Debates of Feb. 9th, 2023

Canada Revenue Agency

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, it is absolutely true that we were able to collect taxes from powerful corporations while having less bureaucracy at CRA. We delivered more for less. By contrast, the Prime Minister's top tax collector says he does not have the resources to go after the $15 billion the Prime Minister gave in illegal wage subsidies to these powerful corporations.

This is an agency that has added 10,000 additional tax collectors. What are they doing? They are going after the little guy. Why will they not go after the Prime Minister's corporate friends instead?

[Karina Gould, Liberal, Minister of Families]

Mr. Speaker, if they want to talk about the little guy, I have been talking to small business owners and charitable organization representatives across this country, and they say to me every time I meet with them, “Thank you for the Canada emergency wage subsidy. We would not have been able to keep our doors open, and we would not have been able to keep our people employed, had it not been for this vital and crucial support at the height of the pandemic.” Unfortunately, we have the Leader of the Opposition saying that it did not want big government and it did not want to help Canadians during that time.

We took a different approach. We were there for Canadians when they needed us, and we will continue to be there.

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, the member should talk to her colleague, who just admitted that I voted in favour of supporting small businesses during the pandemic. However, on this side of the House, we are against fraud. There has been $15 billion in overpayments given directly to the largest corporations, which should not have received it. Now, the Prime Minister's top tax collector says he is not going after the money. He will just leave it in the hands of those corporations. This money equals $1,000 for every household in Canada.

Why do the Liberals put the burden on Canadians who are drowning in debt rather than the powerful corporations that are swimming in profit?

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

Mr. Speaker, I will absolutely say that our government is against fraud as well, and for every dollar we invest in the Canada Revenue Agency, we get five dollars back from people who have avoided their taxes. That is a fantastic return on investment.

Let us be clear: The CRA is working hard to get back the wage subsidies that were given to people in error. Our government also put in place regulations to make sure companies that put money toward profits have those monies clawed back. There is a windfall tax on the banks and insurance companies as well.

We are doing the right thing. We are sticking up for Canadians.

Official Languages

[Alain Therrien, Bloc, La Prairie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday, the Prime Minister refused to challenge the misinformation on the Charter of the French Language at the Standing Committee on Official Languages. He even refused to correct this misinformation to reassure anglophone Quebeckers about the real effects of Bill C-13 and Bill 96. He is not challenging the misinformation and he is not correcting it. If he is not denouncing and correcting it, then he must be condoning it.

At the end of the day, is the position held by the members for Saint-Laurent, Notre-Dame-de-Grâce—Westmount and Mount Royal on French in Quebec also shared by the Prime Minister? Is that it?

[Ginette Petitpas Taylor, Liberal, Minister of Official Languages and Minister responsible for the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency]

Mr. Speaker, we made ourselves very clear. Ours was the first government to recognize the decline of French across the country, including in Quebec. That is why we are moving forward with Bill C‑13.

We were clear about this in the throne speech. The Prime Minister also made it clear that we are moving forward with a bill to ensure we will help protect and promote the French language across the country and protect our official language minority communities.

[Alain Therrien, Bloc, La Prairie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister is divisive. He is dividing Canadians and Quebeckers with Amira Elghawaby's appointment. He is dividing Quebeckers amongst themselves by sending his West Island gang to spread misinformation about the Charter of the French Language.

Yesterday, he tried to divide Quebeckers and francophones outside Quebec by casting aspersions about the Bloc Québécois's intentions. He even found a way to divide his own caucus on the protection of French. I am not making this up: The arsonist of strife even set fire to his own house.

Just where will it end?

[Ginette Petitpas Taylor, Liberal, Minister of Official Languages and Minister responsible for the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency]

Mr. Speaker, as a proud Acadian who lives in an official language minority community, I know the importance of protecting and promoting French across the country, including in Quebec. That is why we are moving forward with an ambitious bill that will make a difference for our official language minority communities.

Once again, I hope that we will have the support of all colleagues in the House to ensure the passage of this bill, since stakeholders across the country have been telling us that they want it passed as soon as possible.

