Debates of Sept. 28th, 2022

Taxation

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

Order. I am going to ask the minister to start over so the hon. member for South Surrey—White Rock can hear the answer she asked for.

The hon. minister.

[Jonathan Wilkinson, Liberal, North Vancouver, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I note that this is a bit perplexing given that every member of the opposition sitting in the House campaigned on a platform in their last campaign, less than a year ago, on the basis of implementing a price on pollution. Were they telling the truth to citizens then or are they telling the truth now?

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship

[Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe, Bloc, Lac-Saint-Jean, QC]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday it was clear that the Minister of Public Safety did not know the difference between an asylum seeker and a human smuggler. Let me explain it to him.

Asylum seekers are families who migrate to Canada to claim refugee status. Human smugglers are people who exploit these families and take all their money in exchange for getting them across Roxham Road. Human smugglers are criminals. Making the crossing at Roxham Road permanent makes their crime profitable.

Now that the minister understands who is who in this story, will he stand up for asylum seekers instead of human smugglers?

[Marco Mendicino, Liberal, Minister of Public Safety]

Mr. Speaker, I am very proud of the work our government has done to protect the rights of refugees who contribute so much, in such a positive way, to our economies in Quebec and across Canada. That is why we must continue to make investments at the border and give more resources to the Canada Border Services Agency. That is why we must work in close collaboration with the Government of Quebec to protect the rights of refugees and the integrity of our system.

[Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe, Bloc, Lac-Saint-Jean, QC]

Mr. Speaker, we do not understand. We do not understand how the minister thinks that the situation at Roxham Road is normal. His government is letting thugs fleece disadvantaged families out of all the money they have managed to take out of their country. Thanks to his government's actions, human trafficking has become the primary way of claiming asylum in Canada in 2022. Refugees are being brought to Canada by thugs. They are welcomed into Canada by police.

What is normal about that?

[Marco Mendicino, Liberal, Minister of Public Safety]

Mr. Speaker, we recognize that the situation at Roxham Road poses challenges. That is why we are investing more than $40 million in a strategy to address the problems associated with human trafficking. That is why we continue to add resources at our borders to protect the rights of refugees and to bring to justice those who abuse the system. We will continue that work.

Disaster Assistance

[Clifford Small, Conservative, Coast of Bays—Central—Notre Dame, NL]

Mr. Speaker, charitable organizations are playing a key role in delivering the disaster relief needed as a result of hurricane Fiona. The Prime Minister has committed to matching dollar for dollar any donations made to the Red Cross that go to the relief effort in western Newfoundland and the Maritimes. The Salvation Army is equally as important in providing relief.

Will the Prime Minister commit to also matching monetary donations to the Salvation Army and ending this double standard?

[Yasir Naqvi, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the President of the Queen’s Privy Council for Canada and Minister of Emergency Preparedness]

Mr. Speaker, I want to convey my sympathies with the member in what his constituents are facing in Newfoundland and Labrador.

Everyone is playing a very important role in providing care and services to members of communities who are affected by the storm. We have a long-standing relationship with Red Cross. It has a demonstrated ability to provide services at a large scale, as we are seeing right now, to help people as quickly as possible. We will continue to work with local organizations to provide those essential services.

Fisheries and Oceans

[Clifford Small, Conservative, Coast of Bays—Central—Notre Dame, NL]

Mr. Speaker, we are well aware of the understanding the government has with the Red Cross, and that is great, but sources have confirmed that, due to storm surges from Fiona, fish harvesters on the southwest coast of Newfoundland have lost over $2.5 million worth of fishing gear and property. Their insurance policies do not have storm surge riders. Next year's fishing season is not far away.

Will the Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard show she cares as much about fishermen as she does about dead lobsters, and compensate them in a timely manner so they can prepare for the coming season?

[Joyce Murray, Liberal, Minister of Fisheries]

Mr. Speaker, I also want to express my concern for the member's community and the fish harvesters. I have had a chance to hear from and discuss this with provincial premiers, fish harvesters and their representatives, and members of Parliament, and it is a very distressing situation. We are going to work collectively and in partnership with them to do everything we can to support our fish harvesters going forward.

Telecommunications

[Stephen Ellis, Conservative, Cumberland—Colchester, NS]

Mr. Speaker, I am very happy to hear that the minister has finally used a phone to call fish harvesters. It was certainly not on cell service because the cell service in Nova Scotia is substandard for a wealthy country.

Cell towers are now running on generator power. Even Liberals have recognized the essential nature of this critical infrastructure for individuals and small businesses. My premiers called for action. The minister responsible committed to fixing and maintaining this critical infrastructure three years ago.

When will Canadians see some action and not more platitudes?

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

Mr. Speaker, I agree with Premier Houston that the situation with cell service is entirely unacceptable. Later today, along with the Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry, I will be meeting with the CEOs of Canada's telecommunication providers, and I will be insisting on better service for the people of Atlantic Canada and for Quebeckers, and for a plan to ensure this never happens again.

Disaster Assistance

[Stephen Ellis, Conservative, Cumberland—Colchester, NS]

Mr. Speaker, I trust that the Minister of Finance will meet with Premier Houston, and not Premier Rankin.

