Ted Menzies

[Employment Insurance, March 6th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, there is certainly a lot of speculation in this House today. I know everyone is excited, waiting with bated breath for this new budget, and we have consulted broadly on the budget. We have consulted more broadly than ever before.

The government has consulted broadly on this side of the House. I would hope the opposition has done this. We actually have not received any ideas from the opposition.

We are making sure the budget will include assistance for those who are still looking for work. It will help grow the economy, but most of all, it will get us back to balance in the medium term.

[Employment Insurance, March 6th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, we certainly continue to consult with provinces and consult with Canadians from coast to coast to coast to make sure we put in place the right policies that will help create jobs.

Of course we will not speculate about what might be in the budget. I know opposition members are quite excited. Perhaps they could even bring themselves to consider voting for the budget. They have not done that for years. That would be novel.

[Finance, March 6th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, as the Prime Minister mentioned yesterday, the C.D. Howe Institute recognized that the Conservative government of today is actually the most transparent government in Canada, and we support that.

It is our government that has put in place the Federal Accountability Act, and we continue to make sure that estimates are tabled in this House. They are exactly what the word refers to: “estimates”. We will continue consulting with Canadians and finding out what is important to them.

[Employment Insurance, March 6th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, I certainly take exception to that sort of comment in this House of Commons. There is no such minister in this government. We do have a minister who is handling the EI file and making sure that the fund is there to help those people when they do lose their jobs. A little more respect is owed to that minister in this government, who is doing a wonderful job of making sure that people get the support they need.

[Employment Insurance, March 6th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, that is more speculation, but what we will not speculate on is the fact that the NDP have probably already made plans in their last caucus meeting to vote against our budget anyway.

We will again be supporting those people who have lost their jobs. It is critically important for those who are looking for a job to be able to have assistance, and the Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development has put in place a plan that will hep those people find a job in their region and in their own skill set. We will continue to support those who are looking for a job and we will make sure that EI is there when they need it.

[Employment Insurance, March 6th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, there is outrageous speculation from that side of the House, but what we do know for a fact is that every time we put forward initiatives from this side of the House to help grow the economy, to help create jobs, the NDP has stood in the way and voted against it. Every time we have tried to help people get back to work and have tried to make sure that EI is there for them—they have paid into it, and it is important for it to be available to them when they lose their jobs—the NDP voted against it.

[Employment Insurance, March 6th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, speculation about the budget certainly will not happen from this side of the House.

We continue to consult with Canadians. We hear from Canadians what is important to them. We will not speculate about specifics in the budget, but I can assure members that there will be plans in the budget to continue job growth and continue growing the economy, all the while making sure we continue on a low tax plan and getting back to balance.

[Technical Tax Amendments Act, 2012, February 15th, 2013]

Nor are we. Try to be factual.

[Financial Institutions, February 15th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, our government has released new guidelines to better protect small businesses from unfair trading practices when it comes to credit cards for merchant fees. We are committed to making this code flexible and responsive to the needs of small businesses.

Let me read a quote from the Canadian Federation of Independent Business as it applauds this move. It states, “Going forward this is going to be a huge change. The saving for businesses is going to be massive”.

However, shamefully, the New Democrats voted against the code. I am not sure what they were thinking when they were opposing small businessmen.

[Pensions, February 5th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, this is a great opportunity to talk about the benefits of pooled registered pension plans.

We are working with the provinces who are our partners in this. We have worked well with them. They are planning on bringing forward their legislation to match ours. This will provide an opportunity for over nine million Canadians who do not now have a workplace pension plan to be able to save for their future, and that is very important.