Debates of Jan. 29th, 2024

Housing

[The Speaker, Liberal, Greg Fergus]

Everything was going well up until this point. I would ask the hon. members for Edmonton West and South Shore—St. Margarets not to speak unless the Chair has recognized them.

The right hon. Prime Minister.

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, when we said we would use every tool at our disposal to address housing affordability, we meant it. The Minister of Housing recently announced that post-secondary institutions can now access the apartment construction loan program for low-interest financing to build student housing. This builds on our work to find innovative and bold ideas to accelerate construction, including unlocking over 500,000 new homes through the housing accelerator agreement. These are more examples of the federal government in action.

[Jagmeet Singh, NDP, Burnaby South, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister just does not get it.

Surprise, surprise, the Prime Minister has broken another promise. While the country's renoviction rate is at an all-time high, he is refusing to take on the big investors as he promised to do.

Why does the Prime Minister say one thing on the campaign trail and then defend his friends' profits once in power?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, on the contrary, we are taking action on several fronts. We are promoting apartment and co-op construction by eliminating the GST on construction. We are removing barriers in order to get more homes built faster by working directly with municipalities, and we are helping Canadians save for a home with the first home savings account. We know there is still work to be done.

I invite all governments across the country to take bold steps alongside us to improve the cost of housing and speed up the construction of affordable housing.

Carbon Pricing

[Andrew Scheer, Conservative, Regina—Qu'Appelle, SK]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister must still have sand in his ears from his Jamaican vacation. That must be why he cannot hear the outcry from Canadians suffering from his carbon tax. While he was lining up at the all-inclusive, Canadians were lining up at food banks, and grocery prices jumped again, 38% higher than baseline inflation.

Now, a common-sense Conservative bill, Bill C-234, would help bring prices down by taking the tax off farm production. The only problem is this: Liberal senators gutted the bill.

Will the government reject the Senate amendments so the tax can come off and food prices can come down?

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

Mr. Speaker, our government absolutely understands that housing and the cost of living are challenges for Canadians. That is why we are aggressively working across the country to build more homes faster. The housing accelerator fund, with more than 30 agreements in place across Canada, will lead to 500,000 new homes being built. However, the question is this: What will the Conservatives cut? They know how to cut, but they do not know how to build. Canada needs builders right now.

[Andrew Scheer, Conservative, Regina—Qu'Appelle, SK]

Mr. Speaker, we will cut the waste and mismanagement driving up inflation in the first place by cutting the Infrastructure Bank, high-priced consultants and money sent to the Asian infrastructure bank to build projects overseas instead of here at home.

However, the question was about the carbon tax and why the Prime Minister is so pathologically obsessed with it. He does not care that Canadians are going to food banks, that mothers are watering down milk or that seniors are skipping meals. He even sent one of his ministers to go bully Liberal senators into gutting the bill.

Once again, will they reject the Senate amendments so the tax can come off farming and food prices can come down?

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

Mr. Speaker, when the Conservatives talk about working families, everyone knows that those are crocodile tears. This is a party that has voted against early learning and child care, a revolutionary national program that is bringing down costs for hundreds of thousands of families across the country and allowing women to go to work. The Conservatives have voted against the Canada child benefit, which is a huge support for families across the country, and they are going to vote against dental care too.

[John Barlow, Conservative, Foothills, AB]

Mr. Speaker, today the Prime Minister has an opportunity to help families struggling with high food costs. Bill C-234 is back in the House after Liberal-appointed senators delayed and gutted the bill. This is a common-sense Conservative bill that would give a carbon tax carve-out to farmers and ensure that Canadians have access to affordable, Canadian-grown food.

When the Prime Minister quadruples his carbon tax, farmers will pay $1 billion a year, driving up food costs even higher. Will the Liberals reject the Senate amendments, take the carbon tax off farming and lower food prices for Canadians?