Five days, almost 120 hours, have passed since many Nova Scotians lost power due to hurricane Fiona. Trees are still on the power lines and blocking roads, and 20% of customers are without power. The military has been requested by Premier Houston and its presence is desperately needed.

When will the Prime Minister get more troops on the ground to clear the debris and get the lights back on in Nova Scotia?

[Dominic LeBlanc, Liberal, Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, I am happy to confirm for our colleague what the Minister of National Defence said early this morning, and that is that every request from the Government of Nova Scotia for military assistance has been responded to positively. We have said yes to all of the requests from provincial authorities for military assistance. The good news for my colleague is that we will continue to do exactly that over and over against until this problem is solved.

Housing

[Jenny Kwan, NDP, Vancouver East, BC]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians are struggling to find places they can afford to call home. The Liberal government is siding with wealthy investors to hurt families by treating housing as a stock market. It is letting corporate landlords kick tenants out so they can jack up their rent to turn a bigger profit. The financialization of housing is also pricing young people out of the market, shattering their dreams of home ownership. This is wrong.

Will the Liberals put a stop to the financialization of housing and put people before corporate greed?

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

Mr. Speaker, we know that speculative investments in the real estate sector are contributing to pushing home prices higher. That is why we have legislated an annual 1% tax on vacant, non-residential, non-Canadian owned properties, as well as a two-year ban on foreign ownership of Canadian residential real estate.

We have also committed to reviewing the tax treatment of real estate investment trusts and are launching a federal review of housing as an asset class. This is what federal leadership on the financialization of housing looks like.

Telecommunications

[Peter Julian, NDP, New Westminster—Burnaby, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the minister did not answer the question. We are saying to stop financialization and to start putting people before corporate greed.

As the devastation unfolded from hurricane Fiona and people tried desperately to call 911 or contact loved ones, big telecom companies abandoned, leaving them without cellphone service, and the Liberals are letting those irresponsible companies off the hook. Nova Scotia is demanding that the government ensure telecom companies never abandon people in emergencies. Will the Liberals enforce these regulations on telecom companies now?

[Andy Fillmore, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Innovation]

Mr. Speaker, as we have heard from the Deputy Prime Minister, telecom providers must ensure their services are working to the greatest extent possible after hurricane Fiona.

This evening I will be joining the Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry and the Deputy Prime Minister to discuss with the telco providers the experience of Atlantic Canadians losing connectivity, to review the fragilities of this vital infrastructure, and to determine how the expectations of Canadians on reliability and transparency going forward can be met.

Health

[Francesco Sorbara, Liberal, Vaughan—Woodbridge, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the COVID‑19 pandemic has taken a toll on the mental and physical health of public servants and many Canadians. Public servants have nevertheless faithfully served Canadians throughout the pandemic and continue to do so.

How is the government working with the unions to strengthen health care supports for public servants?

[Mona Fortier, Liberal, President of the Treasury Board]

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my hon. colleague from Vaughan—Woodbridge for his hard work and for his excellent French.

I have good news: We have approved a new public service health care plan that will improve support for members without any additional cost to taxpayers.

Some significant changes will help improve support to the 2SLGBTQI+ community. In addition, mental health care support will double to $5,000 a year.

We know that we can achieve great things together and we worked with the unions and pensioners to come to this agreement.

Taxation

[Rachael Thomas, Conservative, Lethbridge, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the average Canadian now spends more on taxes than on food, clothing and shelter combined. An individual recently came into my office in the riding and said that she had moved into her car because she could not make rent. Another couple told me that they live out of their RV because they could not make their mortgage payment due to just inflation.

These stories are far too common from coast to coast in this country, so I am asking the government if it will finally demonstrate some compassion and stop its increases in taxes with respect to gas, groceries and home heating today.

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

Mr. Speaker, here is what the Conservatives want to do: slash pensions, slash EI and ignore climate change.

We have a better plan. I think in their heart of hearts the Conservatives recognize that, which is why they have done a flip-flop on the GST tax credit, so let me invite them today to concede defeat and support the rest of our plan to help Canadians.

[Kyle Seeback, Conservative, Dufferin—Caledon, ON]

Mr. Speaker, no, what we want to do is stop the government's tax increases.

The cost of living is at an all-time high, and interest rates are skyrocketing because of Liberal money-printing inflation. Before this Liberal disaster, a third of Canadians were within $200 of not making ends meet. What was the Liberal response? To raise taxes, both payroll taxes and the carbon tax, because taking more money from Canadians is really going to solve the affordability crisis.

Will the government start helping, stop hurting Canadians and stop these tax increases?

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

Mr. Speaker, it is time for these Conservatives to come clean with Canadians. Their CPP proposal is an irresponsible scheme to eviscerate the pensions that all Canadians rely on.

As personal finance writer Rob Carrick wrote this week, “Canada Pension Plan premiums are not a tax.” The CPP is the bedrock of the Canadian retirement plan. The Conservatives want to recklessly undermine the pensions all Canadians depend on, but we will not let them.