Justin Trudeau

[Housing, January 30th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, we completely agree that, for far too long, the federal government failed to invest in housing. That is why we created a national housing strategy, which includes $40 billion to invest in communities from coast to coast to coast.

We have invested in seniors' housing. We have invested to combat homelessness. We know there is much more to do, but over the last two or three years, we have been investing to repair and build new housing. We will continue to invest in those who are most vulnerable.

[Health, January 30th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the member opposite for his advocacy. Almost all Canadians have family and friends affected by mental illness today and every day. However, today is an important day to support those around us, especially those who suffer in silence.

We want to ensure Canadians get the support they need when and where they need it. We have made the largest investment in Canadian history for mental health services, $5 billion in budget 2017, and we have targeted investments specifically among indigenous peoples, black Canadians, veterans and homeless Canadians. There is much more to do.

Today, like every day, we need to talk more about mental health.

[Ethics, January 30th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, I can assure the House that Liberal fundraisers follow all the rules in openness, transparency and accountability. We actually strengthened those rules. It is the Conservatives who are continuing to hold fundraisers in secret, continuing to keep from Canadians who is donating, how much and who is attending. We have invited the media to attend our fundraisers. They are still being secretive about their fundraising.

Canadians want to know who is paying for the Conservative Party of Canada.

[Ethics, January 30th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians have a right to openness and transparency in political fundraising. That is why we move forward with new legislation to ensure that political fundraising is done under new transparent, open rules. We have been doing that for close to a year now.

It is time for the Conservative Party to abide by those rules as well, to talk about who is actually donating to the Conservative Party, who is attending fundraising events with their leader and making sure they are opening them up to media the way that we are.

We are open and transparent in our fundraising. Why are the Conservatives still being—

[Finance, January 30th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, during the 10 years that Stephen Harper was in office, the Conservatives added $150 billion to the national debt. During Stephen Harper's 10-year reign, Canada posted the lowest rate of growth since the Great Depression.

I can see why Canadians wanted a new approach. That is why they chose the Liberal government, which has invested in our communities and given more money to the middle class. What are we seeing? A total of 800,000 new jobs have been created in the past three years and the unemployment rate is the lowest it has been in 40 years. We are investing in Canadians—

[Finance, January 30th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, it is sad to see the Conservatives once again resorting to falsehoods and fearmongering to scare Canadians.

The first thing we did was cut taxes for Canadians. We lowered the small business tax rate to 9%, and we invested in the Canada child benefit, which puts more money in the pockets of nine out of 10 families because we put an end to the Conservatives' practice of sending cheques to millionaire families. We are going to keep taking care of Canadians and making sure our investments help them. It is the Conservatives who want to give benefits to the richest—

[Indigenous Affairs, January 30th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, we recognize that the situation in indigenous communities across the country is still dire. That is why we have been investing in it. We have been working in partnership with them. However, we recognize there is much more to do.

We have eliminated a number of long-term drinking water advisories. We have invested significantly in new housing. However, of course there are still many more investments to make and much more work to do.

We are closing the gap. We are helping indigenous communities right across the country. We will continue to focus on doing what is right to make sure that everyone has a safe and secure place to live right across the country.

[Indigenous Affairs, January 30th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, not only do we have a plan to address that crisis, we started to put it in place years ago. I can highlight that in budget 2018, we put $600 million toward first nation housing, $500 million toward Métis nation housing, and $400 million for an Inuit-led housing plan. We know we need to continue to work to close the unacceptable gap in housing for indigenous peoples. There is much more to do, but we are acting, not just talking about it. We are delivering for families right across the country and will continue to work hard to do exactly that.

[Carbon Pricing, January 30th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, again, the snide personal attacks are all about distracting from the fact that the Conservatives have no plan for the future of our economy, no plan to fight climate change, no plan to help families through the transforming economy. These are the things that we are focused on, that we have been focused on from the very beginning. We lowered taxes for the middle class and raised them on the wealthiest one per cent. We delivered a Canada child benefit that makes a huge difference right across the country, including for 16,000 kids in the member opposite's own riding, for $48 million a year in the riding of Carleton—

[Carbon Pricing, January 30th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians know that the price of inaction would be monumental, but we do recognize that we need to build the economy of the future and put a price on pollution in a way that supports regular families in this time. That is exactly what we are doing by returning money directly to Canadians, because we know that supporting families and making life affordable while we fight climate change is essential. The member opposite has no plan to fight climate change, and indeed, his leader promised it 276 days ago, and still he has not delivered.