44th Parl. 1st Sess.
February 4, 2022 10:00AM
- Feb/4/22 10:31:36 a.m.
- Watch
- Re: Bill C-8
Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the opportunity to speak today to a bill that would implement certain measures of the November economic and fiscal update. Although these are trying times for our country, I have every reason to feel hopeful, but it is not because of this legislation. On January 25, I stood at the side of the road in Whitewood, Saskatchewan, as truckers drove away from their families toward Ottawa. By now, every member of Parliament, and I am sure almost every Canadian, has seen and heard what these peaceful protesters are asking for. They are in our capital because a whole two years into the pandemic, the Prime Minister has decided to put our supply chain at further risk with a punitive vaccine mandate for our cross-border truckers. These are the same truckers who have been going above and beyond to keep our grocery and retail store shelves stocked over the past two years with no issue.
At the start of the pandemic, politicians of all stripes, including the Prime Minister, encouraged Canadians to thank truckers as some of the unsung heroes of the pandemic. Now, a whole two years into the pandemic, his vaccine vendetta will disrupt supply chains further and raise the cost of everyday goods more, impacting our economy and quality of life.
Already feeling the pinch of what bills like Bill C-8 are doing to our economy, these truckers are losing their means of providing for their families. They are joining doctors, nurses, police, firefighters, teachers, lawyers, members of our armed forces, miners, factory workers, public servants and so many others whose income has been or will be cut off because of their medical choices. They are not encouraged by bills like this one, which promise even more money for proof-of-vaccination requirements across the country. It sends completely the wrong message to our economy, to our trading partners and to Canadians. That is why they are standing up.
This convoy has exposed many of the frustrations truckers, farmers and hard-working families are feeling with the Prime Minister and his government. They are tired of overburdensome taxes and reckless spending. They are tired of heavy-handed limits on their ability to provide for their families. They are tired of a government that is intent on driving Canadians apart.
I am pleased to see that the convoy, which was initially focused on ending a punitive vaccine mandate for truckers, has evolved and bloomed into a voice for all Canadians who fundamentally believe in personal freedom. To see people standing up for their rights and freedoms makes me so proud to be Canadian—
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- Feb/4/22 10:34:30 a.m.
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- Re: Bill C-8
Mr. Speaker, I certainly will, and I think we need to take all aspects into consideration when we are talking about Canadians and their tax dollars. Fortunately, I was at the last sentence before moving into why this impacts our truckers and others so extensively.
Truckers gave me more hope for the future of our economy than we have received from the government in almost two years, so why should truckers and all Canadians be fearful of our economic outlook? Look no further than the likes of this bill. The economic and fiscal update increases new government spending by $71.2 billion. Since the start of the pandemic, the Liberals have doled out $176 billion in new spending that is unrelated to our COVID response. That is according to the Parliamentary Budget Officer, who says, “It appears to me that the rationale for the additional spending initially set aside as ‘stimulus’ no longer exists.”
The PBO, Canadians as a whole and, I would even wager, the finance minister’s own staff know that never-ending and extreme deficits contribute greatly to inflation. We started off the year on the wrong foot, to be sure. Inflation has hit a 30-year high of 4.8%.
What does this actually mean for Canadians in everyday terms? Let us look at housing. When the Prime Minister took power, the typical home cost $435,000. The cost has almost doubled since, to $810,000. Young Canadians looking to buy their first home are facing a perfect storm of runaway inflation and a lack of supply. As a means to combat the housing crisis, this bill proposes to add an annual tax of 1% on the value of vacant or underused residential property directly or indirectly owned by non-resident non-Canadians. I argue that this is completely insufficient. In our 2021 platform, we proposed a ban on foreign investors not living in or moving to Canada from buying homes for a two-year period, after which it would be reviewed. The Conservatives would have also encouraged foreign investment in purpose-built rental housing that is affordable for Canadians.
Even if they are not able to buy a home in today’s market, every Canadian is also feeling the pinch at their local grocery store. Chicken is up 6.2%, beef is up 11.9%, bacon is up 19.1%, bread is up 5%, cooking oil is up 41.4% and white sugar is up 21.6%. This is just over the course of one year. Sixty per cent of Canadians are finding it difficult to feed their families. That figure has increased 36% from when the same question was asked in 2019.
These prices affect every normal Canadian, but maybe not the Prime Minister, so I want to put the concerns of some average Canadians on the record. Lindsay tells me her grocery bill for her family of four was once $200 a week and is now $400. She thought she was overbuying, but confirmed that it was the same items and the same quantities. Robin, a tattoo artist, says the nitrile gloves he buys were nine dollars per box two years ago and are now $27. Carol reports the price of groceries, clothes, medicine, gas and everything one needs has shot up. Susan believes absolutely everything has increased in price. The gas tax on her power and energy bills is $100 dollars before she even begins to pay for the usage. Dennis has found that the price of groceries, especially eggs and produce, has gone up, but also sees increases across the board, including, of course, for lumber and fuel. Noel sees everything has gone up and notes utilities are through the roof.
