Madam Speaker, it is a privilege to rise in the House today to speak to this opposition motion. It is a motion that reflects what we have been hearing, frankly, from the opposition for several months now. Food affordability and bringing down the cost of living generally are worthy priorities. In fact, food affordability is a key priority for this side of the House, which I will come to in a moment.
What continues to disturb me about this motion, and indeed about the approach taken by the Conservatives, is how when we scratch even a little bit below the surface, we discover that the opposition does not stand for affordability at all, that they block it at every turn. Rather than raise the level of debate to how we can work together to tackle the complex and very real challenges facing Canadians, we are instead treated to repetitive claims of hidden and imaginary taxes, and the demonization of regulation aimed at a healthier environment and competitive industries.
Once upon a time, a healthier environment and competitive industries were objectives shared by Conservatives. Blaming food prices on the actions we are taking to reduce plastic waste might be easier than explaining global inflation or climate change or Canada's long, beautiful and glistening winters, but it is not accurate. Our actions to reduce plastic waste and pollution are not the reason that food affordability is under pressure.
We should be talking about fertilizer prices. We should be talking about transportation, about labour costs, about global supply chain shocks, about the war in Ukraine and even about price volatility in the energy sector. We should be talking about tariffs from our southern neighbour, and even about climate change. Climate change increases the frequency and severity of extreme weather, droughts, heat waves, floods and other extreme events that damage crops and reduce agricultural yields. Climate change is a driver of food price increases, not just in Canada but also around the world.
Extreme events have been directly linked to spikes in prices of potatoes in the United Kingdom, cabbage in South Korea and cocoa in West Africa. Extreme weather such as heat, drought and heavy rain disrupts processing, transportation and storage. It can also spoil perishable foods during handling and transportation. This leads to higher costs throughout supply chains. Sudden shortfalls and production risk can lead to market tightening, export bans and price volatility, but plastics policies protect places. They reduce waste. They clean up communities.
When I talk to people in my riding of Toronto—St. Paul's, they want to reduce plastic waste and pollution. They know plastics are in our Great Lakes and our watersheds, in our landfills, in our own bodies, affecting us and our kids in ways that we are still learning about. Let us be serious and find a path to reduce our plastic pollution and protect the environment and human health. Let us recognize that we are a mature, capable country where we can work to address affordability and also work to protect a pristine environment that defines so many regions of this beautiful land.
In another era, Conservatives knew this. They fought against acid rain. They fought against the depletion of our ozone. They brought in Canada's environmental assessment act and environmental protection act. However, those actions were 40 years ago. Today's opposition approach sells division, and it sells blame. It sells the environment as a villain. It is short-sighted and it is cynical. Whether it is plastics or fuel emissions, there is a reasonable path to making progress on these issues while making life a little easier for Canadians too.
Again, in another era, Conservatives would have supported incentives to encourage industry to adopt cleaner practices, to innovate new ways of doing things that would increase productivity and create a competitive advantage for our country and for our businesses, but not today. That is disappointing because Canadians want serious government and serious leaders who can diagnose real challenges and work with others to implement actual solutions. That is why I stand here, proud to fight for the actions of our government, the actions we are taking to help support Canadians.
We are heading into tax season, and Canadians will see that we have cut taxes for 22 million of our friends and neighbours across this country, reducing the basic tax rate from 15% to 14%. Our Canada child benefit, which is indexed to inflation, helps six million children in Canada and their parents with roughly $8,000 per year per child. Over six million Canadians today are part of our dental care plan, which is saving Canadians on average close to $800 per year on dental fees. The national school food program, which we have recently made permanent, can help a family with two kids save over $800 per year on school lunches. Our early learning and child care plan has brought fees down right across Canada, with families in my riding of Toronto—St. Paul's often saving over $10,000 a year on child care costs. That is the kind of saving that changes lives and opens up new possibilities for families.
What do these programs have in common? The opposition voted against them. The Conservatives call government support for them wasteful and even “garbage”. I am glad the opposition has decided to help us pass legislation to put our new Canada groceries and essentials benefit into action. I welcome that co-operation because that is what a plan on food affordability should look like. Our new benefit would help 12 million Canadians with the cost of food and essentials. It is a five-year boost that we would deliver to the former GST credit and a one-time extra boost for just this year that would increase the benefit by 50%. A family could look forward to $1,900 this year, and single seniors or young adults could have $950 with this new grocery benefit.
That is not the end of the plan. It also includes a national food security strategy, and that plan is going to help us increase food production in Canada. We are going to be offering immediate expensing for greenhouses, improving our supply chains by working with industry, increasing competition in the grocery sector by working with the Competition Bureau, implementing unit price labelling and enforcing action against anti-competitive practices so that over time, not only are we increasing Canadian food production, but we are bringing down the costs for consumers at the grocery store.
The bottom line is that the federal government has a serious plan that it is putting into action. It is not a quick fix; it is part of a plan to grow our economy and create prosperity. It is a plan for reclaiming control over supply chains, protecting our public balance sheets and positioning domestic industry where global demand is headed. It is for building economic opportunities and increasing collaboration and competitiveness globally.
A stronger, more competitive economy does a lot of things. It lowers production and transport costs, reduces exposure to global shocks, keeps markets competitive, builds climate resilience and, most importantly, stabilizes prices over time. This is what the government is doing to build Canada for Canadians. We are building a stronger, more competitive economy, working for Canadians, supporting the most vulnerable and enhancing our social security net when people need it the most. We are helping Canadians put food on the table because economic strength is one of the most effective tools for keeping food and lives affordable. That is what we are delivering and will continue to deliver while helping to create a cleaner, healthier and safer environment for all.
That is the beauty of Canada and of working with and for Canadians. They know that with a serious government, they can count on it to make change and do the hard work and heavy lifting of introducing the programs and supports that are going to help strengthen our economy, make life more affordable, protect our environment and build a Canada that is prosperous for all.