Rachael Thomas

[The Budget, April 26th, 2021]

Madam Speaker, again, one of the interesting things about this budget is that the Prime Minister actually said that it was his COVID-response budget and that the budget would somehow bring COVID back into a manageable state.

Interestingly enough, not a dime in the budget is put toward a recovery plan that is measured, a recovery plan that is viable, a recovery plan that is substantial in any way.

In addition to not having a plan put forward to Canadians, the Prime Minister has also failed to increase any of the health care transfers that take place with the provinces.

One would think that if the Prime Minister were genuinely concerned about the well-being of Canadians during COVID-19 and wants to see their health and well-being cared for that he would, at a bare minimum, increase the health transfers that take place between the federal government and the provinces.

[The Budget, April 26th, 2021]

Madam Speaker, the Prime Minister told Canadians not to worry, that the government would hold their hands, that it had them covered and that it would go into debt so they did not have to.

It is laughable to say that the government will go into debt so Canadians do not have to. Governments do not have their own money. It is not like the Prime Minister was being generous to Canadians, taking from his trust fund and spending on their behalf.

We are talking about a Prime Minister who was taking the credit card that belongs to Canadians, racking it up with hundreds of billions of dollars of debt, and now is going to have to increase taxes and cut back on social programs. That is atrocious. That is terrible leadership. That is not in the best interest of Canadians.

[The Budget, April 26th, 2021]

Mr. Speaker, Canada needs a Prime Minister who sees where the solutions to our country's challenges truly lie. It is not in the government; it is in the people. It is Canadians who are the problem solvers, the solution makers and the wealth creators, not the government. We need a leader who sees the potential for the greatness of this nation in a free and self-sufficient people, again, not a big, bloated government.

I am grieved by the ongoing patronization of the Prime Minister and so many of his ministers when addressing Canadians as if they are weak and helpless and in need of ongoing supports and handouts from the government, as if they do not have the ability, in and of themselves, to be a creative and strong part of the solution as we move forward. If they would only see Canadian people for who they are and let them do what they are best at doing, generating solutions, solving problems, designing equipment and technology, pursuing innovation, building businesses, creating jobs and securing our future, then we would be headed down a much better path.

Canadians are fair, they are reasonable and they are generous. What they are looking for is a road map. They are looking, first and foremost, for an ethical and competent leader at the helm and then they are looking for a plan, one with decisive action that is outlined, that can be measured and will be followed through on. We need to unleash the power of our workforce and let the ingenuity of the people map a course forward. Canadians want a secure future. They do not want to be handcuffed by an overwhelmingly bloated government or debt load or high taxes. Canadians deserve better than what is currently on offer and they want to be a part of the solution, moving forward.

[The Budget, April 26th, 2021]

Madam Speaker, I would like to begin by congratulating my colleague on being the first female Canadian finance minister to introduce a budget in the House of Commons. Though we are on opposite sides of the House, it is phenomenal. I do want to acknowledge that.

Although I am glad the government finally decided to introduce a budget after more than two years, it must be pointed out that we are the only country in the G7 that went this long without one. Despite the unprecedented amount of government spending that has taken place, it is only now that we are being presented with a spending plan. This, I believe, is absolutely unacceptable.

It certainly does not speak of a government that is striving for openness, transparency and accountability, as it often advertises. I recognize there has been a pandemic, but nearly every other government in the country, whether provincial and municipal, has put forward a budget during this time. If they were able to do so, then surely the Liberal government was also able to do the same.

Before the budget was tabled, constituents shared with me that they were hoping to see a real plan for economic recovery and for reopening society as we know it. They were hoping for a restoration of hope and confidence in our future. Those who are unemployed shared with me that they were hoping to see a plan to create new jobs and economic opportunities for their families.

Those in the oil and gas sector shared with me that they were hoping to see some support for this world-class industry. Those who own local businesses and create jobs were hoping they would no longer have to be on the verge of permanently closing their doors. They were hoping that proper supports would be offered to them and that we would go back to normal.

Sadly, what the Liberal government delivered was a 700-page budget that will increase Canada's debt load by $1.3 trillion by 2022 and includes very little for those who call Alberta home. This is not stimulus spending focused on creating jobs, but rather spending on Liberal partisan priorities. Although there are some necessary support measures contained in this budget for Canadians who are still getting through the economic challenges due to the pandemic, it goes well beyond what is necessary. This is like the government going to Gucci when it really should be going to Walmart. It is not going with its own credit card. It is going with ours, the Canadian people. This is the deal: The government racks up the debt, and Canadians foot the bill.

A strategic budget would have targeted revenue-generating industries in our country so that one dollar would turn into three dollars. Instead, we see massive amounts of cash being flushed through the country in a manner that benefits the current government's partisan interests, rather than the well-being of Canadians as a whole. The budget will extend the pandemic economic recession longer than necessary due to its exorbitant spending.