Veterans Affairs

[Rachel Blaney, NDP, North Island—Powell River, BC]

Mr. Speaker, veterans and their families are concerned about the outsourcing of essential services to Loblaws.

My office has been hearing about treatments on hold while contractors re-evaluate veterans' injuries, significant delays in services and trusted providers blocked from delivering services to veterans who desperately need them. This contract is costing taxpayers 25% more and delivering less. Veterans deserve better.

When will the Liberals actually start serving veterans instead of greedy for-profit companies?

[Darrell Samson, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Veterans Affairs and Associate Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, we have been, in the government here, supporting veterans since the beginning. Since 2016 we have invested over $11 billion to support veterans, including lots of different programs to support those veterans, whether it be a chronic pain centre for veterans or Pension for Life. We have been there since the beginning to support veterans, and we will be there as we continue as government.

Health

[Gord Johns, NDP, Courtenay—Alberni, BC]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians are struggling with their mental health. Levels of anxiety and feelings of isolation are at all-time highs, but accessing help is nearly impossible. Costs for therapy are sky-high and out of reach. Publicly funded services have long waits. People have nowhere to turn, yet the Liberals' new health care deal with the provinces does not guarantee money for mental health. After two years, not a single cent has been spent on the Liberals' promised Canada mental health transfer. It is broken promise after broken promise.

Will the minister commit today to delivering on the Canada mental health transfer?

[Carolyn Bennett, Liberal, Minister of Mental Health and Addictions and Associate Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians should be able to access timely, evidence-based, culturally appropriate and trauma-informed mental health and substance-use services to support their well-being.

Through the proposed bilateral agreements on the shared health priorities, we are working with the provinces and territories to integrate mental health and substance use as a full and equal part of our universal health care system. This will ensure provinces and territories provide transparency and accountability for access to the most appropriate mental health and substance-use services.

The Economy

[Dominique Vien, Conservative, Bellechasse—Les Etchemins—Lévis, QC]

Mr. Speaker, after eight years under this Prime Minister, inflation is out of control. Simply put, everything costs a lot more: groceries, heating, and housing.

The Prime Minister would like us to believe that he has nothing to do with it, but it is precisely his reckless spending that has put us in this situation. Even his former finance minister Bill Morneau said so recently.

Can he face the truth and admit that he is doing immense damage to the Canadian economy?

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

Mr. Speaker, this is the situation that Canadians are facing.

Which side of the House has a plan for the future? Who has a plan for climate change? We do; the Conservatives do not. Who has a plan for affordability? We do; the Conservatives do not. Who has a plan for the future of the Canadian economy? The Liberals do, the Conservatives do not.

The Liberals are taking action, and the Conservatives are spoiling for a fight.

We are here for Canadians.

[Dominique Vien, Conservative, Bellechasse—Les Etchemins—Lévis, QC]

Mr. Speaker, who is killing the Canadian economy? It is the Liberals.

According to a recent Léger poll, Quebeckers are feeling extremely stressed about what this year will bring. The number one concern is the impact of rising consumer prices.

What will it take for the Prime Minister to see and hear the same thing that we are seeing and hearing across Canada?

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

Mr. Speaker, let us go over the facts.

Our real GDP is 3.5%, the highest since the pandemic. We have one of the lowest inflation rates in Canada, lower than in the United States, Germany, and the United Kingdom.

The IMF projects that our growth will be the highest in the world this year, and next year as well. Some 200 jobs have been created since September, and we are seeing the lowest unemployment numbers since 1966.

Who is leading the economy? We Liberals are.

Carbon Pricing

[Tracy Gray, Conservative, Kelowna—Lake Country, BC]

Mr. Speaker, after eight years of the Liberal Prime Minister, the carbon tax grab is leaving Canadians in the cold. The government has reported that more than half of Canadian households pay over $200 a month just to heat their homes, but it is going to get worse because of the tripling of the carbon tax, which will affect home heating in every house in this country. We need to keep the heat on and take the tax off.

Will the Prime Minister take responsibility, axe the carbon tax and fix what he broke?

