Catherine McKenna

[Budget Implementation Act, 2018, No. 1, May 31st, 2018]

Mr. Speaker, of course members have the opportunity to speak in the House of Commons. As I said, we have had four days of second reading debate, during which 45 members have spoken. We also had 13 committee meetings and heard from more than 106 witnesses.

However, when we have an opposition that is deliberately delaying our agenda, we have a duty to Canadians to ensure that all legislation is brought to a vote. We will continue to try to work with members of all parties, but we also have a duty to all Canadians.

[Budget Implementation Act, 2018, No. 1, May 31st, 2018]

Mr. Speaker, I am very proud to rise in this House. I am a member of cabinet, I am a member of this government, and I am very proud to defend what we are doing to grow the economy, to support the middle class, and to deliver on our agenda, and that is exactly what Bill C-74 would do.

We have an ambitious agenda. It is to grow the economy and help the middle class and those working hard to join it, but let me be clear that it is also delivering over 600,000 jobs for Canadians and that hundreds of thousands of children are no longer living in poverty.

This bill has been debated extensively in the House and at committee, and I know the member opposite has had a chance to speak at second reading debate. It is important that we figure out how to move forward, but it is also important to deliver the agenda that Canadians expect.

[Budget Implementation Act, 2018, No. 1, May 31st, 2018]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians elected us to carry out an ambitious agenda. The budget implementation act, 2018, No. 1, provides the legislative framework to fulfill some key campaign commitments, which were reiterated in the 2018 budget.

Bill C-57 has been extensively debated in the House of Commons and in committee. We had four days of debate at second reading. More than 45 members spoke at that stage, including 13 Conservative Party members, six NDP members, and one Green Party member. There were 13 committee meetings, and no fewer than 106 witnesses testified.

[Budget Implementation Act, 2018, No. 1, May 31st, 2018]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to point out that the member for York—Simcoe himself moved 100 closure motions.

In terms of putting a price on pollution, once again it is really important to note that putting a price on pollution works as part of our overall climate plan. Let us talk about our climate plan. It is putting a price on pollution and also making historic investments in public transportation. We know we can do better by investing in cleaner transportation, which saves time and money for Canadians and also reduces pollution. We are making historic investments in clean technologies, which are critically important. This is a $23-trillion economic opportunity that we want to take advantage of.

There are many other reasons we need to take climate action, and we would hope the party opposite would support us.

[Budget Implementation Act, 2018, No. 1, May 31st, 2018]

Mr. Speaker, it is extremely important that we deliver on this ambitious agenda, because we are delivering for Canadians. We are helping to grow the economy. We are helping to create jobs in communities. We are making sure we are supporting the middle class, as well as those who are working hard to join it.

As I said, we wish we did not have to do this. However, we need to advance legislation. The opposition is deliberately delaying the government's agenda, and we have a duty to Canadians to ensure that all legislation is brought to a vote.

We remain committed to ensuring that members on all sides have sufficient and reasonable time to debate legislation, but we have a responsibility to deliver on our commitments to Canadians.

[Budget Implementation Act, 2018, No. 1, May 31st, 2018]

Mr. Speaker, this bill has been debated extensively in the House and at committee. We remain committed to ensuring that members on all sides have sufficient and reasonable time to debate legislation in the House of Commons. Of course, we also recognize our responsibility to ensure that we deliver on our commitments to Canadians.

Let us talk about this. Through this bill, we are taking the next step in our ambitious plan to grow our economy by focusing on the middle class and helping those working hard to join it. Since November 2015, we have worked with Canadians to create more good jobs, almost 600,000, which helps those who need it most. It also means more money for people to save, invest, and spend in their communities.

[Budget Implementation Act, 2018, No. 1, May 31st, 2018]

Mr. Speaker, Bill C-74 is an important step in our plan to grow our economy by focusing on the middle class and helping those who are working hard to join it.

This bill has been debated extensively in the House and at committee. As I said, there have been four days of second reading debate, during which more than 45 members spoke at committee stage. We have seen 13 meetings, during which more than 106 witnesses have spoken.

We want to work collaboratively with all parties to ensure that Parliament works more efficiently. It is important to make every effort to reach a consensus about how much time is required by all parties to debate legislation in the House of Commons.

[Budget Implementation Act, 2018, No. 1, May 31st, 2018]

Mr. Speaker, we have been very clear. My department released information showing that carbon pricing works. It works by reducing emissions and by fostering innovation. The provinces that have a price on pollution right now are where 80% of Canadians live, and those provinces are not only tackling climate change but are also the fastest-growing economies in the country: Alberta, British Columbia, Quebec, and Ontario. We know that putting a price on pollution is important and that tackling climate change is important, and there is also a $23 trillion economic opportunity.

[Budget Implementation Act, 2018, No. 1, May 31st, 2018]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians elected us to deliver an ambitious agenda, and Bill C-74 is an important step in our plan to grow the economy by focusing on the middle class and helping those working hard to join it. This bill has been debated extensively in the House and in the committee. We have seen four days of second reading debate, during which more than 45 members have spoken. This includes 13 Conservative members, six NDP members, and one member from the Green Party. At committee stage, we saw 13 meetings, during which more than 106 witnesses spoke.

We have made a commitment as a government to work collaboratively with all parties to ensure that Parliament works more efficiently. It is important for us to make every effort to reach a consensus about how much time is required by all parties to debate legislation in the House of Commons.

[Budget Implementation Act, 2018, No. 1, May 31st, 2018]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians elected us to deliver an ambitious agenda, and Bill C-74 is an important step in our plan to help grow our economy by focusing on the middle class and helping those working hard to join it. The budget implementation act provides the legislative framework to implement key campaign commitments that were reiterated in budget 2018.

Through this bill, we are taking the next step in our ambitious plan to grow our economy by focusing on the middle class and helping those working hard to join it. Over the last two years, Canada's economic growth has been fuelled by a stronger middle class. Canadians' hard work, combined with historic investments in people and in communities, helped to create more good jobs, almost 600,000 of them since November 2015, with more help for those who need it most, which has meant more money for people to save, invest, and spend in their communities.