Wayne Stetski

[Budget Implementation Act, 2016, No. 2, November 14th, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, Bill C-29 fails on a number of levels: the broken promise to small businesses of reducing taxes from 11% to 9%, nothing for daycare, nothing in terms of capping credit card fees. However, I want to talk specifically about privatization of infrastructure.

By definition, the private sector will expect a return on their investments, which will lead to fees for use of public infrastructure.

I would like to hear from the member. How does having fees on public infrastructure help middle-class families and those working to become middle class, and those families living in poverty?

[Canada Pension Plan, November 4th, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the sincerity in the presentation from the member opposite. One of the concerns I hear from seniors in my riding is somewhat simple in nature, but it is very important. When they walk into a Service Canada centre and ask for information, or help or look for a piece of paper they can take away to help them understand some of the programs and opportunities are available to them, they are told to go to a website. That does not work for a lot of seniors in my riding.

I wonder if the member would encourage the minister responsible for the federal public service to make things as easy as they can for seniors and provide perhaps a different level of service than is currently provided.

[Health, November 4th, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, the Liberal government is cutting critical funding from the fight against HIV/AIDS across rural communities, including my riding of Kootenay—Columbia. This will result in service reductions to HIV prevention and education programs. One organization in my riding, ANKORS, will be forced to lay off experienced staff, and other organizations will lose important resources in the midst of an opioid crisis.

Why is the Minister of Health proceeding with these dangerous cuts, and why are the Liberals walking away from the fight against HIV/AIDS in the B.C. interior?

[Employment Insurance, November 2nd, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, my constituents in Kootenay—Columbia who have lost their jobs will be facing a month-long interruption in receiving their employment insurance. This is because government was not prepared to process the number of applicants that would need assistance when it extended benefits for my region, which has been hit by the economic downturn.

These constituents will now go without income for four weeks. What is the government doing to address the backlog, and what advice does the minister have for the people in my riding who will go a month without much needed income?

[Budget Implementation Act, 2016, No. 2, October 31st, 2016]

Madam Speaker, I always appreciate the member's unbridled enthusiasm for everything Liberal.

Last week, I attended a precarious workshop convention here in Ottawa that was hosted by the NDP. It brought together employable youth from across Canada. I went there to listen to some of the challenges they are facing, and it was with problems in finding work at all. A lot of the work is part time. It does not come with any benefits, and it does not come with any pensionable future for them. It was to the point where one of the members at the table I sat at was in tears.

My question to the member is, if this government is so good, particularly for employable youth, why has it left youth in tears?

[Budget Implementation Act, 2016, No. 2, October 31st, 2016]

Madam Speaker, in my previous life I was mayor of a community called Cranbrook, and one of the burdens that our taxpayers ended up living with was a failed public-private partnership. A new recreational complex was built in Cranbrook, a public-private partnership that failed. The city ended up having to buy out the private partner, and we were locked into about 15 years' worth of loans at 8% that we could not even borrow money to pay down, because the loans were locked in.

What are some of my colleague's other concerns about privatization of infrastructure? It certainly was a failure in Cranbrook.

[Budget Implementation Act, 2016, No. 2, October 31st, 2016]

Madam Speaker, deficits are an interesting thing. Of course, the principle behind deficits is that we leave them to our children and grandchildren to pay. The government started during the election with a $10-billion deficit then went to a $30-billion deficit. I have heard figures as high as $47 billion.

It is easy to be in government if one is willing to write cheques whenever an opportunity comes forward, but I wonder if the member could tell us how much she thinks might be too much, in terms of accumulating debt.

[Budget Implementation Act, 2016, No. 2, October 31st, 2016]

Madam Speaker, during the election, we had 12 community debates in my riding of Kootenay—Columbia. In every one of them, the Liberal candidate talked about how the Liberal Party, if elected, would lower the small business tax rate from 11% to 9%.

Small businesses make up almost 95% of the businesses in Canada and are very important in my riding and across Canada.

I would like to ask the member, what happened to that promise? Should a promise made during an election not be kept once a party is actually in government?

[Canada Business Corporations Act, October 26th, 2016]

Madam Speaker, I have always believed that the more diverse a committee, or a board, or the House of Commons, the better the discussion and the decision-making.

I am happy to see these changes coming forward. I also hope that the hon. member will support the amendment, and actually attach some targets to it.

I am curious, if there are no targets, what is the government planning to do to at least measure whether this is actually having any impact or not moving forward?

[Agriculture and Agri-Food, October 20th, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, last week I was happy to spend Thanksgiving with friends and family in my beautiful riding of Kootenay—Columbia. On October 16, I celebrated World Food Day with the Kootenay conservation group, Wildsight, through its Food For Thought online summit.

The summit offered communities across the country an opportunity to engage in meaningful discussion on what we can do to raise awareness about food security at a local level. Supporting and celebrating local farmers, food manufacturers, and retailers is essential to achieving food security goals.

As we take time this week to celebrate National Small Business Week, we should also celebrate all levels of local food production in Canada. That is why I was proud to table my private member's bill, Bill C-281, which would designate the Friday before Thanksgiving each year as national local food day.

Food matters from farm to fork. I urge all members of Parliament to support our local food businesses and national local food day.