[Terry Duguid, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Environment and Climate Change]

Mr. Speaker, every time we put forward an affordability measure, such as rental supports, dental supports, the Canada child benefit or the middle-class tax cut, the Conservatives vote against it. Something is not sinking in. The climate action rebate puts more money in people's pockets than they pay at the pump, and eight out of 10 families will be better off.

Do members know what will not make families better off? Investing in cryptocurrency and Bitcoin. Will the Leader of the Opposition stand in this House right now and apologize to Canadians who lost their shirts?

The Economy

[Tracy Gray, Conservative, Kelowna—Lake Country, BC]

Mr. Speaker, do members know what Conservatives will do? We will axe the carbon tax, which makes the price of everything go up in this country and is affecting inflation.

The government likes to say it will take no lessons from the Conservatives, and that is obvious because things keep getting worse. A resident of mine, Chris, says it is hard to keep up with his bills because of inflation. He says he is “a little hungry, and a little cold and his clothes now hang loosely”. We teach our kids to take responsibility for their actions, yet the Prime Minister blames everyone else.

Will the Prime Minister take responsibility for the cost-of-living crisis and fix what he broke?

[Gudie Hutchings, Liberal, Minister of Rural Economic Development]

Mr. Speaker, I would like the opposition to take responsibility for the terrible jargon it is putting out on what we have to do on climate change. My riding is devastated, as members have heard me say numerous times. Working at a fishery is a vital income in my riding. I have, as a result of hurricane Fiona, $59.2 million worth of damage done to small craft harbours infrastructure. That was in pretty good shape before hurricane Fiona hit. The price of not addressing climate change is real.

Housing

[Mark Strahl, Conservative, Chilliwack—Hope, BC]

Mr. Speaker, eight years of out-of-control spending by the current Liberal Prime Minister has led to a massive increase in the interest rates. As a result, nearly half of Canadians with a variable rate mortgage are saying they may have to move out of their homes in just a matter of months. If skyrocketing mortgage payments were not enough, the Prime Minister is set to triple the carbon tax on those struggling Canadians.

Conservatives will keep the heat on and take the tax off. Will the Prime Minister finally take responsibility for this affordability crisis that he has created or get out of the way so that we can fix the problem?

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

Mr. Speaker, it is very rich to hear the other side talk about affordability with respect to housing. They voted against every housing measure we brought before this House to help Canadians attain their dream of home ownership. Whether it was the $200 million rent-to-own program, the first-time homebuyer tax-free savings account of up to $40,000, the doubling of the tax credit for first-time homebuyers or the ban on foreigners owning Canadian residential real estate, they voted against those measures. They try to stand here and say that they support Canadians when it is clear they do not.

[Mark Strahl, Conservative, Chilliwack—Hope, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the minister needs to get out of this Ottawa bubble. He keeps talking about government programs, but he is not listening to Canadians. These are Canadians who have seen their rent double after eight years of the current Prime Minister; who are now facing the prospect of having to move if they have a variable rate mortgage; and who can no longer afford to put food on the table, with 40-year highs in food prices and one and a half million Canadians lined up at the food banks.

Why do the Liberals not take responsibility, cut the carbon tax and give Canadians a break?

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

Mr. Speaker, the member opposite talked about supports for renters and renters struggling in Canada. That is precisely why we introduced the Canada housing benefit, which looks to invest an average of $2,500 for vulnerable renters across the country. In addition to that, we introduced a one-time top-up of $500 for 1.8 million vulnerable renters across the country.

Not only did the Conservatives vote against that, but they also played procedural games last fall to delay the passage of that bill, which would have sent much-needed supports to renters.

Health

[Luc Thériault, Bloc, Montcalm, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the federal government promised a substantial offer to support the health care system. Instead, we got a substantial disappointment. The minister knew that Quebec and the provinces needed $28 billion more each year to fix their health care systems. He has barely offered them one sixth of that.

Is the minister seriously trying to say that by offering one sixth of the money needed, he is giving Quebec the means to fix the problems in its health care system?