House of Commons Hansard #57 of the 45th Parliament, 1st session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was 2025.
This summary is computer-generated. Usually it’s accurate, but every now and then it’ll contain inaccuracies or total fabrications.
Cowichan Tribes Land Ruling Conservative MP Jamie Schmale requests an emergency debate on the *Cowichan Tribes v. Canada* court decision, citing national concerns about land title security, fee simple ownership, and the financial system across Canada. 700 words.
Budget Documents Distributed to Members—Speaker's Ruling The Speaker rules on a question of privilege from the member for Joliette—Manawan regarding discrepancies between paper and electronic budget documents. While no prima facie breach was found, the Speaker stresses that the tabled version is the official budget. 700 words.
Parliamentary Budget Officer Bloc member Christine Normandin argues the government's alleged delay or refusal to provide essential information to the Parliamentary Budget Officer constitutes a breach of privilege, impeding the PBO's mandate and parliamentary accountability. 500 words.
Budget 2025 Implementation Act, No. 1 Second reading of Bill C-15. The bill implements provisions of Budget 2025, aiming to build a stronger, more resilient Canadian economy. It includes investments in housing, infrastructure, clean energy, and defence, alongside measures to enhance financial sector stability and affordability. Critics express concerns over the budget's projected $78 billion deficit, increased national debt, and alleged lack of support for certain sectors and regions. 47200 words, 6 hours in 2 segments: 1 2.
Special Joint Committee on the Building Canada Act Kevin Lamoureux moves to establish a special joint committee to review the Governor in Council's and Minister's exercise of powers and duties under the Building Canada Act and Emergencies Act. The motion is agreed to. 600 words.
Living Donor Recognition Medal Act Second reading of Bill C-234. The bill creates a Living Donor Recognition Medal to formally honor Canadians who donate organs or part of an organ to save another person's life. Members from all parties express support, highlighting the selflessness and courage of living donors and how the medal would raise awareness, potentially reducing transplant waiting lists and saving more lives. 7800 words, 1 hour.
Kevin Lamoureux LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons
Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 36(8)(a), I have the honour to table, in both official languages, the government's response to 12 petitions. These returns will be tabled in an electronic format.
Chris Bittle Liberal St. Catharines, ON
Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the ninth report of the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs. The committee advises that, pursuant to Standing Order 91.1(2), the Subcommittee on Private Members' Business met to consider the orders for the second reading of private members' bills originating in the Senate and recommended that the items listed herein, which have been determined should not be designated non-votable, be considered by the House.
Procedure and House AffairsCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings
Brad Vis Conservative Mission—Matsqui—Abbotsford, BC
Mr. Speaker, today I rise for I believe the fourth or fifth time on behalf of angered parents at Abbotsford Traditional School who are opposed to the safe consumption site proposed by BC Housing across the street from the school track.
Parents are calling upon the Government of Canada to enforce its special arrangement with British Columbia, to respect the innocence of children and to cease all funding to BC Housing until it respects federal rules and jurisdictions in the application of the unfortunate decriminalization policy between the federal government and the Province of B.C.
Harb Gill Conservative Windsor West, ON
Mr. Speaker, I rise today to present a certified petition on behalf of the great residents of Windsor West and the surrounding region.
The petitioners draw the attention of the House to the ecological, cultural and community significance of the Ojibway Prairie Complex and the adjacent natural areas, which are home to rare and endangered species and lands of great importance to indigenous people. They note that the proposal to establish an Ojibway national urban park has been advanced in Parliament, most recently by a private member's bill, Bill C-248, in the last Parliament.
This has already been considered by all the appropriate committees. The petitioners therefore respectfully request that the Government of Canada, in collaboration with Parks Canada, the City of Windsor and the relevant first nations and provincial partners, take the necessary steps to finalize and enact the designation of an Ojibway national urban park to ensure long-term protection, ecological restoration and public access for current and future generations.
I am tabling this petition on their behalf with great pride and honour.
Kevin Lamoureux LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons
Mr. Speaker, I would ask that all questions be allowed to stand.
Questions on the Order PaperRoutine Proceedings
Questions on the Order PaperRoutine Proceedings
The Speaker Francis Scarpaleggia
[For text of questions and responses, see Written Questions website]
Cowichan Tribes Land RulingRequest for Emergency DebateRoutine Proceedings
The Speaker Francis Scarpaleggia
I wish to inform the House that I have received notice of a request for an emergency debate. I invite the hon. member for Haliburton—Kawartha Lakes to rise and make a brief intervention.