Canada is in a rough situation right now. People are hurting emotionally, psychologically, economically and physically. That must be acknowledged. Canadians are looking for a way out, a change, not more of the same. Sadly, that is what this budget is.

It is a perpetuation of our current fiscal state where unemployment rates are high, government handouts are a primary source of income and the human spirit is severely damaged. It is a superficial solution that does not fix the real problem of a struggling economy and a struggling people. This was an opportunity for the government to chart a course toward a return to pre-COVID times. Of course, I would propose 2014 to take that opportunity, but that said, I would take 2019 at this point.

Instead, we see a Liberal government that is extending the pandemic economic recovery efforts with this budget. This will put us at a serious competitive disadvantage globally, especially when we see other countries returning to normal. Their economic engines are running again and ours is being flooded with no hope of a jump start. It is hard not to be envious of countries such as the United States, where concerts are taking place on Fridays, sports stadiums are full on Saturdays and churches are bustling with life on Sundays. In Taiwan, life is basically back to normal and has been for a long time due to its rapid response to the virus. It had a total of 1,100 cases and only 12 deaths. That is amazing.

The current government seems to wear federal debt as a badge of honour. It is bizarre and troubling. More borrowing and spending does not equate to good governance. Under the Prime Minister, Canada has incurred the largest per capita deficit and hit the highest unemployment rate in the G7, which means Canada has spent the most to achieve the least. Money spent is not a measuring stick for success as much as the government would like to use it as such. Lowering the unemployment rate or growing our national GDP are things that are worth celebrating and using as measures of success.

Just a few weeks before the Liberal budget was tabled, the Deputy Prime Minister said, “I really believe COVID has created a window of political opportunity”. This mentality is truly shocking and troublesome, but it also explains how the Liberals view this pandemic. They see it as an opportunity to re-engineer society according to their value set. It is exploitive and wrong.

The Prime Minister's “reimagined economy” is a risky Ottawa-knows-best approach that picks winners and losers by design. He is dictating which jobs, sectors and regions of our country will stay afloat and prosper and which will be left to perish. Never before has there been such a divisive prime minister in this nation.

Canadians know the government has no money of its own. Anything the government spends comes from taxes and borrowing. What the government borrows, Canadians pay back through taxation. There is no such thing as a free lunch, regardless of how the government tries to package it. The thing about government spending is that it always comes back to the people at a significant cost. It is common knowledge that when taxes go up, an unfriendly or even hostile environment is created for business. High taxes result in businesses leaving the country for other jurisdictions where they are not taxed to fill government coffers. The problem with businesses leaving the country is that they take jobs with them. When they take jobs with them, they also take the revenue that the government relies on for the social safety net that Canadians enjoy so much. This results in higher unemployment and more Canadians being dependent on the government for support, as opposed to being independent and self-sufficient because they have jobs. This pattern is extremely detrimental to the Canadian people, but highly beneficial for a political party that only maintains power when Canadians are dependent on government.

Instead of working to get Canadians out of the dole line, it seems as though the Liberals are doing everything in their power to prolong the current situation and to capitalize on an obliged and increasingly indebted electorate. So much federal money has been spent on COVID-19 benefit programs that, on average, Canadians now have more personal income than they did pre-COVID, even though the average employment income has fallen dramatically.

Let us talk about big government. This is not a budget that a responsible government would put forward: It is a budget that sets up an opportunistic Prime Minister for success in the event of an election. Notably, despite the massive debt incurred, this budget failed in a few key areas. There is no plan to fight the pandemic. This is interesting, because the Prime Minister touted this budget as his pandemic response. There is no new money for health care transfers, no fiscal anchor or debt-management strategy. That is atrocious for a national budget.

Canada needs a prime minister who sees the solution to our country's current challenges and where they truly lie. It is not the government—

[Natural Resources, April 22nd, 2021]

Madam Speaker, Canada has the third largest crude oil reserve in the world, yet we import billions of dollars worth of oil from foreign suppliers. Currently, more than half of the oil used in Quebec and Atlantic Canada is imported from countries like the United States, Saudi Arabia, the Russian Federation, Nigeria and the Ivory Coast.

By restricting Canada's oil and gas industry through legislation and bulldozing pipeline projects, the Prime Minister is indirectly boosting production in other countries, where poor environmental regulations exist and massive human atrocities take place. The Prime Minister would rather boost the production of blood oil overseas than support the production of ethical oil right here in his own backyard.

Canadians do deserve better. Canadians deserve a Prime Minister who will secure a future in the energy sector.

[Natural Resources, April 22nd, 2021]

Madam Speaker, energy is the fuel of life and thankfully we have been blessed with a great deal of it. We do not have to be dependent on other nations for fuel, which gives us the competitive edge if we have the common sense to utilize it. What I find extremely disconcerting, however, is the lengths to which the government will go in order to demonize the industry. Instead of celebrating the value it adds to our country by generating revenue, the Prime Minister is trying to phase it out. Why?

