44th Parl. 1st Sess.
March 21, 2022 11:00AM
Madam Speaker, it is a pleasure to speak to the member's bill. I appreciate the fact that he has brought forward this legislation, even though there is some concern with respect to it.
I do believe in the necessity of having these types of debates. It is not the first time I have had the opportunity to speak in regard to national and, in particular, urban parks and the many different benefits of them. We often underestimate the benefits of having that strategic plan that deals with national parks.
The member spent a great deal of his time, obviously, because of the area he represents, focusing on Windsor. The principles of an urban national park and the value of these parks could be universally applied throughout Canada, from coast to coast to coast. If we take a look at some of the natural beauty we have, we want to ensure that we do what we can to preserve it for future generations. We all have that responsibility.
It is also important that we take a look at the mechanisms and how we deliver these types of parks. I would like to give a specific example. Many years ago we had a railway at the junction of the Red River and the Assiniboine River in downtown Winnipeg. What we saw was the public talking about the redevelopment of the area and how we could bring it back to nature and allow the citizens of Winnipeg to be more engaged in it.
It is, by far, not a huge national park, but what it did was that it brought in different stakeholders, from community activists and individuals who live in the downtown to different levels of government. Through a great deal of consultations and environmental sensitivity, because at that time we did not have the same sorts of studies, and looking at what people had to say and bringing together private agencies and different levels of government, we now have the beautiful Forks development.
During the seventies and early eighties, there were very few people who ever went down to The Forks. People would go to Saint Boniface, on the other side of the river, because there was really nothing at The Forks but the rail yards and a lot of dangerous things, chemicals and so forth, that were having a negative impact there. I often wondered what kind of seepage was going into the Red River and the Assiniboine River. Through co-operation, today people can go down to The Forks. The last time I heard a number, it was almost two million visits a year. This is in downtown Winnipeg.
This is far from the type of park that the member made reference to in his introduction to the bill. However, whether it is an urban national park or a rural national park, Canadians value our wilderness and what we have, our natural assets. Where we can advance them and move forward, we should.
Riding Mountain National Park is a park in Manitoba that is exceptionally well developed. There is a very strong nature component to it. Thousands of people visit that park as a result of its designation. Through that designation, we have seen things able to continue on in their natural form. That is something I see as a very strong positive.
Let us look at the urban centres. Because not everyone is travelling out into our rural communities, we should look at whether there are urban centres where the national government can play a role in their development. Personally, I look at the City of Saskatoon and what it has done with its Saskatchewan River. In many ways, that is something that Winnipeg, as a community, would love to see. If we could develop a national urban park that is based, at least in good part, on our rivers, I would see that as a very strong thing. I know that what I am talking about would be widely supported by the different levels of government and, in particular, the citizens of Winnipeg. If we put the necessary investments into that in the future, they would be there for future generations and we would ultimately get more people to go down and visit our rivers while protecting that environment.
We can look at what the Government of Canada has done through this incredibly agency, Parks Canada. The manner in which it goes about designating national parks and the lead-up that is involved is not something that happens overnight. There is a fairly extensive process in the development of national parks. I would encourage those who are following the debate this morning to tap into the Parks Canada website to get a sense of the types of things they do and the parks that we have today.
We do not necessarily have to reinvent the wheel. For example, when we talk about the Windsor park, we can look at the Rouge National Urban Park in Toronto and how effective it has been at preserving nature and allowing urbanites to experience that sense of wilderness. We can talk about how it is that a city like Toronto is able to continue to grow while preserving that beautiful park. It is fairly extensive. I would like to think that same principle could be applied to many different urban centres, big and small, throughout Canada.
We have in place an agency in Parks Canada that is respected around the world with respect to the efforts and work it has done. As the parliamentary secretary pointed out earlier, the Government of Canada has invested hundreds of millions of dollars into the area of park development to ensure that future generations will be able to have input and receive the benefits of investing in national parks.
When I think of why we need to do this, the most obvious reason for me is that it is the right thing for our environment. Our environment is something I am constantly reminded of, in particular by my daughter, as well as many others, such as constituents, who want the government to do what it can to protect it. Obviously, our national parks have to be high on the agenda.
