Income Tax Act  Madam Speaker, today I am speaking on behalf of the government about Bill C-274. We all agree that small businesses are key to our prosperous communities. They provide important goods and services, create jobs, and weave themselves into the fabric of our communities, in which they have a genuine interest.

Taxation  Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his question. Bill C-274 would weaken two anti-avoidance rules that have been part of the Income Tax Act for a long time. The government is concerned about the changes, which would increase opportunities for unfair tax avoidance. Bill C-274 would offer a targeted tax advantage to a specific group of taxpayers rather than to the middle class as a whole.

Finance  Mr. Speaker, again, our government is committed to working for the middle class and those working so hard to join it. We are going to continue with our plan that we have to move forward for Canadians. We have lowered taxes for the middle class. We have put in place the Canada child benefit program that has helped hundreds of thousands of Canadians.

Finance  Mr. Speaker, our government is doing plenty for middle-class Canadians, and we are going to continue to do more. Once again, we have made historic investments in infrastructure, which is going to be creating wonderful jobs. Also, we have put in place the guaranteed income supplement for single low-income seniors, which in actual fact is going to give $90 more per month to seniors who are going to benefit from that program.

Taxation  Mr. Speaker, I once again thank my colleague for his question. When the Canadian economy is working well for the middle class, it is working really well for Canada. We will proceed with our plan to invest in the interest of the middle class and those working hard to join it. I will repeat that, on January 1, 2016, we lowered taxes from 22% to 20.5% and, once again, the opposition party voted against that tax cut.

Taxation  Mr. Speaker, once again, I am so pleased to have this opportunity to talk about the excellent program we introduced, the Canada child benefit. This program will help hundreds of thousands of children and families escape poverty. If a single mom with a child under six earns $30,000 per year, she will get $6,400 more.

Finance  Mr. Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague for that question. Our government has made a commitment to invest in the middle class and those working hard to join it, and we have taken several measures since we have come to office. The first thing we put in place was lower taxes for middle-class Canadians.

Acts of Kindness  Mr. Speaker, it is my privilege today to draw attention to an inspiring example, Becca Schofield, a 17-year-old from Riverview, New Brunswick, who has battled brain cancer for two years. Becca, a generous, vibrant, and joyful young woman, is setting an example that is catching on across the globe.

Business of Supply  Madam Speaker, once again, our government's priority is to help the middle class and those who are truly working hard to join it. Our first priority was to cut taxes for middle-class income earners, and many millions of Canadians have benefited from those tax cuts. I do acknowledge that some Canadians have not perhaps benefited from that measure.

Business of Supply  Madam Speaker, again, I want to thank my colleague for his question. I look forward to working with him in the coming months. Again, our government's priority is to help the middle class and those working hard to join it. Our government wanted to assess the tax system for everyone.

Business of Supply  Madam Speaker, I have to say I take objection with the comments of the member opposite. First and foremost, our government has taken several measures to help people who earn under $45,000 a year. Many Canadians have benefited tremendously from the Canada child benefit program.

Business of Supply  Madam Speaker, first and foremost, our Prime Minister and our government are truly listening to Canadians. We have conducted thousands of consultations across the country from coast to coast to coast on a variety of issues, and we are listening to and considering all of the input.

Business of Supply  Madam Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague for his question. Once again, I look forward to working with him for at least the next year. It is this government's priority to help the middle class and everyone working hard to join it. One of the first priorities our government put into action was creating the Canada child benefit.

Business of Supply  Madam Speaker, it is an honour for me to rise today in the House for the first time as Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance and to participate in this debate. It seems that my opposition colleagues prefer to fight the last war by focusing on a measure that the right hon.

Persons With Disabilities  Mr. Speaker, last week, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and the Minister of Sport and Persons with Disabilities announced a consultation process toward Canada’s accession to the United Nations optional protocol to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. As we know, Canada is one of the first countries to have signed this convention.