The export of our oil and gas brings revenue into Canada which helps pay for schools, hospitals, infrastructure and social programs. The industry provides a net good, not just for Alberta, not just for Western Canada, but for the entire country. Those are the indirect benefits. Now let us look at the direct benefits.

The direct benefits of hydrocarbons, which are the main component in crude oil, are responsible for transporting people, goods and food. They are what empower farmers to produce the things we eat and they are what support many of the medicines that extend human life. They are found in the products that we rely on each and every day, such as eyeglasses, health care equipment and vehicles.

The Liberals like to talk about a greener future, but they are completely misrepresenting the facts. If they want to get rid of hydrocarbons, then we will be living in a world without PPE, without vital medical equipment, without syringes and without sanitary packaging. Let that sink in for a moment. They dumb down the conversation to almost caveman-like language like “this good” or “that bad”. They paint our oil and gas sector with a broad stroke of black as if it is something to be ashamed of.

What they intentionally fail to highlight, however, are the innovations and the technological breakthroughs that reduce carbon emissions. They do not speak about our incredibly high environmental standards, our safety standards or our human rights standards. It is vitally important to take a comprehensive look at these factors, because if we do not improve and build up the energy sector in our own country, then we have to ask ourselves what the alternative is.

It is to increase energy production and exports from other countries, countries like Saudi Arabia and Venezuela, where there are no environmental protections and horrific human rights atrocities that take place on a daily basis. That is not to mention the tremendous damage that is done to the environment by transporting barge after barge of oil across the ocean.

The world is going to need oil for a long time to come. In fact, demand is estimated to increase by 19% by 2040. This is because as developing countries rise out of poverty and their standards of living improve, their need for oil and gas goes up. Canada has an opportunity. If these countries are not going to get their gas and oil from us, then they will go elsewhere.

If the Prime Minister genuinely cares about reducing global greenhouse gas emissions, then the obvious action is to boost production in our own country where the industry works hard to reduce environmental impact and improve performance through constant innovation. Why the Prime Minister continues to annihilate this sector absolutely confounds me.

Canada has the opportunity to be a leader and a responsible resource supplier to countries around the globe. Boosting our oil and gas industry would not only help the rest of the world by supplying clean energy produced under the strictest environmental standards with safe working conditions, but it would also bring an incredible amount of wealth into our nation.

In Canada, we are very proud of our social safety net and our national health care system, but these big-ticket items cost a lot of money to run effectively. When the government works to cancel energy projects or kill pipelines and demonizes the energy industry, it effectively puts our welfare systems at risk. Canada deserves better.

[Public Services and Procurement, April 16th, 2021]

Madam Speaker, the Prime Minister has said repeatedly that there remains no more important relationship than that with the indigenous people.

In his 2019, mandate letter to the procurement minister, he instructed her to secure 5% of all federal contracts with indigenous-owned companies. She failed. As a result, that mandate letter was scrapped and a new one was granted. It is as if it was inconvenient and therefore whitewashed.

My question is very simple. When will the government stop making false promises, misleading Canadians and actually follow through?

[COVID-19 Emergency Response, April 14th, 2021]

Mr. Speaker, over the last 13 months, Canadians have significantly overhauled their lives in order to accommodate government-imposed restrictions. The Liberal government dangled hope in front of them, telling Canadians that if they followed the rules, stayed at home, closed their businesses and remained socially distanced, then things would go back to normal very soon. Thirteen months later, and there is still no plan. Hope is starting to wane. Lockdowns have resulted in businesses permanently closing. Loved ones have been lost. Hope is waning.

We need a prime minister who seeks a solution for what is at stake here. We need a prime minister who sees people, not government, as the answer because it is Canadians who are ultimately the problem solvers, the solution makers and the wealth generators, the ones who will get us out of this current state.

As a part of the Conservative recovery plan, we are committed to unleashing the power of the workforce and recovering the one million jobs that have been lost during this pandemic. As Conservatives, we will implement a strategy to restore this country to the powerhouse nation that it was always meant to be and can be. We will secure the future for Canadians.

[Economic Statement Implementation Act, 2020, April 13th, 2021]

Madam Speaker, the member asked me to comment with respect to prorogation. This place was prorogued at the end of August. The reason for that is unknown. We were told there would be great promises and a plan coming. We are still waiting. The only conclusion I can draw as to the reason for that prorogation is that we were in the middle of a study on the Prime Minister giving $500 million to his favourite friends at the WE Charity Foundation, which seemed inappropriate. We were researching that and coming close to finding an answer when, poof, the House was prorogued.

[Economic Statement Implementation Act, 2020, April 13th, 2021]

Madam Speaker, let me be clear. The oil and gas energy sector within Canada is not asking for handouts from the government. It is simply asking for the right to exist as an industry, to develop the natural resources that exist here in our country and to do so in a way that looks after the environment, creates great-paying jobs and treats people with dignity and respect. That is what the industry is asking for. Simultaneously, that is what I am asking for and my colleagues are advocating for. That is the bare minimum the current government could do for the industry. It does not want handouts.