Thomas Mulcair

[Gasoline Prices, June 9th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, “Yoo-hoo. Over here”. I have “a warning”. The Conservatives have just said they cannot do anything to help the middle class families who are getting gouged at the pump. The Liberals said the same thing for 13 years. We had “better not fall for this trick”.

The federal government can and has to act to protect consumers. Why is the Conservative government hell bent on making the middle class pay more than it needs to at the pump? Why are the Conservatives not doing anything to help middle class families?

[Gasoline Prices, June 9th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, it is the federal government's responsibility to protect consumers from unfair trade practices. Oil companies, hugely subsidized by the Conservatives, are making obscene profits and are setting their predatory prices on the backs of Canadians. In my area this morning, a litre of gas cost $1.50. The Liberals are proposing a new tax that would do nothing to limit greenhouse gases.

When will the government assume its responsibilities and protect consumers as opposed to oil companies?

[Questions Passed as Orders for Returns, June 2nd, 2008]

With respect to the purchase, either by Public Works and Government Services Canada (PWGSC) for departments, agencies and Crown corporations, or by the individual departments, agencies and Crown corporations, in the fiscal years 2004-2005, 2005-2006, 2006-2007 and 2007-2008 of (i) pencil cases and knapsacks, (ii) televisions, (iii) flowers, (iv) carbon off-set credits for air travel, (v) microwaves, (vi) flatware, (vii) wine glasses, (viii) cameras, both regular and digital, (ix) golf balls and tees, (x) business ties, (xi) candies, (xii) alcoholic beverages, (xiii) jams, jellies and preserves, (xiv) land mines and clusterbombs, (xv) games, toys and wheeled goods, (xvi) DVDs and CDs, (xvii) perfumes, toilet preparations and powders, (xviii) clothes and footwear for ministers of the Crown and their staff, (xix) iPods or similar devices, (xx) hockey sticks and other sporting goods, (xxi) Tim Hortons coupons: (a) by department, agency or Crown corporation, how many in each category were purchased; and (b) what was the total cost spent by either PWGSC or another department, agency or Crown corporation on each category?

[Questions Passed as Orders for Returns, June 2nd, 2008]

With respect to the purchase, either by Public Works and Government Services Canada (PWGSC) for departments, agencies and Crown corporations, or by the individual departments, agencies and Crown corporations, in the fiscal years 2004-2005, 2005-2006, 2006-2007 and 2007-2008, of (i) media and public relations training, (ii) public opinion research, (iii) promotional materials related to press conferences only, (iv) hairstylists and estheticians, (v) spas and suntanning salons, (vi) sporting events, (vii) dry cleaning, (viii) taxis, (ix) retreats at resorts or conference centres: (a) by department, agency or Crown corporation, how many items or services in each category were purchased; (b) what was the total cost spent by either PWGSC or another department, agency or Crown corporation on each category; and (c) with respect to media training, what was the date and cost of each contract and who was the recipient of the training?

[Questions Passed as Orders for Returns, May 30th, 2008]

With respect to newly implemented tax credits: (a) what was the anticipated cost of the public transit tax credit measure prior to its implementation and how many Canadian transit users, by urban centre, were expected to file for this credit; (b) since its inception, on an annual basis, what has been the cost of implementing the public transit tax credit and how many Canadian transit users, by urban centre, have filed for this credit; (c) what would be the costs of extending the public transit tax credit to users who pay for their transit on a basis other than with a monthly travel pass (i.e. on a daily or weekly basis, or by buying blocks of transit chits); (d) by what margin was transit ridership expected to increase with the implementation of this tax credit, by urban area and on an annual basis; (e) since the inception of this credit, how much has ridership increased or decreased, by urban area and on an annual basis; (f) what was the anticipated cost of the tax credit to promote physical fitness among children prior to its implementation; (g) how many Canadian families, by urban centre, were expected to file for this credit; (h) since its inception, on an annual basis, what has been the cost of implementing this tax credit; (i) how many Canadian families, by urban centre, have filed for this credit; (j) under existing regulations what length of time must a sports program be in operation for a family to be eligible for the tax credit; (k) what would be the costs of extending this credit to families who enroll children in sports programs whose duration is for two weeks or longer; and (l) since its implementation, what are the sports, by category that have most and least been utilized under this tax credit?