Jamie Schmale Conservative Haliburton—Kawartha Lakes, ON
Mr. Speaker, I would like to formally request, following adjournment of the House, a debate on an important matter requiring urgent consideration, pursuant to Standing Order 52, regarding the national implications of the recent Cowichan Tribes v. Canada court decision, the subsequent notices issued to homeowners in British Columbia and the profound uncertainty now surrounding Canada's land title system.
The City of Richmond has formally notified residents that the ruling may affect the status and validity of their property titles. This has caused widespread fear and confusion not only in British Columbia but right across Canada. The concerns are legitimate. The court's decision, while under appeal, raises unresolved constitutional and economic questions that extend far beyond one municipality or one region.
People deserve to know, people like Richmond farmer Gord Maichin, who said he was kept in the dark, or a business owner who learned from the news, not his government, that his industrial property might be subject to claims he had no chance to respond to. These are not speculators; these are families, employers and taxpayers who bought land in good faith and trusted their governments to act with transparency.
They were never informed. They feel blindsided because federal and provincial governments held discussions behind closed doors, excluding the very people whose titles were at stake. Whether one agrees with the court or not, the human impact of the failure to consult is undeniable. Now ordinary Canadians fear that fee simple title, something relied on for generations, may no longer be secure.
True reconciliation cannot be achieved by undermining private property rights. Aboriginal title is unique and collective. It is not simply another interest in the land. By declaring it senior to fee simple, the ruling casts doubt on the indefeasibility protections that underpin our entire land title system. Without certainty, how can homeowners trust their titles? How can banks extend mortgages? How can businesses plan for the future?
This decision risks shaking the foundations of Canada's financial system, but the government chose not to notify homeowners, not to defend Crown grants and not to allow arguments that could protect fee simple holders. The ruling has created serious uncertainty about how fee simple ownership and aboriginal title legally coexist, and, in densely populated areas, whether the Land Title Act's indefeasibility protections remain stable; how mortgages, sales, insurance and municipal planning can be affected; and what compensation mechanisms exist if overlapping interests must be reconciled.
A responsible Conservative position recognizes both the need for reconciliation and the need for stability. We respect indigenous rights and the constitutional framework that protects them. At the same time, we insist on clarity, transparency and the protection of ordinary Canadians whose life savings are tied to secure property ownership.
That is why we are calling for an emergency debate that would allow Parliament to assess the national implications of this decision and consider ways to defend fee simple property rights and protect the integrity of Canada's land title, mortgage and economic systems. This ruling does not only affect British Columbians. It affects Canadians from coast to coast to coast. Every homeowner, every farmer and every business owner deserves to know that the title they rely on is stable and not subject to retroactive reinterpretation.
This is now a national issue, not a local issue. Municipalities are uncertain about their zoning authorities. Farmers are asking whether land is still secure. Business owners are wondering if their investment can still be used for debt financing. Families want to know if the title they have held for decades still means what it was meant to mean before this ruling.
We need to follow the lead of the member for Richmond Centre—Marpole with his leadership on this file. His contributions to caucus have been outstanding. He is representing his constituents very well. He recognized this crisis immediately and is responding. This request is proposing immediate parliamentary action.
For these reasons, I respectfully request that you, Mr. Speaker, approve an emergency debate at the earliest opportunity. Your attention to this matter is appreciated.
Speaker's RulingRequest for Emergency DebateRoutine Proceedings
The Speaker Francis Scarpaleggia
I thank the hon. member for Haliburton—Kawartha Lakes for his intervention. However, I am not satisfied that this request meets the requirements of the Standing Orders at this time.
Budget Documents Distributed to Members—Speaker's RulingPrivilegeRoutine Proceedings
The Speaker Francis Scarpaleggia
I am now ready to rule on the question of privilege raised on November 5 by the member for Joliette—Manawan concerning budget documents distributed to members.
