent program to manage the country's debt.

[Luc Berthold, Conservative, Mégantic—L'Érable, QC]

Madam Chair, I would just like to point out that the minister is taking twice as much time to answer as I do to ask a question.

What is the Bank of Canada's inflation target?

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, University—Rosedale, ON]

Madam Chair, I greatly respect the independence of the Bank of Canada, which made an important announcement last week.

I do not wish to make a comment.

[Luc Berthold, Conservative, Mégantic—L'Érable, QC]

Madam Chair, can the minister tell us what the inflation rate is right now in Canada?

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, University—Rosedale, ON]

Madam Chair, I would like to add a comment to the previous question. The Conservatives may think it a good thing to question the independence of the Bank of Canada, but that is not our position.

[Luc Berthold, Conservative, Mégantic—L'Érable, QC]

Madam Chair, could the minister, who does not know that inflation is at 3.4% in Canada and that the Bank of Canada's inflation target is 2%, tell us whether she agrees that inflation is costing Canadians a lot of money?

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, University—Rosedale, ON]

Madam Chair, if the member has questions or concerns about inflation and debt, I think it is important to explain to him that our government has a prudent debt management strategy. The government—

[The Assistant Deputy Chair, Liberal, Alexandra Mendes]

The hon. member for Mégantic—L’Érable.

[Luc Berthold, Conservative, Mégantic—L'Érable, QC]

Madam Chair, why did the minister personally approve a higher cost of living for all Canadians by ignoring the fact that the cost of almost everything is going up? That is making the lives of Canadians more and more difficult.

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, University—Rosedale, ON]

Madam Chair, it is important to explain to Canadians that the federal government's share of long-term bond issuance increased to about 29% in 2020. We are now proposing to increase that to 40%—

[The Assistant Deputy Chair, Liberal, Alexandra Mendes]

The hon. member for Mégantic—L’Érable.

[Luc Berthold, Conservative, Mégantic—L'Érable, QC]

Madam Chair, did the minister personally approve the Prime Minister's decision not to increase health transfers to the provinces?

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, University—Rosedale, ON]

Madam Chair, if the member thinks it is important to support the provincial and territorial health care systems, then he must support our Bill C-30, which includes $4 billion for the health care systems of the provinces and territories.

[Luc Berthold, Conservative, Mégantic—L'Érable, QC]

Madam Chair, would it be correct to say that population aging, particularly in Quebec, will send health care costs skyrocketing in the coming years?

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, University—Rosedale, ON]

Madam Chair, once again, if the member thinks that supporting the health care system is important, the budget also earmarks $1 billion to support vaccination campaigns in the provinces and territories. That is one more reason to support the budget.

[Luc Berthold, Conservative, Mégantic—L'Érable, QC]

Madam Chair, did the minister attach conditions to the increase in health care funding?

Did the Minister of Finance herself agree not to compensate supply-managed producers for the Canada-United States-Mexico free trade agreement in her budget?

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, University—Rosedale, ON]

Madam Chair, the budget contains a lot of support measures for farmers across the country. This support was necessary, and we have provided it.

[Annie Koutrakis, Liberal, Vimy, QC]

Madam Chair, I am pleased to be able to speak to the committee of the whole about the actions of the government. I will be speaking for approximately eight minutes and will be following with a couple of questions, hopefully, for the Minister of Middle Class Prosperity and Associate Minister of Finance.

Budget 2021 is a historic document. It is the first budget tabled by a female Minister of Finance. It is also a document that sets an ambitious path for this country for the years to come, while healing the economic wounds of the past year. We cannot go back and alter the destruction the pandemic has wrought on our lives and on our economies, but we can do our best to ensure a better future by laying down the foundations for a resilient and inclusive recovery. I would like to outline the measures that budget 2021 would enact to create jobs and particularly help low-wage workers.

The burden that COVID-19 has placed on low-wage workers cannot be overstated, and the past year has shown how much everyone relies on the important work that many of these workers do. It is a sad reality that the worst economic impacts of the pandemic have been suffered by those who could least afford it. Low-wage workers have been up to six times more likely to suffer layoffs than higher-income Canadians. Many of these workers are young people, new Canadians, visible minorities and women. Many Canadians are struggling to get by while supporting families through part-time, temporary and low-wage jobs.

To support low-wage workers in the federally regulated private sector, budget 2021 proposes to introduce legislation that will establish a federal minimum wage of $15 per hour, rising with inflation. This would directly benefit more than 26,000 workers. To support low-wage workers who have been most negatively affected by the pandemic and make our workforce stronger, budget 2021 proposes to expand the Canada workers benefit to support about one million additional Canadians in low-wage jobs, helping them return to work and increasing benefits for Canada's most vulnerable populations. This important measure would raise the income level at which the benefit starts being reduced for single individuals without children and for families.

As we all know, the Canada emergency wage subsidy was one measure that kept businesses afloat during the crisis and enabled them to keep paying their employees when revenues took a nosedive. The program has helped more than 5.3 million Canadians keep their jobs. It is set to expire in June 2021, but if we want to bridge Canadians through the rest of the crisis, continued support is needed.

