Mr. Chair, Canada's economy contracted by 17% between February and April 2020, the largest and most sudden contraction in real GDP since the Great Depression, and we are already back.
House of Commons photoWon his last election, in 2021, with 34% of the vote.
Business of Supply December 8th, 2021
Mr. Chair, Canada's economy contracted by 17% between February and April 2020, the largest and most sudden contraction in real GDP since the Great Depression, and we are already back.
Business of Supply December 8th, 2021
Mr. Chair, I want to say 106% of jobs have been recovered since the lowest point of the pandemic.
Business of Supply December 8th, 2021
Mr. Chair, my title is Minister of Tourism and Associate Minister of Finance. I am sure my hon. colleague across the way knows that.
Let me say 156,000 jobs.
Business of Supply December 8th, 2021
Mr. Chair, I think we should note that the recovery is under way. It is strong, but, as my colleague from Alfred-Pellan knows, it is uneven.
As he mentioned, I am referring specifically to people in the cultural industry: technicians, actors, comedians, camera operators, musicians, directors and all those behind the scenes who reflect the best of who we are as human beings.
As a government, we must be there for the workers and businesses in the cultural sector. During the election campaign, we clearly indicated that we would be there for them, and that is exactly what we will do.
Just to be clear about the work done and the commitment we have to the cultural sector coming out of this pandemic, we made sure that $200 million was provided to festivals, $300 million was provided in a recovery fund for culture, sports and the arts, another $200 million was provided for large festivals, and a $500 million emergency fund was established for the cultural sector. There is more to come.
Employment December 7th, 2021
Madam Speaker, I ran a small business before entering politics, and I ran the same one in between politics. I understand job creation. I understand the challenges entrepreneurs are facing from coast to coast to coast. I understand the particular challenges that operators in the tourism sector are facing.
This government has been there for small businesses. We proved that during the pandemic. We will be there until the pandemic is over. We will ensure a robust economic recovery so that all entrepreneurs, their families and the people they employ understand that, when the chips are down, the Liberal government has their backs.
Employment December 7th, 2021
Madam Speaker, I know the hon. member's riding very well, having spent a lot of time there as a business person before entering politics, and from training for an Ironman triathlon in the region, which feels like it was almost half a lifetime ago. It was certainly back in the days when I had more hair.
Moving on to other things, the member opposite raises an important issue. It is a whole-of-government preoccupation for us. I have had conversations with the Minister of Immigration on this. I think if we can set the table with 106% of jobs recovered since the lowest point in the pandemic, 154,000 jobs reported as added to the Canadian economy in the last month, and all of the hours that were lost during the pandemic having also been recovered. Those are important elements to put on the table as we get into the matter.
There is no more important economic policy for Canada today than finishing the fight against COVID. That also impacts who we are able to bring here and how we are able to address the labour shortage. I think Bill C-2 is an important piece of this puzzle, because it contains targeted business and income supports, including the emergency lockdown supports we need to fight omicron.
If we take a step back and look at when the crisis hit, our government rapidly rolled out a full range of effective broad-based programs to support Canadians through our greatest economic shock as a country since the Great Depression. These actions were necessary and unprecedented in our lifetime.
All across the country, these programs have been lifelines for workers and businesses. They protected millions of jobs and hundreds of thousands of Canadian businesses through the worst of the pandemic.
However, those emergency measures were always meant to be around just long enough to help people get through the crisis. Fortunately, we are now moving into a new phase that promises to be very different from the dark days of our fight against COVID-19.
Thanks to one of the most successful vaccination campaigns in the world, most businesses are safely reopening and employment is now exceeding pre-pandemic levels.
We know there are still workers and businesses whose livelihoods are being affected as a result of pandemic-related restrictions on their activity. That is why it is important to pivot to our support measures. It is a move to more targeted measures, which will provide help where it is needed most and continue to create jobs and growth while prudently managing government spending.
Some may wonder how we can tell when we have reached a turning point in Canada's economic recovery from the COVID recession. Allow me to highlight the markers of our government's successful economic response plan, which have brought us to where we are today.
In last year's throne speech, our government promised to create one million jobs, a goal we achieved in September of this year when Canada recovered all of the jobs lost at the lowest point of the COVID-19 recession. That is a total of three million jobs recovered since the spring of 2020.
Shops and businesses are open, and Canadians are doing their part to make sure we have a safe reopening. They are rolling up their sleeves, getting their shot and following public health advice. This is an important part of the overall plan to get Canadians back to work to fully recover from the COVID-19 pandemic.
We understand and appreciate the member opposite's concern, and we are working with a whole-of-government approach to address it.