In his intervention, the member alleged that due to differences between the paper version of the budget distributed to members on November 4, 2025 at both the lock-up held behind closed doors and during the sitting of the House, and the electronic PDF version available on the website of the Department of Finance, members had not had equal access to information on budgetary policy. This, he argued, undermined the ability of members—particularly opposition members—to analyze government measures, prepare for debate, and hold the government to account. The member noted that the electronic PDF version of the document contained more information than the paper version distributed to members. He further argued that members attending the budget lock-up earlier in the day were informed that the electronic version was official and complete, while others who did not attend the lock-up, only discovered this afterward. He concluded by suggesting that this resulted in members being impeded in the performance of their parliamentary duties and asked the Speaker to consider this a prima facie breach of privilege.
The deputy House leader of the government in the House of Commons countered that it is the budget document tabled by the minister in the House on November 4, 2025, that constitutes the official government policy and confirmed that the document was indeed complete. She commented that past Speakers' rulings clarify that budget lock-ups are not proceedings of Parliament. She concluded by affirming the government's commitment to ensuring that members receive the budget information they need, in the format of their preference, to fulfill their parliamentary functions.
What primarily concerns the Chair in this situation is therefore whether the proper tabling procedures were followed and if information was intentionally withheld from members.
In a ruling on alleged misleading budget documents, Speaker Sauvé stated clearly on April 26, 1983, at page 24867 of the Debates:
Ministers, and not the Chair, are responsible for anything they might table concerning the administrative responsibilities of the Government. The Chair is competent to determine whether or not the tabling procedure observed is correct. It is not responsible for the content of the documents themselves.
At the time designated for the budget presentation, the minister moved the usual motion, tabled a series of ways and means motions, and tabled a paper copy of what constitutes the official version of the budget document. To this end, the Chair is satisfied that the proper procedures were followed.
The member noted that the hard copy he received does not contain all the information found in the electronic version. The Chair agrees that fulsome budgetary information should be available to members, so that they can more easily conduct their analysis of the government’s policy. That said, it is always possible that more extensive information can be found in other sources, even if these are not tabled in the House.
The Chair must examine this matter through the lens of the high threshold for adjudicating questions of privilege, and, in the present case, no contradictory information seems to have been deliberately provided, and no information seems to have been intentionally withheld.
Accordingly, the Chair concludes that the member has not been impeded in the discharge of his duties and, therefore, does not find this matter constitutes a prima facie question of privilege.
The Chair welcomes the interpretation provided by the deputy government House leader that the official and complete budgetary document was the one tabled by the minister. That being said, the Chair wishes to express concern with the idea that the electronic PDF version of the document might be seen by others as the official and complete version of the budget or, as is indicated in the version available online, that, “In case of discrepancy between the printed version and the electronic version, the electronic version will prevail.” From the Chair's point of view, the authoritative version of the budget remains the one tabled in the House, not the one published on the department's website.
I thank all members for their attention.
Christine Normandin Bloc Saint-Jean, QC
Mr. Speaker, the question of privilege raised by the member for Edmonton West on November 17 brings up what we believe is an important issue. The Parliamentary Budget Officer's assertion that the government has unjustifiably delayed or refused to provide essential information is very troubling and shows that his ability to fully exercise his mandate under the Parliament of Canada Act has been impeded. According to section 79.01, the Parliamentary Budget Officer shall "support Parliament by providing analysis, including analysis of macro-economic and fiscal policy, for the purposes of raising the quality of parliamentary debate and promoting greater budget transparency and accountability".
The act is clear and unequivocal. Parliament itself enacted specific legislation to guarantee that the Parliamentary Budget Officer remains independent while performing his duties. These measures were specifically designed to elevate the quality of parliamentary debates and ensure that there is greater transparency and accountability in budgetary matters. The Parliamentary Budget Officer requested that the government provide him with additional information regarding the budget that he deemed necessary to fulfill his mandate, as provided for in subsection 79.4(1) of the Act.
I would like to take this opportunity to remind the House that the government has a legal obligation to co-operate with the Parliamentary Budget Officer's requests as an officer of Parliament. It is incumbent upon the House itself to assert its powers and protect the Parliamentary Budget Officer's mandate under the Parliament of Canada Act. The ultimate goal of those provisions is to assist members in their work as parliamentarians. The offices of the Parliamentary Budget Officer and the Auditor General of Canada were created precisely to allow all elected members of the House of Commons to fully carry out their role and hold the government to account.
