Debates of Oct. 5th, 2022

Taxation

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, the Leader of the Opposition does not seem to understand that clever slogans do not help families. Investments in Canadians help families and cheques help families. That is why we were so pleased when he reversed his earlier opposition to our GST tax credit and is now supporting that direct support for Canadian families. Why will he now not move forward and support our investments to support low-income families with rent and low-income families with dental costs for their kids? Will he support rental and dental for low-income Canadians?

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, feeding people is not a clever slogan; it is a necessity of life.

This family spent $12,645 on carbon taxes in a single month, but it is still not enough for the Prime Minister. He wants to triple the tax, increasing the cost for that farmer, who then has to pass it on to the customer. It means that more of our food will be produced abroad and shipped up here, polluting more of our environment by shipping, training and trucking that food.

Again, will he answer the question? How much will this family have to spend on carbon taxes once he has tripled them?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, I just got back from Atlantic Canada, where people are reeling from the impacts of hurricane Fiona. The reality is that these 100-year storms are going to be arriving with greater and greater frequency. We know that climate change is real and that it takes real plans and supports to fight climate change. That is what we have been working on for the past seven years.

At the same time as we have moved forward with ensuring that it is not free to pollute anywhere in this country, we are putting more money back into average families' pockets with the climate rebate. This is the focus we need to continue to have for Canadians.

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, one, his climate rebate comes nowhere near $12,645 for this farm family. Two, his carbon tax has not hit a single solitary emissions reduction target; it has not worked. Three, in the month of July, when this family was paying $12,645 in his carbon tax, supposedly for the environment, the Prime Minister jumped on his private jet 20 times. It is high-carbon hypocrisy.

If he cannot tell us how much the tax will cost, will he tell us how much carbon he emitted in the month of July when he was raising taxes?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, we do not have to convince Albertans or Saskatchewanians, who have dealt with wildfires, that climate change is real. We do not have to convince British Columbians, who have seen record levels of floods, that climate change is real. We certainly do not have to convince Atlantic Canadians, who are rebuilding after yet another storm of the century, that climate change is real.

People know we need to take action on that, and that is exactly what this government has done by putting a price on pollution to ensure that it is no longer free to pollute anywhere in the country and by giving more money back to families that need it. When is the Conservative leader going to get serious on climate change?

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister has not gotten serious on climate change. He has a tax plan, not a climate plan, that has raised money for his government but has not reduced emissions or hit targets. Now the Prime Minister has the audacity to call this farm family polluters while he jets around in his private jet across the country. The effect of his plan will be to drive up domestic food production costs and drive that production out of our country to more polluting lands where it has to be transported longer distances.

Why does the Prime Minister want to drive prices and emissions up, and farm production and opportunity down?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, if the Leader of the Opposition put as much energy into building a plan to fight climate change as he does into concocting elaborate theories and attacks, we might be better off and might be able to compare a real climate plan from the Conservatives to what the government has been doing for the past seven years. However, he would prefer to focus on me than focus on Canadians and their future.

We are going to stay focused on fighting climate change and putting more money back into Canadians' pockets. That is what Canadians expect. That is what we are going to keep doing.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship

[Yves-François Blanchet, Bloc, Beloeil—Chambly, QC]

Mr. Speaker, Quebeckers voted for a majority government on Monday, a majority the Prime Minister twice fantasized about but failed to even come close to winning.

The Quebec government wants more power in matters of immigration, while some want all immigration powers and others, like us, want to have absolutely all the power, period.

Let us look at the first scenario, more powers in immigration. The Quebec lieutenant said yesterday that Quebec has all the powers it needs. Meanwhile, the French language is in decline while English is flourishing.

Does this government see that as a successful language policy for Quebec?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, as my hon. colleague is well aware, our government has always been there to protect French across the country and in Quebec. I look forward to continuing to work with Premier Legault on this.

With regard to immigration, Quebec already has all the tools it needs to increase francophone immigration, if it wants to do so. Quebec has those tools, and we will gladly work with that province to end the labour shortages and help communities grow while also protecting the French language.

[Yves-François Blanchet, Bloc, Beloeil—Chambly, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister himself is saying that giving Quebec more immigration powers is out of the question. The only thing this government wants to see Quebec get more of is immigrants. I agree, but only as long as we can successfully integrate them in French.

Has he thought about discussing this with a premier who holds about three-quarters of the seats in Quebec rather than pretending to be his best friend from a distance?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, the Quebec government has enough control over immigration to double the number of immigrants that it currently accepts. Our government would be more than willing to work with Quebec if it wants to do so.

If Quebec wants to bring in more francophone immigrants, we are there to help. We know that businesses across Quebec are facing a labour shortage, we know that immigrants are needed for economic growth, and we also know that immigrants deeply enrich Quebec life.

We will always be there to work hand in hand to improve the lives of all Quebeckers.

The Economy

[Jagmeet Singh, NDP, Burnaby South, BC]

Mr. Speaker, it is getting harder and harder for people to pay their bills.

On the one hand, we have the Minister of Environment and Climate Change who wants to protect the profits of big oil companies, and, on the other hand, we have the CEO of Shell who says that, to help people, the government must force big oil companies to pay their fair share.

How does the Prime Minister explain that?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, building an economy that works for all Canadians has always been a priority for our government. We have always strived to do so by asking the wealthy to do a little more and by lowering taxes for the middle class.

Those were the first things we did when we took office and it is what we have continued to do every day for the last seven years. We will always be there to ask for a little more from the wealthy, to help the middle class and to create more prosperity and more opportunities for all Canadians.

