Debates of June 7th, 2022

The Economy

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

Mr. Speaker, that is simply not true. The reality is that we understand very well that affordability is important to Canadian families.

That is precisely why we have taken action such as increasing the Canada workers benefit, which gives a single worker an extra $1,000 in benefits. We are providing an additional one-time $500 payment to those struggling to find housing.

Service Canada

[Alain Therrien, Bloc, La Prairie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, Quebeckers are furious about passport wait times. Even in the midst of a crisis, none of the passport offices are open on the weekend, even for people who are leaving within 48 hours.

The Liberals are forcing people who have been waiting for three months to miss a day of work in order to make an urgent application. Worse, they are charging $50 to $110 in extra fees. That is crazy. They are making citizens pay the price for their incompetence.

Will they open offices on the weekend and process urgent applications at no extra cost?

[Karina Gould, Liberal, Minister of Families]

Mr. Speaker, as I have said in the House before, we are seeing an unprecedented increase in the number of passport applications.

Nevertheless, people should not have to pay to have their application processed more quickly if it occurs outside normal service hours.

Also, a dozen offices are open almost every Saturday to ensure that we can respond to urgent requests.

[Alain Therrien, Bloc, La Prairie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the government says it is doing everything in its power, but only between the hours of eight and four and at people's expense. That is outrageous.

They have to open passport offices on the weekend for people who need to travel within 48 hours. They have to stop charging extra fees for people who submitted their application and are still waiting 20 business days later.

When will they actually do everything in their power to fix their mistakes and deliver passports on time without fees? Enough is enough.

[Karina Gould, Liberal, Minister of Families]

Mr. Speaker, as I said, those fees should not apply if the passport is not delivered within the normal 20-day period.

I will raise the matter with Service Canada again. I know Service Canada employees are working extremely hard, including evenings and weekends, to serve Canadians. They are there, and we will do everything in our power to make sure Canadians receive their passports before travelling.

Taxation

[Jagmeet Singh, NDP, Burnaby South, BC]

Mr. Speaker, one out of every four Canadians in this country is going hungry because they cannot afford groceries. At the same time, corporations are making record profits. They are breaking record after record.

Our plan is to tax the excess—

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

I will ask the hon. member to start from the top so we can all hear his question.

The hon. member for Burnaby South.

[Jagmeet Singh, NDP, Burnaby South, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I just mentioned that Canadians are hungry and I hear laughter in the chamber. They should be ashamed of themselves.

One out of every four Canadians is hungry because they cannot afford groceries, while corporations are making record profits and are responsible for one-fourth of the inflation that Canadians are experiencing. Our plan is to tax the excess profits of these corporations and put the money directly into the pockets of Canadians who need it.

When will the government stop protecting the wealth of these corporations and start standing up for families that need help right now?

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

Mr. Speaker, our government is absolutely committed to making sure everyone in Canada pays their fair share and we have taken concrete action. We have permanently raised the corporate income tax on the largest and most profitable banks and insurance companies in Canada by 1.5%. We are introducing a Canada recovery dividend on banks and insurance companies of 15%. We are also putting in place a luxury tax on cars and planes worth more than $100,000 and on boats worth more than $250,000.

[Jagmeet Singh, NDP, Burnaby South, BC]

Mr. Speaker, we need to expand the tax that has been proposed for banks to the profitable oil and gas sector and corporate big box stores that are making record profits while Canadians are hungry and cannot afford food.

A quarter of Canadians are going hungry because they cannot afford groceries, while corporations are making record profits. Our plan is to tax those excess profits and redistribute the money directly to families.

When will this government stand up for families instead of protecting the profits of big corporations?

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

Mr. Speaker, our government is committed to making sure that everyone pays their fair share. We have taken concrete action by permanently raising the corporate income tax on the largest and most profitable corporations, banks and insurance companies and by introducing a 15% Canada recovery dividend on banks and insurance companies.

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

Mr. Speaker, almost every G7 country has a plan to deal with high gas prices and runaway inflation. For example, Germany has a $16-billion plan to lower gas prices. The Americans have released their strategic reserve. Even the British government has cut gas taxes and is considering more. From our Prime Minister we have word salad.

Besides blaming Putin or suggesting that people buy an electric vehicle, can the Prime Minister cobble together a plan to deal with rising gas prices, or is that just way too much to ask of him as a leader of a G7 country?

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

Mr. Speaker, the party that needs a coherent policy is the Conservative Party, and it just does not have one. As usual, the Conservatives are failing to pick a lane on fiscal policy. Half of the time they like to talk about deficits and complain about government spending, but the other half of the time, like just now, they praise the expensive multi-billion dollar programs put in place by the governments of other countries, so really, what is the fiscal policy of the Conservative Party of Canada?

