House of Commons Hansard #53 of the 45th Parliament, 1st session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was investments.
This summary is computer-generated. Usually it’s accurate, but every now and then it’ll contain inaccuracies or total fabrications.
Financial Statement of Minister of Finance Members debate the government's budgetary policy. Conservatives criticize high deficits, inflation, and taxes, arguing it harms small businesses and affordability. Liberals defend generational investments in social programs, infrastructure, and defence, claiming it builds a stronger economy. The Bloc Québécois criticizes insufficient provincial transfers and continued oil subsidies. The NDP raises concerns about mental health and veterans' support. 14500 words, 2 hours in 2 segments: 1 2.
An Act to amend certain Acts in relation to survivor pension benefits First reading of Bill C-256. The bill aims to eliminate a "gold digger clause" denying survivor pension benefits to spouses of veterans and federal civil servants who married after age 60, described as "archaic" and "sexist." 400 words.
Jail Not Bail Act Second reading of Bill C-242. The bill, C-242, aims to amend the Criminal Code to prioritize public safety in bail decisions, especially for repeat violent offenders. It proposes repealing the principle of restraint, expanding reverse onus, and tightening risk assessment. Conservatives support it for safer streets. Liberals call it constitutionally questionable and redundant, citing their own Bill C-14 as a responsible alternative. The Bloc Québécois raises constitutional principles and prison capacity concerns. 8300 words, 1 hour.
Tim Hodgson LiberalMinister of Energy and Natural Resources
Mr. Speaker, as somebody who has spent much of his life in the banking community, I will tell the member about the S&P and Moody's ratings, which are AAA, the best in the entire world. We have the second-lowest debt-to-GDP ratio. We are doing just fine.
Mike Lake Conservative Leduc—Wetaskiwin, AB
Mr. Speaker, ratings are always great until the day they are not. Here is a quick review of the early nineties from Reuters.
In February 1994, it said, “The...Liberal government brings down what it considers to be a tough budget.... It nonetheless still has spending rising slightly, and immediate public and market reaction is it did not go nearly far enough.”
In January 1995, it said, “A biting editorial in the Wall Street Journal headlined ‘Bankrupt Canada’ calls Canada ‘an honorary member of the Third World.’” The next month, the Liberal government was forced to make the most vicious cuts to health care and social programs in Canadian history.
Who over there is willing to take a stand to avoid a repeat?
David McGuinty LiberalMinister of National Defence
Mr. Speaker, budget 2025 includes generational investments to rebuild, rearm and reinvest in the Canadian Armed Forces, and it starts with our people.
This budget includes a $2-billion historic pay and benefits package, which will impact close to 100,000 forces members and their families. Untrained sailors, privates and aviators are receiving a 20% pay raise. That is what is in our budget. That is what is at stake.
All members of the House should come together to support our forces, as they help to build and keep Canada strong.
Kelly DeRidder Conservative Kitchener Centre, ON
Mr. Speaker, while Canadians are being forced to choose between heating and eating, the government has chosen to increase our national debt by $80 billion.
Can the Prime Minister please explain how driving up debt and increasing the cost of living are going to help the single mom skipping meals, the senior afraid to open their hydro bill or the young family priced out of their new home? Is this just continued economic theatre from a government that has completely lost touch with reality?
Stephanie McLean LiberalSecretary of State (Seniors)
Mr. Speaker, they say they are fighting for youth, but they plan to vote against the national school food program. They say they are fighting for families, but they plan to vote against the middle-income tax cut. They say they are fighting for workers, but they plan to vote against the $75-million apprenticeship training fund. They say they are fighting for our borders, but they plan to vote against a much-needed pay raise for service members in our armed forces, including in my riding at CFB Esquimalt.
Canadians want to know who the Conservatives are fighting for, because it certainly is not Canadians.
Andrew Scheer Conservative Regina—Qu'Appelle, SK
Mr. Speaker, after 10 years of Liberal inflationary deficits, working Canadians have never had it so tough. People lined up at food banks and parents putting beef back on the grocery store shelf were desperate for something in the budget to bring prices down.
Did the Prime Minister scrap hidden taxes on food? No. Did he scrap the 17¢ fuel standards tax? No. The Prime Minister heard the cries of working Canadians and what did he do? He scrapped the luxury tax on private jets and yachts. That is right. The only measure in this budget to make things cheaper will only apply to boats and airplanes.
Can the Prime Minister tell us how many Canadians lined up at food banks will benefit from the private jet tax cut?
Patty Hajdu LiberalMinister of Jobs and Families and Minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Northern Ontario
Mr. Speaker, what Canadians want is a government that will invest in their futures and invest in their possibilities. That is exactly what we have been doing.