[Questions Passed as Orders for Returns, May 30th, 2008]

With respect to Canada’s fiscal framework: (a) which sectors benefited the most from the tax cuts announced in The Budget Plan 2008; (b) when drafting The Budget Plan 2008, were investments on social or infrastructure projects considered but rejected in order to implement the tax cuts and, if so, which investments were rejected; (c) what is considered the largest source of tax “leakage” by the government on an annual basis for the last five years and (i) what are these losses worth on an annual basis, (ii) from which provinces are most of these losses incurred; (d) which countries, in terms of size of Canadian assets, are considered the largest foreign tax havens and what plans, if any, does the government have to tighten the restrictions on the use of such tax havens; (e) with respect to a comparison between a 0.5% cut to the lowest marginal tax rate and lowering the goods and services tax (GST) by 1%, which of these initiatives would benefit more Canadians, in dollars and people, according to income level; and (f) with respect to a comparison between a $ 500 increase in the basic personal exemption and lowering the GST by 1%, which of these initiatives would benefit more Canadians, in dollars and people, according to income level?

[Afghanistan, May 29th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, the minister read and physically tore pages from a briefing book, a secret briefing book, on a commercial flight in full view. It is not just his department that is involved, it is all cabinet documents. The RCMP must investigate for any other security breaches.

He may be gone, but the gaffs and diplomatic faux pas keep on coming. The Prime Minister's Office was just forced into a diplomatic backtrack after stating that the Italian prime minister had decided to lift combat restrictions on Italy's forces in Afghanistan. The problem is it just is not true.

Are they so isolated in Afghanistan that the Conservatives have to invent allies for their misguided war?

[Foreign Affairs, May 29th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, the former foreign affairs minister had a bad habit of leaving confidential documents all over the place. Our defence critic even saw this happen on a commercial flight to Europe.

The member for Beauce was a minister for 286 days. That is a lot of confidential reports, cabinet documents and top secret memos.

My question is simple. Are all the documents—not just those from the Department of Foreign Affairs, but all the documents—that were in the possession of the member for Beauce accounted for? Was a comprehensive investigation carried out to ensure that no other secret documents are missing?

[Business of Supply, May 28th, 2008]

Mr. Chair, you will have noticed that when asked about his vision for the future, the minister spoke about the past for three minutes and stated that in his budget he had done this, they had done this and they had done that. Earlier, he talked about having a long-term vision and quoted Wayne Gretzky, who said that you have to move forward. However, he did not say one thing about the future.

What we have in Canada, even today, is what remains of a fairly balanced economy built over the generations. They are destroying this balanced economy, which was painstakingly built over the course of our history, by pursuing the unsustainable development of the tar sands. They are throwing the economy out of balance.

What is the minister's vision for the next generation? When his children and grandchildren are working, will anything be left or will everything have gone up in smoke because of the tar sands?

[Business of Supply, May 28th, 2008]

Mr. Chair, I very much agree with what the Minister of Finance just said, especially since the NDP has long subscribed to this idea. At the time, we talked about corporate welfare bums, and we are still opposed to the concept.

Now, I have a question for the Minister of Finance about fairness. Earlier, he spoke about his vision of a balanced economy. We think that the economy we have built since the second world war is balanced, because of its primary sectors, such as the forestry and mining industries, its secondary sector, for example the manufacturing industry, and its solid financial services sector, and so on. All of that is part of a balanced economy.

Canada is a very big country. It is the second-largest country in the world in terms of area. But our population is very small—just 35 million. We need a balanced economy.

The Conservative government has ignored the work done by previous generations to build a balanced economy a mari usque ad mare. The Conservatives are in the process of sacrificing it on the altar of the oil sands of Alberta. It will be up to the public to decide in the next election.

Let us talk about the justice of its vision by comparing what corporations and individuals must pay. I would refer him in particular to Table 5.4 in the budget and ask him to explain the vision behind the Conservative's decision.

Here is the decision. The new fiscal year just began on April 1. So the beginning of last month marked the start of the 2008-09 fiscal year. Over the course of two full fiscal years, personal taxes are slated to rise from $112 billion to $125 billion, which is a 12% increase. Let me say that again: a 12% increase in personal taxes. As for corporate taxes, they will decrease from $42 billion to $36 billion, a drop of 14%. Let us take a look at the government's pie: personal taxes will increase by 12%, but corporate taxes will drop by 14%.

What is the minister's vision of social justice, given that he was born in a place where there are many manufacturers and working people, in Lachine, Quebec? Where has his social vision gone, now that he occupies this position?