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

Mr. Speaker, despite having lower gas prices, the Americans have acted to help struggling families fill their tanks and keep life affordable. The Prime Minister likes to import the divisive politics that occur to the south of our border and claims that if we do not act firmly and rapidly it will only get worse and be more difficult to counter. As our largest importer of American politics, when will the Prime Minister finally try to import something positive, like helping Canadians deal with gas prices?

[Jonathan Wilkinson, Liberal, Minister of Natural Resources]

Mr. Speaker, as the hon. colleague knows, the current situation in Ukraine and the unprovoked attack by Russia have resulted in a geopolitical crisis in Europe and elevated energy prices around the world. While Canada's energy security remains intact, we are working with our international allies, and very much with our friends in the United States, to stabilize energy markets around the world. In this regard, we have committed to increasing oil and gas production by 300,000 barrels per day by the end of the year. At home, we have instructed the Competition Bureau to ensure there is no collusion around gas pricing.

We are working to ensure that we are putting money back in the pockets of Canadians through the Canada child benefit, tax cuts for the middle class, and other items to ensure we are addressing the affordability of—

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

The hon. member for Louis-Saint-Laurent.

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

Mr. Speaker, people in my riding woke up to some bad news this morning. The price of gas is up to $2.24 a litre. That is a record high. This is the reality for every Canadian family in my riding and from coast to coast to coast.

As we know, when the price goes up, the tax also goes up. Basically, the government makes more money when the price goes up. However, what differentiates Canada from other countries like Germany, England, Australia and South Korea is that those countries have lowered the gas tax.

Why does this government refuse to do that?

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

Mr. Speaker, I would like to pick up on what my finance colleague said. On the issue of carbon pricing, in 2007, the Harper government proposed a $15 tax. In 2008, it proposed a cap-and-trade system, only to change its mind in 2011. In the end, it decided not to do anything about climate change.

Surprise, surprise, during the last election campaign, the Conservative Party went back to supporting carbon pricing. Now, as of a few weeks ago, it no longer supports it. What Canadians want is action on climate change, not a party that changes its mind all the time.

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

Mr. Speaker, Canadians have been clear about what they want, and that is effective policies to fight inflation.

As gas prices continue to rise, the tax rises too, so the government is pocketing more and more money. The government is putting more money in its own pockets and less in the pockets of Canadians.

This is a direct measure that Canadians want. Other countries have adopted this measure, so why does the Liberal government refuse to do so?

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

Mr. Speaker, once again, the Conservatives need to pick a lane on fiscal policy. Half of the time, they talk about the deficit and complain about government spending, but the other half of the time, they praise expensive programs proposed by other governments. What are the Conservatives actually advocating for: spending or fiscal responsibility?

[Laila Goodridge, Conservative, Fort McMurray—Cold Lake, AB]

Mr. Speaker, unfortunately, Canadians need answers, not talking points. People in my riding and in northern and rural communities all across Canada have to drive just about everywhere. Fuel prices are at record highs, which is making life harder for all Canadians.

When will the government drop the talking points, do the right thing, drop the GST on fuel and make life more affordable for Canadians?

[Jonathan Wilkinson, Liberal, Minister of Natural Resources]

Mr. Speaker, as my hon. colleague knows, the unjustified invasion of Ukraine by Russia has driven up energy prices around the world. The government is working actively with partners in the United States and with other countries around the world to ensure that Canada is increasing supplies to stabilize energy pricing globally. We are also working actively within this country to ensure that we are addressing affordability challenges.

The opposition voted against tax cuts for the middle class. It voted against the Canada child benefit and it voted against day care programs, all of which are aimed at ensuring affordability for Canadians from coast to coast to coast.

[Kelly Block, Conservative, Carlton Trail—Eagle Creek, SK]

Mr. Speaker, the Liberals' high taxes and high inflation policies are hurting Canadians. Shaughn, a veteran and a constituent in my riding, recently emailed me to say that as a result of the carbon tax and the impact of inflation, he has had to sell his home in order to get by. Shaughn’s home was his nest egg and safety net for the future, but thanks to the Prime Minister's policies, it is gone.

Will the Prime Minister acknowledge the harm his policies are having on Canadians like Shaughn?

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

Mr. Speaker, our plan is designed so that the majority of households in Canada receive more money from the climate incentive payment than they pay. This has been confirmed through the analysis of the Parliamentary Budget Officer. As carbon prices increase, these payments also increase. For example, this year a family of four will receive up to $745 in Ontario, $830 in Manitoba, $1,100 in the member's province of Saskatchewan and more than $1,000 in Alberta.