44th Parl. 1st Sess.
April 26, 2022 10:00AM
- Apr/26/22 11:47:43 a.m.
- Watch
Madam Speaker, anyone listening to the member opposite could very easily get quite depressed. I do not think that Canadians need to be as worried as the member tries to portray.
A lot can be twisted around in the numbers, so let me share a couple of reality numbers for jobs. Jobs are important, and today our unemployment is at record lows. We would have to go back generations to get a lower unemployment rate. Do not quote me on this, but I believe it is right around 5.5%. It was many years ago that we had that sort of unemployment rate.
When we talk about the issue of inflation, which gets a lot of airtime here, it is important to recognize that there is a global situation, whether it is the pandemic or the war in Russia. The inflation rate is higher in the U.S. It is also higher, in terms of the average, in the European Union countries.
Would the member provide his thoughts on those two statistics?
172 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Apr/26/22 1:02:01 p.m.
- Watch
Madam Speaker, we cannot use “just” anymore. I will try to fix that somehow. I will learn some new English.
One thing for certain is that it is inflation, and it is a huge problem that is at the highest levels in over 30 thirty years. These spend-DP-Liberals can go on and say that this is a global crisis and things like that, but it is a lot of foolishness. Quite frankly, I do not believe for one second that my constituents are terribly concerned about what is going on specifically in Germany, France or anywhere else that these spend-DP-Liberals want to talk about. That is nonsensical.
When they call me, email me or drop into the office, they are concerned about how they are going to put food on their tables here in Canada, which is the government's responsibility and the Prime Minister's responsibility, not just any other problem. They are concerned about the highest inflation that Canadians have seen in over 30 years. They are concerned about the prices of everything they see, from home heating fuel to groceries to gasoline for their vehicles, which go up on an almost weekly basis. To get to the question that Daniel would like answered, perhaps by the Prime Minister, what is the government going to do about the affordability crisis that Canadians are now facing?
Finally, Canadians ask me every day how we are going to pay the incredible debt that these spend-DP-Liberals continue to accumulate. I look back to August 1994 when my eldest daughter was born. At that point, an individual's share of the debt was $16,000, and today that has now ballooned to $31,255. Of course, if we want to use approximate math, that is double the amount in 28 years. As this number continues to climb, there is a major concern I hear from everyday Canadians with this out-of-control spending: How are we going to saddle these Canadians with that as they go forward in the future and cannot even afford a house?
To summarize, this budget has failed everyday Canadians like Daniel, important and vital industries such as agriculture, future Canadians like my eldest daughter, who are going to be saddled with this huge national debt, and, finally, all Nova Scotians. There was next to no mention of my home province in the budget and certainly nothing of substance for the constituents of Cumberland—Colchester. Therefore, it will come as no surprise that I have no confidence in the government and there is no way I can support the Prime Minister's budget 2022.
445 words
All Topics
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Apr/26/22 1:04:40 p.m.
- Watch
Madam Speaker, it does not surprise me that the member is not voting for the budget. Wow, what a surprise. I can tell members that, unlike the Conservative members, we recognize that there has been a pandemic, a world pandemic, which brought on the need to spend billions of dollars, not only here in Canada, but also around the world.
We also recognize, as one of his former members recognized, that there is a war happening in Ukraine, and there are economic and world conditions that have actually led to, yes, inflation. Compared to the United States, our inflation rate is less. Compared to many European Union countries, our inflation rate is less than theirs.
Does the member not believe that he is misleading Canadians when he tries to give a blanket statement, trying to give the impression that Canadians need to be frantically worried because of inflation and not necessarily putting it into a proper perspective?
157 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Apr/26/22 1:06:40 p.m.
- Watch
Madam Speaker, my colleague has raised legitimate concerns about the public debt and inflation. However, there is a concern that he neglected to mention, and that is climate change.
I do not know whether Daniel in his riding is concerned only about inflation, but he should also be concerned about global warming. Many of my constituents find the situation untenable. It is going to have a major adverse impact on their future. I would like to hear what my colleague has to say about this.
I have a quick question to ask him: If we want to fight both public debt and global warming, would it not be appropriate to halt the $2.5 billion in the budget to support the gas and oil industries? I am sure he will agree with me on that.
135 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Apr/26/22 1:35:01 p.m.
