Bill Morneau

[Pensions, October 16th, 2018]

Mr. Speaker, all Canadian Crown corporations and all Canadian government institutions are expected to live up to the highest standards of ethical behaviour and corporate governance. That includes the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board. This is important. We monitor it and we stay on top of it.

The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board is also independent of government, so it can invest to ensure that Canadians can retire in dignity. We think it is important to maintain these standards and that independence.

[Pensions, October 15th, 2018]

Mr. Speaker, the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board is an independent agency from government. This is important to protect the pensions of Canadians both today and tomorrow. We expect the CPPIB, like other Crown corporations, to live up to the highest standards of ethics and behaviour, and that is in fact exactly what it is doing.

[International Trade, September 27th, 2018]

Mr. Speaker, perhaps we should remember that when we came into office, we were in a technical recession. What has happened since then? We have made investments in Canadians. We found ourselves with the fastest growth among G7 countries in 2017. Where are we today? More Canadians are working than ever before, and we are in a situation where, to inform this House, business investment has been going up for the last six consecutive quarters. It is 8% up.

Those are the real facts. We are going to continue to invest on behalf of Canadians.

[Small Business, September 24th, 2018]

Mr. Speaker, I am happy to address the question from the member opposite to say that first of all, we have been trying to take into account Canadians across the country who have issues and real challenges in dealing with the tariffs put in place as retaliatory measures against the United States. We are certainly listening to businesses to make sure that we get it right and that we deal with any problems in the implementation of those tariffs. That is an ongoing process, one which we are taking very seriously in order to make sure businesses are not disadvantaged.

[Federal-Provincial Relations, September 18th, 2018]

Mr. Speaker, we know that the approach we have chosen is important for our economy. The approach is good for the future because our products will be able to access international markets. It is an economic project and an important economic opportunity. We will ensure that the Trans Mountain project is good for our country's economy.

[Taxation, September 18th, 2018]

Mr. Speaker, I know that the member for Carleton would not knowingly mislead this House. Perhaps what he is trying to refer to, though, is the fact that we raised taxes on the top 1%. Maybe that is what he is referring to. If he actually looks carefully at what we have done, we lowered taxes on middle-class Canadians so they are in better shape. If he takes into account the Canada child benefit, what one can see is that Canadian families, average middle-class families in 2019, will be $2,000 better off than they were in 2015. These are the facts. We would be happy to give him a briefing if he would like to understand them better.

[Natural Resources, September 18th, 2018]

Mr. Speaker, we are talking about international markets. That is very important. That is why we considered the Trans Mountain situation. We know that it is important to consider the concerns of first nations. We are deeply committed to doing this right. Of course, it is also very important to consider the environment, and that is what we are going to do.

It is important to have an approach and a plan. We have a plan for improving the situation and continuing with the pipeline project.

[Natural Resources, September 18th, 2018]

Mr. Speaker, we know that it is very important to have access to the international market. That is important.

That is why we considered the Trans Mountain pipeline and its expansion. We will now look at the facts following the Federal Court ruling to ensure that we have a significant engagement with indigenous people and to consider the environmental situation.

That will be part of our plan. It is a significant approach. We will continue with our approach.

[Finance, September 17th, 2018]

Mr. Speaker, we will not take any lessons from the party that left us with the lowest growth rate since the Great Depression.

What we are continuing to focus on is how we can grow our economy. We know that it puts us in a better position for tomorrow. We know that our debt as a function of our GDP is going down over time, so we are doing in a fiscally responsible way what we promised we would do: make life better for middle-class Canadians and put more money in their pockets so they can raise their families and have a successful and optimistic view of the future.

[Finance, September 17th, 2018]

Mr. Speaker, I will continue to tell Canadians that we know it is critically important to invest in a positive future in our country. Those investments have made an enormous difference for Canadians.

As I said, the facts are clear. We put in place measures that not only lowered middle-class taxes but helped families, such as the Canada child benefit, which has made an enormous difference. That measurable difference is making a difference for our economy. That is going to allow us to continue to be effective in terms of helping middle-class families. That will continue to be our agenda.