Francesco Sorbara

[International Trade, June 17th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, the steel sector directly employs over 20,000 Canadians across the country and is vital to manufacturing companies in my riding of Vaughan—Woodbridge. In the face of the U.S. tariffs on steel and aluminum, Canadians stood together and firm to defend these important industries and our workers.

Now that we have succeeded in having the U.S. tariffs fully lifted, can the Minister of Finance update the House on how our government is working to continue to protect the industry and workers from unfair trade practices?

[Canada–United States–Mexico Agreement Implementation Act, June 13th, 2019]

Madam Speaker, when we started negotiations with our partners in the United States and Mexico, we appointed a panel to provide advice. The panel consisted of former members from all different parties.

We have come to an agreement now with our major trading partners, an agreement which provides certainty. It provides certainty for businesses. It provides certainty for businesses in my riding of Vaughan—Woodbridge, many of which are interconnected with the United States economy. They create and provide jobs for middle-class Canadians in the area that I represent. That certainty is so important. Now that we have reached an agreement, we need to move forward with this agreement. We need to send the bill to committee.

I was wondering if the member for Waterloo can comment on how important it is to provide certainty for Canadian businesses and, more importantly, certainty for Canadian families that are working hard. Everyday middle-class families are working hard, saving for their kids' future. They need to know that the trading relationship is intact.

[Italian Heritage Month, June 12th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, growing up in an Italian Canadian family taught me the value of hard work and sacrifice, how to face adversity and the importance of being a good neighbour.

[Member spoke in Italian]

There are also the contributions we have made to Canada's diverse and rich social fabric.

Under this government, ties between Canada and Italy have grown stronger because of our shared values: democracy, social justice, gender equality and national pride.

I see these values in my own riding.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank the hard-working Italian Canadians of Vaughan—Woodbridge, the entrepreneurs, business owners, both large and small, and all our incredible seniors.

[Member spoke in Italian]

I am proud to be Canadian.

I am proudly part of a governing party that tabled Motion No. 64, ratified CETA and is reopening Canada's Milan trade office.

I invite all my colleagues to join me in saying auguri. Happy Italian Heritage Month.

[Customs Tariff, June 10th, 2019]

Madam Speaker, in my riding of Vaughan—Woodbridge we have Extrudex Aluminum. We also have Titanium Transportation, which transports metal and steel across the province of Ontario into the United States. Both of these companies have been impacted by the tariffs that were put in place, which are gone now, and both companies are very happy with the deal we received.

Bill C-101 is supported by the mayor of Sault Ste. Marie, who put out a statement today in a letter. It is the same thing with the mayor of Hamilton. Why does the party opposite not join in and actually say that this is good for Canadian workers, that it is good for Canadian industry? The Canadian Steel Producers Association is on board and says that this is good for all Canadian workers directly and indirectly employed by the steel industry.

The tariffs are removed. We do not want any import surges or dumping going on in the Canadian market. It is the right thing to do. It is something I believe the party opposite advocated for in prior months. Why the hypocrisy?

[Budget Implementation Act, 2019, No. 1, June 4th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, one of the comments my hon. colleague made was about the Canada child benefit. Bill C-97, which came through the finance committee, a committee I am privileged to serve on, included the poverty reduction strategy. For the first time in law, we will have set targets for a reduction in poverty.

We know that the best poverty reduction plan is to create jobs. Since we took office, Canadians have created over a million jobs, the majority of which are full-time. We have also implemented a number of other measures, such as the Canada child benefit, the Canada workers benefit and the 10% increase in the GIS.

Could the member for Edmonton Centre tell us how important these measures are to his constituents?

[BOLT, May 15th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, 342 scholarships, 80 apprenticeships, resulting in 63 job placements and counting is exactly what BOLT, Building Opportunities for Life Today, set out to do.

It is creating an opportunity for under-resourced youth by connecting them to careers in construction. This Tridel initiative is a perfect example of how industry, government and unions come together to address two critical issues facing Canadians: youth unemployment and the need for young adults to enter the skilled trades.