- Watch
Madam Speaker, I congratulate my colleague on her speech. It is a pleasure to sit with my colleague on the natural resources committee.
It is no coincidence that the price of a house has doubled in Canada, because the government has doubled the debt as well in the years the Liberals have been in government. It is a parallel, and it is not a plan for the future.
Prime Minister Harper was the first to apologize to first nations for the indignities that had taken place, so there is room for all governments to be involved. The current government is not the first one to do any of these things.
Liberals talk about the money they are putting into housing. We are still tremendously short of housing in Canada, yet inflation has doubled and the price of a house has gone to $840,000 from $420,000. How can they sustain this and say that the spending they have done is not causing inflation, when the Parliamentary Budget Officer himself has indicated that only a third of their spending has gone toward the pandemic?
184 words
All Topics
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Apr/26/22 2:52:27 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, the Governor of the Bank of Canada admitted that inflation is much higher than expected. When asked to explain how to protect Canada's finances, he said, “don't spend too much”.
We know that the Prime Minister does not think about monetary policy, but Conservatives do and Canadians do, and Canadians are the ones paying the price for the Prime Minister's monetary illiteracy: higher grocery bills, gas bills and interest rates. Will the Prime Minister recognize that his reckless borrowing and spending is making things worse for Canadians?
94 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Apr/26/22 2:53:52 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, inflation hit 6.7% last month, a 31-year high and well above the Bank of Canada's predictions. Canadians are already struggling to pay their bills, fill up at the pump and put food on the table. Unfortunately, budget 2022 failed to provide any credible solutions, and with the extensive, unfocused spending, it is only going to get worse. The simple fact is that Canadians cannot afford this Liberal-NDP government.
When will the minister acknowledge this cost of living crisis we are living in and work on real solutions?
93 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Apr/26/22 2:54:30 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, we are seeing inflation rise right around the world, and we know that this is due to the war in Ukraine, among other things.
However, I would like to remind the Conservatives that in our budget we have put forward a plethora of measures in order to ensure that housing would be more affordable and to ensure that child care would be more affordable. Prior to that, we lowered taxes for the middle class on two occasions, and the Conservatives voted against it. We have helped raise 300,000 children out of poverty, thanks to the Canada child benefit, and we are supporting vulnerable seniors with an increase in our supports for them. We are there for Canadians.
120 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Apr/26/22 2:55:12 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, inflation is at a 31-year high. Canadians are suffering under rising prices for gas, groceries and housing. A good way to help Canadians is by ensuring that the relationship with the U.S. remains strong and stable, yet the government continues to disappoint: tariffs on our lumber, threats to our auto sector and the most punishing buy American provisions we have ever seen. We know that the Prime Minister likes to fly around for photo ops and surfing trips. Maybe he could add a few flights to D.C. to the flight plan.
My question for the Prime Minister is this: When will he get to work?
110 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Apr/26/22 2:56:19 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, with the rising cost of food, rent and gas, which are all basic necessities for Canadians, inflation sits at 6.7%, and this government is completely failing to manage its spending. Even worse, it is increasing the taxes that it created.
Meanwhile, in France, the inflation rate is 4.7%. Why? It is because the government decided to freeze price rises.
Why did the government increase the Liberal tax on carbon when it could have given Canadians a break?
81 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Apr/26/22 3:15:28 p.m.
- Watch
Mr. Speaker, it is, as always, a privilege to rise in the House to share the concerns of the people of Perth—Wellington and bring those concerns to this place.
This year's budget was the third opportunity the Liberals had to address the real concerns of Canadians. Since the election, they could have addressed the concerns of Canadians in the fall economic statement, in the implementation act for the fall economic statement or in this budget. Sadly, the issues I am hearing about every day in phone calls, emails and conversations at community events were not addressed by the Liberals in this year's budget.
Canadians are feeling the impact of inflation. I hear from families who have lost hope on ever owning their own home, and I hear from others who are struggling to find rental housing that is not only affordable but also large enough for their families. I hear from seniors who have worked hard their entire lives and who are now struggling to pay the bills. They are on fixed incomes that are stagnating while the costs of groceries, utilities and housing keep going up. Their costs keep rising, but their incomes remain that same. That is the cruelty of inflation.
