Debates of May 28th, 2024

Taxation

[John Barlow, Conservative, Foothills, AB]

Mr. Speaker, out of touch is the Liberal-NDP government that listens to bankers and bondholders who benefit from Liberal inflation. I am listening to my constituents, like Lisa, who showed me her carbon tax rebate. It was $15. What a joke. It is not a joke for Foothills families who pay $3,000 a year in carbon taxes and have nothing left for food or homes, let alone a summer vacation.

The Parliamentary Budget Officer is clear: Canadians pay more in the carbon tax than they get back in a rebate. Will the Prime Minister axe all federal gas tax this summer, so Lisa can take her family for a summer road trip?

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

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives are the party of austerity. The only thing they know how to do is cut, cut, cut, so it is no surprise that they want to cut the carbon rebates that leave eight out of 10 Canadian families better off. Do members know what else they want to cut? They want to cut the national school food program. They want to cut early learning and child care. They want to cut dental care that already two million Canadians are benefiting from. They want to tear Canada down, but we will not let them.

[Lianne Rood, Conservative, Lambton—Kent—Middlesex, ON]

Mr. Speaker, after nine years, the NDP-Liberal Prime Minister is not worth the hunger and homelessness.

Allan and Willa, seniors from Melbourne who have worked their whole lives, have told me that they cannot even afford a small vacation because everything is too expensive. Conservatives are calling on the government to axe the tax this summer and save Ontario families nearly $600 to help pay for food, housing and maybe a small family vacation.

Will the Prime Minister adopt our common-sense plan to axe the tax on gas this summer, so Canadians can afford a summer road trip?

[Jonathan Wilkinson, Liberal, Minister of Energy and Natural Resources]

Mr. Speaker, as I have said a number of times in this House, it would be useful if the Conservative Party of Canada actually used facts to inform the questions that they ask. Eight out of 10 Canadian families get more money back; 300 Canadian economists have said so, and the Parliamentary Budget Officer has said so. It actually works in reverse to income, so people who live on the most modest income get the most money back, and it is part of fixing the climate crisis that threatens the future of our children.

The group across the way has no plan for affordability, and its plan for the climate is to simply let the planet burn.

[Lianne Rood, Conservative, Lambton—Kent—Middlesex, ON]

Mr. Speaker, we just heard the answer from the NDP-Liberal government that it wants Canadians like Allan and Willa to be poor and miserable. Canadians deserve a break. They work hard, they pay their taxes, and how does the government repay them? It increases the carbon tax by 23%.

I will ask the question again: Will the Prime Minister adopt our common-sense plan to axe the tax on gas this summer, so Canadians can afford a summer vacation?

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

Mr. Speaker, even Conservative premiers understand the absolute carnage that Conservative cuts would cause across our country. They understand that the only thing Conservatives want to do is cut the support Canadians urgently need. They want to cut the national school food program that 400,000 kids are going to benefit from. They want to cut dental care that two million Canadians are already benefiting from, and of course, they want to cut early learning and child care. We will not let them do any of that.

Labour

[Bonita Zarrillo, NDP, Port Moody—Coquitlam, BC]

Mr. Speaker, flight attendants, who are predominantly women, work an average of 35 hours a month unpaid. No worker should have to do their job without a paycheque, but the Liberals and the Conservatives have let the big airline CEOs get away with it. The Liberals have even given these airlines millions of dollars in handouts and, recently, the Liberals told flight attendants that they should simply file complaints with those same CEOs who are ripping them off. Why are the Liberals putting the burden on workers instead of holding profitable CEOs to account?

[Seamus O'Regan, Liberal, Minister of Labour and Seniors]

Mr. Speaker, as members are aware, Canadian airlines are private sector companies. The government does not regulate wages in companies, aside from setting a minimum wage. Employers must pay their workers no less than the minimum wage for all hours of work performed, which is protected under the Canada Labour Code. This is an issue we take very seriously and we are monitoring it closely.