Inflation creates a dangerous spiral. Increased costs borne by the service industry, utility providers and large corporations are passed along to the consumer. Just as the carbon tax is a tax on everything, the inflation tax punishes hard-working Canadians the most. It is important to remember that added pressures like the carbon tax and inflation occur directly because of the poor choices of the Liberal government. The government chose to introduce a carbon tax at $20 per tonne and said we were misleading Canadians when we predicted it would be raised to $50. Now we know the government plans to raise it to $170 per tonne. That is a choice the government has made, and Canadians are literally paying the price.
The “Justinflation” tax is hitting families hard at the grocery store, the garage, on the farm and when they sit down at night to pay their bills each month. Rather than address the highest inflation in over 30 years, this bill would be adding another $70 billion of spending as fuel for the fire. As a result of these choices, two in five Canadians believe they are worse off than they were last year. Adding to their fears, the Liberals have not provided a plan for our way out of this pandemic and to get public spending under control.
In yesterday’s Calgary Herald, Chris Nelson warned that endless deficits and a weakening dollar will drive up the cost of imports, making inflation even worse. He says “a rock and a hard place” does not come close to describing the spot Canada is in.
He suggests a surefire way to prevent this would be to invest in our innovative, productive and export-driven oil and gas sector. It provides a bump of $68 billion in our exports each year, and despite that, the environment minister is determined to eliminate it outright in 18 months. This is a perfect example of why the Liberals are doing far more harm than good when it comes to our economy, job growth and the impact on the environment around the world. Canada should be playing a leading role and we are not.
Rather than passing the bill and aimlessly spending more, what are the common-sense solutions to get our economy moving again? My mind is immediately drawn back to the truckers and how we can keep them all moving safely. The government should respond quicker than it has to the need for rapid tests as a means of better controlling the spread of COVID at the federal level, the Liberal's responsibility. Instead, they want to further restrict mobility rights.
The Liberals have limited Canadians' ability to fly or take a train without proof of vaccination. They argue that these measures are motivated by scientific recommendations to control the spread of the virus, but they are contradicting what medical officials of health have stated: that those who are fully vaccinated are also carriers and spreaders of the virus. I believe that the more appropriate measure would be to require all passengers to provide a negative rapid test prior to travel, respecting the mobility rights of all Canadians.
Let us safely but permanently restore Canada's spirit of hard work, free will and unbridled innovation. Let us defeat the bill, which only serves as a discouraging reminder of unending economic malaise and heavy-handed control. Let us provide all Canadians with the ability to work and contribute to our postpandemic recovery no matter their medical status.
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- Feb/4/22 10:42:16 a.m.
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- Re: Bill C-8
Mr. Speaker, our problem here is what the government chooses to do with the vast majority of the money that it is printing and spending carelessly. That is the focus, just as our focus has been on those who speak up across this nation, as they have the right to be heard on issues that impact them as taxpayers, and those who are going to be footing the bill.
I wish I had the opportunity to give my time to the member to answer why he supports a Prime Minister who calls everyday Canadians racists and misogynists, and refuses to meet with those who he basically calls untouchables. I posted on my Facebook page an article this morning from an individual who lives in downtown Ottawa called “A night with the untouchables”. I encourage every member of Parliament in the House to take a look at what that article says and ask these questions. Why are they not downtown? Why is their leader, the leader of this country, not speaking to everyday Canadians—
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- Feb/4/22 10:46:30 a.m.
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- Re: Bill C-8
Mr. Speaker, what we have here is a very good example of very poor mismanagement by the government. I know members of the government complain that we are in the same scenario as the rest of the world, but this country faced the same challenges back in 2008 and 2009 with a collapse of the world economy. Our country, under the leadership of the wonderful deceased Mr. Flaherty and the then prime minister Stephen Harper, led the world, and we were highly recognized for the way we handled the economy during that time.
The government is really impacting Canadians with all kinds of stress and duress with the way it is managing its finances.
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- Feb/4/22 10:48:40 a.m.
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- Re: Bill C-8
Mr. Speaker, I totally hear what the member is saying, and I appreciate him a great deal. What challenges that whole line of thought could be answered very easily if some time is taken to read the article “A night with the untouchables” and hear what is not being reported versus what is being reported in our news and from various sources. It gives a totally different perspective on this.
I agree with the member that this needs to be dealt with, but I want every member of Parliament in this House to have a true sense of who these people are. I would encourage them to do two things: read the article, “A night with the untouchables” by someone who lives downtown, and please go talk to some truckers.
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