[Jagmeet Singh, NDP, Burnaby South, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister is more interested in protecting the profits of big oil and gas than helping people in need.

The cost of gas is going up by 10¢ a litre today. “Governments need to tax energy producers to help the poorest people deal with the soaring cost of fuel.” Who do members think said that? It was definitely not the leader of the Conservative Party. It was certainly not the Minister of Environment. It was the CEO of Shell.

How is it possible that the CEO of Shell is more interested in helping people deal with the cost of fuel than the Prime Minister?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, we recognize that the oil and gas industry is making record profits right now, but we also recognize that they need to be investing in the clean transition. They need to be reducing their carbon emissions and preparing for Canada to be a source of energy in a net-zero world.

That is what Canada can do, and that is why we are going to ensure that successful corporations pay their fair share of taxes and that we continue to support low-income Canadians and middle-class Canadians, including with our measures on a GST rebate and our measures on rental and dental support for Canadians. We look forward to working with all parties on those issues.

Sport

[Rachael Thomas, Conservative, Lethbridge, AB]

Mr. Speaker, in 2018, the government was made aware of a horrific allegation. It was an allegation with regard to gang rape by eight members of the Hockey Canada team. The government was made aware but chose to do nothing, absolutely nothing. Canadian tax dollars continue to flow to the organization. Zero accountability was put in place. It was swept under the rug until four years later.

Why did the government fail to act when it first came to light?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, as a government, we have always taken allegations of sexual misconduct seriously in any organization. We have always acted and we will continue to do so.

What Canadians are continuing to see come out of Hockey Canada is absolutely unacceptable. Parents across the country, like me, who have had kids in hockey, families and young kids care about hockey in this country. We know that we need to see a better organization than that.

Hockey Canada's tone deafness to the fact that it has lost the confidence of Canadians needs to end, which is why we stopped funding it and why we are calling for change.

[Rachael Thomas, Conservative, Lethbridge, AB]

Mr. Speaker, with all due respect, I did not ask whether there was still support for hockey in this country. I recognize that it is a national sport and that we are proudly behind it. However, we should not be proudly behind the behaviour that has been exhibited by members of the team.

I am asking the Prime Minister why, for four years, the so-called feminist government did absolutely nothing when it had the power to do something and had the information in its hands.

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, we have already imposed some of the strictest penalties and limits on funding toward Hockey Canada. Right now it is for Hockey Canada to understand that it has completely lost any trust or faith among Canadians.

The organization must be transformed or, as we are seeing with Hockey Québec, which is saying it is not going to engage with Hockey Canada anymore, more and more organizations across the country are simply going to turn their backs on this organization, which is not worthy of building strong futures for our kids.

Taxation

[John Barlow, Conservative, Foothills, AB]

Mr. Speaker, Michel and Jeannette farm in beautiful Embrun, Ontario, but a quarter of their fuel price was carbon taxes. If the Liberals triple that carbon tax, they have said they are going to be paying $18,000 a year.

Now, unlike what the Prime Minister is saying, that is not revenue-neutral. They will get pennies back through the Liberal rebate. I have heard from farmers across the country who have said that if the Liberals triple the carbon tax, it will bankrupt them.

Will the Prime Minister cancel his plans to triple this tax on Canadian farm families like Michel and Jeannette?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians across the country, including farmers, are dealing with more and more extreme weather events. Climate change is real and we need to tackle it together. The way we are doing that is by putting a price on pollution and returning the cost of that to average families across the country.

On top of that, we are working with the agricultural industry, which recognizes how important it is to protect our environment and protect our planet. We are ensuring that families, including farm families, can continue to succeed in the coming years, even as we fight against climate change.

Why do the Conservatives not believe in climate change?

[John Barlow, Conservative, Foothills, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister realizes that they will not succeed. The biggest threat facing our farmers is the triple threat offered by the Liberals: fertilizer tariffs, higher interest rates and higher carbon taxes. This has put thousands of family farms on the brink of insolvency. Even Canadian consumers understand the threat of the triple threat, as grocery prices are up 10%, which is driving food costs even higher.

Does the Prime Minister understand that by tripling the carbon tax, the end result will be no fertilizer, no farms and no food?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, if the Conservative Party wanted to help Canadians, it should do what it has done on the GST tax credit, reversing its position to support our support for families, and do the same with our low-income supports for renters and our supports for families on the costs of dental care for kids.

These two measures are concrete and will help Canadian families. The Leader of the Opposition flip-flopped and is now supporting the GST proposal. Will he now support renters and the dental support that Canadians need? That is something tangible we should all be able to agree on.

[Pierre Paul-Hus, Conservative, Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister would have Canadians believe that there is nothing Canada can do to combat inflation. In the meantime, we have learned that Laval University in Quebec City is being forced to cancel the construction of a new pavilion because of the rising costs of construction.

Across Quebec, families are cutting back on their groceries to pay for other bills. The Prime Minister wants to triple the carbon tax, which will only increase these costs.

If he wants to help Canadians, will he cancel the carbon tax increase?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, Quebeckers and all Canadians know just how important it is to fight climate change. We have a plan that does exactly that. I look forward to hearing the Conservatives' plan at some point.

If the Conservatives really want to help Canadian families, they should not just support our GST-HST credit increase. They should also support our dental care benefit and our assistance for renters. We are here to help Canadians.

Will the Conservatives support us and work with us to help Canadians?