Persons with Disabilities

[Taylor Bachrach, NDP, Skeena—Bulkley Valley, BC]

Mr. Speaker, people with disabilities are still waiting for the government to protect their dignity and their safety when they travel with Canadian airlines. We have heard story after story about people being injured and mobility aids being broken or lost. What was the Liberals' response? They held a summit where there was yet again more talk and very little action. The only announcement from the summit was the airlines earnestly promising to do better in the future. The minister can do more than simply ask politely; he can lay down the law and set proper rules. Why does he refuse to do so?

[Sameer Zuberi, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Diversity]

Mr. Speaker, our government is firm in supporting persons with disabilities, be they travelling from point A to point B by air, by land, by sea and by all means of transport. That is why we held a disability summit, gathering together the airline industry and persons with disabilities to sharpen our pencils to make sure that persons with disabilities can travel with dignity. We are doing this work. We are making sure that Canadians can travel in a dignified fashion.

Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency

[Lena Metlege Diab, Liberal, Halifax West, NS]

Mr. Speaker, we have an abundance of talent in Atlantic Canada's colleges and universities. The cutting-edge research and innovation produced in my region strengthen Canada's competitive advantage and drive growth in key industries like manufacturing, clean energy and ocean sustainability. Can the Minister responsible for ACOA tell the House what our government is doing to support researchers and entrepreneurs fuelling east-coast innovation?

[Gudie Hutchings, Liberal, Minister of Rural Economic Development and Minister responsible for the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency]

Mr. Speaker, Atlantic Canada is just full of bright thinkers and doers. At ACOA, the past few years, we have invested $30 million in Springboard Atlantic to get ideas from the classroom to the boardroom. Springboard has turned that funding into $500 million in partnerships.

We know ACOA investments bring long-term benefits to our communities, and yet the member for New Brunswick Southwest wrote in the National Post that ACOA and the other regional economic development agencies should be shut down. I wonder, do the other seven Atlantic Conservatives agree with him? Will they stand up for our region and support the work of ACOA? Let us hope they have a backbone. We do.

Taxation

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

Mr. Speaker, after nine years, the NDP-Liberal Prime Minister is not worth the hunger or the homelessness. The pain of the Liberals' financial mismanagement is coming home to roost in my hometown, where they came to visit. However, what they did not know is that the Colchester Food Bank is serving 148 more households than it did the year before. These are real people, not statistics, and they deserve better.

I asked this question on Friday and did not really get much of an answer, but maybe I will get one today: When will the Prime Minister axe the tax so Canadians can afford to eat again?

[Jenna Sudds, Liberal, Minister of Families]

Mr. Speaker, we all suffer when we see fellow Canadians suffering, which is why we set concrete poverty reduction targets. We set a target to reduce poverty by 50% by 2030. There are 1.3 million fewer Canadians living in poverty today than there were when the Conservatives were in government, and this includes hundreds of thousands of children. That said, more work needs to be done, which is exactly why budget 2024 brings forward additional measures to strengthen our social security net.

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

Mr. Speaker, the member opposite is avoiding the question, and the answer shows us just how much we need a significant change in government.

The CBC reported last week that seniors in Louisbourg, Nova Scotia, have been going days and even weeks without a proper meal, and that some children are not attending school because they do not have any food to take for lunch.

Canadians are hurting, and their government just does not seem to care. Again, when will the Prime Minister axe the tax so Canadians can afford to feed themselves?

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

Mr. Speaker, it is the height of hypocrisy for Conservatives to claim that they care about the most vulnerable among us.

Let us talk about seniors. There are 900,000 seniors across the country who are benefiting from the GIS put in place by our government.

On children in school, I agree that it is a tragedy for a kid to go to school hungry, and that is why our national school food program will provide meals for an additional 400,000 children.

The Conservatives are opposed to both. We will take no lessons from them when it comes to this.

[Dave Epp, Conservative, Chatham-Kent—Leamington, ON]

Mr. Speaker, after nine years, the NDP-Liberal Prime Minister is not worth the hunger and/or homelessness.

Food Banks Canada gives Canada failing grades, as nearly half of Canadians are financially feeling the cost of living increases. Housing costs have doubled. One in four experiences food insecurity. Food bank usage is up 11% in Windsor—Essex; 61% of Canadians are using food banks, and they are the first-time users.

