Debates of April 4th, 2022

The Economy

[Karina Gould, Liberal, Minister of Families]

Mr. Speaker, what the opposition clearly does not understand is that it is important for us to support Canadians when they need that help. In fact, in 2015 we brought in the Canada child benefit, and the Conservative Party voted against it.

We have also brought in universal, affordable and accessible quality child care across the country, and what did that opposition party say? It said that it would get rid of it, if it were elected. Thank goodness it was not elected because we have Canadians' backs, and we will continue to do so.

[Gérard Deltell, Conservative, Louis-Saint-Laurent, QC]

Mr. Speaker, food prices are going up, rent prices are going up, gas prices are going up, yet this government is doing nothing.

What is worse, as a result of the new NDP-Liberal alliance, on Friday, taxes went up. That is the legacy of this NDP-Liberal government.

My question for the Minister of Finance is very straightforward. Will she rise in this House, look Canadians straight in the eye and assure them that she will do everything she can as the Minister of Finance, specifically control spending, at the very least, to reduce inflation for Canadians?

[Randy Boissonnault, Liberal, Minister of Tourism and Associate Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, I think it is important that Canadians look at the facts because the Conservatives certainly are not.

Under our plan and our program, a single mother with two children will receive $13,600 from the Canada child benefit, an average family in Saskatchewan will receive nearly $1,000 in carbon tax rebates, and a student will save more than $3,000 thanks to the changes we have made to the program.

This is a plan that allows us to tackle affordability, and that is what we will continue to do on this side of the House.

[Gérard Deltell, Conservative, Louis-Saint-Laurent, QC]

Mr. Speaker, they are missing in action again.

In Quebec, there is a great expression about governments “having both hands on the wheel”. That is a great political expression in Quebec.

Unfortunately, what are we seeing with the new Liberal-NDP government? There are two people driving the truck.

What is the result? There are two left hands on the wheel to steer left, and there are two right hands to dip into taxpayers' pockets. That is the new NDP-Liberal government.

Could the Minister of Finance be clear and at least tell Canadians that they are going to control spending?

[Pablo Rodriguez, Liberal, Minister of Canadian Heritage]

Mr. Speaker, all this time, the Government of Canada has been there for Canadians with respect to the environment, families, seniors and the regions. These are issues that many former Liberal prime ministers supported, including Jean Chrétien, Paul Martin and Jean Charest.

Meanwhile, the Conservatives have been sliding further and further to the right. Why would we need a Conservative Party when we have Maxime Bernier's party?

Health

[Mario Simard, Bloc, Jonquière, QC]

Mr. Speaker, today, Quebec's health care workers joined the Bloc Québécois in calling for a public summit on health care funding.

The men and women who take care of us have been telling us about the consequences of federal underfunding for a long time, but government after government has failed to listen. The pandemic exposed those consequences in the most tragic way possible.

Today the health care community wants to be listened to. They are calling for a public summit to talk about a major, sustainable, no-strings-attached health transfer increase.

My question is very simple: Will the government give them what they want?

[Jean-Yves Duclos, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, I am grateful to our colleague for generously giving me the opportunity to add further information to the previous question.

Exactly 10 days ago, we announced $2 billion. That is an extra $2 billion, no strings attached, to help the provinces and territories clear the terrible backlog in surgery, treatment and diagnosis, because we know just how important this is to the provinces, the territories and all the patients who have been waiting for these surgeries for so long.

[Mario Simard, Bloc, Jonquière, QC]

Mr. Speaker, for Ottawa to claim that it knows Quebec's and the provinces' health care needs better than they do is one thing, but how can it claim to know better than medical specialists, general practitioners, haematologists, oncologists, nurses, respiratory therapists, perfusionists, physiotherapists, orthotherapists, occupational therapists, psychologists and support staff?

I could go on and on and list all health professionals who today are condemning how the federal government funds health care.

Will the government invite them to a public summit to listen to them talk about their needs, rather than telling them what those needs are?

[Jean-Yves Duclos, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, I once again sincerely thank my colleague. I will be able to add more information to the list.

One billion dollars is the sum we agreed to transfer to the provinces and territories just a few days ago. We are really looking forward to making an official announcement to all the provinces and territories.

That money will help take care of our seniors, who went through very hard times and suffered a great deal over the past two years. We know that the stress on seniors and patients was also a source of stress for all health care workers, who found it difficult to find the time and resources to look after our seniors.

We are very proud of this agreement, and we look forward to discussing it further.

[Luc Thériault, Bloc, Montcalm, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the people speaking out today are the women and men who care for others every day around the clock.

They want their voices to be heard. They know what they need, because that is their job. They are not here today to play partisan politics. They are here to be invited to share their experience at a public summit on health care funding.

The real experts want to tell us how to care for our people properly, today and tomorrow. Why not accept their offer?

[Jean-Yves Duclos, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, once again, I thank my colleagues for giving me a chance to talk about the $3-billion investment in mental health that is already allocated in our budgets. We look forward to being able to transfer that investment to the provinces and territories to help look after Canadians' mental health.

We know how much people's mental health has suffered, including that of health care workers who, over the past few months, have had a hard time doing their jobs because of challenges related to physical and mental health. We know how difficult it has been for them.

It is very good news that we are investing another $3 billion to help the provinces and territories.

