House of Commons photoWon his last election, in 2021, with 50% of the vote.
The Budget April 4th, 2017
Madam Speaker, the member mentioned it was their party that brought in such a wonderful Canada child benefit program.
I would like to ask him if he is still as proud of it today as he was before, taxing the benefits that were going to families who needed them while allowing millionaires who did not need it to keep their cheques. Could you please explain that, if you are so proud?
The Budget April 4th, 2017
Madam Speaker, again, I will go back to how I responded earlier to one of the questions. The same party condemns us for spending, and then when we bring in a budget, they ask why we are not spending it all this year. We were elected on a four-year platform, and we will continue to work on that and prepare for the future, whether it be for the middle class, education, or innovation.
The Budget April 4th, 2017
Madam Speaker, I would tell the hon. member that we all enjoyed that visit to my home community when we met with the fishermen. As I said in my speech, we are investing in the fisheries. For my home province and the Atlantic provinces, we just announced a $325-million fund. This fund will be available for processors, for fisheries, and for education. It will encompass it all, and the money will flow to all the provinces. We want to see the fishery of tomorrow be the real fishery of the future, and that is what the money will be used for. It will concentrate not only on what is taken out of the water but on what is in the water and stays there to make sure our stocks are healthy for the future.
The Budget April 4th, 2017
Madam Speaker, it is hard to figure out the opposition. One day members are telling us we are spending too fast and too much. The next minute they condemn us for not spending enough, so I do not know which way they want it. They cannot have both sides of the cake at one time.
We are making strategic investments in the Canadian Armed Forces. We are making strategic investments in our veterans, and we will continue to do that for the men and women who wear the uniform.
The Budget April 4th, 2017
Madam Speaker, I welcome the opportunity today to speak in support of budget 2017 and all the work our government is doing that continues to build a strong middle class of Canadians from coast to coast to coast.
I am pleased with the continued investments by our government in my home province of Newfoundland and Labrador and, more specific, in my riding of Avalon. We continue to make significant investments in infrastructure and in our communities, but we are also making good investments in our youth, working Canadians, and seniors.
Following in the footsteps of budget 2016, this budget offers immediate help to those who need it most and helps ensure everyone has a real and fair chance of success.
A strengthened middle class means that hard-working Canadians can look forward to a good standard of living and better prospects for our children. By investing in the projects Canada needs and the people who can build them, we can strengthen and grow the middle class and make our communities an even better place to call home.
Over the past year, our government has put in place a plan to grow the economy in a way that works for the middle class and those working hard to join it. Taxes were raised on the wealthiest 1% so we could cut taxes for the middle class. We introduced a new Canada child benefit that would give more money to nine out of 10 children and lifts thousands out of poverty.
My home province of Newfoundland and Labrador continues to struggle with the financial mess that was caused by years of previous provincial overspending and financial mismanagement. Unfortunately, Newfoundland and Labrador suffered from years of an unco-operative approach and no collaboration with the previous federal government. A total lack of trust and personal vendettas with the previous administration set our province years behind.
As an example, after the last federal election we found the allocated federal infrastructure funding was never applied for or provided to Newfoundland and Labrador. A total lack of trust and disrespect saw some $350 million of infrastructure funding not being invested in our communities.
Things have changed, and I am proud of the co-operation between all levels of government.
Just this past Friday, I was delighted to stand with one of my provincial colleagues and the mayor of Placentia to announce a strategic investment whereby all three levels of government contributed to ensure much needed improvements to the Placentia Culture and Heritage Centre would be completed, and I did the same thing just two weeks ago in the town of Holyrood.
It is great. We are co-operating and we are getting things done.
However, it is not all about big infrastructure projects about which our constituents are talking. In my riding, people come up to me every day and express their gratitude for the things their federal government is doing for them, but is everything great? No it is not.