The Parliamentary Budget Officer provides independent economic and financial analysis to the Parliament of Canada. This allows for better fiscal transparency, which ensures a better understanding of economic and fiscal policies and greater accountability. Officers of Parliament are and must remain independent of the government. That is why they are governed by the Parliament of Canada Act.
Since members of Parliament were denied an analysis based on all the information deemed necessary by the Parliamentary Budget Officer himself as an officer of Parliament, it seems logical to raise the issue of a potential breach of parliamentary privilege. I therefore agree with the member who raised this issue. It is up to Parliament itself to intervene to defend its powers and those of its officers. The violation of a legal obligation to provide a document constitutes a serious breach of privilege, since it undermines the authority and dignity of the House.
In closing, this is not the first time this has happened. It is a recurring and systemic problem within Parliament that exists regardless of the political party in power. The Parliamentary Budget Officer has explicitly requested Parliament's support in obtaining the data necessary for his budget analysis, and his inability to obtain that data prevents members from debating important elements of the budget in an informed manner. I would therefore ask the Chair to rule that there is a prima facie question of privilege so that the House can discuss ways to provide the Parliamentary Budget Officer with the assistance he needs to fulfill his mandate.
Parliamentary Budget OfficerPrivilegeRoutine Proceedings
Gary Anandasangaree Liberal Scarborough—Guildwood—Rouge Park, ON
moved that Bill C-15, An Act to implement certain provisions of the budget tabled in Parliament on November 4, 2025, be read the second time and referred to a committee.
Ryan Turnbull LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance and National Revenue and to the Secretary of State (Canada Revenue Agency and Financial Institutions)
Good morning, Mr. Speaker. It is a great day in Parliament today, and it is my pleasure to rise to introduce Bill C-15, an act that would implement certain provisions of the budget tabled in Parliament on November 4.
A mere few weeks ago, our government tabled budget 2025, an investment budget with unprecedented measures to build big things in this country, to empower Canadians with a better life and to protect our sovereignty. This budget comes at a time when global headwinds are being felt by Canadians all across the country, in their homes, in their shops, on factory floors, in the fields, in boardrooms and truly everywhere across the nation.
From geopolitical conflicts causing uncertainty, to rising protectionism, including tariffs imposed by our closest trading partner, Canada's fundamental relationships with the world are changing. The speed, scope and scale of these changes are extraordinary and unparalleled. They are not just transformative but represent a true generational shift.
To meet this moment, our government is playing to Canada's many, many strengths to secure a better economic future for everyone, not only because we owe it to Canadians to do so but also because we know that when Canadians come together, there is nothing we cannot accomplish. No one should ever make the mistake of underestimating Canada, and on this side of the House we will never apologize for being optimistic about Canada's future, because we are here to make good things happen for Canadians. On this side of the House we believe in Canada.
This past spring, our government was elected with a clear mandate to do meaningful and significant work for this country at an important moment in our history. Budget 2025 delivers on this promise with the generational plan to build one Canadian economy instead of 13, a uniquely Canadian success story amplified by major nation-building projects that will connect our regions, diversify our markets and create hundreds of thousands of high-paying careers, from the skilled trades to advanced technologies.
Just as the railways united our country, the Trans-Canada Highway opened our frontiers and the St. Lawrence Seaway linked our economy to the world, today's major projects will be as transformative, building clean power grids for a sustainable future and expanding our ports to accelerate our trade with partners around the world.
This includes major projects like the Iqaluit hydro project, which is Inuit-owned and will be providing clean power to communities that have traditionally relied on burning 15 million litres of imported diesel fuel per year. There is also the new nuclear project at Darlington in Bowmanville, in my region of Durham, that will deploy four small modular reactors and provide clean power to 1.2 million homes while adding over 21,000 jobs and $38.5 billion to Canada's GDP over the next 65 years.
Bill C-15 would further advance the Alto high-speed rail project, Canada's first high-speed rail, a 300-kilometre-an-hour railway from Toronto to Quebec City, whose path to construction would be accelerated, bringing us ever closer to fast travel within Canada's most populated corridor.
Bill C-15 would invest $11.5 billion in Build Canada Homes and make $1.5 billion available to capitalize Canada Lands Company Limited to support housing construction on properties held by the corporation. Our new trade diversification strategy will boost our global footprint, doubling overseas exports over a decade and generating $300 billion more in trade.
