The Economy  Mr. Speaker, the question was for the finance minister. Inflation is raging across our country and Canadians are being left behind. The cost of everything is skyrocketing. I mentioned gas, groceries and the price of home heating. Worse yet, millions of Canadians have lost their dream of home ownership as house prices spiral out of control, yet the minister does not seem to care.

The Economy  Mr. Speaker, today the Bank of Canada began to raise interest rates. I know the Prime Minister might be surprised, because it was he who famously once said that he does not think about monetary policy. Millions of Canadians will begin to see their mortgage and credit card interest rates go up, making life even more unaffordable for them.

The Economy  Mr. Speaker, it is very clear that the Prime Minister still is not interested in monetary policy, but he has a keen interest in spending taxpayers' dollars. His out-of-control borrowing has left future generations with a massive debt, raging inflation and rising interest rates. Canadian families with mortgages and credit card bills are being left behind as life becomes more unaffordable.

Housing  Mr. Speaker, that is just my point. This Prime Minister has spent more and achieved less than any prime minister in our history. He has forced our central bank to jack up interest rates and created a cost-of-living crisis that has put unbelievable pressure on Canadians. With skyrocketing house prices and rising interest rates, the dream of home ownership has become a pipe dream for Canadians.

Emergencies Act  Madam Speaker, I believe the hon. member and I have a very different perspective on what may have happened with the injunction against the truckers using their horns. Remember, I live in the middle of that protest zone. The trucks are right outside my doorway. When that injunction was issued, the truckers, for the most part, did comply with that injunction.

Emergencies Act  Madam Speaker, I cannot explain it. I am as befuddled as he is. The Prime Minister says that he needed the Emergencies Act legislation because he did not have the tools, and yet with regard to the simple tools that are providing resources to the Ottawa police, those resources were never delivered by the Prime Minister, as the member has suggested.

Emergencies Act  Madam Speaker, I thank the hon. member for not painting everybody with the same brush, as some of his Liberal colleagues and the NDP do. That is to his credit. I live within the protest zone and every single day I walk to and from work through the protesters, I can tell him from experience that I never felt intimidated.

Emergencies Act  Madam Speaker, the motion before us is a story of a profound failure of leadership. When I was elected to this chamber some 16 years ago and became the member of Parliament for Abbotsford, I would not have believed it if I had been told that I would be asked to approve giving the Prime Minister the extraordinary powers of the Emergencies Act.

The Economy  Mr. Speaker, earlier this week I asked the finance minister what she was doing to control the skyrocketing cost of living. All she did was shift blame. She avoided the question. Yesterday, we received the news we were all dreading. Statistics Canada says that the consumer price index rose 5.1% in January.

The Economy  Mr. Speaker, for months now, the Liberal minister has been claiming that inflation is “transitory”. There is nothing to see here, folks. This week, Statistics Canada proved the minister wrong. Inflation is up again to 5.1%, the highest it has been in over 30 years. Prices are up 8% for fish, 12% for beef and 19% for bacon.

The Economy  Mr. Speaker, Canadians are stressed. Paycheques do not buy what they used to. In fact, the costs of everything, including gasoline, groceries and housing, are at all-time highs. Families are getting left behind. Last April, I wrote to the minister to warn her of exactly that. I highlighted the dangers of uncontrolled borrowing and how excessive stimulus spending would stoke inflationary pressures.

The Economy  Mr. Speaker, we will never get inflation under control as long as the minister keeps borrowing and spending like there is no tomorrow. Not only did the minister ignore our concerns, but she also ignored the warnings of the Parliamentary Budget Officer, who questioned the wisdom of her stimulus spending, pumping more money into the economy when the cost of living is skyrocketing.

Government Business No. 7--Proceedings on Bill C-12  Mr. Speaker, I am not sure what the member meant when she said “get with the program on that,” whatever “that” is. We have been consistent on this side of the House in supporting seniors and speaking up on behalf of seniors. Throughout this whole pandemic, it has been Conservatives that have been pushing the Liberal government to step into the breach and to support the seniors who are vulnerable across our country.

Government Business No. 7--Proceedings on Bill C-12  Mr. Speaker, it is very interesting. They are mocking again. After denying it, they are mocking seniors across our country. At no time has our Conservative—

Government Business No. 7--Proceedings on Bill C-12  Mr. Speaker, I can assure the House, I would never mock that individual. I have great respect for him, but he is incorrect in suggesting that we did not support these benefits and then voted in favour of them. I never, in my speech, suggested that these benefits were not necessary for Canadians.