Our fishery and those involved in the industry are going through a difficult transition. We are transitioning from a lucrative shellfish-based industry to the realization of a future industry based on groundfish and aquaculture. We are very fortunate to have a Minister of Fisheries in Ottawa who has a keen interest and understands the complexities of the Newfoundland and Labrador fishing industry. I am very confident that his decisions around the quota reductions in the shellfish resource and his cautious approach to ensure the return of healthy groundfish stock is done with the best intention of the resource and the people who work in the industry.
Our government has stepped up to the plate to help Atlantic Canadians in the fishing industry with the Atlantic fisheries fund. This $325 million investment will transform and drive innovation in the fish and seafood sector in Canada, with a focus on developing the sector to better meet growing market demands for sustainably sourced, high quality fish and seafood products. The fund will position the sector for even greater future success by supporting national market access, creating jobs for the middle class, and supporting coastal communities that rely on the sector.
The Atlantic fisheries fund will encourage innovative ways to harvest, process, and deliver the highest quality and sustainably sourced fish and seafood products from Canada's wild capture and aquaculture fisheries.
Our most recent budget contains important new initiatives that will help middle-class Canadians be more productive in the workforce and more adaptable to ever-changing family dynamics.
I want to speak for a few minutes on some of these initiatives, including changes to the employment insurance program that promotes new training opportunities and assists with the aspects of lifelong learning and making employment insurance more flexible for families around caregiving and parental benefits.
I also want to speak about our new investments in child care and housing. These initiatives are important to Canadians but more specific, they are important to Newfoundlanders and Labradorians.
Budget 2017 is the next step in our government's ambitious plan to make smart investments that will create jobs, grow our economy, and provide more opportunities for middle-class Canadians. Our budget put Canada's greatest strength, its skilled, talented, and creative people, at the heart of a more innovative future economy, one that will create middle-class jobs today and tomorrow. We will equip Canada's workers with the tools they need to succeed in the economy of the future.
We are committed to better support adult workers returning to school, who face the high cost of post-secondary education, along with the financial pressures associated with daily life and raising their families. Our budget outlines how we will significantly boost federal support to provinces and territories by $2.7 billion over six years to help more unemployed and underemployed Canadians access the training and employment support they need to find and keep good jobs.
Furthermore, we will ensure Canadians receiving EI are able to get the training they need without fear of losing the critical benefits they may depend on to support themselves and families.
Recognizing that Canada prosperity will increasingly depend on young people getting the skills and training needed to access the good, well-paying jobs of the future, we are further increasing our investments in our youth employment strategy.
Family caregivers are so important in every one of our communities. As such, we will better support caregivers by creating a new EI caregiving benefit of up to 15 weeks. This new benefit will cover a broader range of situations where individuals are providing care to an adult family member who requires significant support in order to recover from a critical illness or injury.
Parents of critically ill children will continue to have access to up to 35 weeks' benefits, with additional flexibility to share these benefits with more family members.
Parental benefits are such an important advantage for young families functioning in our workforce. Proposed changes will allow parents to choose to receive EI parental benefits over an extended period of up 18 months, but will also continue to be available for the existing 12 month benefit. Our government believes in offering flexibility to make the lives of young Canadians that much easier.
Child care is another huge pillar of budget 2017. I am very proud of our additional $7 billion investment over 10 years to support and create more high-quality, affordable child care spaces across the country. Over the next three years, our investments could increase the number of affordable child care spaces for low and modest income families by supporting up to 40,000 new subsidized child care spaces. This will make it more affordable for parents to return to work, with thousands of parents more likely to enter the workforce once child care is made more affordable.
As housing needs vary greatly by community, our government is committed to working with the provinces and territories to ensure the unique needs of communities all across Canada can be met. Over the next 11 years, $3.2 billion will be provided to support key priorities for affordable housing. These priorities could include the construction of new affordable housing units, the renovation and repair of existing housing, rent subsidies and other measures to make housing more affordable, safer, and accessible for seniors, persons with disabilities, and other individuals requiring accessibility modifications.