Another issue with respect to our national parks is what is in those parks today. Whether insects, animals or mammals, particularly where there is the threat of extinction, they need to be taken into consideration, as well as how we can preserve them into the future.
Personally, my third priority is allowing people, whether from urban or rural areas, to be able to experience nature at its best. Canada has so much nature, not only to share with the citizens of Canada but to share with others around the world.
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- Mar/21/22 2:25:05 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I would acknowledge Canada's supply chains are still reeling from the B.C. floods, from COVID-19 and now the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Canadians' best interests need to be prioritized. I am here in Calgary. I am urging the parties to reach an agreement. Our government is committed to ensuring the reliability and the efficacy of our supply chains, which support Canada's economy right across all sectors.
Canadians worked together throughout this pandemic to find solutions to our collective challenges, and they expect the same from stakeholders in our national economy.
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- Mar/21/22 2:55:56 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Canada's supply chains are still reeling from the floods in British Columbia, COVID‑19 and now the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Canadians' interests must be a priority, and I urge the parties to reach an agreement. Canadians have worked together throughout the pandemic to find solutions to our collective challenges, and they expect the same from stakeholders in our national economy.
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- Mar/21/22 4:20:30 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I appreciate the member's push in this direction. It is an important discussion to have. Strengthening the transparency needed for corporate beneficial ownership is a topic that our government is very concerned with and, in fact, has done a pretty substantive public consultation and engagement on.
I note a document posted on the Government of Canada's website from April 6, 2021, provides quite a lot of information about some very detailed and in-depth consultation work that was done. I will read the conclusion, which states:
...stakeholders across the spectrum supported the idea of a central registry (or registries) of beneficial ownership information as an effective tool in making sure that law enforcement, tax and other authorities obtain the information they need to identify the natural persons who own and control Canadian corporations. While there were more mixed views on the value and merits of public access, [this]...remains a priority of the Government of Canada.
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- Mar/21/22 5:58:15 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, some want to talk about contrast, so they will probably get a bit of contrast now. Listening to the member from Thompson can get fairly depressing for those who are following the debate. I suggest there is a great deal of variation from the truth in what we have been listening to.
At the end of the day, I would like to share with members a better sense of the reality that has been taking place over the last six years. They should not have fear: It is nowhere near as bad as the member from Thompson has tried to portray. I understand why the member from Thompson said those things. It is because in some ways, the NDP has that attitude. It is an attitude of superiority about all social issues. If someone does not believe them, just ask one of them and they will reaffirm it.
I will cite one very short example. The member made reference to infrastructure. She criticized the Government of Canada, saying that in the last six years, we have not done anything on infrastructure, and she cited an example. I would challenge any member to show me a government that has invested more in infrastructure in Canada in the the last 50 years than this government has done in the last five years. We have invested historic amounts of money in our infrastructure, and that is in every region of our country. That is what I mean in terms of a bit of variation.
The member also made reference to the infrastructure bank, saying it has not completed anything. Well, the infrastructure bank is relatively new and has to review and approve projects first, let alone get some of them completed. To try to give a false impression that the Government of Canada, over the last number of years, has not done anything on infrastructure is just wrong.
Let me continue with the motion we have before us. The motion tries to give a false impression that we in the Liberal Party, in particular the Government of Canada, do not understand the issue of income inequality and have not made any policy decisions to address that issue.
It was interesting. My colleague and friend from Kingston posed a question to the member for Winnipeg Centre. I thought it was a good question. The member was criticizing the Government of Canada because we are apparently in the pockets of big corporations. I must say, to both the member for Winnipeg Centre and the member from Thompson, that this is not the case. I will tell members that when I sat inside the Manitoba legislature, it was not once, not twice, but I believe five or six times that the New Democratic government in Manitoba reduced corporate taxes. That was the provincial NDP, and there is a difference. The NDP at the provincial level has been in government, and every one of those governments often reflected the opposite of what the NDP will preach in the House of Commons.
