House of Commons photoWon his last election, in 2021, with 50% of the vote.
The Economy May 31st, 2023
Mr. Speaker, here is a thought experiment for Canadians: Imagine how much worse off we would be if the Conservatives' plan on not encouraging vaccinations had led during the pandemic, if their reliance on ideology and conspiracy theories instead of science and experts had governed our pandemic response. The Canadian economy—
Housing May 31st, 2023
Mr. Speaker, we are going to continue to grow the economy. We are going to continue to create great, well-paying jobs for Canadians right across the country, because that is what Canadians continue to need. That is what we have been doing over these past years. The fact that the Leader of the Opposition suggests we should be growing less, that we should be seeing less wage growth across the country, maybe reveals a little more about his economic thinking than about anyone else's.
At the same time as we do that, we are going to continue to invest in programs and supports for first-time homebuyers, for low-income renters and for construction of new rental homes by working in partnership with municipalities. We are going to continue to deliver for Canadians.
Finance May 31st, 2023
Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for Laval—Les Îles for his important question and hard work.
Like him, I am disappointed to see the Conservatives trying to block the essential support measures contained in the budget, especially a tax to fight residential property flipping, the doubling of the deduction for tradespeople's tool expenses and the Canada workers benefit advance payments.
Their political games in committee are blocking the passage of our budget. I hope that all members of the House, including the Conservative members, will come together to give Canadians what they need.
Finance May 31st, 2023
Mr. Speaker, we hear the Leader of the Opposition continue to spread his message that Canadian is broken right across the country and that we should, therefore, just throw up our hands, give up and stop spending to invest in Canadians, stop supporting low-income Canadians, stop creating great jobs, stop drawing in great factories like Volkswagen and stop working to secure Stellantis investments. This is what the Conservatives' plan is: to throw up their hands and say, “Everything is broken, so let us just burn it down.”
Canadians do not feel that. Canadians roll up their sleeves and solve the challenges we are facing. That is what Canadians are doing every day across the country, and that is what they are going to continue to do.
The Economy May 31st, 2023
Mr. Speaker, let me see if I understand the Conservative Party's austerity plan correctly. They are saying that Canadians are already facing hard times, so it is okay to make matters worse by spending less, investing less and providing less help for families in need.
Perhaps that is why the member voted against the dental care assistance we are providing to children. Thanks to our initiative, 300,000 children across this country have been able to access dental care services they could not access in the past, including 1,100 children in his riding of Carleton. He voted against it because, for him, it is all about austerity. That is irresponsible.
The Economy May 31st, 2023
Mr. Speaker, while the Conservatives continue to argue in favour of austerity, we will continue to be there to invest in Canadians.
While they are proposing cuts, cuts to programs and cuts to services for Canadians, we will continue to lift Canadians out of poverty, as we have done for 2.7 million people in recent years. We will continue to be there for our seniors by lowering the retirement age to 65 after his government raised it to 67. We will continue to be there for our young people, for our families, with child care services. We will continue—
Democratic Institutions May 31st, 2023
Mr. Speaker, the leader of the Bloc Québécois wants to know who I am protecting.
First and foremost, I am protecting Canadians by fighting Chinese interference. I am protecting Chinese Canadians who are more often the target of Chinese interference. I am protecting our institutions and our democracy by creating mechanisms to fight Chinese interference. I am continuing to protect the men and women who put their lives at risk to find out and expose the secrets of China and other countries that want to do us harm by keeping their secrets and protecting our national security.
Democratic Institutions May 31st, 2023
Mr. Speaker, we will continue to work with all colleagues in the House to fight foreign interference and to take it seriously.
To take it seriously, the leader of the Bloc Québécois need only demonstrate that he is open to understanding the impact of the issue, to see the intelligence that was collected about what happened. He has refused. He prefers to hide from the truth to continue his bickering and partisan attacks.
That is not a responsible approach worthy of our democracy. I encourage him to take part in the necessary briefings.
The Economy May 31st, 2023
Mr. Speaker, I thank the Leader of the Opposition for trying to clear things up, but the fact is that no Canadians doubted he would pull back on measures to fight gun crime.
We are moving forward on increasing gun control. We have banned assault-style weapons. We put a freeze on the market for handguns, and the Conservative Party, in the pocket of the gun lobby, has continued to insist that they will roll back those measures. They will continue to not protect Canadians in communities across the country. That is their approach. Our approach is to continue to invest in Canadians to lift millions of people out of poverty and create millions of great jobs.
The Economy May 31st, 2023
Mr. Speaker, the Leader of the Opposition likes to talk about being in disagreement with the investments we have made in the Canadian economy, but perhaps he would be open with Canadians and share how he would not have funded child care at $10 a day right across the country for Canadians. He would not be delivering dental care benefits, including to 1,100 kids in his riding, and he would not be stepping up with targeted supports, with a doubling of the GST rebate for 11 million Canadians. He is not saying where he would be cutting, what programs he would be slashing and how he would be hurting Canadians while—