I was very pleased to stand last year to support budget 2016, which had a huge and real impact on our youth, working Canadians, and our seniors. I am equally pleased to stand now, on behalf of my constituents in the riding of Avalon, to support brand new and very strategic initiatives in budget 2017.
Port de Grave Fisherman's Weekend April 3rd, 2017
Mr. Speaker, every spring since 1992 the residents of the community of Port de Grave gather together prior to the start of fishing season to celebrate our fishery and all that it has done to provide for our people. They call it the “fisherman's weekend”. I was pleased to attend and celebrate with them again this year.
The weekend is jam-packed with events: a community breakfast, a church service, and of course the honoured tradition of the blessing of the fleet.
The community takes pride in this ceremony as it wishes the fishermen a prosperous season on the open seas and a safe return home to family and friends once the fishing is done.
I would like to thank Pastor White and the Pentecostal Church of Port de Grave for honouring this long-standing tradition and I join with the community of Port de Grave in wishing all seafarers a safe and successful season on the waters of Newfoundland and Labrador.
The Budget March 23rd, 2017
Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the member for Sarnia—Lambton for her passionate speech and for the hard work she does for the people of her riding.
She mentioned the enhanced Canada pension plan payroll deduction for people to have a better pension when they reach retirement age. Most people, as we well know, who are working in a small business or are in the middle-class rankings, cannot afford to take part in an RRSP. They do not have a company pension plan. They cannot afford to take part in a tax-free savings account plan. What is it that the member and her party opposite have against a small weekly deduction, only dollars a week, to give people a secure pension at the end of their working days so they can live better, be better prepared for what retirement will bring to them, and have a decent income when they reach that time?
Ches Penney February 2nd, 2017
Mr. Speaker, today I rise to recognize the life of Mr. Ches Penney, a constituent, friend, and prominent business leader in Newfoundland and Labrador.
Mr. Penney passed away last Thursday and leaves behind his loving family, friends, business associates, and a legacy as one of the most successful business leaders of his time.
As a young man, Mr. Penney was a true entrepreneur, successfully building the tremendous Penney Group and playing a pivotal role in the construction, auto sales, energy services, and real estate sectors.
He was not only a great businessman, but a champion of all that our province stands for. In recognizing his contribution, Ches was awarded the Order of Canada, the Order of Newfoundland and Labrador, and an honorary doctorate from Memorial University.
While Ches has passed, his name, memory, and legacy will live on for generations. After a full and busy life, may Ches rest in eternal peace.
Alex and Riley Mercer December 6th, 2016
Mr. Speaker, today I rise to recognize the Mercer family of Conception Bay South. In 2002, Bernie and Louise lost their daughter Alex to a rare form of brain cancer at the age of nine. Eleven years later, the Mercers lost their second child, Riley, to the same terrible disease at the age of 15.
Such tremendous loss devastated so many, but with the support of friends, family, and community, they have worked hard to ensure Alex and Riley's memory lives on. Even in light of such tragedy and heartbreak, the Mercers displayed incredible courage and love.
This Saturday, I will join the Mercers for one of many events that they organize, the third annual Christmas Toy Drive in Riley's name.
Giving back to the community while paying tribute to their children is now Bernie and Louise's passion.
It is my pleasure to stand in this House and recognize such a remarkable family. I invite all members to join me in thanking them for their commitment and dedication.
Budget Implementation Act, 2016, No. 2 December 6th, 2016
Mr. Speaker, I welcome the new member for Medicine Hat—Cardston—Warner and congratulate him on his speech here in the House today.
The member talked a lot about numbers and figures and whatnot, but I will just highlight one. He mentioned a carbon tax, but from a federal government point of view, it is revenue neutral. The money would go back to the provinces. In the case of Alberta, the provincial government in Alberta was bringing in a carbon pricing policy regardless of what the federal government did.
How does the member square that circle and lay the blame on the federal government when the provincial government was bringing in the same thing?