44th Parl. 1st Sess.
May 6, 2022 10:00AM
Madam Speaker, the Conservative Party really needs to get its head into the world given what is actually taking place. It was not that long ago that the Conservative Party was criticizing the federal government because the price of oil was too low. When it was 88¢ a barrel, the Conservatives were saying it was too low and were blaming the government. Today, they are blaming the government because the price of oil is too high. They do not seem to understand that it is called the world price of oil, much as there are things happening in the world today, whether it is the war in Ukraine or the pandemic. All of these factors play a role in things such as inflation.
Will the member recognize that the world does have an impact, even on Canada?
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- May/6/22 10:18:08 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, the budget is a big document. It has a very nice cover, and it spends an awful lot of money. This year, Canadians are going to have an incredibly tough time getting by.
One of the questions for the previous speaker was whether it was appropriate for the budget document to have so many things jammed in it that did not address the raison d'être of the budget. No, it is not appropriate. The government had one job with this budget, and that was to make sure that Canadians could afford to live. We have seen, over the past two years, incredibly challenging times that were met with an incredible response, including incredible sums of money being spent by the government. However, there is $57 billion in new spending at a time when the economy does not need more stimulus, but Canadians need a break. We are not seeing that. Canadians were looking for ways that the government was going to make their lives more affordable.
We have the highest inflation that we have seen in more than three decades: it has climbed up over 6.7%. We have not seen an inflationary hit like that since the introduction of the GST. What does this look like for families? We hear the government's response to the pleas, cries and assertions of the opposition that Canadians need help, and government members will say it is a global phenomenon and our net debt-to-GDP is pretty good when we compare it with other countries'. That does nothing to help Canadians who are going to spend, on average, $1,000 more this year to feed their families. That word salad will still leave people with empty bellies.
The price of gas in this part of the country, eastern Ontario, is going to climb over $1.90 a litre between today and tomorrow. It is not a question of if gas is going to hit $2 a litre, but of which day it is going to hit $2 a litre. What does that look like for someone who has to drive to work? What does that look like for someone who depends on their vehicle for so many things, especially in parts of rural Canada? In rural eastern Ontario, in my community of Leeds—Grenville—Thousand Islands and Rideau Lakes, people have to drive to get to a doctor's appointment, to get to work and to take their kids to school or recreational activities, to say nothing about social visits. It means that they cannot afford to. We also live in one of the world's coldest climates, and the price of home heating is going up, as well.
What is in this budget document? Is there a GST holiday for Canadians to help them when more than half of Canadians, nearly two-thirds, are within $200 of insolvency and not being able to pay their bills? That would jeopardize their ability to keep a roof over their heads, to feed their families and themselves. No, it is not in there. With energy prices soaring and hitting the average Canadian especially hard, is there a break on the carbon tax increase, which does nothing to stop the necessity to drive? It is not correcting a bad behaviour. They are good people doing good things. No, there is no break on the carbon tax increase in there for them.
It is incredibly disheartening to see this document from the government after so much goodwill was given, by all members in this place, to support a team Canada approach in helping Canadians get through the pandemic. Canadians now need a team Canada approach to support them when life is so unaffordable.
Before the pandemic, the provinces and territories were asking for something in the range of $28 billion in increased health care dollars, and during the pandemic, the Prime Minister said we would talk about health care spending when the pandemic was over.
I think that COVID is going to be with us for a long time and this is, arguably, the first post-pandemic budget, but the Liberals have not even started the conversation with the provinces about stable and predictable health care funding.
Instead, they introduced a separate bill to spend $2 billion to address backlogs on surgical wait times and delayed and cancelled care and treatment appointments that are devastating Canadians with unbelievably negative results for their personal health. They have tied that $2-billion commitment into this bill.
We had hallway health care across this country, and hospitals operated at between 95% and 130% capacity before COVID. Instead of introducing new programs that are going to tax a health care system that is already experiencing a health care human resource shortage, and there is nothing to address that health care human resource shortage in the budget, they are putting in new programs that the provinces did not ask for. Health care is solely their responsibility, and a $2-billion one-time payment is supposed to stand in the place of meaningful consultations between the Government of Canada, the Prime Minister and the provinces' premiers.
That is not partnership. It is not co-operation. It is certainly not going to give Canadians any comfort. Frankly, Canadians have been very patient over the past two years, and as I said the results have been of varying degrees. They have been terrible for those who had delayed, missed and cancelled treatment and care appointments and surgeries.
What does this budget do? We hear the parliamentary secretary to the government House leader say that it does a lot. It does a lot to make sure that the government gets to stay in power through its deal with the NDP. Voters are going to get an NDP budget, having voted Liberal.
It is incredibly disingenuous of the government to say that they are putting Canadians first when what we have seen is the same thing we have seen from the government time and again: that is a Prime Minister who will do anything to stay in power. If questions get too hot in committee, he prorogues Parliament. When all members of the House agree not to have an election during the pandemic and polls look good for the PM, he calls an election.
When there is a real opportunity to do right by Canadians, and to give them a break on this affordability crisis that we are facing, the Prime Minister saw a great opportunity to hitch his wagon to the NDP and continue for another year to hold on to power, instead of doing what Canadians elected us all to do. That is to look out for our neighbours, look out for each other and not look out for our own self-interest, which is what we have seen with this.
It is very disappointing, but I can assure members that the official opposition is going to continue to stand up for Canadians. We are going to continue to remind the government that on Main Street, life is getting more unaffordable, and even though they are getting their advice from Bay Street, we are going to be here fighting for Canadians every single day.
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- May/6/22 11:31:00 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, inflation is skyrocketing under the Liberal government and wages are not keeping up. Statistics Canada said hourly wages increased 3.3% from April 2021, which is well short of the 6.7% inflation rate. The central bank raised its benchmark rate half a point in April, and the governor hinted that he would likely do so again.
The Liberal government is destroying our economy and only making life more expensive for Canadians. When will the government take this inflation crisis seriously and provide real relief for Canadians?
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- May/6/22 11:31:42 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, the budget that we have just tabled includes many measures that would put money directly into the pockets of Canadians. I am thinking of the one-time payment for all Canadians having difficulty accessing affordable housing. Our continued funding for the Canada child benefit is indexed to inflation.
Based on what I have been hearing in the House from the Conservatives, and in their leadership debate last night, they have absolutely nothing concrete to propose to Canadians in order to help them face the cost-of-living increase that is due to the war in Ukraine.
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- May/6/22 11:33:18 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, with the inflation rate at a 30-year high, Canadians are struggling to make ends meet. To make matters worse, Service Canada cannot keep pace with EI claims and fraud cases.
Many of my constituents have not received a cheque since November due to delays in fraud investigations. These are Canadians who have no money left and cannot wait any longer. The mental and physical well-being of these Canadians is at stake.
When will the government add the resources needed to finally reduce these interminable delays?
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- May/6/22 11:34:24 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, inflation is affecting everyone and every sector. The price of diesel is verging on $3 a litre. It is awful. The impact is real, and it is especially hard on farmers who rely on fuel for transportation and for their farming equipment. They were being choked by Liberal taxes, and now they are being suffocated by them. The government blames external factors, but in reality, the government is responsible.
Will the government do what it promised and truly help farmers?
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- May/6/22 11:35:03 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for the question.
The war in Ukraine is a major cause of inflation and it is serious. My heart goes out to the farmers.
The Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food recently made announcements about measures to help farmers pay the fees tied to these price increases. We are working on the issue of fertilizers, because we know that it is important for the farmers. It is important to get fertilizer into Canada, so that has been done. We are now working with the sector to ensure that the fertilizers are available at a fair price.
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