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

Mr. Speaker, let me tell members what is common sense for working families across our country: It is common sense to have a national system for early learning and child care, with fees reduced by 50% across the country and down to $10 a day in seven provinces and territories. It is common sense to support hard-working families with the Canada child benefit, which has lifted millions of children and families out of poverty. It is common sense to do what we are going to do this year, which is providing dental care to our seniors, having provided it to our children.

The Conservatives opposed every single one of those things.

[John Barlow, Conservative, Foothills, AB]

Mr. Speaker, it is uncommon to see a government ignore the fact that two million Canadians are going to a food bank every single month, yet the Liberal-NDP carbon tax coalition wants to quadruple the carbon tax, making farming unsustainable. When we tax the farmer who grows the food and tax the trucker who hauls the food, we are increasing taxes on Canadians who buy the food. Again, millions of Canadians are going to a food bank every month, but Bill C-234 in its original form would provide relief now.

Will the Liberals reject the Senate amendments, take the tax off and ensure that Canadians can afford to put food on their tables?

[Lawrence MacAulay, Liberal, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food]

Mr. Speaker, being a farmer, I fully understand how important an environmental plan is for the government. I am sorry that his party does not have an environmental plan. As a government, we do have an environmental plan, and with that environmental plan, for example, we were able to invest $1.5 billion into farmers and ranchers across this country to make sure they stay on the cutting edge. We have made sure and will continue to make sure that farmers and ranchers stay on the cutting edge.

[Rachael Thomas, Conservative, Lethbridge, AB]

Mr. Speaker, never before have we seen ignorance used as a political strategy the way the current Liberal government uses it. It is shameful. At the end of the day, Canadians are struggling, day in and day out, to be able to heat their homes, to be able to put food on their tables and to be able to care for their families. The carbon tax only increases that cost more, and on April 1, the carbon tax is scheduled to go up yet again. The government is going to hike it again on April 1.

Would the government choose to put its feet into reality and acknowledge the struggle everyday Canadians face? Will it show a bit of compassion, scrap the tax and stop the increase?

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

Mr. Speaker, earlier today the Conservatives were talking about hypocrisy, a subject they know a lot about. They are particularly hypocritical when it comes to talking about supporting working families and the most vulnerable. Since we formed government, 2.3 million Canadians have been lifted out of poverty. The poverty rate in Canada has been cut in half. Next, the Conservatives want to take carbon price rebate cheques out of the bank accounts of Canadian families. That is $1,000 in Ontario and more than $1,000 in Alberta and Saskatchewan. That would hurt Canadians.

[Rachael Thomas, Conservative, Lethbridge, AB]

Mr. Speaker, there is the government's false perception of reality, and then there is the reality that everyday Canadians are experiencing. I would invite the hon. member to consider what that reality actually is. If she could only come down from her high horse and enter the everyday life of Canadians, she might understand that not everyone lives in downtown Toronto and has access to the luxuries she does.

Canadians are struggling. They are struggling to put food on their tables. They are struggling to pay their heating bills. They are struggling to be able to care for their families. Record numbers of Canadians are using food banks, and that has a lot to do with the carbon tax, which is scheduled to increase on April 1.

Will the government axe the tax?

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

Mr. Speaker, it is certainly the case that the vast majority of Canadians do not have access to the luxuries that the Leader of the Opposition enjoys: government-provided housing, a chef or people caring for his home. People who live in glass houses should be more careful about throwing stones. When it comes to the price on pollution, it returns more money to eight out of every 10 Canadians. Families in Alberta will be getting more than $1,000 back. That helps them.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship

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

Mr. Speaker, it is a new year, but the same problems remain at the federal level. Quebec is overwhelmed from welcoming asylum seekers. We welcomed more than 65,000 people in 2023. That is 45% of the total for Canada as a whole, when we represent 22% of the population.

That is a lot more than our fair share. Quebec is reaching a breaking point. Those are not our words. The Premier of Quebec said so in a letter dated January 17 addressed to the Prime Minister of Canada.