Business of Supply December 7th, 2021
Madam Chair, the hon. colleague raises serious matters that this government takes seriously. There is a nexus of demand for services, the labour to provide those services and the housing so that those workers can have a home. Our government will not rest until we make sure that housing is affordable in this country. Housing is a right.
We will boost the tourism sector. We will work on the labour shortage. We will address the very serious questions that the member opposite raised because we take this sector, its entrepreneurs and the workers from coast to coast to coast seriously. We have been there with them through the pandemic. We will continue to be with them to the end of the pandemic.
I will share three themes that we want to make sure we undertake as a government. We are going to continue with our partners from coast to coast to coast to lead. We are going to demonstrate leadership in the sector. We are going to engage with partners from coast to coast to coast, including members in this House and with suppliers from around the country and around the world. Then we will inspire Canadians to travel our country and international tourists to come to this country, because I know one thing: When tourists fall in love with Canada, they fall in love forever.
Business of Supply December 7th, 2021
Madam Chair, let me say to my hon. colleague that we have heard from the sector. We have heard about issues of labour shortages in certain specific sectors and subsectors of the tourism industry.
Let me reiterate that 106% of jobs have been recovered since the darkest days of the pandemic, all hours pre-pandemic recovered with 156,000 jobs reported last year. I hope my colleagues will support me as I walk through some of the numbers. We provided $70 million to support live music venues in our sectors. We provided $200 million to support major festivals from coast to coast to coast. We provided $300 million in budget 2021 to establish the recovery fund for the heritage, arts and sport sectors and $500 million for the tourism relief fund that will be delivered through the regional development agencies, including Prairies Canada and Pacific Canada.
My hon. colleague is welcome to encourage people in his riding and in his region to apply. We are here for Canadians. We are here for the tourism sector. We will do the work.
Business of Supply December 7th, 2021
Madam Chair, it is clear to members of the House that Bill C-2 is a comprehensive piece of legislation that is focusing on the hardest hit sectors. We have heard from the hotel sector. We have heard from the tour operator sector. We have heard from outfitters. We have heard from gun ranges. We have these operators and tourism operators from coast to coast to coast included in Bill C-2.
Why? We listened to Canadians. We listened to entrepreneurs. We listened to people in the sector who needed our help and support. What they need is a bridge through this last toughest time. We are talking about entrepreneurs who lost 50% of their business. We are talking about entrepreneurs who simply could not continue to keep their staff employed because the demand was shut off because we closed the borders to keep Canadians safe.
As I said at TIAC last week, safety first, then travel. What the tourism sector has asked us for is a bridge of supports to get through this winter into the spring. We have heard the appeals from independent travel agents and we will continue to work on this issue.
We have gone to the wall for Canadians and for entrepreneurs in the tourism sector. We have put Bill C-2 on the floor of this House. We ask for the support of members from all parties to get Bill C-2 passed so we can give our tourism sector, which touches every single riding represented in this chamber, the support and hope it needs to get through the winter into the spring and into Q3.
Business of Supply December 7th, 2021
Madam Chair, I would like to thank my hon. colleague, who is the critic for tourism among other responsibilities, for his advocacy, his passion and his decency. We have had conversations about this and other issues. I think we can set the table on the backdrop of the fastest recovery of any recession in Canadian history, with 106% of jobs recovered since the beginning of the pandemic and 154,000 jobs announced just this week.
As my hon. colleague mentioned, the sector recovery is uneven, and we know that. That is why I had the honour, on behalf of the Minister of Finance, to table in the House, to encourage our colleagues in the House to support the tourism sector and the hardest-hit sectors, and to put in new measures as we get to the final stretch of this pandemic. I encourage all members in the House to support Bill C-2.
I can say very clearly that the overwhelming unanimous support of hundreds of people who attended the Tourism Industry Association of Canada's conference here last week was emphatic. They are appealing to every single member of the House to pass Bill C-2, so that the sector can get through what will be another tough winter and into the spring and the third quarter. That is when we believe brighter days will be in place for members of the tourism sector.
I have spoken to people in the independent travel agent sector, and I know that they are facing challenges. However, I need to put on the record that we have supported this very important group of Canadians and entrepreneurs. When there was a risk of these operators not getting the money they had earned from large airlines and other sectors, we went to the wall for them in our LEEFF negotiations with those airlines and we delivered. We are working through this issue. It is a complex issue. We have heard from many colleagues in Ontario, in B.C. and across the country. I think the message that has been reinforced by the finance minister is that the supports put in place were exceptional. We will be there for the tourism sector.