Mr. Speaker, before I begin my remarks, I want to turn my attention to the people of Gaza and Israel. I think we have to set both organizations aside and focus on the people themselves. My thoughts are with them.
I want to thank my colleague from Battlefords—Lloydminster, who gave an excellent speech.
I rise this afternoon to speak to an official opposition motion. I believe it is the role of the official opposition to call on the government to be more diligent and responsible and to deliver concrete results for Canadians. I will quote the different parts of the motion because that is what we are debating, and I think people who are watching at home on the House of Commons network deserve to know what we are talking about.
(i) after eight years of this Liberal government, this prime minister has added more to the national debt than all previous prime minister's combined,
(ii) a half-trillion dollars of inflationary deficits has directly led to 40-year inflation highs,
(iii) prior to budget 2023, the Minister of Finance said, “What Canadians want right now is for inflation to come down and for interest rates to fall […]
If I may say so, that is not what is happening right now.
…and that is one of our primary goals in this year's budget: not to pour fuel on the fire of inflation,” and then proceed to usher in $60 billion in new spending,
(iv) in order to combat inflation, the Bank of Canada has been forced to increase interest rates 10 times in just 19 months,
There is a problem somewhere, but the Liberals do not seem to want to acknowledge it.
(v) interest rate increases have increased mortgage payments, and since this prime minister took office, monthly mortgage payments have increased 150% and now cost $3,500 on a typical family home...
Then it mentions the Liberal-NDP government, because it is important to understand that this is a minority government and that, if this government is kept in power, it is because there is a coalition. The NDP and the Liberal Party are committed to keeping this government in office, despite the fact that it is not delivering results and Canadians are paying the price. Therefore:
(vi) the Liberal-NDP government must exercise fiscal discipline, end their inflation driving deficits so that interest rates can be lowered,
in order to—