Housing

[Dan Albas, Conservative, Central Okanagan—Similkameen—Nicola, BC]

Mr. Speaker, promises of housing affordability are a complete joke under this government. For example, housing prices in Toronto are up over 36%. In Montreal and Vancouver, they are up over 20%, and in Calgary and Ottawa, they are up 16%. All of these urban centres are full of hard-working young people who just want to get out of their parents' basements.

When will the spend-DP-Liberal MPs join Conservatives and demand a real housing affordability plan that will actually help these young people and these first-time homebuyers?

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

Mr. Speaker, I wish the hon. member had had a conversation with the hon. member for Stormont—Dundas—South Glengarry, who said that we should end the first-time homebuyer incentive, precisely the program that is meant to help Canadians access the dream of home ownership. He should have another conversation with the member of Parliament for—

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[The Deputy Speaker, Chris d'Entremont]

Order. I am having trouble hearing the minister. I will ask him to start again with his answer.

[Ahmed Hussen, Liberal, York South—Weston, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the problem is that they talk about home ownership, but, every single program we have in place to help first-time homebuyers, they oppose it. They have actually said this publicly.

The hon. member for Stormont—Dundas—South Glengarry wants to end the first-time homebuyer incentive. The hon. member for Calgary Centre spoke about his opposition to the measure to put a tax on foreign and non-resident homebuyers, and just recently the hon. member for Mission—Matsqui—Fraser Canyon tried to table the Conservative platform in the House, which did not contain the words “affordable housing”.

[Matt Jeneroux, Conservative, Edmonton Riverbend, AB]

Mr. Speaker, this minister continues to be obsessed by speeches given by my colleagues on this side of the House, so let me offer him another quote. Last week, Mortgage Professionals Canada said, “The government's well-intended...First-Time Home Buyers...program...is simply failing”.

It does not get clearer than that. Canadians do not want to co-own their home with the government, so when will the minister scrap this failed program?

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

Mr. Speaker, we intend to move forward in increasing housing supply. We intend to move forward with enhancing the first-time homebuyers incentive. We intend to move forward to set up a first-time homebuyer tax-free savings account to the tune of up to $40,000, and we intend to turn more Canadian renters into homeowners through an innovative and groundbreaking rent-to-own program.

[Melissa Lantsman, Conservative, Thornhill, ON]

Mr. Speaker, a billboard in Toronto reads, “Can't afford a home? Have you tried finding richer parents?” As sarcastic as it is, it gets our attention on the out-of-control state of our housing market. The cost of housing under the government has doubled since 2015, and Canadians who are lucky enough to own a home pay almost 50% of their income to service their mortgage.

Does this minister have a plan for anyone without a trust fund trying to buy a house in the country, or is it just the CMHC bonuses that get his attention?

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

Mr. Speaker, maybe the hon. member should speak to another colleague, the member for Simcoe North, who said that the government should not be in the business of helping Canadians access their dream of home ownership.

What kind of party is this that it cannot get its story straight? One day they talk about affordable housing, but it is not in their opposition motion or their Conservative party platform. They talk about first-time homebuyers, but they voted against that. They talk about the first-time homebuyer incentive program, but they speak down about it all the time. They have no credibility on this issue. We will do everything possible to make sure that every Canadian can have access to a safe and affordable place to call home.

Foreign Affairs

[Heather McPherson, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

Mr. Speaker, women and children are being brutally murdered in Ukraine. Three hundred bodies have been discovered in a mass grave in Bucha, and more civilian bodies have been found in the street. Women, children and seniors have been senselessly murdered. There have been reports of sexual violence perpetrated by Russian invaders against women and children as young as 10. There is evidence of war crimes and crimes against humanity everywhere.

We need to do everything we can to stand up for human rights in Ukraine and around the world. Will the government call for Russia to be removed from the United Nations Human Rights Council?

[Rob Oliphant, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, I think I speak with all members of the House to express the outrage, sadness and horror we feel as we watch scenes of civilians who have been killed in Ukraine. Let me be very clear. We believe these amount to war crimes. We believe these amount to crimes against humanity, and we will continue to take every step possible to hold Russia accountable for these crimes. We will go to the International Criminal Court. We will go with Ukraine to the International Court of Justice. We will stand with the people of Ukraine.

The Economy

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

Mr. Speaker, while Canadians are struggling to keep up with the rising costs of groceries and housing, the six largest Canadian banks recorded a profit of over $5 billion in the last quarter. The Liberals are doing nothing to force these corporations to pay their fair share. CEOs are lining their pockets while people are struggling to pay rent.

The Liberals must make a choice to stand with the majority of Canadians or with their billionaire pals. When will the Liberals make billionaires pay by implementing a 3% surtax on their excess profits?

[Randy Boissonnault, Liberal, Minister of Tourism and Associate Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, our government is committed to asking those who prospered during the pandemic to help a little more for those who did not. Our platform committed to raise corporate income taxes on the largest, most profitable banks and insurance companies and to introduce a temporary Canada recovery dividend because these companies have recovered faster. We are also working to implement a global minimum tax, and 136 OECD G20 framework members have already signed up.

[Ken Hardie, Liberal, Fleetwood—Port Kells, BC]

Mr. Speaker, regulations act as the rule book for how businesses operate, and protect consumers, the environment and our health and safety. Over time, regulations can accumulate, become outdated and result in barriers to innovation and growth.

Could the President of the Treasury Board update the House on how the government is modernizing our regulatory system to improve Canada's ability to attract investment and growth-oriented businesses?