Olivia Chow

[Budget Implementation Act, 2007, April 23rd, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, I often speak with seniors in my riding and they tell me that their hydro bills, their Roger's cable bills, their heating bills and their property taxes, et cetera, have increased and yet for 10 to 15 years their guaranteed income supplement has not caught up. They recently received a tiny increase.

Some of the seniors in my riding are desperate. They are asking the government what it plans to do to increase the guaranteed income supplement for seniors.

Since this increase in the guaranteed income supplement is not in the budget that is in front of us, what is the NDP's plan to ensure that ordinary Canadians, especially seniors, can live their lives with dignity and have some money to pay the rent and buy food?

[Business of Supply, April 19th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, the insurgency, the security problems and the conflict in Afghanistan are all getting worse and the lives of regular Afghans are not improving.

We know that Afghan women are still subject to arbitrary imprisonment, rape, torture and forced marriage. This is why in August last year the NDP asked that the present mission end. Instead of destruction there should be construction. Instead of search and kill there should be mediation to bring insurgents into reconciliation.

Canadians should be assisting in empowering the local organizations and government instead of top down solutions. Rather than relying on old Soviet landmines for protection, Canadians should be removing the landmines. Instead of spending $2.5 billion so far on combat, Canada should be spending it on development aid.

Now is the time to end the combat mission and change it to a peace mission. Surely the hon. member is not going to join the Conservatives and the Liberals in voting to continue this losing war for two more years, especially when Quebec men and women will be sent to Kandahar this summer and will be in harm's way.

[Business of Supply, April 19th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, since 2005, under the former Liberal government, Canadians have been fighting a growing insurgency in south Afghanistan. However, since then, OPM poppy production reached a record high last year, surpassing 2005's total of 49%.

In the first nine months of 2006, 3,700 people were killed in the conflict, already a fourfold increase over the year before, and there were 139 suicide attacks in 2006, up from 27 in 2005.

In five years, Afghanistan is still one of the world's poorest countries. One in four Afghan children do not live to the age of five and 70% of the Afghan population is malnourished.

[Petitions, April 19th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, it is my honour to present petitions from thousands of ordinary Canadians from across Ontario. The petitioners say that the unification of seniors with their families in Canada through immigration is a core aspect of forming strong, healthy and vibrant families and communities in Canada; that newcomer seniors currently suffer unfairly from the 10 years' residency requirement under Canada's income security programs; and that Canada's old age security, guaranteed income supplement and social assistance programs are age, capacity and needs based benefit programs, not individual contribution based income security plans.

Therefore, the petitioners ask the Government of Canada to amend the Old Age Security Act regulations and policies to eliminate the 10 year residency requirement for old age security and guaranteed income supplement. The petitioners ask that the Government of Canada work with provincial governments to waive the enforcement of sponsorship obligations through government cost recovery schemes as a condition of financial support in situations of genuine immigration sponsorship breakdown involving a senior. Also, they ask that the government establish a nominal public transit charge for all seniors in Canada, similar to the nominal $45 a year charged to seniors in British Columbia. Lastly, they ask that the Government of Canada provide government funding to support more ethno-specific affordable housing for seniors who need or desire it.

[Questions on the Order Paper, April 16th, 2007]

What projects, grants, contributions and any other funding support has Human Resources and Social Development Canada funded for the riding of Trinity-Spadina since January 1, 2006?

[Petitions, March 28th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, I have a petition from many working families concerned about the lack of a national child care program. They are concerned that Canada is dead last of all OECD countries in its investment in early learning and child care. They want all children to have access to child care, as high quality child care is a benefit to all children. It enhances their health and school readiness, reduces family poverty and promotes social inclusion and workforce productivity.

The petitioners call upon the Government of Canada to achieve multi-year funding to ensure that publicly operated child care programs are sustainable for the long term, and to protect child care by enshrining it in legislation with a national child care act to be a cornerstone of Canada, like the Canada Health Act.

[Business of Supply, March 22nd, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, the NDP leader in Nova Scotia, Darrell Dexter, said that the Conservative government is treating Nova Scotia, indeed the Atlantic provinces, in a way that will enshrine regional disparity.

Perhaps the member may not want to just listen to the NDP leader. The premier of Newfoundland and Labrador, Mr. Williams, also said that this is the same Prime Minister who basically reneged on money for women, literacy groups, volunteers, students, and minority rights. He has not lived up to the Kyoto accord and the accord for aboriginal people. There is a long list of people who have been hard done by this minority government. If the Conservatives were to become a majority government, we would have to be very concerned about what commitments they would deliver.

I have a question for the hon. member. What other campaign promise is the government planning to break?

[Points of Order, March 20th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, this morning, at around10:44 a.m. to be precise, during the budget debate the Liberal finance critic, the hon. member for Markham—Unionville, claimed that the NDP voted against the Liberal 2005 budget and caused the former government to fall. That was dead wrong. Further, he claimed there was new money for affordable housing in the Liberal 2005 budget. He was wrong again. The NDP actually added money for affordable housing.

I hope the member will stop misleading the House.

[The Budget, March 20th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, in 2000 the corporate income tax rate was 28%. By 2004, the former Liberal government had dropped it to 21%. In 2005 it went down to 19%. The NDP stopped this cut in budget 2005 in June, but by the fall the Liberals recommitted it. Now the Conservative government is cutting it even further to 18.5%.

Every dollar of corporate income tax that is cut adds about 25¢ to banks and insurance companies, and we know how much help they need, and only 13¢ to struggling manufacturers.

Why is the Conservative government giving a big break to banks, which last year made $19 billion in profits, rather than investing at least a billion dollars, as it should, to child care providers?

[The Budget, March 20th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, we have in Canada growing complaints about skills shortages, even though there are record high profits.

We have not really seen, in this budget, a Canadian literacy initiative that would fund new workplace and community programs that would strengthen adult skills in reading, writing and basic math. There is no workplace skills strategy that would provide financial support for innovative pilot projects.

There really are no labour market partnership agreements that would expand apprenticeship programs; literacy programs; workplace skills development; and support for immigrants, aboriginals, older workers and other employees who face labour market barriers. Nor are there training and education centre infrastructure funds that would support different apprenticeship training programs.

I also note that in Quebec this year there is a cut of $213 million for child care. Quebec was supposed to receive, under the old funding agreement, $269 million for child care.

What I do not understand, given that there is very little funding for apprenticeship programs, post-secondary education and child care, is how this budget could be supported?