Bill Morneau

[Finance, January 31st, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, we need to be clear. The very first thing we did when we came into office was that we lowered taxes on middle-class Canadians. I imagine what is going on from the opposition Conservatives is that they are remembering they added $150 billion to our debt, and they are feeling a little guilty about that and thinking if they came back they might want to raise taxes.

We would not do that, because we are focused on helping the middle class and those people working to join it. We have done that by reducing their taxes, by increasing their benefits, like the Canada child benefit, and making a real and long-term difference for Canadian families.

[Finance, January 28th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, in the fictional world inhabited by the member for Carleton, he pretends that things that are true are not true.

We cannot say it any more clearly. For people who earn between $45,000 and $90,000, we reduced taxes in that category by 7%, which means that people earning up to $200,000 or so actually have reduced taxes; but for the one per cent, we did increase taxes. For people who are raising their children, we gave them the Canada child benefit, much improved. Nine out of 10 families are better off with $2,000 more this year than in 2015. The facts are clear.

[Finance, January 28th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, in fact what Canadians chose in 2015 was a government that was going to make investments as opposed to an approach that was going to bring in austerity, to actually put us in a situation where we were trying to balance the budget on the backs of Canadians by either raising taxes or cutting benefits.

We have a plan, investing in Canadians. The question is: What would be the Conservative plan? Would it be to cut the Canada child benefit, or would it be to raise taxes on middle-class Canadians? We have been clear. We are helping middle-class Canadians. We would like to hear what they would plan on doing.

[Finance, January 28th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians are getting the benefit from the choice they made.

Let us be very specific. Canadians who live in the riding of Carleton, 30,000 of them, have had a reduction in their taxes. One cannot pick and choose benefits. The fact of the matter is that the introduction of the Canada child benefit together with the reduction in taxes means that people are better off. There are 16,000 children in the Carleton region who are getting about $4 million more than they were before this government came into power.

We are going to continue to make investments. The good news is that our approach is working and our economy is doing well.

[Finance, January 28th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, it is quite the contrary. We lowered taxes for the middle class. In Carleton, for example, 30,000 middle-class Canadians have seen their taxes cut. On top of that, 16,000 people in that riding are receiving the Canada child benefit. That is what is really going on with middle class Canadians. We have made life better for them and we will continue to invest in the middle class to improve our economy and make things better for these people.

[Finance, January 28th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, the approach we have chosen is good for Canada. Our approach has made things better for the middle class. We know there are inequalities within the middle class, and that is why we lowered their taxes. We have also made things better for Canadian families with the Canada child benefit. Thanks to our measures, our economy is growing. Our approach is working and I hope future governments will adopt a similar approach so that we can ensure a bright future for our country.

[Finance, January 28th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, obviously, we have a plan. It is clear that investing in the middle class is working. Now, our economy is working for the middle class. The alternative, an austerity approach, is not really a plan since it involves making cuts or increasing taxes. That is the Conservatives' plan.

Our approach involves lowering taxes for the middle class, and Canada is better off because of it.

[Finance, January 28th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, we have been very clear.

Actually, middle-class anxieties are something we have been very focused on from day one. That is why we reduced taxes on middle-class Canadians, a policy that the Conservatives voted against. That is why we put in place the Canada child benefit, helping nine out of 10 families with more money. On average, middle-class families with two kids, this year, will have $2,000 more than they had when the last Conservative government was here in 2015.

We are helping with middle-class anxieties, while the opposition continues to vote against policies that help these people.

[Finance, January 28th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, what we have done over the last more than three years is make a real, important difference for Canadians, with higher growth rates and lower unemployment. Clearly, the approach we have taken has worked.

The options that we had in the last election were the approach of austerity and cuts, which was being proposed by the Conservative Party at that time, versus our approach of investing in Canadians. What we have been able to show is that our approach works. We can do it in a fiscally responsible way, and we will continue to have a plan that makes sense for Canadians.

[Finance, January 28th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, the good news is that Canadians are now better off thanks to our approach. Our investments have created more jobs across the country. It is true. What is more, middle class Canadians are paying fewer taxes. That is for sure.

Our approach is much better for Canadians, and we have been able to do all this while maintaining a debt-to-GDP ratio that works for the future of our country.