Debates of Nov. 6th, 2026

Finance

[Michael Chong, Conservative, Wellington—Halton Hills North, ON]

Mr. Speaker, in most projections, growth remains anemic, below 1% this year, which is essentially zero.

Over the past six months, the government has announced tens of billions of dollars in tax expenditures outside of this place, which we only got the details of yesterday in the budget, so I have a simple question. Will the government commit that in the next six months, it is not going to be making any more major tax expenditure or spending announcements outside of this place, and will instead respect Parliament and announce them here?

[Ryan Turnbull, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance and National Revenue and to the Secretary of State (Canada Revenue Agency and Financial Institutions)]

Mr. Speaker, what we will commit to is growing the Canadian economy as fast as possible to achieve what we promised Canadians, which is to have the strongest, most resilient economy in the G7. How do we do that? We leverage the strong fundamentals and fiscal firepower this country has to invest in Canadians, to support them with affordability measures like a boost to the groceries and essentials benefit, to move forward with our electricity strategy, to end homelessness and to ensure that we have a growing, prosperous economy that creates good-paying jobs for the future.

Public Services and Procurement

[John Brassard, Conservative, Barrie South—Innisfil, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister chose his words very carefully yesterday when asked whether he had discussed the $2.3 billion given to his long-time friend and fundraiser Dan Goldberg, CEO of Telesat. He said that he was not involved in the decision. That was not the question.

Section 9 of Canada's Conflict of Interest Act prohibits public office holders from using their position to influence others to advance their own private interests and those of relatives or friends. Let us try this again. Has the Prime Minister ever discussed Telesat with his ministers, any of his staff, or public servants, yes or no?

[Mike Kelloway, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, the question was asked yesterday, and the answer was provided many times yesterday. Canada has world-leading rules and regulations when it comes to ethics, disclosure and compliance. All members on this side of the House take that very seriously. The answer yesterday, as the answer is today, was that we follow these rules and we take them very seriously.

[John Brassard, Conservative, Barrie South—Innisfil, ON]

Mr. Speaker, that is the exact same response the Liberals gave as the SNC-Lavalin and WE scandals were unfolding. It is what they said on the green slush fund scandal and Trudeau's trip to billionaire island. In every case, after they repeated it, the truth came out.

Let us hear it one more time. Who wants to hear it one more time? Did the Prime Minister have any discussion about Telesat with any ministers, any staff or any public servants during or after 2.3 billion in tax dollars was given to a near bankrupt company run by a well-connected Liberal insider and friend of the Prime Minister, yes or no?

[Mike Kelloway, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, for those who have just tuned in, on the Conservative side, we have just entered the conspiracy TV segment of the show, where conspiracies come left, right and centre. Some are right-wing focused; some are really right-wing focused.

Again, we follow the rules here. The minister spoke to this. The Prime Minister spoke to this. We will always follow the rules on this side of the House.

The Budget

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

Mr. Speaker, here is what Gérald Fillion said on Téléjournal yesterday: “We are back to the time-honoured tradition of big-spending Liberal budgets.”

The budget adds a record $765 billion in new debt over five years. That is $44,000 per household. Meanwhile, families are struggling to afford groceries and young people cannot afford a home.

Will the Liberals finally listen to us and agree to our plan to save Canadians money?

[Carlos Leitão, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Industry]

Mr. Speaker, we chose to make major investments in our economy. We made that choice because the time to invest is now. We are facing an existential threat to our economy now. Our neighbour is determined to completely disrupt our industrial sector.

We need to change our economy. To do that, the government must invest. We chose to invest. We also did not forget Canadians by proposing an important initiative to address homelessness.

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

Mr. Speaker, what would have actually been helpful would have been to cut taxes at the pump, because that affects everyone. That is a well-known fact.

The Conservatives proposed to eliminate all federal fuel taxes to save Canadians 20¢ a litre, or $1,200 per family. However, the Liberals chose instead to add $151 billion in additional spending.

My question is very simple: Why are the Liberals refusing to cut their spending and refusing to agree to our plan to save Canadians money?

[Caroline Desrochers, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Housing and Infrastructure]

Mr. Speaker, we, on this side of the House, are aware of the situation. We know that housing is one of the biggest expenses for families.

That is why, yesterday, we made historic investments in housing to continue the work that we began last year. We are recapitalizing Build Canada Homes to triple the construction of affordable housing. We are continuing to support programs under which tens of thousands of housing units are currently being built across Canada, including through the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, or CMHC.

The cornerstone of the budget is our investments to put an end to homelessness over the next 10 years.

[Yves Perron, Bloc, Berthier—Maskinongé, QC]

Mr. Speaker, this budget got a very poor reception in Quebec. The president of Quebec's Treasury Board gave it a failing grade, and for good reason. Quebec simply asked that Ottawa not make cuts to health care. However, the budget confirms the federal government's intent to lower the health transfer escalator from 5% to 3% as of 2028. That means care that will not be provided and hospitals that will not be renovated.

Health care is a priority for Quebeckers. How can this government dare to table a budget with health care cuts?

[Rachel Bendayan, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, our budget includes historic investments to support mental health and fight addiction. In addition, at the municipal level, addressing homelessness is a priority for mayors. The new provincial government also sees addressing homelessness as a priority. At the federal level, we agree. We just announced a historic investment of $45 billion. We can and must work together.

[Yves Perron, Bloc, Berthier—Maskinongé, QC]

Mr. Speaker, Quebec had two demands with respect to this budget: health care and the reimbursement of nearly $700 million owed to Quebec for welcoming asylum seekers, because we are the ones looking after them. The federal government has been dragging its feet on this debt to Quebec since 2024, when Quebec was taking in a disproportionate share of asylum seekers, without the federal government providing any assistance or ensuring fair distribution. As the saying goes, a debt paid is a friend kept. On this issue, however, the federal government has not been treating Quebec like a friend.