All these measures and many others included in Bill C-15 speak to our clear and ambitious plan to move our economy from our traditional state of reliance on one trading partner to a state of resilience, which would help us absorb and react to any shocks our economy experiences in the future. To meet these targets, we must ensure that Canada remains an attractive place to invest and grow a business, while fostering homegrown innovation.
Our new productivity superdeduction will make it easier for Canadian businesses to invest in new machinery, equipment and technologies, enhancing Canada's competitive advantage over the United States and encouraging crucial business investment across the country, while boosting productivity and growth. I know that members opposite are with me on this, because they have spoken to it in the House many times. The GDP per capita and productivity must rise.
The superdeductions are exactly the type of tax measures and benefits to businesses that will cause them to invest in themselves, to bet on themselves, to increase productivity and to help increase real wages relative to the cost of living and ensure a higher standard of living for all Canadians.
Additionally, Bill C-15 would enhance Canada's scientific research and experimental development tax incentive program by increasing the enhanced credit expenditure limit to $6 million, extending eligibility for the enhanced credit to certain Canadian public corporations and restoring capital expenditures as eligible costs.
Doing all of this plays to Canada's many strengths: a highly educated workforce, a world-class research and innovation ecosystem, stability and the rule of law, strong trading relationships with traditional and emerging markets, and sound fiscal and economic fundamentals and management.
Another one of our strengths is our strong resource and energy sector and our ongoing commitment to make Canada competitive in a decarbonizing global economy. We believe, as the vast majority of Canadians believe, that Canada must continue investing in the clean economy to drive down emissions, fight climate change and create good-paying jobs for future generations. Our government's proposed climate competitiveness strategy will drive the investments needed for Canadian businesses to compete and, most importantly, win in the net-zero future that we all know is the reality of our world.
As part of this strategy, Bill C-15 includes measures to deliver the clean electricity investment tax credit to support clean electricity technologies and a clean electricity grid, as well as to enhance the suite of existing investment tax credits to further support investments in clean technologies and clean-technology manufacturing.
The carbon capture, utilization and storage investment tax credit would maintain its full credit rates for an additional five years, up to 2035. The clean-technology manufacturing investment tax credit would be broadened to include more critical minerals essential for clean-technology supply chains. Similarly, the critical mineral exploration tax credit would be expanded to cover 12 more minerals, further supporting Canada's role in global clean energy supply chains.
We also are making Canada's tax system more fair. As we lay out the conditions that we believe will attract historic investments to turbocharge the Canadian economy, our new government is also focused on ensuring that Canadians can keep more of their hard-earned money in their pockets. That is why one of the first things we did after winning the spring election was reduce taxes for 22 million Canadians, which is essential tax relief at a time when Canadians really need it.
We cut taxes to lower the cost of housing for first-time homebuyers, a measure that immediately makes home ownership a reality for more Canadians, especially young families. The average rate of savings would be about $50,000 on the purchase of a new home under $1 million. That is significant savings for young people trying to get into the housing market.
We brought down the price of gasoline by 18¢ per litre in most provinces and territories when we cancelled the divisive consumer carbon price, while strengthening industrial carbon pricing to ensure that our industries can remain competitive for future generations.
To build upon that momentum, our government is moving forward with several important tax reforms. For starters, to help protect the financial stability of persons with disabilities, Bill C-15 would exempt the Canada disability benefit from income calculations, maximizing its benefits, and would proceed with expanding the disability supports deduction. Bill C-15 would also introduce a temporary personal support workers tax credit to provide up to $1,100 per year to eligible PSWs, recognizing in a tangible way their vital contributions to our communities.
Additionally, the legislation would increase the lifetime capital gains exemption to apply to up to $1.25 million of eligible capital gains, as announced in budget 2024, ensuring that Canadians with eligible capital gains will pay less tax and be better off as a result. We are also proposing to drop the underused housing tax, as well as the luxury tax on aircraft and vessels, which will respectively reduce burdensome administrative and compliance costs and support the aviation and boating industries at a time of ongoing global economic uncertainty.
We are also strengthening and protecting Canada's financial sector. We are putting more money in Canadians' pockets while also helping Canadians access their money more easily and sooner. We are making changes to Canada's financial sector, giving consumers more control of their finances. Bill C-15 would amend the Bank Act to raise the first amount of immediately available deposited cheque funds from $100 to $150 and remove the timing distinction between funds deposited in person and those done via other means. This will give more Canadians easier access to their own money and reduce reliance on short-term credit, such as payday loans or overdraft protection, especially for low-income Canadians and seniors.