Corporations do play a very important role in our society, but some try to give a false impression that we are in the pockets of corporations. I can tell colleagues that former NDP premiers Gary Doer and Greg Selinger, based on what I have heard, were more in the pockets of corporations than this government is. In fact, taking a look at our election laws, there are limitations on what a corporation can give, which is nothing. It is individuals who can give.
Members take shots at the big banks. I am no friend of the big banks; I would like to see banks pay more too. However, they try to give an impression that with big banks, we mean a handful of elite, wealthy people, which is not the case.
If we look at it, we will find that these big banks and the people they are paying dividends to often are unions. They are people who have invested in banks because there is a relatively high rate of return. I believe it is an exceptionally high rate of return during the pandemic, and this is something the government is looking into. The good news is that the budget is not too far away. The 2022-23 budget is just on the horizon, and I know members are very keenly waiting to hear from the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, who has done a phenomenal job in bringing us through this pandemic on a number of fronts.
We will have the opportunity in the House to present to Canadians a budget that we can all be proud of, a budget that will reflect a lot of the discussions that have taken place, whether it was with constituents and members of Parliament, who were used as a vehicle to communicate priority issues, or the many stakeholders. This government, particularly the Prime Minister, has made it very clear to all members, at least within the Liberal caucus, that we want individual members of Parliament to bring constituents' interests and thoughts to Ottawa, not vice versa. As a result, when the 2022-23 budget is unveiled, we will see a budget for all Canadians in all regions of our country that will have an impact and that will see a better equalization of income, something we have seen from day one.
Need I remind members that one of the first pieces of legislation we brought forward was reducing the tax rate for Canada's middle class? A good portion of that reduction, the money to facilitate that reduction, was a special tax on Canada's wealthiest 1%. If that is not directly what New Democrats are hoping to accomplish with this motion, I do not know what is.
I would remind members in the chamber that the Conservatives voted against the tax cuts for the middle class and, surprisingly, New Democrats voted against the additional tax on Canada's wealthiest 1%. We are the only party from day one, since we have been in government, that has consistently come up with financial initiatives, legislative initiatives and policy decisions to ensure that Canada's middle class and those aspiring to be a part of it have advanced their interests.
We have gone beyond that. When we talk about putting money in the pockets of people in need, one only needs to look at some of the other initiatives we have taken, such as the Canada child benefit program, a program that, shortly after becoming government in 2015, we retooled and changed. Millionaires no longer qualified.
Instead, we put more money toward those who had a higher need. Not only did we reorganize it in that sense, we also put in hundreds of millions of additional dollars to ensure this program would be there for families in all regions of Canada. That made a difference in a very real and tangible way. All one needs to do is look at children in poverty.
I have cited this in the past. Well over $9 million a month comes to Winnipeg North as a direct result. I can say, to the best of my knowledge, that there are no billionaires in Winnipeg North. Over $9 million a month, and probably over $10 million but I do not know that for a fact, is coming from Ottawa to support children because of a policy change that was made a number of years ago under this administration. Hundreds of children in Winnipeg North have been lifted out of poverty as a direct result.
I can talk about the substantial guaranteed annual income increase that was given shortly after the 2015 election. Once again, in Winnipeg North, as in every riding in this country, hundreds of seniors were lifted out of poverty as a direct result of a government policy. The Government of Canada, the Prime Minister, ministers and the caucus understood the importance of supporting Canadians in a very real and tangible way, which lifted seniors out of poverty by the thousands.
Those are the types of policies that matter and have been making a difference.
If we look at some more recent things, we passed legislation to deal with the issue of housing. Here is a tax change that not only brings in more revenue for the Government of Canada but also has a positive spinoff on housing prices. We all know that there is a huge demand from abroad to invest in Canada. One of those investments we have seen over the years is in housing, such as condominiums. Whether it is in downtown Toronto, downtown Vancouver or municipalities throughout Canada, individuals are purchasing these properties. Many of them remain empty. I am quite surprised by the thousands of units, worth millions of dollars, that sit completely empty.