Some 67,000 new jobs were added this month. For two months in a row, we are seeing unemployment go down. What is great about this is that youth unemployment is going down. The investments we are making are working.
This is a budget for young people, seniors and families. The Conservatives are going to vote against things like dental care and child care. That is what families need, and that is exactly what this budget delivers.
Andrew Scheer Conservative Regina—Qu'Appelle, SK
Mr. Speaker, if they really wanted to give workers a break, they would scrap the industrial carbon tax that their American competitors do not have to pay.
Now we all know who this budget really was for: It was a Brookfield boardroom budget. After all, the billions in extra debt means that bankers and bondholders get big interest payments, and when those board members go out to buy a luxury private jet, they get a big tax break.
A Gulfstream G600 is currently listed for $63 million. Can the Prime Minister tell us how much a Brookfield executive will save with the private jet tax cut, and how much more Canadians will have to pay when food prices go up?
Caroline Desrochers LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Housing and Infrastructure
Mr. Speaker, unlike the Conservatives, Canadians do not live in a pretend world. They know there is no tax on food. They know which party always votes against affordability, dental care, pharmacare, child care and basically anything with the word “care” in it. Most importantly, Canadians know that our government is there for them with a budget that will protect jobs in critical sectors like auto, steel, aluminum and lumber, and that will build affordable housing and the infrastructures our communities need all across Canada, empowering and catalyzing our economy.
If you are really there for Canadians, you will vote for the budget.
The EconomyOral Questions
The Speaker Francis Scarpaleggia
I would remind the member to go through the Chair. I cannot vote unless there is a tie.
The hon. member for Gaspésie—Les Îles-de-la-Madeleine—Listuguj.
Alexis Deschênes Bloc Gaspésie—Les Îles-de-la-Madeleine—Listuguj, QC
Mr. Speaker, yesterday, Radio-Canada's Enquête aired a shocking report on lobster smuggling in New Brunswick. This is troubling for the people of Gaspé and for the Maritimes as a whole.
The problem is all the more serious given that, for the past several weeks, troubling revelations have come to light at the Standing Committee on Fisheries and Oceans about political interference in fisheries officers' efforts to combat illegal fishing. Officials from the Department of Fisheries and Oceans are reportedly keeping experienced officers from doing their job.
Why are senior department officials intervening to prevent the law from being enforced?
Joanne Thompson LiberalMinister of Fisheries
Mr. Speaker, unauthorized fishing is unacceptable, full stop. Fisheries officers have many tools they use in the management of unauthorized fishing, from education to charges to fines. Often, their work happens in remote areas and at times of the day when people are not aware of the work they are doing.
I want to thank fisheries officers for their outstanding work in keeping our fisheries safe and peaceful.
Alexis Deschênes Bloc Gaspésie—Les Îles-de-la-Madeleine—Listuguj, QC
Mr. Speaker, illegal lobster fishing is putting the species at risk, and that is what concerns fishers the most. They want to protect the resource so that their kids and grandkids get to fish too. We can do something about illegal fishing; all we need to do is enforce the law. All that the fisheries stakeholders who appear before the committee are asking is that officers be allowed to do their work without political interference or reprisals.
My question is simple, and the answer needs to be clear. Will the government ensure that these fisheries officers are able to enforce the law?
Joanne Thompson LiberalMinister of Fisheries
Mr. Speaker, I want to assure my colleague that the work is happening. He needs to look at what has happened in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and other parts of the country.
Fisheries officers are on the water. We support their work. They are making a difference. We accept nothing but authorized fishing.
Bernard Généreux Conservative Côte-du-Sud—Rivière-du-Loup—Kataskomiq—Témiscouata, QC
Mr. Speaker, this is the most expensive government in Canadian history. Every dollar the Prime Minister spends comes directly out of the pockets of Canadians. The more he spends, the more it costs.
In my riding's agricultural regions, farmers' costs are skyrocketing because of the industrial carbon tax. Fertilizer, farm equipment and transportation: The cost of everything is going up. It is costing more to farm, and that is driving up grocery prices.
While this Prime Minister is spending money hand over fist, families are struggling to put food on the table. Why is this government refusing to admit that its industrial carbon tax is a tax on food that we all have to pay for?
Madeleine Chenette LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Canadian Identity and Culture and Minister responsible for Official Languages and to the Secretary of State (Sport)
Mr. Speaker, obviously, it is important to maintain the industrial carbon tax to protect our climate and so forth. That said, the cost of living is the number one priority for our constituents, and we are working on that. This is a responsible budget that enables us to do so.
When will the official opposition understand that we need to look at the factors that contribute to Canadians' success? We are counting on the official opposition to support the budget.
