Soraya Martinez Ferrada

[Committees of the House, November 8th, 2023]

Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order.

I am tabling the government's responses to Questions Nos. 1742 and 1743, and the revised responses to Question No. 1738, originally tabled on November 6, 2023, and Questions Nos. 1745 and 1744.

[Small Business, November 2nd, 2023]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for her question. I would remind her that over 900,000 businesses have been saved by our government. If we had not stepped in, these companies would have been shuttered.

Today, we are offering a second loan repayment extension. We are offering more flexibility to refinance and have the loan forgiven. We will continue to be there for businesses.

[Committees of the House, November 1st, 2023]

Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order.

I am tabling the government's responses to Questions Nos. 1697, 1700, 1701 and 1708.

[Small Business, October 26th, 2023]

Mr. Speaker, I agree with my colleague that there are several thousand businesses and SMEs in Quebec.

We have been there for them. We are still there for them today and we will continue to be there for them tomorrow. The measures we have put in place are flexible, responsible measures that will help businesses pay back these loans.

We will continue to help Quebec businesses, as we do every day.

[Small Business, October 24th, 2023]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for her question. As she is well aware, 99% of Quebec's economy is made up of small and medium-sized businesses. We know that the global inflationary environment is difficult. That is why we are offering additional flexibilities for small businesses to repay their CEBA loans.

We have been there, we are there, and we will be there. On Friday, I was in Bromont to give funding to Stûv America, a company that will create new jobs and promote growth. Canada Economic Development is helping many businesses in Quebec. We are talking about 1,300 projects since last year.

[Regional Economic Development, October 23rd, 2023]

Mr. Speaker, as my colleague said, our government knows that SMEs are still facing challenges. I am proud that CED is supporting SMEs with its 12 regional offices throughout Quebec.

Over the past year, we have invested over $200 million in more than 580 economic projects and $33 million in more than 50 CFDCs that provide businesses in every small municipality in Quebec with assistance to spur economic development.

I look forward to meeting with representatives of the Grand Roussillon chamber of commerce and industry and with businesses in the beautiful riding of Châteauguay—Lacolle.

[Carbon Pricing, October 23rd, 2023]

Mr. Speaker, what I can say with a straight face is that the Conservative Party has voted against every measure proposed by this side of the House to provide support to families. The Canada child benefit and every investment we have made in housing come to mind. We still expect the Conservatives to vote in favour of Bill C‑56, which will stabilize grocery prices and get rid of the GST on new housing construction.

On this side of the House, we are taking care of people every day.

[Carbon Pricing, October 23rd, 2023]

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my colleague for his question. There is a lot to unpack there.

I would start by saying that tackling climate change is about more than just taking care of the environment, which the Conservative Party does not want to do. It is also about building a transition economy. Fighting climate change means creating jobs. That is exactly what we are doing on this side of the House.

[Small Business, October 23rd, 2023]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his question. As he well knows, most companies have told us that if our government had not been there during the pandemic, many companies would have closed.

We came up with a flexible solution that fits with our fiscal framework. We are going to continue to be there for companies, for all kinds of things. We have again made historic investments in companies in Quebec, and we are going to continue to do so.

[Finance, October 18th, 2023]

Mr. Speaker, affordability also means putting a roof over the heads of all Canadians. That is exactly what we are doing on this side of the House. Just this morning, CMHC reported a 98% increase in housing starts. The programs we have implemented will help all Canadians have a roof over their heads. That is exactly what we are going to do.