Debates of Sept. 21st, 2026

The Economy

[Mark Carney, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, what this government knows is that there are three wars affecting Canadians: the tariff war from the Americans, the war against Iran and the war against Ukraine. They are pushing up fuel prices. They are pushing up grocery prices, so we are providing immediate support to Canadians. The next groceries and essentials benefit cheque is coming next month, up to $1,900 for a family of four. Across that, we support Canadians with the school benefit and beyond.

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, “and beyond”, the Prime Minister doubled the deficit, contributing to inflation. He has introduced a new fuel tax, partially offsetting the one that we forced him to put on hold. He is increasing the industrial carbon tax.

Today, the Canadian Federation of Independent Business revealed that 20% of its members say their businesses are “weak” or “critical”. Only 18% said they would recommend other people start businesses. Fifty per cent say not to start a business right now because the costs are too high. Conservatives want to save money and jobs through small business.

Will the Prime Minister reverse his inflationary policies so we can bring down the costs on our small business consumers and workers?

[Mark Carney, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, let us walk through those in order. With the industrial carbon tax, the impact on groceries is zero. The impact of clean fuel regulations on a bushel of canola is over a dollar. For a bushel of canola in Battle River—Crowfoot, it is over a dollar. The impact on fuel prices is zero.

This government is cutting taxes for business. The head of the CFIB praised the productivity mega deduction. I look forward to the member opposite voting in favour.

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister's own environment department's report reveals that the impact of the fuel standard is seven cents this year, rising to 17¢ per litre by the end of the decade, so he should check his own documents, or he should listen to Justin, who told me in a letter on August 11, “I cannot afford to eat properly. I skip meals and rely on cereal for breakfast. I'm incredibly frugal, but my debts are still growing faster. I constantly stress and cry over my financials. The middle class is being eliminated.”

Will the Prime Minister look Justin in the eye and tell him that affordability is the best it has been in a decade?

[Mark Carney, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, this government is working for Justin. This government is working for Justine, and the Justins and Justines across this country. We are working to create jobs, 200,000 jobs net over the course of the last year, with the fastest growth in the G7 in the last quarter. We are making this country more independent from the United States, more resilient and more prosperous. While we are doing that, we are providing Canadians like Justin with a boost today and a bridge to tomorrow.

Canadian Identity and Culture

[Yves-François Blanchet, Bloc, Beloeil—Chambly, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister personally cancelled contributions of any kind by tech giants to the economy or the arts in Quebec and Canada, including through taxes or content creation, simply to appease the American President. The effort fell flat. Although I remain unconvinced, the Prime Minister claims to have walked away from the negotiation table for language and culture-related reasons.

Since the effort failed, should the Prime Minister consider reinstating the digital services tax and allowing cultural contributions by the web giants?

[Mark Carney, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, like the member for Beloeil—Chambly, this government is deeply committed to Canadian culture, to the French language and to Quebec culture. That is why investments in the cultural sector have never been higher in Canada's history. We are going to strengthen these investments, but specific taxes that impact affordability for Canadians will not be necessary.

[Yves-François Blanchet, Bloc, Beloeil—Chambly, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I want to add two points. First, I was in the cultural sector for 20 years in a professional capacity. I know a thing or two about it. Second, corporate contributions have no impact on the cost for users because they are investments the companies would have made anyway. They are funnelled into Quebec and Canada.

Given that the Prime Minister wants to build closer ties with Europe, which places great importance on the contribution of businesses and Internet giants to culture, should he not reconsider his policy, which is not working?

[Mark Carney, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, the answer is no.

[Yves-François Blanchet, Bloc, Beloeil—Chambly, QC]

Mr. Speaker, given the frequency of attendance here, I will take this as a great sign of respect for the voters and citizens of Quebec and Canada.

In my view, the Prime Minister has failed in his strategy to appease the American President. In light of this failure, he should reconsider his decision, which we would welcome, so that the web giants, which are wealthier than some countries around the world, pay their fair share to support the vitality of culture and the arts in Canada and Quebec, especially in French.

[Mark Carney, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, the Americans are the ones who failed. They failed in their attempts to place restrictions on the French language and on Canadian culture. We protected the French language and Canadian culture, and we will continue to promote them.

The Economy

[Luc Berthold, Conservative, Mégantic—L’Érable—Lotbinière, QC]

Mr. Speaker, while families are cutting back on groceries, struggling to put a roof over their heads and putting off purchases, the Liberal government continues to spend recklessly. Our Conservative plan would result in savings of over $150 billion, or $10,000 per family, which would lower families' tax burden and give them some breathing room.

When will the Liberal government finally reduce its spending and adopt the Conservative plan to save money for all Canadians?

[François-Philippe Champagne, Liberal, Minister of Finance and National Revenue]

Mr. Speaker, everyone in the House is aware that affordability is a key concern for Canadians. We are talking about the cost of groceries, housing and gas.

I have good news. We have taken action in all three of those areas. First, we presented a generational plan to build more housing across the country to help Canadian families. Second, together with the Prime Minister, we introduced the Canada groceries and essentials benefit, which will help families across the country.

Another piece of good news is that, later today, I will have the opportunity to introduce a bill that will help families with the cost of gas. I hope that the Conservatives will support it.

[Luc Berthold, Conservative, Mégantic—L’Érable—Lotbinière, QC]

Mr. Speaker, is it worth reminding the Minister of Finance that lowering the gas tax was the Conservatives' idea? It is easy to table that today, but for families, every dollar counts. We were asking to get rid of all gas taxes for the entire year, not just one. What we are going to get this afternoon is a timetable.