No one saw any humour in the government’s April Fools' Day joke to once again raise the carbon tax, which is a tax that impacts the people in the lowest income spectrum the most. These are the people who can least afford to pay it.
The government had options that could help Canadians. It could have taken the advice of our Conservative motion to temporarily remove the GST portion of the HST to give all Canadians a temporary 5% reduction on the cost of gas. Any Canadian who has filled up their tank recently knows the impact of $1.84 per litre and the impact it has on families commuting to work or taking their kids to soccer practice or baseball practice. The government did not take our advice and our modest, common sense proposal was voted down by the Liberal government and the other opposition parties.
I am very proud to represent a strong rural and agriculture-based community. Here in Canada, one in eight jobs is linked to the agriculture and agri-food sector. This generates 140 billion dollars' worth of economic activity each and every year. In Perth—Wellington alone, agriculture is a billion-dollar industry, with grain farmers cultivating some of the most fertile farmland in the world. Dairy, beef, pork, egg, chicken and other farmers provide high-quality food to feed our communities, our country and the world.
Anyone who tuned in to hear the Liberal government's budget speech would be sorely disappointed to know that this economic powerhouse of agriculture was not even mentioned in the finance minister's budget speech. In her 3,000-word speech, she did not once mention agriculture or agri-food, farmers and farm families, or food processing and rural communities. Not once was this economic powerhouse of agriculture and agri-food mentioned in the Minister of Finance's speech.
When a speech is used to highlight the priorities of a government, what is left unsaid is awfully telling. Farmers and farm families quite literally feed the world. They work hard, and they innovate each and every day. Thousands of farmers are up early every morning, while most of the country is still sleeping, making sure the food supply chain remains intact.
Agriculture has always been a challenging field. There are unknowns no one can predict. What farmers do not need is the uncertainty caused by their own government. Even before the Russian invasion of Ukraine, fertilizer costs and supply issues were a problem. This included the ongoing efforts of the Liberal government to limit the fertilizer farmers use on their crops.
On March 2, when the government announced sanctions that were supposed to target Vladimir Putin and his thugs, it was Canadian farmers who were left feeling the greatest impact. As we approach the spring planting season, farmers and agribusinesses still do not have certainty from the government on whether the 35% tariff will apply on fertilizer purchased pre-March 2, but delivered after that date. In a case like this, the farmer and only the farmer is feeling the impact, not Vladimir Putin and his thugs.
No one is disagreeing with the need for sanctions against Putin, but those sanctions should not penalize those who prepurchased fertilizer last fall and now are being left with the bill. The budget was an opportunity to provide clarity on this issue and, once again, the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food and the Minister of Finance failed to do so.
The cost of fertilizer is not the only challenge facing Canadian farmers. There is also the cost of the carbon tax, as I mentioned earlier. For farmers there are very few, if any, alternatives to the use of carbon-based fuels to dry their grain or to transport grain to elevators for export around the globe. However, the Liberals continue to unfairly and punitively charge the carbon tax in situations where there are simply no alternatives, and the cost simply accrues to those who feed our country. Canadian farmers have long used the most sustainable measures to protect and preserve our land and national resources, but while they are doing the work necessary, they do not get the credit, and they are actually penalized for their work.
Once again, there is an easy solution. My friend and colleague, the member for Huron—Bruce, wisely introduced a private member's bill that would exempt farmers for the responsible use of fuel on their farms. Bill C-234 would achieve this. In fact, a year ago, a bill similar to this one, Bill C-206, passed through this House and was well on its way to passing through the other place when the Liberals dissolved Parliament for the unnecessary summer election.
In a perfect world, we could have passed Bill C-206 a year ago, but the next best option would be to pass Bill C-234. The budget could have done this. Sadly, it failed to do so. Farmers and farm families deserve better than what they are receiving from the Liberal government. For the sake of our food sovereignty and food security, they must do better.
In the six and a half years I have been in this place, at almost every opportunity in almost every budget, I have raised the concerns about rural broadband in my riding and in rural communities across the country, but these past two years especially have shown the necessity of reliable Internet service. The Liberal government has been slower than dial-up. Every day I hear from constituents who cannot complete their education, grow their businesses, communicate with loved ones or even access mental health services because the high-speed Internet infrastructure is not there. Let me highlight that point. They cannot access mental health services because they do not have high-speed Internet.
