Debates of May 4th, 2026

Taxation

[Bob Zimmer, Conservative, Prince George—Peace River—Northern Rockies, BC]

Mr. Speaker, despite his promises, the Liberal Prime Minister is all about more costs, more carbon taxes and more of the same. He said last May, “Canadians will hold us to account by their experience at the grocery store”. Everyone knows that when fuel prices go up, food costs go up. Mike Beaulieu of The North West Company said that a jug of milk now costs two to five dollars more because of higher fuel prices.

Why is fuel so expensive? It is because of high Liberal taxes, including the newly renamed carbon tax. Will the Liberals scrap all gas taxes all year, yes or no?

[Jill McKnight, Liberal, Minister of Veterans Affairs and Associate Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, the member opposite is from British Columbia. I know that what people in British Columbia want is the actions we are taking right now. They are seeing the steps we are taking with the groceries and essentials benefit. They are seeing us remove 10¢ a litre off fuel. They are seeing our investments in young people and our economy.

We are addressing the things that people in B.C. want.

[Bob Zimmer, Conservative, Prince George—Peace River—Northern Rockies, BC]

Mr. Speaker, those empty words will not fill empty stomachs. The Liberals tell us that gas prices are up because world oil prices are at $100 a barrel. Do members know when oil was also at $100 a barrel? It was in 2014, under our Conservative government. The price at the pump then was $1.38 per litre, not $1.99 for gas or $2.29 for diesel, as it is today in Fort St. John.

Will the Liberal Prime Minister stop the illusion and scrap all gas taxes all year so Canadians can afford to live again?

[Jill McKnight, Liberal, Minister of Veterans Affairs and Associate Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, we are aware of the impact of fuel prices. That is why we brought them down by 10¢ a litre. We are addressing exactly what the member opposite is talking about. We are also delivering the groceries and essentials benefit, and we made the national school food program permanent to help families. We are doing the work that is being asked for.

Finance

[Kerry Diotte, Conservative, Edmonton Griesbach, AB]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians are concerned. The Liberals are on track to add $1 trillion to the national debt since taking office just 11 years ago. Just as with our personal credit cards, Canadians know we will have to pay that bill. The Liberal Prime Minister is not a good steward of our tax dollars. It is an illusion. We have more costs, more taxes, more debt.

The Prime Minister is just another Liberal. When will he get serious? When will he end his costly credit card budgeting so Canadians can afford to live?

[Eleanor Olszewski, Liberal, Minister of Emergency Management and Community Resilience and Minister responsible for Prairies Economic Development Canada]

Mr. Speaker, our plan in our spring economic update is good for Edmonton. However, my fellow Edmontonians on the Conservative benches should not take it from me. Doug Griffiths, president and CEO of the Edmonton Chamber of Commerce, said that our update “aligns closely with what Edmonton businesses have been wanting to see from our federal government”.

I hope every Edmonton MP listens to the people and organizations we represent and gets on board with our plan to build Canada strong.

Public Services and Procurement

[Sébastien Lemire, Bloc, Abitibi—Témiscamingue, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Liberals are abusing their majority to cover up the Cúram software scandal.

After spending months denying that any problem related to OAS or any cost overruns even existed, the government has added $451 million for Cúram and the Canada Revenue Agency to its economic update. That means another cost overrun where none was supposed to exist, to fix problems where no problems were supposed to exist either.

We will never know why, because the Liberals either resorted to filibustering or used their majority in committee to kill an investigation into Cúram. Why are they hiding this information from Quebeckers?

[Steven MacKinnon, Liberal, Minister of Transport and Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Mr. Speaker, no one is hiding anything from anyone. Everything has been transparent. The procurement process was transparent. Budgets were transparent and were met. This software is helping us bring security to the lives of millions of Canadian seniors every month.

[Sébastien Lemire, Bloc, Abitibi—Témiscamingue, QC]

Mr. Speaker, that is why the program has gone over budget five times already.

The Liberals have had a majority in committee for seven days now. Already, they have killed an investigation into the Cúram cost overruns, which now total $7 billion. They decided that the investigation into Driver Inc. should be in camera, as though they care more about protecting dangerous truckers than the lives of Quebeckers. They have also shut down investigations into health care, veterans' services, the aerospace sector, and more. A culture of secrecy has taken hold in Ottawa.

When will the Prime Minister step in and stop this abuse of power?

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Minister of Jobs and Families and Minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Northern Ontario]

Mr. Speaker, since the program to modernize these processes began, $1.8 billion has been invested out of a total budget of $4.8 billion. In fact, the modernization of old age security was delivered under budget, which is a testament to how rigorously this project was managed. This information was disclosed in a fully transparent manner and reviewed by the opposition parties and the committee chaired by the opposition.

Finance

[Jason Groleau, Conservative, Beauce, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Liberals' economic update is more of the same: more unchecked spending, more debt for Canadians. The national debt will reach a staggering $1.63 trillion by 2031. That is $1.63 trillion in Liberal debt. The Prime Minister, who boasts about being an excellent manager, is just another costly, spendthrift Liberal.

Will the Prime Minister impose a limit on Canada's credit card?

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

Mr. Speaker, I know that the members across the way have a hard time with facts, especially when these facts involve math. Allow me to help them out a bit. We have reduced the deficit by $11 billion. We are the second-strongest economy in the G7. Most importantly, we are attracting more investment than we have in the past 20 years. How did we do it? While the Conservatives are busy repeating the same questions day after day, we are responding and adapting to a changing world.

We are here to build Canada strong for all Canadians.