Bernard Généreux Conservative Côte-du-Sud—Rivière-du-Loup—Kataskomiq—Témiscouata, QC
Mr. Speaker, clearly this parliamentary secretary is out of touch with the reality on the ground, especially in the regions. According to a Nanos poll, one in five Canadians skipped paying a bill just to be able to put food on the table. Frankly, that is unacceptable.
Can the Prime Minister explain to my voters and to Liberal voters why he is insisting on keeping the industrial carbon tax while families have to choose between heating their home and filling their fridge?
Mélanie Joly LiberalMinister of Industry and Minister responsible for Canada Economic Development for Quebec Regions
Mr. Speaker, we know that Quebeckers support the budget because we have met their expectations with good jobs in my colleague's riding, including in La Pocatière. The people who work at Alstom are going to be able to have good jobs. They will be able to buy groceries and support their families.
Quebeckers also want a good health care system. At the federal level, we ensured that transfers continued to increase in the last budget and we secured them in this budget. We have also provided support to build hospitals. The Government of Quebec asked us to do so and we delivered. We are there for Quebec.
Helena Konanz Conservative Similkameen—South Okanagan—West Kootenay, BC
Mr. Speaker, the Liberals promised to spend less but have introduced the largest budget deficit in history outside of COVID. This is at a time when one in five Canadians say they skipped paying a bill to afford groceries this past year.
The Liberals had a chance to lower food prices. Instead, they increased the industrial carbon tax on our farms, driving up the cost of fertilizer and farm equipment.
Why is the Prime Minister increasing the industrial carbon tax and making food more expensive?
John Zerucelli LiberalSecretary of State (Labour)
Mr. Speaker, the member should take next week to meet with local chapters of the building trades in her riding.
I encourage every member to take next week to meet with the locals to understand why they are supporting this budget. From coast to coast to coast, workers are supporting our plan: the Canadian building trades, the Alberta building trades, IBEW, carpenters and on and on. They are endorsing the investments made in this budget. The SEIU said it best: “Promise made. Promise kept.”
They are supporting the investments because we are building good union jobs. We are building this country.
Aaron Gunn Conservative North Island—Powell River, BC
Mr. Speaker, after 10 years of the Liberal government, young Canadians are struggling. They are struggling to afford homes in one of the least affordable housing markets in the world. They are struggling to find jobs in an economy that is increasingly slowing down, and they are struggling just to afford food after some of the highest food inflation in more than 30 years.
The budget was an opportunity to do right by the next generation. Instead, the Liberals announced over $300 billion in new debt, debt that will be left to these exact same young Canadians to pay for. How is that ethical? How is that fair? How is that remotely fiscally responsible?
Maggie Chi LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Health
Mr. Speaker, here is one number: 67,000 jobs created.
How are we supporting them? We are supporting them by investing in their health. Through budget 2025, we are investing $5 billion to renew hospitals and health care centres, as well as $97 million to recognize skilled professionals faster, and giving new supports for personal support workers.
Do not just take it from me, Mr. Speaker; take it from the CMA, which says this is a “[right] step in the right direction” to support the health of our nation.
Aaron Gunn Conservative North Island—Powell River, BC
Mr. Speaker, I have a simple question for the Liberal government. Over the past 10 years, it has doubled Canada's national debt. In that same time, unsurprisingly, it has also doubled the amount of taxpayers' money that it has wasted on paying interest on that debt. In fact, today, we now spend $55 billion a year just on interest payments. That is more than we collect from the GST. That is more than we spend on health care. Now it wants to borrow another $320 billion.
Does the government really think that spending $55 billion not on health care, not on roads, but on interest, is a good use of taxpayers' money, yes or no?
Adam van Koeverden LiberalSecretary of State (Sport)
Mr. Speaker, we are building Canada strong, and that includes the spaces and places that Canadians go to play, to practise and to exercise. A healthy lifestyle is preventative medicine, and we are building the facilities necessary right across this country, with new rinks, new pools and new field houses, so the next generation of Canadians can have better physical literacy and a healthier lifestyle, and so they can connect with their communities in those important places.
Why will the Conservatives not join us to build Canada strong and make sure that every community has access to those facilities, the infrastructure that keeps us healthy and our communities connected?
Chris Malette Liberal Bay of Quinte, ON
Mr. Speaker, in my riding, the Bay of Quinte, so many of my neighbours are friends of veterans, family members of veterans or veterans themselves. It is a privilege and an honour to be here to represent them. The generational budget introduced by the Prime Minister and finance minister earlier this week will be deeply impactful to communities across Canada, including those like mine that are home to so many veterans and active military members and their families, as well as to all Canadians.
Can the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Veterans Affairs offer his comments on budget 2025?