Bill C-15 would also amend the Bank Act, the Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation Act and the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada Act to make it easier for credit unions to enter the federal framework and expand so that they can continue to serve more Canadians. Notably, the legislation will also advance the government's commitment to open banking by completing the consumer-driven banking legislative framework. This will enable secure financial data sharing in Canada and facilitate access to lower-cost products, clearer choices and better tools to manage debt and reduce financial stress for Canadians.
Additionally, Bill C-15 would create a regulated space for stablecoins, a type of cryptocurrency whose value is usually tied to a government-issued currency, further supporting innovation in the financial sector and helping build trust in digital payments. We are also cracking down on sophisticated financial crimes, from ghost texts and mysterious links to masked voice-over calls and phony bank emails, all of which threaten the financial well-being of Canadians everywhere. These are becoming increasingly sophisticated and harder to detect, but Bill C-15 will amend the Bank Act to require banks to have policies and procedures to detect and prevent consumer-targeted fraud and, to mitigate its impacts, collect and report data on fraud to the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada and allow consumers to disable certain account features and adjust maximum transaction amounts.
We are doing all that while also making government more efficient. To deliver on this investment budget, Canada's new government is spending less on government operations to invest more in the workers, businesses and nation-building infrastructure that will surely grow our economy. Budget 2025 delivers on the government's comprehensive expenditure review so that we can right-size government and deliver $60 billion in savings and revenues that can be deployed for other purposes over the next five years. The size of our public sector has grown significantly during the COVID and the post-COVID eras. Our public service played an invaluable role helping Canada navigate those crises. I know Canadians are grateful and very appreciative of the role the federal government and all public servants played in that process.
We are now, however, facing a new set of challenges, and the economic headwinds we are facing mean we have to spend less on government operations so we can invest more in the growth and prosperity of our economy. To be clear, our government will continue to protect the vital programs people across the nation rely on, such as child care, dental care, prescription drug coverage, the Canada child benefit, the national school food program and so much more.
These are essential programs that Canadians have come to rely on. They are part of our social safety net. They benefit the most vulnerable in our society. It is imperative that we protect that social safety net. It is part of what makes the country great.
The measures I have outlined here today are ambitious and broad, but they are also integrated and interconnected into a comprehensive plan. All this, from catalyzing investment to making life more affordable for Canadians and spending less on government operations so that we can invest more in transformative projects, are part of our plan to help Canada navigate this unique moment.
These are smart, strategic investments designed to catalyze $500 billion of new private investment into Canada over the next five years and enable $1 trillion in total investment in Canada in five years, investments that will not only invest in people but businesses all across Canada. Canadians want to thrive. They want to see a thriving economy for generations to come.
Budget 2025 is our plan to harness Canada's many strengths and to put our country on the path to prosperity, making a strong country even stronger and more resilient. That is what budget 2025 is about. It is because we believe in Canada. It is a strategy to build at speed, at scope and at a scale not seen in generations, with Canadian workers at the core and at the centre, and with the national interest at the heart of every decision that is made.
I urge all hon. members to support the speedy passage of Bill C-15, so we can meet the moment we find ourselves in and, together, build a Canada that is secure, resilient and strong.
Todd Doherty Conservative Cariboo—Prince George, BC
Mr. Speaker, our hon. colleague spoke for, I believe, 15 minutes, talking about a generational budget. There is one thing generational about this budget, and that is the debt they are heaping on the shoulders of my grandchildren, my family, his family and the families of Canadians all across the country.
He spoke for 15 minutes, and there was not one word about mental health, not one word about the opioid crisis, to which we have lost 50,000 Canadians since 2016. Since 2016, we have lost more Canadians to overdose than we lost in World War II. There was not one mention of what the government is going to do with its generational spending in the next year.
Why?
Ryan Turnbull Liberal Whitby, ON
Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the member opposite's work on securing a suicide prevention hotline. We worked together on that across party lines, and it was great to see. It is great that we got that done. We also moved forward, in a previous Parliament, with the youth mental health fund across Canada, which I did consultations on in my riding and was very well received. It is not to say that we are not aware of the mental health crisis in the country. In fact, I spoke about our social safety net, which does include support. When they were last renegotiated, the health transfers included a specific focus on standardizing mental health supports across the country. We have done things on this.
