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Decentralized Democracy

House Hansard - 43

44th Parl. 1st Sess.
March 22, 2022 10:00AM
Context: House Hansard - 43 - Mar/22/22
Mr. Larry Maguire (Brandon—Souris, CPC)
  • Mar/22/22 10:23:39 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for Abbotsford for moving this opposition day motion to give some immediate relief to Canadians. Life is getting expensive. Inflation is at the highest point in a generation. Every time people fill up at a local gas station or go through the checkout at the grocery store, they are constantly reminded that their paycheques and pensions do not go as far as they did once. While we have been raising these issues for months, I cannot point to a single policy change the Liberal government has enacted to respond to this cost of living crisis. Instead, the NDP-Liberals made a backroom deal with the NDP to hold on to power until 2025. This is no benefit to Canadians struggling to feed their families and pay their bills. I fear how bad it must get out there to finally shake the government out of its slumber. The bears are coming out of hibernation at this time of year, and I urge the Liberals to do the same. Time is of the essence and inaction is inexcusable. There are going to be a few more bumps, or perhaps potholes, along the way for Canadians, and I urge them to brace themselves and their wallets. The federal carbon tax is about to go up on April 1. According to the Canada Revenue Agency, the price increase translates to 8.8 cents per litre of gasoline for the regular consumer. Supply chains are struggling to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. As well, the war crimes committed by the Putin regime and the Russian military are not only killing thousands of innocent Ukrainians, but the impact of this illegal invasion is also being felt around the world. Its shock was immediately felt on global markets, such as in the price of energy and the price of commodities. While I am fully aware there are external pressures driving up the price of energy, as my colleague for Abbotsford just said, and the price of food, there is no excuse for the government not to act now. As we stand here in this chamber, I am thinking of the seniors who have reached out about how the prices of groceries, rent, utilities and putting gas in the car are getting out of reach. I am thinking of the parents in my riding who go into town to drop off their kids at school or to pick up their groceries. I am thinking of the students who must drive into the city to go to Brandon University or to Assiniboine Community College on a daily basis. No one is immune to the rising price of gas. The only difference is that some people can afford to pay extra hundreds of bucks per month, while most others are getting crushed by it. Seniors on fixed incomes and working families are struggling, and the government is drowning in its own talking points rather than proposing solutions. Just yesterday, when my colleague to the north asked about removing the GST from gas and diesel, the Liberal associate finance minister responded by talking about GDP growth. Try telling that to a pensioner unable to fill her car and see what she has say to the government. His answer reflected the typical Liberal arrogance and the disconnect to everyday Canadians. Maybe the minister should lecture a single mother about GDP growth while she cannot afford to drive her kids to music lessons or to sports practice. What an incredibly tone-deaf thing to say. It is insulting, it is arrogant and it shows how out of touch the Liberal government is with reality. With the price of gas skyrocketing in the past month, it has resulted in hardship and hard choices for families and seniors. Politicians must have their heads further in the sand than an ostrich to not recognize what is happening. The simplest and easiest way to provide some relief to my constituents and Canadians facing the rising cost of gas is to temporarily waive the GST from gas and diesel fuel. This policy could be implemented without needing to set up one new program. It would not involve growing the size of government or need people to fill out a form. It could be implemented quickly and would provide at least some relief for those who are struggling most. I want to outline some of the reasons why I am advocating for this motion and how it would impact the people I represent. I represent a vast rural constituency. From communities such as Alexander, Pierson, Elkhorn, Pilot Mound, Ninette, Medora, Goodlands, Waskada, Tilston, Kola, Minto, Lyleton, Baldur, Glenora, Belmont, Elgin and all the others, commuting and travelling long distances is just a fact of life. As a fierce defender of the rural way of life, it is my responsibility as a parliamentarian to ensure these voices are heard. While the city of Brandon is the largest community, it is also the regional hub where people drive in to from all over the region every single day. It is not unusual to drive 75 to 100 kilometres every day just to get to work or go to school. In some cases, someone who lives in one town must drive to the next town over to go to work. It is very common for a teacher, a nurse, a social worker or someone in the construction industry to drive from one town to another, or for a senior to need to drive to their doctor’s appointment or the pharmacy. These examples are not just unique to my constituency. They are happening in every province in the country. I fear that too many members of the government, this NDP-Liberal government, have no idea what happens in rural constituencies. I fear they have either forgotten, or they simply cannot or do not care, about the realities of living in a small community or on a farm. People drive pickup trucks to work, for their daily lives or simply due to the fact they need four-wheel drive for the blustery prairie storms that we get. There are no buses, subways or LRTs anywhere in sight. There are no taxis, Ubers or Lyfts. There are no bike lanes, but there are snowmobile trails. There are simply no public transit alternatives for people who must get from point A to point B in rural Canada. While the reward for living in rural Canada is too great to put into words, the consequence is paying for a lot of fuel. That is the cost of living in a small community, one that many do as they decide to raise their family or retire outside of a major town or city. It is not only the odometers in rural Canada that are worth mentioning but also the gap in earnings cannot be ignored. As Statistics Canada has reported, the variation in earnings from urban to rural areas accounts for a large part of the variation in provincial earnings. Some of the poorest regions in Canada are found in rural and remote communities. As well, I will complement my colleague on the doubling of the price of housing that has taken place under the Liberal government. It has not made it any easier for any Canadian. These are the people who are hardest and fastest hit with the rising price of fuel. They feel it immediately and have few options to avoid the rising cost of gas. They do not have the money to purchase a more fuel-efficient car. They do not have the luxury of working virtually, and they do not have the savings to get them through this prolonged cost-of-living crisis. Today we are pushing for one way to provide immediate relief, which would be to temporarily remove the GST from gas and diesel. For those wondering why we would target the GST and not other taxes, it is because, unlike other static taxes, the GST is also a tax on a tax. When the price of gas goes up and the carbon tax goes up, the GST goes up as well. Our proposal is targeted, timely and can be implemented in short order. It is just one way the government could acknowledge that our constituents are facing severe hardship due to the dramatic escalation in gas prices. In closing, the time for inaction and excuses is over. People are tired of hearing nothing but platitudes. This proposal is guaranteed to provide that tax relief. It acknowledges that the government can reduce the financial pinch that families and seniors are facing at the pump. It acknowledges that rural Canadians and those who must commute are struggling to get fuel in their cars and trucks to get to work or take care of their families. These are extraordinary circumstances. I call on all my colleagues to support this motion, to stand up and to vote to provide some relief for those seniors living on fixed incomes and those families struggling to put fuel in their cars or trucks.
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Context: House Hansard - 43 - Mar/22/22
Hon. Randy Boissonnault (Minister of Tourism and Associate Minister of Finance, Lib.)
  • Mar/22/22 2:46:13 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives would like to have Canadians think that a temporary pause on taxes would actually benefit Canadians at the pumps. We know that is simply not the case. We know that the oil companies would not pass those savings on to Canadians. On this side of the House, we are focused on real, long-term plans to address affordability, not cheap, political gas gimmicks.
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