Why do the Liberals have money for everything except repaying their debts to Quebeckers?

[Caroline Desrochers, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Housing and Infrastructure]

Mr. Speaker, as my colleague is well aware, we made historic investments in health care in the 2025 budget. We are continuing to do so in the 2026 budget, for example with a $2-billion program that will invest in mental health infrastructure and in tackling addiction, and with a new $5-million fund that will support projects that integrate social services, health and housing.

We are committed to this. We are going to end homelessness, and we will do so in partnership with the provinces and municipalities.

[Xavier Barsalou-Duval, Bloc, Pierre-Boucher—Les Patriotes—Verchères, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the federal government does not have any money for Quebec's requests, including for health care, but it has plenty of money for Canadian propaganda. There is $300 million in the Liberal budget to plaster the maple leaf everywhere, $300 million to bring back Heritage Minutes and celebrate Canada's 160th anniversary. How nice is that? We will be able to watch the new Heritage Minutes on TV while we wait 12 hours in the emergency room.

It is absurd.

How can anyone be so out of touch with the priorities of Quebeckers?

[Rachel Bendayan, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, this budget makes massive investments in culture. That is good for Quebeckers.

It provides support for our artists on an unprecedented scale. It also provides support for our journalists. There is funding for the Francophonie summit and for expanding the presence of the French language across Canada

It is a good budget for Quebec.

Finance

[Kelly McCauley, Conservative, Edmonton West, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Finance told this House that they had found $60 billion in savings in the expenditure review. His own deputy minister, though, stated that the review was merely an allocation exercise and that there were no actual savings. The costly credit card budget is showing an increase of billions in operating spending, adding to the already crushing debt load on Canadians.

Did the finance minister mislead the House, as his deputy and the budget show? If not, where is the $60 billion in savings?

[Ryan Turnbull, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance and National Revenue and to the Secretary of State (Canada Revenue Agency and Financial Institutions)]

Mr. Speaker, we are at a time when our sovereignty and economic security are being tested. What is the Government of Canada's response to that? It is to realize that our future is in our hands and that to build that future is our responsibility.

What we are doing is leveraging fiscal strength with fiscal responsibility to invest in the Canadian economy and to support Canadians with new affordability measures in this budget, like the groceries and essentials benefit and like making certain tax credits and extending them to encourage more investment and more growth. That is exactly what Canadians elected us to do.

[Kelly McCauley, Conservative, Edmonton West, AB]

Mr. Speaker, not wanting to be left out, the President of the Treasury Board, responsible for spending oversight, also stated that they had found $60 billion in savings. His deputy, though, contradicted him, calling it a “reallocation exercise” and stating there were no actual savings.

Here we have the two ministers most responsible for the public purse both claiming $60 billion in savings, yet the costly credit card budget shows an increase of billions in operating spending. Did both ministers mislead the House? If not, where is the $60 billion in savings?

[Ryan Turnbull, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance and National Revenue and to the Secretary of State (Canada Revenue Agency and Financial Institutions)]

Mr. Speaker, budget 2026 puts Canada's future in our hands. It is in our hands to build this country up. We have a growing economy, with 3.3% second quarter GDP growth. We found $27.5 billion less of a deficit, with a 9% increase in new business investment, and non-U.S. trade is up 56%.

We are putting Canada on track to enter an investment supercycle to see our economy go from $3.4 trillion to $4 trillion over the next number of years. That is progress. That is how we build Canada.

The Budget

[Pat Kelly, Conservative, Calgary Crowfoot, AB]

Mr. Speaker, in 2015, the Liberals promised two years of modest deficits that would lead the budget to balancing itself. Instead, they added $750 billion to the national debt through 11 years of credit card budgeting. Interest on national debt is now the fastest-growing government expense, threatening to choke out priorities like health care and national defence.

How can we trust the Liberals to get their spending under control when yesterday's budget adds another $765 billion to the national debt?

[Corey Hogan, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources]

Mr. Speaker, managing debt is important, and so is intellectual honesty and context.

The reality is that our debt servicing is at 1.7% of GDP, comparable to the Harper years that they lionize, and well below the 6.5% in the nineties. We have the lowest net debt. We have the second-lowest deficit. We are using that fiscal capacity to grow our economy, including in our home city of Calgary, where we are seeing significant growth and significant investments, including tens of thousands of jobs and thousands of youth jobs.

There is much to be excited about. I hope they get on board.

[Pat Kelly, Conservative, Calgary Crowfoot, AB]

The Speaker, for 11 years in a row, the government has tabled spending, borrowing and deficit projections that breached their previously promised targets, and the member wants to talk about honesty.

The projections in yesterday's budget confirm that they have broken last year's fiscal anchor of a declining deficit to GDP and the government's old fiscal anchor of a declining debt to GDP.

After 11 years of broken promises, how can Canadians trust the finance minister?

[Corey Hogan, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources]

Mr. Speaker, the deficit is down. Rents are down. Housing prices are down. Economic activity is up.

The plan is working. We welcome members to get on board.

[Chak Au, Conservative, Richmond Centre—Marpole, BC]

Mr. Speaker, families in Richmond Centre—Marpole are cutting back on groceries and other essentials to make ends meet. They expect the government to show the same discipline, yet this costly credit card budget has another $62-billion deficit for this year and over $60 billion in debt interest, which is more than the Canada health transfer. A family of four will pay $6,000 just on Canada's interest payments.

This is a budget mastered by deficit. When will the Liberal government cut spending, reduce the deficit and give struggling families breathing room?