When will the federal government ensure that the provinces are welcoming their fair share of asylum seekers?

[Marc Miller, Liberal, Minister of Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, I want to begin by welcoming my colleague from the Bloc back to Parliament. I understand that, for the Bloc, this is about the essence of immigration. Let us just make sure we work in the interests of immigrants.

I had a good conversation with Minister Fréchette on Friday. We are prepared to do more. It is clear that Quebec has done more than its fair share, but we are here to work together.

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

Mr. Speaker, I would invite all of the political parties to be mindful when they talk about immigration. The immigration minister already has one strike against him.

At this point, one would think that the Liberals would have learned that when they fail to address problems, they never get resolved. They only get worse.

When the House recessed in December, the federal government owed Quebeckers $460 million for taking in asylum seekers for whom Ottawa is responsible.

Not only did the federal government do nothing, but it told us that it was not an ATM. As a result, the bill is now up to $470 million.

When will the government reimburse Quebec?

[Marc Miller, Liberal, Minister of Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, good news is coming this week.

It is clear that relationships go both ways. We will continue to work with Quebec to deal with the record number of asylum seekers who have arrived this year. That is not something that is going to end any time soon. More work needs to be done by both levels of government.

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

Mr. Speaker, that is better already. Quebec is also demanding that the federal government reinstate visas for Mexicans. Since the Liberals suspended visas, the number of refugee claims by Mexicans has risen from 110 in 2015 to 24,000 last year.

Most of these applications are denied, meaning that the majority of these people are not refugees. Worse still, we know that these people can be trafficked by Mexican criminal groups that have a strong presence at Canada's borders. They are being exploited.

Will the minister reinstate visas for Mexicans?

[Marc Miller, Liberal, Minister of Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, we are facing historic influxes, and not just from Mexico. It is clear that restrictions are needed, as I have said publicly.

The member opposite has enough experience in politics and in the House to know that the details of such matters cannot be discussed in the public arena, knowing that people who do not have Canada's interests at heart could well make decisions based on what they hear.

I urge my colleague to be patient, but it is clear that we are going to take action.

Housing

[Melissa Lantsman, Conservative, Thornhill, ON]

Mr. Speaker, every time the Prime Minister comes back from another extravagant vacation he did not pay for, or cabinet decides to have a meeting in a luxury hotel, more Canadians are left without an affordable home. Even more are worried about losing their homes.

After eight years, the Liberals have doubled the cost of a home, the price of rent and the down payment that is needed to buy one. Interest payments on a mortgage are going up a staggering 30% this year. Eight years of the Liberal-NDP government's inflationary spending have made owning a home unattainable.

How can anyone trust the people who created the crisis to fix it?

[Sean Fraser, Liberal, Minister of Housing]

Mr. Speaker, the opposition seems interested in drawing on the anxieties that people are experiencing, which are very real, when it comes to housing affordability in this country.

However, when we actually look at the plan the Conservatives are putting forward, it is clear they have no idea what they are talking about. Where we are reducing taxes for home builders, they want to put taxes back on. Where we are making investments to promote affordable housing, they plan on making cuts. In fact, the Conservatives want to do away with the housing accelerator fund, which has now created 30 agreements that will see half a million homes added over the next decade.

We will build the homes; they would make the cuts. Canadians can make their choice.

[Melissa Lantsman, Conservative, Thornhill, ON]

Mr. Speaker, those are photo ops the minister is talking about.

Home construction was down 7% last year. That is even worse than his nameless predecessor, who was fired from the gig. People cannot live in a photo op. The videos will not bring warmth to the 300,000 people without homes. His tweets will not help the single mom who is trying to make her mortgage payment next month. His press conferences will not help the thousands of young people trying to move out of their parents' basements.

Why will the minister not stop subsidizing the bureaucracy that is blocking construction to focus on getting builders with shovels in the ground?