Since 2007, BOLT has raised over $3 million by creating awareness in supporting education and training to secure youth employment in the construction industry.

BOLT is a powerful program with a proven track record. It changes lives and creates a better future for our youth.

I encourage my colleagues to join me in applauding this extraordinary program and thanking Tridel for its boundless generosity in supporting youth while creating jobs in one of our country's key economic sectors.

[Agriculture and Agri-food, May 8th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, our government is committed to supporting the Canadian agri-food processing industry. Under the Canadian agricultural partnership program, I joined the Minister of Agriculture last week in announcing an $8.5-million investment in Vaughan-based and family-owned organic food processor Riverside Natural Foods.

Can the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food tell us how these investments will increase trade, support agricultural innovation and create good jobs for the middle class?

[Multilateral Instrument in Respect of Tax Conventions Act, May 2nd, 2019]

Madam Speaker, if we look at all the policies we have implemented and where Canadian families are today, we see that an average family of four is $2,000 better off today than it was three and a half years ago. We know that has been done through a middle-class tax cut, which was funded by increasing taxes on the wealthiest 1% of Canadians. We know those are progressive policies. We know that all Canadians need to pay their fair share of taxes. However, we know that Canadians in the middle class deserve a break. We understand there are affordability issues. We have addressed some of those affordability issues in the budget with regard to youth and students, with regard to seniors and with regard to housing affordability.

We have also asked a very fundamental question. We have asked the wealthiest 1% of Canadians to pay a little more, because we need it for the betterment of society. We cannot allow our society to further go down the path of income inequality. We have stopped that and we have improved that. We have seen the results as, again, over 825,000 Canadians, in all 338 ridings across this country, have been lifted out of poverty. It is a great success and we should all be proud. It is a 20% reduction of our poverty rate. Those are the measures behind it, which have reduced inequality in this country and are giving more and more Canadians hope. We as a government need to be proud of that record.

[Multilateral Instrument in Respect of Tax Conventions Act, May 2nd, 2019]

Madam Speaker, I come from a very humble, middle-class background, having grown up in Prince Rupert, British Columbia. However, through a lot of work, I had the privilege of working on Bay Street and Wall Street for over 20 years.

Our government does listen and consult when it puts forward changes in how businesses operate and in our tax system. This has been a fundamental principle since our government entered office.

Bill C-82, a multilateral instrument, went through vast consultation with our international partners. Bringing this legislation forward would ensure that shifting profits from one jurisdiction to another would not occur. It would lessen that opportunity. It would ensure that Canadians continued to have confidence in our tax system's ability to fund the programs and services they utilize and need on a daily basis. It would allow us to take a step forward on a national pharmacare program and to take a step forward on the Canada child benefit, which we have done by indexing it two years ahead of time. We have brought in measures such as a $1.7-billion tax cut for seniors through the guaranteed income supplement exemption amount.

Many measures we have brought forward we have been able to do through consultation with Canadians, similar to what we have done for Bill C-82.

[Multilateral Instrument in Respect of Tax Conventions Act, May 2nd, 2019]

Madam Speaker, I want to put on the record that I grew up in northern British Columbia, in Prince Rupert. My mother and her five sisters worked at a cannery. That is how they made their income. I worked at a cannery. Unfortunately, many of those canneries no longer exist, as the industry has changed quite a bit.

I note that in budget 2019, we have put in approximately $100 million for the restoration of the salmon industry. I would love to follow up with the member on the exact details.

In budget 2019, our government aligned our stock option rules with those of the United States. We will still allow the stock option deduction for small firms and new technology firms, because we need those innovators in Canada. Many firms that come into existence do not generate cash flow right away. Stock options are a form of payment in terms of compensation for their employees. For existing and mature firms, we have eliminated the tax deduction beyond $200,000.

This is real progress and real change.