We believe in bringing it home. The tragedy of the current government is that people cannot afford a home, let alone food to put into it. Is this the sunny ways that the Prime Minister promised Canadians?

[Mark Holland, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, when the Conservatives had the opportunity to be in government, they focused no attention on those who were homeless or vulnerable.

We have not only met our targets every year to reduce poverty, but we have taken important action. What the Conservatives essentially are saying is this: “In tough global times, we're here for you to cut your dental care. We're here for you to cut your diabetes medication. We're here for you to cut your child care. We're here for you to cut the supports that you need in difficult economic times.”

Canadians will see through that. They know who has their back.

[Fraser Tolmie, Conservative, Moose Jaw—Lake Centre—Lanigan, SK]

Mr. Speaker, after nine years, the NDP-Liberal Prime Minister is not worth the hunger or the homelessness.

Nearly half of Canadians are paying more than a third of their paycheque for food. The Moose Jaw Food Bank helped nearly 8,000 households in 2023, up 58%.

It is time to give Canadians back their dignity. Will the Prime Minister axe the tax, or will it take a common-sense Conservative government before Canadians can afford to eat?

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

Mr. Speaker, we will take no lessons from these Conservatives when it comes to supporting the most vulnerable among us.

Since we formed government, 1.3 million Canadians have been lifted out of poverty, including hundreds of thousands of children. However, we recognize these are very challenging times in Canada and around the world, and that is why we are so glad to be putting in place a national school food program: 400,000 kids will get meals because of it.

How can the Conservatives vote against that? Do members know how? It is because they only believe in cuts and austerity.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship

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

Mr. Speaker, yesterday we asked the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship about the distribution of asylum seekers. He replied that we were confusing capacity and willingness. I would like to remind him that, this year alone, Quebec has opened the equivalent of more than 50 schools to provide introductory classes for the children of asylum seekers. Now that is willingness.

Meanwhile, Ottawa is not spreading out the asylum seekers among the provinces, nor is it paying Quebec back for costs incurred, while families sleep out on the streets because the shelters are too full. That is a problem of willingness. When is the minister going to deal with his willingness problem and take action?

[Marc Miller, Liberal, Minister of Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, first of all, I would like to highlight the Bloc Québécois member's passion for immigration. Obviously, when we talk about a willingness to take in newcomers, we are entitled to wonder why, for example, PRAIDA, Quebec's regional program for the settlement and integration of asylum seekers, has not increased its capacity for several years.

Obviously, this responsibility is shared between Quebec and Canada. That is what we are doing. We announced weeks ago that we were going to do it. We expect to see results, but it is a positive development in our relationship.

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

Mr. Speaker, with those sorts of comments, we can more easily see why Ottawa has been asleep at the switch for months when it comes to asylum seekers.

If the minister still thinks that this problem has to do with a willingness to welcome asylum seekers rather than the capacity to do so, then he is really missing the point. Meanwhile, there are people lining up at food banks. There are people who have nowhere to stay. There are schools that were already under-resourced and are now at the end of their tether.

When will the minister realize that people, including asylum seekers, are stretched thin, that they cannot take any more because of his government's inaction?

[Marc Miller, Liberal, Minister of Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, I think that Quebeckers and Canadians will agree with me that we have taken action by transferring $5.2 billion to Quebec under the Canada-Quebec accord. We are always prepared to do more.

It is also very clear that Canada, like many other countries, is dealing with historic levels of irregular migration, but I believe that we can overcome that challenge, in partnership with the provinces and territories, obviously.

Mental Health and Addictions

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

Mr. Speaker, after nine years, it is clear that NDP-Liberal extremist drug policies have been a complete failure, something that everybody seems to understand except the NDP-Liberal government.

One hundred per cent of people recently polled were opposed to these dangerous drug policies that are flooding our streets with potent drugs. It said, “All believed this was a step in the wrong direction.”

What will it take for the Prime Minister to cancel his deadly and dangerous taxpayer-funded drug trafficking experiment?