I have heard from constituents who have had to drive to a Tim Hortons parking lot to use its Wi-Fi to access services. In 2022, this is not acceptable. In fact, yesterday in the House, we heard the Minister of Rural Economic Development highlight their plans to get Canadians connected by 2030. Eight years from now is not good enough. It is not good enough for the families in Perth—Wellington, and it is not good enough for the rural communities across this country who need reliable high-speed Internet for their families, their communities and their country.
I know my time is running thin, but I must highlight the issue of housing. In my community and in communities across Perth—Wellington, housing has simply become unaffordable. In some places we have seen an increase of 30%, 40%, 50% or more in the cost of housing, year over year. In a single year this has driven up the cost to where families are just priced out of the marketplace. There are things we could do. We could use the advice of the Ontario Home Builders’ Association and its efforts. It has stated that one million new homes need to be built in the next 10 years. We need to work toward that outcome. We need to remove the red tape blocking communities and home builders so families and communities can grow.
Sadly, this budget has left out rural communities. It has left out rural communities in Perth—Wellington and across the country. That is why I will be voting against this budget.
1449 words
All Topics
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Apr/26/22 3:41:48 p.m.
- Watch
Madam Speaker, respectfully, the hon. member makes a fairly obvious error in his economic analysis. He is talking about the fact that the Bank of Canada controls monetary policy, but he misses the fact that fiscal policy can impact inflation as well. It is fairly well established. The first-year economics professor he spoke about at the beginning of his speech could, I am sure, confirm the fact that monetary levers and fiscal levers can both impact inflation. In fact, the expansionary fiscal policy being pursued by the government is having a significant impact on inflation.
Of course, it is also important to acknowledge that the Bank of Canada, as a Crown corporation, acts within the general ambit of established policy on things like the inflation target, which is set by government. The member and other members of the government who try to absolve the government of responsibility for inflation by saying that it is just about the independent Bank of Canada are missing the obvious fact that the fiscal decisions of the government do impact inflation as well.
Will the member acknowledge that fact and call his government to account for its fiscal decisions?
195 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Apr/26/22 3:47:00 p.m.
- Watch
Madam Speaker, I have a brief follow-up to my earlier exchange with the member. I think it is clear there are a variety of government policies at the fiscal level that are impacting inflation, and that impact is especially strong at this point as we are seeing the highest level of inflation in decades. This is at a point when we have very much come out of the depths of the pandemic.
There is also a question of the target the federal government sets and how seriously it sets that target, because the Bank of Canada operates within the target that has been set by the federal government. It is ultimately the government that establishes the policy framework that governs the way the Bank of Canada, which is an independent but Crown corporation, operates.
To re-emphasize my previous question, does the member acknowledge that the policy choices of the current government are driving inflation and making things more expensive, and that it could be making different policy choices that would address this problem of inflation and the rising prices of goods that people are seeing?
187 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Apr/26/22 3:48:12 p.m.
- Watch
Madam Speaker, as I recall, the framework for the Bank of Canada in terms of its inflation target has not really changed much over the past few years. It is still aiming for a 2% inflation rate, so I do not see that there has been a radical change at that level. It is very important to recognize that the Bank of Canada is independent.
I am quite fearful that private member's bills such as the one introduced by the former leader of the Conservative Party somehow try to shift the blame to an independent institution, impugn it and attack its credibility in the eyes of Canadians. I think that would be a great threat to the economic policy in this country.
123 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- Apr/26/22 4:06:10 p.m.
- Watch
Madam Speaker, I certainly would appreciate a government that takes the needs of the disability community very seriously. There are many seniors in my riding who suffer from disabilities as well. What I would say is that whenever we talk about inflation or gas prices, heating prices and grocery prices going up, we have to see that it impacts those who are on a fixed income the most, such as those living with disabilities or seniors who are living on modest pension incomes.
If one only has a fixed amount of money per month to pay for rent, transportation, groceries and any increase in inflation, those folks are hurt the most. That is why we are railing on the government every day to do something about the cost of living because those who are in the lowest economic threshold are suffering the most. It is a very serious issue. That is why we continue to raise it every day in question period.
162 words
- Hear!
- Rabble!
- add
- star_border
- share
- menumenu
- notificationsnotifications
- home
- mailmail
- searchsearch