To give workers and employers certainty and stability over the coming months, budget 2021 proposes to extend the wage subsidy until September 25, 2021. Extending this support means that millions of jobs will continue to be protected.

The budget also puts forward a new program, the Canada recovery hiring program, which would provide an alternative support for businesses affected by the pandemic to help them hire more workers as the economy reopens.

The government also plans to take action to help the workforce grow and meet demand by helping employers train and reskill workers.

To help Canadians gain skills for good jobs in growing sectors, budget 2021 proposes to invest $960 million over three years for a new sectoral workforce solutions program. This funding would help design and deliver training that is relevant to the needs of businesses, especially small and medium-sized businesses, and to their employees. This investment will help connect 90,000 Canadians with the training they need to access good jobs in sectors where employers are looking for skilled workers.

This measure will also help diversify sectors by ensuring that 40% of supported workers are from under-represented groups, including women, persons with disabilities and indigenous people.

Some 45% of Canadians lack the literacy, numeracy and digital skills that are increasingly necessary to succeed in jobs in the knowledge economy. Budget 2021 proposes to invest $298 million over three years in a new skills for success program that would help Canadians improve their skills. This program would enable approximately 90,000 Canadians to improve their literacy and essential skills to better prepare for, get and keep a job, and adapt and succeed at work.

When the economy reopens many people will return to their previous jobs, but for some, changes in the economy will mean they will need to find new jobs. To address this need and help Canadians find new jobs as quickly and easily as possible, workers need to be able to rapidly adapt and upgrade their transferable skills for newer industries. Budget 2021 proposes to provide $250 million over three years for an initiative to scale up proven industry-led third party delivered approaches to upskill and redeploy workers to meet the needs of growing industries. This initiative will help approximately 15,500 Canadians connect with new work opportunities.

Finally, I would like to add a thought about personal support workers. These individuals perform jobs that are mentally and physically exhausting, but they often do not enjoy the same job protections, compensation and benefits as many of their peers in the health care sector. To follow through on a commitment made in the fall economic statement 2020, budget 2021 proposes to provide funding of $27.6 million over three years for My65+, a group tax-free savings account offered by Service Employees International Union Healthcare. The funding for this portable savings tool will support incentives for worker participation.

The government's economic recovery plan must address the unique challenges of the pandemic recession and must include all Canadians. If we are to have a full and fair recovery, Canada needs all workers to rejoin the workforce and to make sure they earn a decent living so as to generate economic growth and raise the standard of living and quality of life for everyone.

Even before the pandemic, housing costs were rising and were a serious concern for a lot of young Canadians who wanted to buy their first home, including many from my riding.

In 2017, the federal government responded to these concerns by introducing Canada's first-ever national housing strategy to improve the affordability, availability and quality of housing in Canada. It is a vital first step. My constituents have continued to express concerns about the rising cost of housing. Now more than ever, they are counting on our government to do something.

The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated the housing crisis, particularly affecting the most vulnerable Canadians. Unfortunately, this includes women living in dangerous conditions. Members may remember that the House recently held a take-note debate to discuss the disturbing trend of violence against women.

Because of the threat of COVID-19, many people are unable to get into shelters, which further increases the problems faced by homeless Canadians. Budget 2021 aims to continue tackling the housing crisis by investing in new and existing projects.

Can the minister explain how important funding for housing projects is to Canadians and why it is so essential that the federal government take marginalized communities into consideration in its plans?

[Mona Fortier, Liberal, Minister of Middle Class Prosperity and Associate Minister of Finance]

Madam Chair, I want to thank my hon. colleague from Vimy for this crucial question.

The high cost of housing across the country is affecting almost every Canadian. That is exactly why we are taking action on several fronts to alleviate the pressure on low- and modest-income Canadians. For this reason, budget 2021 will invest $2.5 billion and reallocate $1.3 billion in existing funding to speed up the construction, repair or support of 35,000 affordable housing units.

This will also help families, young people, low-income Canadians, people experiencing homelessness, and women and children fleeing violence find a safe and affordable place to call home.

Of this investment, $1.5 billion will be allocated to the rapid housing initiative to build units over the next 12 months. It is important to note that at least 25% of these funds are allocated to and reserved for women-focused housing projects. This investment will add more than 4,500 units to the affordable housing market, building on the 4,700 units we created as part of the $1-billion investment included in the fall economic update.

My hon. colleague also mentioned the importance of helping women fleeing violence. I want to note that budget 2021 provides $315.4 million over seven years, starting in 2021-22, through the Canada housing benefit to increase direct financial assistance for low-income women and children fleeing violence to help with their rent payments.

These measures are in addition to our work to advance a national action plan to end gender-based violence and the budget 2021 proposal to invest $200 billion over two years, starting in 2021-22, to support organizations fighting gender-based violence.

The first-ever national housing strategy guides our government's approach to housing because everyone deserves a safe and affordable place to call home. We will continue this important work that we have just started.