I want to be clear that our balance sheet in Canada is one of the strongest in the G7. We need to make these generational investments.
Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe Bloc Lac-Saint-Jean, QC
Mr. Speaker, in his speech, my colleague often used the phrase “build a stronger Canada”.
This summer, the U.S. President posted a tweet demanding that the Prime Minister abolish the GAFAM law, which allowed us to impose a 3% tax on the web giants and would have generated a total of $7.3 billion in public funds over five years. Those funds could then have been redistributed to the media sector without the need for any taxpayer contribution. That is pretty fantastic.
The U.S. President's tweet was obeyed. In fact, 24 hours after it was posted, the Prime Minister got rid of the infamous tax. How does obeying a tweet by the U.S. President and foregoing $7.3 billion in public funds over five years amount to building a stronger Canada?
Ryan Turnbull Liberal Whitby, ON
Mr. Speaker, our Prime Minister and ministers on the front bench have said time and time again that Canada cannot control the temperament of leaders around the world. We also cannot control their trade policies. What we get to control is our response. Our Prime Minister and members of cabinet are working diligently to diversify trade so that we are less reliant on one trading partner, as well as working to smooth out the relationship with the United States, which is obviously complex and challenging right now.
We have introduced many tax measures that members opposite can be very positive about in this piece of legislation. This includes the capital gains rollover on small business investments, the lifetime capital gains exemption, exempting the Canada disability benefit from income and the home accessibility tax credit. There are so many more measures in the BIA that I am quite proud of and a whole suite of investment tax credits to support a clean economy.
These are really positive tax measures, and I hope the members opposite will support them.
Kevin Lamoureux LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons
Mr. Speaker, the member spent some time talking about trade. It is absolutely critical that we do spend time talking about trade.
In terms of the United States being our number one trading partner, we made a commitment to diversify our trade and to look at doubling exports in the next 10 years beyond the United States. This is one reason that, virtually for the first time in history, we have a Prime Minister who has committed to doing just that. That is why he is in the U.A.E. That is why he is going to South Africa. Participating in and encouraging additional trade will benefit all Canadians.
Can the member provide his thoughts on whether economic sovereignty is best achieved by expanding our trading opportunities?
Ryan Turnbull Liberal Whitby, ON
As usual, Mr. Speaker, I could not agree more with my colleague. It is clear that with the economic headwinds we are experiencing and with the uncertainty that remains fairly prevalent in our economy, our government needs to step up and do what is necessary to diversify trade, to replace the demand that is not there right now from U.S. trade partners and to ensure that our industries can grow and thrive so that we can counteract the economic headwinds, the drag on the economy, that the trade friction with the United States has created.
This means that we have to invest in infrastructure to get more of our goods and products to foreign markets. It means that we need to have an industrial policy that encourages investment and remains attractive to global capital. It means that we have to buy Canadian and have a strong policy to ensure that Canadian workers can build using Canadian materials to build a stronger Canada.
Brad Vis Conservative Mission—Matsqui—Abbotsford, BC
Mr. Speaker, I am very concerned that the rhetoric from the government is not meeting the economic reality Canada is facing right now.
I served with the member on the industry committee. In 2023, he spoke extensively about the critical minerals strategy tied to battery electrification projects in Canada. Those have all fallen apart in recent months. In fact, right now, the Government of Canada is still subsidizing Stellantis as it moves its operations to the United States. That was in the contract the government signed.
The member outlined that the Liberals want to double overseas exports, yet the budget does not outline a strategy to meet that very ambitious goal. How are the Liberals going to do that when they allocated only $5 billion for trade and export-related infrastructure over five years? That is a drop in the bucket.
Ryan Turnbull Liberal Whitby, ON
Mr. Speaker, Canada is blessed with natural resources. It is one of our strategic advantages around the world, especially with the world wanting more of what Canada has to offer. Critical minerals are essential. We have a strategy that is embedded in the budget. There are significant investments with the sovereign fund. There are significant exploration tax credits that have been enhanced and expanded to more critical minerals.
These projects are essential. We have seen many of them already referred to the Major Projects Office, with great benefit to Canada's trading relationships. We have seen our ministers sign agreements around the world with other countries to supply critical minerals at a time when they really need them.