[Jason Groleau, Conservative, Beauce, QC]

Mr. Speaker, in Beauce, one plus one equals two. It does not equal -10, like the Liberals would have us believe. The Prime Minister's spending on the Liberal credit card is having a devastating impact on Canadians: more taxes, more Liberal inflation and more interest charges. That amounts to $3,400 per family per year. While the Liberals are racking up deficits, the price of essentials like gas and housing continue to rise. The people of Beauce are the ones paying the price for this mismanagement which, once again, has been disastrous.

My question is simple: Does the Liberal credit card have a limit?

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

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives have been very clear about their austerity agenda but we are still waiting to hear which projects they would cut. We hope they can tell us. Would they cut $1-billion infrastructure agreement we reached with Quebec? Would they cut the expansion of the Port of Montreal in Contrecoeur? Would they cut the 865 housing units we just announced to help people in vulnerable situations? We hope they can tell us. We are awaiting a response.

The Economy

[Éric Lefebvre, Conservative, Richmond—Arthabaska, QC]

Mr. Speaker, 11 years of Liberal management have resulted in higher taxes, more debt, more credit card spending and more regulations. The National Bank's chief economist reminded us that the Liberals are now imposing over 320,000 regulatory requirements on Canadian businesses, while the United States is deregulating. The consequences of this are layoffs or, worse, closures.

When will the Prime Minister understand that more regulations force additional costs on businesses and that Canadians are the ones paying the price?

[Nathalie Provost, Liberal, Secretary of State (Nature)]

Mr. Speaker, we are already working to streamline the government's structure, simplify relations between Quebec and Ottawa and reduce the number of regulations. We are moving forward and we will get it done. In addition, we are working on issues that affect Canadians.

The Canada groceries and essentials benefit, the various programs we have for seniors and children—all of these are designed to support Canadians in these difficult times. That is what we are doing and we hope our colleagues will join us in this effort.

[Éric Lefebvre, Conservative, Richmond—Arthabaska, QC]

Mr. Speaker, what a sad state of affairs. Since January, factory closures have been on the rise. On top of losing their jobs, Canadians are footing the Liberal Party's credit card bill. Savoura pays $2.5 million a year in carbon tax and in Éco Entreprises Québec penalties. These surcharges make it difficult to compete with tomatoes from Mexico, which travel across the entire continent.

Instead of creating a new band-aid for businesses, why not streamline the regulations and give our business owners some real breathing room?

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

Mr. Speaker, businesses in Quebec and across Canada are facing difficulties. Where do these difficulties stem from? They stem from the tariff war. They stem from the excessive, unjustified and ultimately counterproductive tariffs that the Americans are imposing on Canadian businesses. That is the problem. That is why we must help businesses. That is why we are supporting businesses and spending what needs to be spent to keep our businesses alive.

Finance

[Richard Martel, Conservative, Chicoutimi—Le Fjord, QC]

Mr. Speaker, let us not be fooled. What we have with this Liberal Prime Minister is higher costs, higher taxes, more debt and more money on the credit card. It is always the same thing. He is just another costly Liberal. The Liberal debt has now reached $1.475 trillion. Meanwhile, according to Le Journal de Montréal, one in three Quebeckers is going into debt to eat.

Will the Prime Minister take this situation seriously? When will he put an end to his credit card budgets?

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

Mr. Speaker, Canada's debt stands at the figure that my colleague mentioned, or 41% of the GDP. That is one of the most manageable levels of debt in the G7.

Now, I have a question for my colleague. Where do the Conservatives want to make cuts? What programs do they want to eliminate? Will they reduce old age security benefits? Will they cut the $8 billion that goes to the Canada child benefit? Where would you make cuts? Tell us.

[The Speaker, Francis Scarpaleggia]

I would remind the parliamentary secretary that he must address his comments through the Chair.

The hon. member for Orléans.

Veterans

[Marie-France Lalonde, Liberal, Orléans, ON]

Mr. Speaker, Canada's mission in Afghanistan was the largest deployment of Canadian troops since World War II. From 2001 to 2014, more than 40,000 Canadians served with courage and sacrifice. We honour the memory of the 158 service members and seven civilians who lost their lives.

We must make sure this legacy lives on.

Can the Minister of Veterans Affairs explain why today's groundbreaking ceremony for the national monument to Canada's mission in Afghanistan is important, and what she hopes this day will mean to CAF members, veterans, families and Canadians?

[Jill McKnight, Liberal, Minister of Veterans Affairs and Associate Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, I thank all my colleagues who were able to join us a short time ago for today's groundbreaking ceremony at the site of the national monument to Canada's mission in Afghanistan. This is a long overdue step in ensuring that the service and sacrifice of Canadians, notably the 158 Canadian Armed Forces members and the seven civilians who gave their lives, are remembered.

The monument will serve as a place of solemn reflection, remembrance and learning for generations to come, a place where Canadians can better understand the contributions made in the pursuit of peace, security and human dignity. For all Canadians, this day is an opportunity to come together in gratitude to honour those who have served and to reaffirm—

[The Speaker, Francis Scarpaleggia]

The hon. member for Simcoe North.

Natural Resources

[Adam Chambers, Conservative, Simcoe North, ON]

Mr. Speaker, it is a new week in Ottawa, but the Prime Minister is on international travel back in Europe again, although we already have a free trade deal with Europe. However, there is one thing our allies have been asking us for, and that is Canadian liquefied natural gas.

One would go to Europe to make a big announcement, so will the minister confirm that the Prime Minister is indeed in Europe to announce on what date our allies can—