Our economic plan includes concrete measures such as reducing taxes on housing construction, eliminating the GST on vehicles manufactured in Canada, and eliminating all taxes on gasoline. When will the Liberal government adopt the Conservative plan so that all Quebeckers and all Canadians can save money?

[François-Philippe Champagne, Liberal, Minister of Finance and National Revenue]

Mr. Speaker, I think that Canadians know that the Conservatives do not have a monopoly on common sense.

We understand the challenges facing Canadians across the country. That is why we were there to help Canadian families. Do my colleagues know what people are watching on TV today? They are watching a Conservative Party that has not changed. After a summer of reflection, the Conservatives are still here today asking questions instead of taking action to help us move the country forward.

We are going to build a strong country together. Canadians know it.

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

Mr. Speaker, my colleague has been very clear. What we want on this side of the House is to leave money in Canadians' pockets. The plan the Conservatives are proposing involves savings of $150 billion. That is $10,000 per family. How do we do that? It is by cutting down on red tape and consultants.

Given the soaring cost of living, will the Liberal government finally scrap the industrial carbon tax and adopt our Conservative economic action plan?

[François-Philippe Champagne, Liberal, Minister of Finance and National Revenue]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians know that we are entering this period of economic transition, as the Prime Minister explained, from a position of strength. That is precisely because we have been responsible with public finances. While being responsible, we have always been there for Canadian families, whether it came to housing, food, gas prices or a national children's program.

One thing Canadians know is that we will always be there to support them in difficult times. Let us build Canada strong together. I hope the Conservatives will join us in this major project for the country.

Taxation

[Sandra Cobena, Conservative, Newmarket—Aurora, ON]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians are taxed at every turn. They are taxed when they earn a paycheque, when they spend money, when they own something, when they fill their tank and when they buy a drink. Even when they die, they are taxed. Every single dollar that the Liberal government spends was first earned by a hard-working Canadian, yet Conservatives have found $150 billion in savings.

When will the Liberal government respect taxpayers, cut consultants, rein in spending, save Canadians money and adopt the Conservative economic action plan?

[François-Philippe Champagne, Liberal, Minister of Finance and National Revenue]

Mr. Speaker, again, we will take no lessons from the Conservatives. The very first thing that the Prime Minister of Canada did was to cut taxes for 22 million Canadians. That is something that Canadians will remember. Not only did we do that, but we suspended the fuel excise tax at a time when Canadians needed a bridge and a boost to the future.

We are building a stronger Canada. We are helping Canadians. We are going to have the strongest economy in the G7. That is going to benefit all Canadians.

Rail Transportation

[Sandra Cobena, Conservative, Newmarket—Aurora, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the Liberal government is spending more than any government in Canadian history. That is what Canadians will remember. Alto, for example, is three times the cost for 2% of the daily passengers. The Liberals want to spend $90 billion on the Alto project, which, in 30 years, will maybe carry 66,000 passengers a year. Compare that to the last decade. Ottawa committed $30 billion to serve millions every day. This is three times the cost and 2% of the daily users.

Will the government cancel the wasteful project, save Canadians money and adopt the Conservative economic action plan?

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

Mr. Speaker, only Conservatives could be against a project that covers 40% of the population of Canada, will create 51,000 jobs, will remove trucks from the 401 so that we can get fluidity back on Ontario and Quebec highways, and will add significant points to our gross domestic product. Alto is a transformational project that will serve the entirety of Canada, and we look forward to building it.

Small Business

[Brad Vis, Conservative, Mission—Matsqui—Abbotsford, BC]

Mr. Speaker, one in five small businesses are in weak or critical condition. They are calling on the government to lower costs and improve small business competitiveness. Conservatives have identified over $150 billion in savings that could lower the overall tax burden for Canadians and small businesses.

To save Canadians money, will the government consider expanding its plan to cut unnecessary consultants who do not provide value for money?

[Mélanie Joly, Liberal, Minister of Industry and Minister responsible for Canada Economic Development for Quebec Regions]

Mr. Speaker, we are always there for small businesses, making sure that they can be competitive. That is why many of them will be able to benefit from the new mega deduction that was announced by the Prime Minister last week, which will help many companies expense 100% of their investment in year one, particularly those in the manufacturing sector.

Meanwhile, we know that many small businesses are affected by the trade war. We have a lot of support for them. I would love to work with my colleague if that is the case in his riding. We need to make sure that we help these businesses.

[Brad Vis, Conservative, Mission—Matsqui—Abbotsford, BC]

Mr. Speaker, let me give an example. The women entrepreneurship loan fund was supposed to help women start and grow their businesses. After filing an ATIP that took 915 days to receive, I learned that the Women's Enterprise Organizations of Canada met only 6% of application targets and 7% of loan targets, despite receiving millions of dollars from Canadians. Canadians expect results from their taxpayer dollars, not more spending on consultants.

Why will the government not cut taxes, help entrepreneurs and save money for Canadians and our small businesses?

[Marie-Gabrielle Ménard, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Women and Gender Equality and Secretary of State (Small Business and Tourism)]

Mr. Speaker, I first want to welcome all of my colleagues back to the House.

The Minister of Small Business and I spent the summer holding consultations with a strong focus on women entrepreneurship. What we can say is that the strategy to grow our economy cannot succeed without the full participation of women. To date, the women entrepreneurship strategy has helped 600,000 women in Canada. That strategy is working, and we will continue to build on it.