Finance committee  In COVID, the CRA was really involved in trying to help the Canadian economy, trying to help regular Canadians and issue benefits. For our frontline staff, and me and others, it has made us more appreciative of what regular Canadians can go through and to be a little more consultative and collaborative.

Health  Meanwhile, the Prime Minister enjoys 12 hours in a posh hotel of his choosing at the taxpayers' expense. There is one set of rules for regular Canadians and another for him and his entourage. When will the Prime Minister present a plan to safely reopen the borders?

Finance committee  Maybe I'll continue with Mr. Ball. How do you think we can expect ethical behaviour from regular Canadians when our government so blatantly and repeatedly is flaunting ethics laws? I don't know how we can expect Canadians to be better than the government.

Finance committee  You have small businesses that are paying their fair share of taxes, and families that are paying their fair share of taxes. Regular Canadians are really struggling, particularly during the pandemic, and here you have big corporations that can declare active income offshore, pay zero tax on it, and because of the structure of both the tax information exchange agreements and the double taxation avoidance agreements, they don't have to pay income tax on it here.

Canadian Heritage committee  However, it seems to me that amendment CPC‑9.5 that I am proposing provides an additional safeguard to ensure that the CRTC respects freedom of expression, which is fundamental and which many experts have called for. I am not just talking about regular Canadians, but also about recognized experts from various universities and the legal field across the country. My amendment simply requires that the CRTC publish the legal opinion on its website confirming that the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms is respected, and that this opinion be published in the Canada Gazette.

Finance committee  This is for ordinary Canadians who don't have offshore accounts and don't participate in complicated offshore tax avoidance schemes. If you're a regular Canadian, you must provide documents within 90 days or you will automatically have your deduction disallowed and taxes applied. I'm reading right from the Auditor General's report, “For other taxpayers, such as those with offshore transactions, we found that the time frame to provide information was sometimes extended for months or even years”, and often with no taxes applied.

Finance committee  I have a broader point and then a specific point. The broader point is, in the case of regular Canadians, when we're asking them to substantiate a moving expense, it's true that we would allow 90 days. If they contact us, obviously we're open to extensions. However, there is a fairly narrow ask with a fairly tight frame.

Business of Supply  We know the actions of foreign speculators and investors are increasing home prices for regular Canadians. Dr. Josh Gordon's report, “Reconnecting the Housing Market to the Labour Market: Foreign Ownership and Housing Affordability in Urban Canada”, has found that the decoupling of housing prices from local incomes can occur, and arguably is occurring in Vancouver and Toronto especially, when there is substantial foreign ownership in the market.

Housing  For instance, the effects of money laundering in Canadian real estate, which negatively affects our economy, our reputation on the world stage, and most significantly, regular Canadians trying to rent or buy homes. The last budget did not address this at all. It did not include the comprehensive changes to the Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Act that are necessary.

Human Resources committee  You packed a lot into your opening eight minutes and I don't think I'll be able to cover everything I want to talk on today, so I'm just going to jump right to it. Living in the Fraser Valley, one of the most common questions I get from regular Canadians is on foreign buyers' effects on the real estate market. Recently, we heard from Mr. Vaughan that sometimes our system works better for foreign investors than for Canadians. What data is CMHC collecting right now on foreign buyers?

Housing  The recent increase to the mortgage stress test proves the Liberals are choosing to push the dream of home ownership further out of reach for regular Canadians. The national housing strategy is behind schedule. Last night, the finance minister could not even tell me how many units the government had built. The first-time home buyer program is a complete failure, reaching fewer than 10% of the people promised.

Business of Supply  Madam Chair, we are far more concerned about the stability of regular Canadian families, seniors, students, people who have been hard hit by this pandemic. As we see the government cutting back on supports, they will be the most impacted. Let us look at people with disabilities.

Budget Implementation Act, 2021, No. 1  While I am happy to see that the Liberal government is finally taking some steps on a national child care program, and while I am happy to see minimum wage raised to $15 I am disappointed, once again, that the wealthy are given a free ticket while regular Canadians are expected to pick up the tab.

Finance committee  Should the government's priorities be different, and should they be focused much more on regular Canadians and on working families across the country?

Budget Implementation Act, 2021, No. 1  Sadly, that is not the case through this pandemic with the current government, which has allowed the ultrarich to benefit, to profit and to profiteer in an unprecedented way and refuses even to ask them to pay their fair share of taxes. There is another country in this tale of two countries, and that is regular Canadians who have been struggling through this pandemic. We have seen Canadians losing their jobs. We have seen Canadians who have invested in their family-owned community businesses for years having to take that sad step of closing the door and turning the key for the very last time.