Emmanuel Dubourg

[The Economy, March 26th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, Statistics Canada and the TD Bank have been clear. We are facing the worst job growth in the past 40 years, and the unemployment rate is going to continue to rise.

The Minister of Finance of Canada would rather sit back and watch as Quebec and Alberta table their budgets today instead of tabling his own. The Conservatives are hamstrung and have no plan. They do not have a budget, and they do not have any solutions.

What is the Conservative government waiting for? When will it demonstrate leadership, work with the provinces and finally table a budget in the House?

[Infrastructure, March 25th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, the mayors of Montreal and Toronto met today, and what did they talk about? They talked about infrastructure. The late Jim Flaherty himself said that it is the best way to stimulate job creation and growth.

The Conservatives have since cut 90% of these expenditures, and reports are showing that employment in Canada is precarious. This government does not have a plan, and the minister is missing in action in this matter.

When will the Conservatives commit to reversing the cuts in infrastructure?

[Questions Passed as Orders for Returns, March 23rd, 2015]

With regard to contracts under $10 000 granted by the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the regions of Quebec since March 27, 2014: what are the (a) vendors' names; (b) contacts' reference numbers; (c) dates of contracts; (d) descriptions of the services provided; (e) delivery dates; (f) original contracts' values; and (g) final contracts' values, if different from the original contracts' values?

[Canada Revenue Agency, March 23rd, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives are trampling on the taxpayer bill of rights.

Article 6 states that, “You have the right to complete, accurate, clear, and timely information.” A survey conducted by the Canada Revenue Agency showed that ever since all the service counters closed, a company has to call three times on average before getting a response. When companies did manage to reach someone, they were given incorrect information one out of four times.

Is that what the minister calls accurate, complete and timely information?

[Questions Passed as Orders for Return, March 13th, 2015]

With regard to contracts under $10 000 granted by the Canada Revenue Agency since March 27, 2014: what are the (a) vendors' names; (b) contracts' reference numbers; (c) dates of the contracts; (d) descriptions of the services provided; (e) delivery dates; (f) original contracts' values; and (g) final contracts' values if different from the original contracts' values?

[Canada Revenue Agency, March 13th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, the Income Tax Act is based on self-assessment, but the act is getting more and more complex.

The Conservatives are trying to use it to win votes. The agency acknowledges that 44% of the calls it receives go nowhere and that even when people manage to talk to someone, they have a one in four chance of being misled. Furthermore, the letters the agency sends are unreadable. For all of these reasons, I am concerned that seniors in particular will be at a disadvantage.

What will the minister do to ensure that these people are treated fairly?

[The Economy, March 13th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, today we learned that 50,000 more Canadians lost their jobs in February.

Meanwhile, household debt has reached record levels. On average, Canadians owe $1.66 for every dollar of disposable income. Middle-class families are suffering under the burden of their debts. They need help.

Where is the Conservatives' budget? Where is the plan to stimulate job creation and growth here in Canada?

[Montreal North 100th Anniversary, March 13th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to rise in the House to acknowledge the 100th anniversary of Montreal North.

Montreal North is in the riding of Bourassa, which I have the honour to represent in Parliament. Montreal North is also where I spent my first 10 years in Canada. That is where I went to high school, at the Henri-Bourassa composite school. I have good memories of those wonderful years.

Montreal North has a slogan that makes me proud because it represents us so well: “Where everyone feels right at home”. Montreal North welcomes people from all over. It has a wealth of diversity. Is that not the image we have of Canada?

I want to thank everyone who contributed to this celebration: the elected officials, in particular Mayor Gilles Deguire; the members of the Société Montréal-Nord 2015 board of directors and its chair, Claude Poirier; Sister Angèle; Oliver Jones; and all the volunteers. Happy anniversary and enjoy the celebration.

[Questions on the Order Paper, March 12th, 2015]

With regard to Canada Post and the process described on its “Canada Post Pay Equity Decision” webpage, further to the Supreme Court ruling of November 17, 2011, in favour of the Public Service Alliance of Canada: how many employees or former employees (a) have applied online; (b) have confirmed their postal code; (c) have been sent the information package; (d) have provided the information requested in the package; (e) have been sent their payment; (f) have not yet been sent their payment; and (g) have an active file that has not yet been closed due to a payment or a refusal of payment?

[The Economy, March 10th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, the IMF shows that the Canadian housing market is over-valued by up to 20%. In Montreal, middle-class homeowners would lose $70,000 on the sale of their houses. The Conservatives inflated the housing bubble with their 40-year mortgages. Then they cancelled the census. As a result, experts do not have the data to assess and adjust the market.

Why are the Conservatives jeopardizing the largest investment made by middle-class families that are now more indebted than ever?