Just a couple of months ago, we brought in legislation, which I believe the Conservatives voted against, that would ensure that the owners of those vacant properties being used in that sense would have to pay an annual tax. Members have talked about the increases to housing prices. A direct result of that policy change would have a positive impact in two ways. It would generate additional revenue, which is a good thing, because our current Minister of Housing likes to spend money, and we are all glad about that. He can use those millions of dollars that would be generated, because we understand how important the non-profit housing sector is. There are many among my caucus colleagues who talk about initiatives such as housing co-ops, investing in non-profit housing banks and other opportunities in housing. In fact, the minister is out extensively consulting on how the national government can continue to invest in housing.
We understood the importance of housing, not just during the pandemic, but even prepandemic. That is why we brought in the first-ever national housing strategy. It was not just a piece of paper. It was supported by billions of dollars over a period of time. We are talking about hundreds of millions of dollars subsidizing tens of thousands of units in every region of this country. I have witnessed first-hand the Minister of Housing come to Winnipeg, both physically and virtually for a number of different announcements. Yes, there is a need for us to do more on that front. We do not need to be told that. We understand that. That is the reason why we continue to look at ways in which we can enhance housing. We want it to be affordable, but let us recognize that it cannot just be Ottawa.
When we talk about inflation or some of the issues that are of great concern to Canadians, we need to incorporate the idea that we need to work with provinces and municipalities. Many of my colleagues were mayors and councillors, and they understand the process of going through a municipality to get a house developed, built or even renovated. Municipalities have to play a role, and so do provinces, as provinces are often administering the non-profit housing units. Governments need to work together. For the first time in a long time, we have a national government that is spending historic amounts of money on housing. We have a federal government that wants to play a role, and we will play a role, and we will look for partners in order to make that happen.
With regard to resolving the issue of tax fairness, we have now put through a budget that increases the basic personal exemption by thousands of dollars. What does that actually mean in a real sense? In a real sense, it means that individuals will not have to pay taxes on a larger percentage of their income. I could be a little out on this, but I think that by the end of 2023, it is going to be something in the neighbourhood of $15,000 that one would not have to pay federal tax on. Provinces will do what they do, but hopefully many of them will see what we are doing and follow suit. This would help greatly, and for those who are working so hard at the lower end, it enhances their opportunity to keep money in their pockets.
When we see the actions that are taking place, whether five or six years ago when we brought in the tax break for the middle class and put in the extra tax for the wealthiest, or today with the annual tax for those people who are investing in homes in Canada, I like to think that we understand the imbalance that is there, and we are taking action to rectify it as much as we can. If we take a holistic approach to what this government has done over the last six or seven years, I would argue that we have seen a government that has done more to address income inequality than any other government in the last number of generations.
We have seen this in the policy decisions that have been made, not only directly through taxation but also in the child care benefit. I believe Ontario is the only province that has not signed on, but hopefully it will. Who benefits the most under that program? Ultimately Canada as a nation does, but individuals are also going to be better empowered to go into the workforce and do the other things that are necessary, whether it is in the workforce or in volunteer work. Canadians are fantastic volunteers. One only needs to take a look at the pandemic.
However, we are creating opportunities that were not there. We have seen how well the child care program worked in the province of Quebec, and it is nice that we live in a federal system with other provinces so that we could duplicate that idea it and turn it into a national program. In this way, people will be in a better position to be able to go to work, and we know that because we have seen the impact it has had in the province of Quebec.
However, the importance of taxation has not been lost on us. What my constituents want is the same as what all our constituents want. They understand the need for taxes, but they want their taxes to be fair and they want their tax dollars to be spent wisely. These are the things that we as a government, through accountability and transparency, strive for every day.
In fact, we have invested close to a billion dollars in additional financial resources for Canada revenue to look at ways in which some of these wealthier people in particular are getting away with not paying their fair share of taxes. We have given hundreds of millions of dollars to CRA to ensure that there is a sense of fair taxation across the country.
I am very optimistic, given what we have seen from Canadians over the last couple of years, that our future is positive and that we have reason to be optimistic. I look forward to the 2022-23 budget, because I know it will be a true reflection of what Canadians want, and it will be something we can all be proud of.
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