House of Commons photoWon his last election, in 2021, with 50% of the vote.
Taxation December 5th, 2017
Mr. Speaker, the finance minister's record is working hard to minimize his own tax bill while maximizing everyone else's.
Small businesses face massive changes in how they can pay their family members. Those changes come into effect in less than four weeks, yet the minister, because he is so up to his eyeballs managing his own personal financial scandals, has been wreaking havoc on the finances of those businesses. When will he come clean and tell them what their new rules will be?
Ethics December 5th, 2017
Mr. Speaker, in a crass act of demagoguery, the Minister of Finance targeted and scapegoated our small business people, accusing them of being a “privileged few” who used “fancy accounting schemes” to avoid paying their fair share, yet it was he who set up a company in Barbados, it was he who put his Toronto holdings in an Alberta numbered company, even thought he lives in Ontario, and it was he who realized his capital gains before his own tax increases came into effect to avoid paying them himself.
Why has he worked so hard to minimize his tax—
Questions Passed as Orders for Returns December 4th, 2017
With regard to all contracts signed since September 19, 2016, between the government and Morneau Shepell: what are the details of each contract, including the (i) internal tracking number, (ii) contract purpose or title, (iii) goods or services provided, (iv) value, (v) department, (vi) position of the government employee who initiated the contract, (vii) date of signature, (viii) date of approval by the Treasury Board Secretariat, (ix) expiration date?
Questions on the Order Paper December 4th, 2017
With regard to appointments by the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) of administrators to wind-up the pension plans of bankrupt or insolvent companies, since January 1, 2004: (a) has OSFI hired Morneau Shepell; and (b) if the answer to (a) is affirmative, what are the details of each instance, including the (i) internal tracking number, (ii) name of the company for which OSFI was seeking an administrator, (iii) date OSFI commenced its search for an administrator, (iv) date Morneau Shepell was hired, (v) date the contract was approved by the Treasury Board Secretariat, (vi) value of the contract, (vii) position or title of the public servant who approved the contract, (viii) date Morneau Shepell concluded its work?
Questions on the Order Paper December 4th, 2017
With regard to the working group referred to by the Minister of Finance’s spokesman in the Toronto Star on February 28, 2017, “to collaborate on transparency and beneficial ownership”: (a) what is the mandate of the working group; (b) on what date was the working group created; (c) on what date does the working group anticipate concluding; (d) since being created, on which dates has the working group met; (e) for each meeting in (d), what were the items on the agenda; (f) what is the membership of the working group, broken down by (i) position or title, (ii) level of government, (iii) department, (iv) responsibilities related to the working group; (g) who was present for each meeting in (d); (h) was the Minister of Finance present for any items pertaining to Barbados being used as a tax haven; (i) If the answer to (h) is affirmative, did the Minister disclose the fact that his company, Morneau Shepell, relocated its headquarters in 2016 to Barbados; (j) if the answer to (i) is affirmative, did the Minister inform his chief of staff; (k) if the answer to (i) is affirmative, did the Minister inform the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner; and (l) if the answer to (i) is affirmative, did the Minister inform the Prime Minister?
Taxation December 4th, 2017
Mr. Speaker, in this memo that went to 51 different officials in her department, the top decision-makers indicated that except for rare circumstances, diabetics were to be rejected every time. The minister denied the existence of any change in the practice or the policy. We now know that was not true. She stated in the House falsehoods, and her department has raised taxes on the most vulnerable people in the country. Why?
Taxation December 4th, 2017
Mr. Speaker, she told the House, “There have also not been any changes to the way the law is interpreted.” She also said, “The rules are the same and apply just as they always have.” We now know, through an internal document released by ATIP today, that an internal CRA memo, sent to dozens of officials, urged those officials to reject all diabetics for the tax credit, except in exceptional circumstances.
Why did the minister mislead the House?
Taxation December 4th, 2017
Mr. Speaker, so that is the consolation the government says to people with diabetes, that they lost their $1,500 tax credit but that is okay because the government has given them a committee instead.
That minister's office said the CRA had not changed its decision-making process with regard to the disability tax credit eligibility criteria. Now we have an internal memo that was sent from senior officials in her department to 51 other officials that says that people with diabetes are now excluded.
Why did the minister mislead the House in that matter?
Taxation December 4th, 2017
Mr. Speaker, the kindest thing we can say about our millionaire finance minister's conduct in the sale of these shares before he introduced his tax measures is that by selling those shares at that time, he avoided paying the same tax increases that he would impose on others at the end of the month.
Unfortunately, low-income people suffering from diabetes do not have access to the same kind of sophisticated tax manoeuvres the minister used.
Why does the Liberal government continue to raise taxes on those with the least while letting the wealthy get off scot-free?
Ethics December 4th, 2017
Actually, Mr. Speaker, I enjoy reading the transaction ledgers that show on which date what shares were sold. That is where I found that the minister appears to have sold his shares on November 30, 2015. His father sold shares at roughly the same time. They both sold millions of dollars just before the minister introduced tax measures on the floor of the House of Commons.
The minister said that there was no coordination in this matter between him and his father. Did they use the same stock brokerage firm, yes or no?